Drug usage among musicians

[HunterBrodt]

as for me, making music in itself is a natural high.

my opinion... people who do music under the influence of substances are fake and not IN for
the music.

drugs=suicide
why would i listen to someone who wants to kill himself??

just sayn'

Well I might agree if they are stoned at a practice but just because someone does drugs and plays music doesnt mean they are fake musicians. Thats like saying a lawyer who drinks some scotch every night is fake.
Being responsible is key. And also not doing hard drugs.

 

[rtslinger]

My thought is it is the same just more press on it when someone dies today
the internet need to know info world has them posted before the bodies cold!

 

[MatticusMania]

as for me, making music in itself is a natural high.

my opinion... people who do music under the influence of substances are fake and not IN for
the music.

There is so much fallacy there its not even funny. Now, Im not suggesting you do drugs, but to make that statement as a non-user if complete ignorance. So all those people having a beer on stage, theyre not in it for the music, right? They just want to get high!? I know a lot of cheaper ways to plastered than playing in a band and writing my own music.

drugs=suicide
why would i listen to someone who wants to kill himself??

just sayn'

Im not an advocate for drugs, but theyve always worked for me.

 

[Staccato]

We could all benefit from an even greater legacy-if Charlie Parker, Miles Davis and others had recorded much more, and spent much less time in the throws of addiction.

They might have led more productive lives without addiction, what's wrong with thinking they might have spent more time recording, or possibly mentoring aspiring musicians-
if they were not hooked? I may not know much, but I did take the time to read several biographies each of Charlie Parker, and Miles Davis-including "Miles: the autobiography", page 132, Louis Armstrong, and others...

My statement <quote> was not intended as a selfish comment. They are two of my jazz favs, and I enjoy listening to their records/CD's. I've felt connected in another way since I played trumpet, cornet, alto & tenor sax.

 

[omnimutant]

This may be true with pot. If you try LSD you will notice how much your creative side opens up.

Something certainly opens up, not quite sure what it is. Creativity with LSD I think is still open for debate, but I will tell you it's not without side effects. Enough usage will probably turn you into a paranoid schizophrenic, if not god know what other mental problems it could create. I still have permanent tracers, and get minor hallucinations in patterns, and occasionally hear things that aren't actually there... and I haven't dropped for over 15 years! LSD will effect your life Permanently, Just make sure your prepared to make that kind of drastic change in your life before you try it. Or any drug for that matter.

 

[SanDiegoHarry]

I dunno... When I was a kid, starting out, I was one of the very few who didn't get stoned at jam sessions or shows (and this was the mid '70s!). It's clear that many guys who "make it" dive in to bad drugs and do stupid things... but I wonder about kids. Do kids get their smoke on now like they did in 1977??

 

[MatticusMania]

Harry: Yes, they do.

 

[Jim Campbell]

I dunno... When I was a kid, starting out, I was one of the very few who didn't get stoned at jam sessions or shows (and this was the mid '70s!). It's clear that many guys who "make it" dive in to bad drugs and do stupid things... but I wonder about kids. Do kids get their smoke on now like they did in 1977??

i think the government vastly underestimates the numbers of people that smoke pot....british columbia lists pot as it's number 1 cash crop

 

[MatticusMania]

i think the government vastly underestimates the numbers of people that smoke pot....british columbia lists pot as it's number 1 cash crop

Same for Ca, though I dont know if they outright acknowledge it. I remember a statistic (not saying its true) from years ago that said one in three kids have tried smoking pot before entering highschool. I wouldnt be appalled at the thought that a good 30% or so of our population smoke pot to some extent on at least a semi-regular basis.

 

[stepswork4me]

I dunno... When I was a kid, starting out, I was one of the very few who didn't get stoned at jam sessions or shows (and this was the mid '70s!). It's clear that many guys who "make it" dive in to bad drugs and do stupid things... but I wonder about kids. Do kids get their smoke on now like they did in 1977??

I would think so. I know in the mid 90's, when I was in High School, I smoked a LOT of pot. It was a pretty normal thing in my school. Lots of kids sold and more smoked.

 

[Toastfuzz]

Pot is ageless. You know, with the way legislation is going, 10 years from now pot could be as legal as booze (ie. regulated, taxed, and sold by the state) and the next generation will look at the drug war vs. pot and laugh the way we look at alcohol prohibition days now.

I'm glad (and frankly surprised) this conversation stayed civil. I agree that drugs change the way your brain is working, and my explanation for the drugs<->creativity connection is that you're coming up with things you wouldn't have otherwise, because your brain is working differently than it is sober.

As to the addiction/appeal of drugs...its all about moderation, same as alcohol. I can't speak on part of the hard/truly addictive drugs (heroin, cocaine, meth, Rx pills-which are really the hottest thing now, in my opinion) but I do smoke cigarettes and drink a 20oz of coffee every morning, and seeing my own dependence on those and inability to quit, I know I couldnt afford to get into heavy drugs. Then again, maybe others have better moderation?

