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Playing in a band

Bluemoon

By Bluemoon
in The Gibson Lounge

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Andre S

Andre S

Posted
Posted
Come on...the gigging guitarists on this forum are seen as God by many....i think thats a terrible precedent to set for the younger folks.

 

Nope, not to me; someone who plays for a love of it, is just as cool as someone who makes money off of it.

 

If I ever start gigging whether I am or not getting paid, its all the same to me...

 

Except I'd use gigging money for more Gibsons!!!

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Californiaman

Californiaman

Posted
Posted
#-o

 

Now that's a first....

 

I've played in my high school marching band four years' date=' marched in Velvet Nights DBC and never saw a cello player[biggrin'] LOL!!!!

 

If that were to bear witness in today's media outlet, you would be a youtube star[blush]

 

It's actually from an old Woodie Allen movie.

That was the funniest thing watching him try to keep up with the marching band while attempting to play the cello. LOL!

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Cruznolfart

Cruznolfart

Posted
Posted
Nope' date=' not to me; someone who plays for a love of it, is just as cool as someone who makes money off of it.

 

If I ever start gigging whether I am or not getting paid, its all the same to me...

 

Except I'd use gigging money for more Gibsons!!![/quote']

 

OK, in fairness to those playing out, a lot of the things they have in common are DUE to their gigging. Not every pro or semi-pro, gigging musician is looking down his nose at others when they're swapping road tales, even though it's an exclusive club, not matter how you slice it. They're just talking about what they know and live. If you haven't done a load out after a two-night, 4 hour gig and had to immediately hit the road for your week-long resort booking 200 some-odd miles away, you don't know what it's like. They do.

 

And, although your passion for playing may never diminish, I'd bet you'd feel differently about playing out after 20 years of it. And I'd bet you might consider some bedroom pickers somewhat lightweights in terms of overall experience. Not lesser people or players, just less experienced. Just sayin'.

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Thundergod

Thundergod

Posted
Posted
Can someone send me the guitar player's manual that said that in order to qualify as a musician and a "real" guitar owner you have to gig? I don't think I received my copy.

 

 

So you don't have to gig and make a living out of music?#-o

 

You mean all this time I...

 

-owned a studio

-was sound enginer

-sometimes producer

-played as much as 5 gigs a week and sometimes 2 the same day/night

-built cabs' date=' pedalboards and cases

-recorded 3 albums

-gigged all around my (small country) and a couple of times outside my country

-played in front of as much as 15.000 people (onoly a couple of times but boy do othey count!)

 

...it was for nothing???

 

I was under the impression that only through that I would be considered a musician... those gibson forum snobs lied to me Blue... they lied to me man![crying (hug me):-k

 

 

Discalimer:

 

Of course it's a joke... I actually have done all of that but have never come here showing off and talking down to anyone because of it... I too find it lame that guys (twice my age that have done half of what I have done) come here and talk down to almost everyone who doesn't gig, trying to make them feel inferior or something.

 

I've always tried to be as nice and helpful when I get the chance and I've also tried to STFU when experienced or unexperienced people talk so I can learn from them, maybe some should try it, it feels great and you learn a lot.

 

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retrosurfer1959

retrosurfer1959

Posted
Posted

Interesting Post.

 

Been on both sides of this question I originally was a performing musician and artist doing fine art ceramics and jewlery as well as performing in a very busy bar and local area band all through college and a short time afterwards. While it was a blast and a lot of fun it was also damn hard work and the odds of making it big were slim to none just like they are for everyone. I also had a mother that danced ballet professionally again very successfully but not highly paid and on the road a average of three weeks out of every month so I saw what the artist life did to families.

 

I made a very specific choice to use the education and skills I learned in college and to make a living doing something that would pay enough for me to do what I love (art and music) without the worry of supporting myself and my family. Now at 50 I'm retired with a fairly amazing pension with benefits and a full music collection and art studio with the ability to do what I want every day without worry about the bills.

 

Did I do what was right or what was easy? Who knows but I'm not regretting the choices #-o

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Murph

Murph

Posted
Posted
OK' date=' in fairness to those playing out, a lot of the things they have in common are DUE to their gigging. Not every pro or semi-pro, gigging musician is looking down his nose at others when they're swapping road tales, even though it's an exclusive club, not matter how you slice it. They're just talking about what they know and live. If you haven't done a load out after a two-night, 4 hour gig and had to immediately hit the road for your week-long resort booking 200 some-odd miles away, you don't know what it's like. They do.

