Ah, the kind of help from TSR that players and DMs alike can benefit from (as opposed to yet another book full of feats and prestige classes). TSR has started posting a series on helping you put bards to good use:
Being second best at everything makes you first best at nothing. In a party with a skull-cracking fighter, a fireball-throwing wizard, and the greatest pickpocketing rogue in three counties, finding your place in the party can be a little intimidating. Don’t let this distress you. There’s quite a few ways a bard can make his or her unique abilities felt.