 

[stepswork4me]

Pot is ageless. You know, with the way legislation is going, 10 years from now pot could be as legal as booze (ie. regulated, taxed, and sold by the state) and the next generation will look at the drug war vs. pot and laugh the way we look at alcohol prohibition days now.

I'm glad (and frankly surprised) this conversation stayed civil. I agree that drugs change the way your brain is working, and my explanation for the drugs<->creativity connection is that you're coming up with things you wouldn't have otherwise, because your brain is working differently than it is sober.

As to the addiction/appeal of drugs...its all about moderation, same as alcohol. I can't speak on part of the hard/truly addictive drugs (heroin, cocaine, meth, Rx pills-which are really the hottest thing now, in my opinion) but I do smoke cigarettes and drink a 20oz of coffee every morning, and seeing my own dependence on those and inability to quit, I know I couldnt afford to get into heavy drugs. Then again, maybe others have better moderation?

Caffeine and nicotine are the daily addictions that I still live with. The hard stuff had me hooked for a while as did the hooch. My personal opinion is that the war on drugs has been a huge waste of time, tears, and cash for a long time. Sure, the leagal stuff has been a deterrent for some but many still venture down that road regardless. The billions of tax dollars that could be drawn from legalization, the industry that would be created, the removal of organized crime's mainstay, etc, etc... out weigh the fear of lowered societal morals, IMO. People choose the path that they walk. Enforced morality has failed for thousands of years.

I can't say that drug use ever helped or hindered my own creativity. I was always able to write, whether high or not. I did, however, have a harder time remembering what I wrote after coming down.

 

[GlennPagano]

Something certainly opens up, not quite sure what it is. Creativity with LSD I think is still open for debate, but I will tell you it's not without side effects. Enough usage will probably turn you into a paranoid schizophrenic, if not god know what other mental problems it could create. I still have permanent tracers, and get minor hallucinations in patterns, and occasionally hear things that aren't actually there... and I haven't dropped for over 15 years! LSD will effect your life Permanently, Just make sure your prepared to make that kind of drastic change in your life before you try it. Or any drug for that matter.

Yea I have permanent tracers and pattern hallucinations as well. I also see very vivid colors and layers. I have had my fun.

 

[BDL1991]

Im sorry, but there was probably a lot more going on with your girlfriend than bi-polar disorder. The weed didnt do that to her. Did you stop to think about why you gained a stutter? It was probably due to paranoia, causing you to think too much about what your were saying, that caused you to stutter.

Im not trying to call you out or flame you or anything. I just feel the need to dispute misconceptions about marijuana.

nope, it's Bi-Polar type 2 I believe which has risks of Psychosis, and it is no misconception that it can worsen Mental Health Problems, I've seen it happen to a fair few people.

 

[Plays_For_Dog]

I've been trying to get a group going for some time now and can't find any musicians who aren't strung out on something. Most are just pot heads. I don't want to associate with stoners. They aren't motivated, forgetful and all they care about is getting baked.

I'm fine with some beers, but it seems my options have been a christian band or totally wasted and reckless deuche bags. It really irks me. As soon as I say i don't want nothing to do with pot, I never hear from them again. It's sad weed is the most important thing in people's lives.

 

[brianrost]

All I will say is that substance abuse by musicians seems to still be alive and well in my experience.

I've yet to be in a band with a junkie, but I've never been in a band that was 100% substance free (mostly drinking and weed, some coke).

 

[TheVoiceless]

Well from my experience the ones who DON'T do any drugs were always stranger. They would have to find other forms of entertainment, women or acting like Jackass the movie. Pot gives people a common bound, which I can see why many musicians in bands will do it together. I think a lot of it goes with the whole rebel attitude the comes with music. I think that some drug use can have a positive effect on a musician. But like ALL people its a matter of having your priorities in line.

 

[jnuts1]

plays, i am sure that i am more motivated than most people you know & i probably smoke more than all of them combined! lazy people are just lazy & that is all there is to it. i know sober musicains that are lazy too. & those lazy guys are always the ones forgetting parts.

to me the worst are the boozers.

 

[hennessybass]

Pot is pretty widely accepted now, so that's kind of out of the picture. It was a HUGE deal when the Rolling Stones were all getting shaken down and busted for having little bits of pot in the 60s... Fast forward to 2010, and Willie Nelson is high as a kite, giving an interview to Lary King on live TV.... no big deal.

 

[cassanova]

my opinion... people who do music under the influence of substances are fake and not IN for
the music.

Drug use doesn't determine how much love/passion someone has for music. People doing drugs could be in it more for the music than you, I, and everyone else is.

drugs=suicide
why would i listen to someone who wants to kill himself??

just sayn'

Before you make comments like that you should really know the definition of suicide. Suicide is the intentional taking of ones life. Key word is "intentional." Most that do drugs do not intend on intentionally killing themselves when they get high.

Why wouldn't you listen to someone who does drugs? It's a psychological problem that has nothing to do with intelligence. Many addicts I've worked with are actually quite intelligent and were more knowledgeable in certain areas of life that I wasn't due to their life experiences.