 

And, although your passion for playing may never diminish, I'd bet you'd feel differently about playing out after 20 years of it. And I'd bet you might consider some bedroom pickers somewhat lightweights in terms of overall experience. Not lesser people or players, just less experienced. Just sayin'. [/quote']

 

Or 30 years.

 

But Bluemoon makes a good point. I've learned a LOT from Tim, and I don't think he gigs but he's a wealth of knowledge when it comes to historics/customs, ect. ksdaddy is very helpfull about tech stuff.

 

This place is FULL of people who know way more about Gibsons than I do.

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Cruznolfart

Cruznolfart

Posted
Posted
Or 30 years.

 

But Bluemoon makes a good point. I've learned a LOT from Tim' date=' and I don't think he gigs but he's a wealth of knowledge when it comes to historics/customs, ect. ksdaddy is very helpfull about tech stuff.

 

This place is FULL of people who know way more about Gibsons than I do.

[/quote']

 

And that, my friend, brings this, more or less, full circle, thank you. We can all learn from each other. It took one of the newer, younger members to remind me that even the fresh blood brings knowledge, and all knowledge is good. Ruts are comfortable when we get older...at least I find them to be so. But they're also stifling. Learning something new is a great way to avoid getting too stuck.

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The Mick

The Mick

Posted
Posted

I started gigging at 14 I have never been in a cover band always been all originals. I spent a lot of time living in a van eating pork and beans. Hoping to make enough cash to gas up the van. I messed around with my dads guitar as long as I can remember but I learned how to play in bands gigging. I have never until now been an at home player and I find it very very hard.

 

I know a lot of you who play at home for your own enjoyment could probably play circles around me. I just took a different path and when I wasn't gigging I was a roadie and a stage hand. Here I an at 40 years old on disability and my body is that of a 60+ year old man who's had several heart attacks {no joke} My brain is damaged and yet I wouldn't change a thing I've done. I had a hell of a lot of fun but I'm a rock"n"roll cliché

 

I don't understand the superiority thinking at all. It's nothing but a different path through life. I'll be dead and buried while the guy who stayed home jamming for fun is still jamming at home having fun.

 

Sorry musta missed my meds today :-k#-o

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brundaddy

brundaddy

Posted
Posted
Or 30 years.

 

But Bluemoon makes a good point. I've learned a LOT from Tim' date=' and I don't think he gigs but he's a wealth of knowledge when it comes to historics/customs, ect. ksdaddy is very helpfull about tech stuff.

 

This place is FULL of people who know way more about Gibsons than I do.

[/quote']

 

What he said is why I check in now & again...

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rockman82

rockman82

Posted
Posted

You know, when i first started playing guitar, that was my dream to make it big. To be in a big band and be famous and all that crap. I was young then. I've put the situation in god's hands now. What ever i do in life will be fine with me. To be honest, i don't want all of that media attention bull crap that comes packaged with record labels. Sure i want to improve my guitar skill and do the best i can, but there's just more to life than just making it big. I've been thinking recently how i always wanted a Gibson SG Standard. Well they're great and all, but i could settle for a Gibson SG Special Faded, and still enjoy myself playing the guitar. I do want to own all kinds of guitars, Gibsons, Gretsches, Fenders, all that. But i want to start small and work my way up. I feel like i've gotten too much just by having a G400. Of course that's better than having a 310 or something.

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milod

milod

Posted
Posted

One problem I see in this thread several guys kinda hit on too: We're comparing eggs and apples.

 

1. Gigging forces a different type of discipline than the most dedicated home "improve the skills" work. That goes even if you're gigging and playing at home. It's like weight training for a football player. It's part of the same stuff, but...

 

2. "Cover bands?" I find it interesting how many timeless tunes have been played and taken into top 10s in the past by numerous artists. It wasn't so much "covering" the sound, but rather playing the same basic material differently. Most symphony orchestras by definition are almost always mostly "cover bands." Ditto a lotta jazz players.

 

3. Age and style, even among musicians. At 20 the guys in the band I played in were in the musicians union local. They hated rock, loved swing and pop of the 50s. Average age was maybe 50. They found out I'd also do some flamenco and asked me to perform at the annual party. Here's the stage, here's the mike, here's the audience and table and chairs and now we're going to see if we can make enough noise moving tables and chairs that you'll wanna go hide. Then our buds will go on stage and we'll all quiet down. BTW, that local is gone today.

