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Am I too old and fat?

Muddslide

Muddslide

Feb 23, 2007
5,284
5,082
Mobile, Alabama
#1
You know, I haven't played a show in 10 years. Before that it was sporadic for a couple of years.

This is after over 10 years of gigging regularly and doing some recording.

I got out of it when I got married and became a father. No pressure from my wife (she's also a musician and is very supportive of any of my musical endeavors) but just due to time and money. In fact, I sold off all my electric gear and just a couple of days ago scored my first bass in 10 years.

I gotta say, I still got some chops, but I've been playing acoustic guitar and mandolin and stuff in the interim, so it's not like I haven't touched a fretboard in all that time.

Anyway, I really wanna get a rig together and play out again...or find some people to jam with.

But I'm almost 40 now. Chubbier. Not quite as energetic...

I don't really have an interest in being in some hipster band full of 20 year olds (not to knock that or people who do that scene), but I'm afraid I'll end up being relegated to some Eagles cover band full of other tubby older dudes wearing hawaiian shirts and man shorts.

Shoot me.

I still like a wide assortment of music, a lot of hard and heavy and experimental stuff. Not so much the lame white-boy blues in fedoras or Jimmy Buffet stuff guys of my age and girth seem to purvey.

I dunno...just griping I guess.

Also, I may soon be moving to a very small town in the middle of nowhere. It may be that I end up playing for nobody but myself. That seems a drag, but hell, I'm up for it.

Anyone got similar concerns?
 
#2
Sorry. What do you want? OF course the wourld and espescialy musicians are ageist, sexist, racist, egocentric and image obsessed.

On the other hand;- I believe and have found that, whatever your percieved handicap might be, there are 2 kinds of people;- Those who mind, and those who don't. There are always enough who don't.

Get on with it.
 
#5
Go for it.

I gave it up (playing live, etc.) in my early 20's. Like you, got busy, got fat, etc. Picked it up again about 5-6 years ago. Have played more in the last 5 years than I ever did in my 20's, and have only recently scaled back because I was getting tired of all of the rehearsal time and that it took me away from things I really wanted to do like play with my kid, etc. I'm still playing, just on a more sane level.

Point is--40 ain't old. (I'm over 40). It's more about attitude.

One of the bands I played in had two members in their 20's, two members in their 30's and two members in their 40's. No problem at all.

An additional consideration is that expectations for bass players are sometimes very different than for lead guitarists, lead singers, etc. We aren't expected to jump around like we're in our 20's, though some of us do. :)

Good luck.
 
#7
I turn 52 this week. I just joined a new band about three months ago after not gigging for almost ten years. We gig out an average of six nights a month, and I'm having a blast! In anticipation of the new gig, I started working out again and dropped twenty pounds in the past two months or so. I feel great, and am in the best shape I've been in for at least ten years.

Do yourself a favor and get in shape physically. Your body will thank you when you get in your 50's. And don't ever think your over the hill - there is no substitute for experience!

TJ
 
#9
when you get older, at least that's been my experience.

In my wild youth I was fortunate enough to play with a band that managed to get a record deal of sorts, did some touring, played all the LA hotspots, etc.

It was ALL about the look then. The music had to sell it of course, but if you didn't have the right clothes, the right hair, and so on you simply were not cool enough to hang with the kids.

Now that I'm middle aged and way past trying to be a rock star I play with a bar band, and it's strictly for fun. All 4 guys are very experienced (sorry Jimi :) so we sound tight and really nail down the groove.

THAT gets people moving and hollering, not how we look. Bottom line, if you play music that people like and you play it well that will get the crowd behind you and you'll have a great gig.

If you suck, THEN they'll call you fat old farts!
 
#12
I'm 47, slightly chunky, wearing bifocalis and bald and I'm still gigging, on the averge, 2-3 times a month - some months more. I'm working with musicians 10-15 years younger than me - guess they see the maturity and experience as a bigger plus than good looks. Playing in two different bands right now (rock and jazz) in addition to regularly playing for the gospel choir at my church. At times I wish I could get back into doing this full-time, but, to be honest, I'm glad I can look at this as fun rather than work and not have to worry whether or not I'm going to be able to pay bills because the dates aren't happening.
 
#17
Get yourself a huge black trench coat, some real dark shades, a fedora (black, of course), and a bright pink bass-no one will ever notice if youre fat or not.

Seriously, I',m hitting 50 this year, and I'm playing more often, and more steady now than I did back in my teens and twentys chasing the rock 'n roll dream. Of course, I'm not wearing the 6" platforms and my hair isnt touching my belt anymore either. And I lost my Angel Flights somewhere in the '80s, but I'm having a great time. And it means more now too. I'm playing in a Christian band (hisreplica.com), my son is playing guitar with us, my wife plays keys with another band (I play with that band too, but its more informal-no name), and our daughters sing. So, even though life changes, if you roll with it, it can be just as rewarding-if not more-than it was back when you played to get layed and drank yourself into a stupor just because you could. I have found that that part of it wasnt even necessary anyway.

So, have fun, play your heart out and dont worry about how you look-remember Leslie West and Mountain?
 
#20
I'm 19, and I've seen some bands of older people that have really impressed me. At an amusement park, there was this band playing, all guys who seemed in their forties, and a little overweight (I even spotted some Hawaiian shirts and man-shorts), but their bass player/singer was amazing. They did a cover of Led Zeppelin's Immigrant Song, and the singing was spot on.

Age don't matter. I'd gladly jam with a 50-year old experienced guitarist.
 

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