 

4. I'd add the academia vs saloon and traveling band bunch. The "arts" folks don't want to admit anybody is a "real" musician unless they're part of the group. That leads to government grants for the in crowd, lack of respect for the in crowd from the saloon musicians whether full or part timers.

 

5. Yeah, bands in youth can largely tend to be "fun" even if paid. On the other hand, even the part time bands can mean a vital income source for a lotta "part time" musicians.

 

6. As for the tats, booze, drugs, etc... No thanks to the tats and drugs, and I felt that way as a somewhat rebellious rocker 40 years ago. If it trips your trigger, fine on the tats and piercings, but I've seen too many people damaged by too much drugs and booze on the road. Even the traveling "Christian" bands have the road wear of long drives with lousy sleeping conditions and an odd outside-inside lifestyle even if they're so "straight" they squeek. It's not an easy way to earn money even if you get lots of it.

 

Finally ... In spite of hard work, playing music is special. Even if you're a "guitar god," it's not an easy life and frankly the swoons by the audience don't pay bills and the real "status" is not that of many other professions. Even the part timer may be "looked down on" by coworkers 'cuz he plays saloons. But the playing itself is the reward. A good, tight band performance or the solo night you're somehow "on" is very special.

 

There is a call to making music, whether the discipline of the practice room or the discipline of the stage. Frankly I still do occasional gigs exactly because it is a different discipline.

 

I do consider myself a musician. A buddy who did years on the road and is a darned good musician sez that's not it. He considers himself an "entertainer." That's likely why he did what he did and I've done what I've done.

 

m

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bullet22

bullet22

Posted
Posted

A gigging "guitarist" (musician, or entertainer, whatever you like) popping his head up from the ramparts here.

 

There's playing guitar, then there's playing guitar when it counts.

 

Better guitarist....? No.

 

More accomplished musician...? I think so, yes.

 

And who's got the worse ego problem here..? The guys playing gigs who say "yes, give me my dues, I have to deliver - and I do", or the basement hobbyist who has a problem with that statement being made...?

 

As for gear discussions, I'd sooner listen to the guy that uses his guitar/amp in front of a few hundred people, than the guy who spends all night polishing his historic re-issue and cruising the forums for a chance to post pics of it.

 

Not everybody has the opportunity to play in front of a crowd - so I never spoken down to anyone that maintains they simply enjoy playing guitar for the love of it - but when people post that there is no additional skill in playing guitar on the front line, then I have to object.

 

I'm not particulalry proud of my skills as a guitarist (see the video below - I'm singing - my licks are nothing special), I am however very proud of the fact I get up there and put my a$$ on the line and open myself up to hecklers, bottle throwers..... yada yada, and I don't let nerves get the better of me. It's hard work.

 

Remember, some people take years to build up confidence to pull it off on stage - it shouldn't be overlooked.

 

Peace.

 

 

[YOUTUBE]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6jVKDbzeUCA[/YOUTUBE]

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Lowdown

Lowdown

Posted
Posted
Come on...the gigging guitarists on this forum are seen as God by many....i think thats a terrible precedent to set for the younger folks.

 

I guess it also depends on your definition of a gigging musician? Do cover bands count? They are just mimicking songs that were written by someone else...sure they get paid for their sets' date=' but does that mean they are really good? [/color']Sometimes....

 

So Shred...does that count your local Philharmonic Orchestra? :-k :- [confused]

 

Of course cover bands count. Sheeyit most musos started off as buskers/jammers blah blah blah...#-o

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FennRx

FennRx

Posted
Posted

And who's got the worse ego problem here..? The guys playing gigs who say "yes' date=' give me my dues, I have to deliver - and I do"[/i'], or the basement hobbyist who has a problem with that statement being made...?

 

 

 

lol guy number 1 for sure. basement guy has a problem with being forced to kiss ***. its a dependent reaction, not an outright independent demand. guy number 1 clearly craves recognition and attention, likely related to unresolved issues with his father. ok,i keed i keed.

 

i think you make some excellent points. however, the bedroom player's opinion is not invalidated simply because he doesnt "play when it count." just depends on the question being asked i suppose. the assumption that i cant play because i have an R9 is silly, but i have seen it made time and time again. i might never play a gig, but i bet i can keep up with some of the guys who are constantly talking **** about how great their skills are.

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bullet22

bullet22

Posted
Posted
i might never play a gig' date=' but i bet i can keep up with some of the guys who are constantly talking **** about how great their skills are.[/quote']

 

Let me just go on the record to say: I am a desperately mediocre guitarist

 

- but, gigging is a skill.

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