how did musicians play live without hearing protection??

[BassFishingInAmerica]

I’m amazed that I have no hearing loss (yet). I did 5 years playing loud bar gigs, at at least 100- 110db, 3-4 nights a week. We would even practice nearly full volume at practice. We were fools — indestructible in our 20s. My hearing now tests at or above normal.

 

[Blankandson]

I was in a very successful dance band in the late 60's to early 70's. We made good money and did gigs every weekend. Even played shows with top-10 bands such as Vanilla Fudge, Three Dog Night, the Association, etc. (A large newspaper in MO did a two-page feature on our band just last month complete with photos.) Suddenly, in July of 1971, we quit, sold everything, and only three of us continued making music. The other 8 or 9 went into other things. Why quit? Because one of our singers got a ringing in his ears and it wouldn't go away. So he went to see a Dr. The Dr. told him that if he didn't quit music "right now" he would be totally deaf within a few months. That put the fear in the entire band as we were all around 20 yrs old. The rest of us survived but that singer, now a retired vetinarian, is about 90% deaf. So my response is; probably many of us on TB are almost deaf or have significent hearing loss. I'm one of the three from that band still making music but when I moved to Nashville (1975) I soon learned about hearing protection and have used it for many years. Still do. We were all very very lucky.

 

[Koog]

We're all deaf now. Thank goodness for hearing aids. They even tone the tinnitus down to tolerable levels.

Koog

 

[Killing Floor]

Same way they lived without weighing their basses. Same way they played without knowing the nut width. Play or don’t. Rock or don’t. Nobody’s dad ever said “rock this house or you’re grounded”! No teacher ever told a teenager “you’re never going to amount to anything in this life unless you melt faces with your guitar solo”! Rock’n’roll is about attitude and rebellion and part of that is being a little louder than is absolutely necessary.
I’m not saying you should be too loud that you risk damaging someone’s hearing.
I’m merely suggesting that if you have nothing inside fighting to get out, if there’s no compelling reason to rebel against anything, just count your blessings and don’t rock.

Of course it is reasonable to say in many (not all) cases musical reinforcement simply wasn’t as capable as it is now. But when it was too loud you could always turn down. Speaking for my own experience we always had to adjust up or down to the drummer because obviously that’s an acoustic instrument at its core. But when I was a kid playing loudly was part of what makes rock’n’roll Rock.
And to be sure, you know if Howlin’ Wolf or Buddy Holly had Soldano stacks they would have used them.

 

[BassFalcon]

I can’t play live with hearing protection. I need to hear everything. Especially myself. I’ll wear it watching/listening to it though.

Having to hear everything isn’t a valid excuse these days. There are many more options than just the yellow foam plugs now. I have a set of custom molded musician earplugs from an audiologist. The frequency response is flat, I can hear everything perfectly. They kind of act as a compressor, I can hear people speaking and quiet stuff just fine, but the SPL just never gets very high, and you can swap out filters for various levels of attenuation. Etymotic makes non-custom plugs that use the same filters for about $20. $20 is a reasonable price to not have permanent ringing in your ears. The fan you’ll have to buy to put in your bedroom to make enough white noise because you can’t sleep with the ringing in your ears will cost you more than that.

 

[BarfanyShart]

If you ever hung out with a lot of orchestral musicians, they also all suffer from hearing loss.

 

[grimjim]

WHAT?

There it is. I'm very proud of you.

 

[Rob1957]

Not just Townsend … Eric Clapton has said he is almost deaf also
I am 63 been playing since the mid seventies and I have hearing loss especially in the upper registers in the side that usually faced the drummer.

 

[mikeoso]

Steven Stills and Judy Collins being interviewed. Collins brings out a beautiful vintage Martin that Stills had given her, and starts playing. Stills says, "sorry, I can't hear a thing". Collins cries.

BTW...it's not just the musicians. Ask all those kids who spent hours in mosh pits in the 80s.

 

[JW56789]

How ? You just got out there and did it. This is the way things were in days with crude PA and big amps. We were SUPPOSED to be TDL (Too Damn Loud). I preferred it that way: If you could feel the kick and bass in your chest, and couldn't even talk to each other on stage during the show, it just FELT better, being inside that hurricane. I see these all-PA gigs now, and think it just lacks fire. If I wanted to be quiet on stage, I'd have been in a symphony.

My only beef was it seemed too loud if it was distorted. I'm 66 and have no ill effects. And I'm terrified of in-ears, it would be far easier to go deaf to me with all that stuffed in my ears like a cork in a bottle.

 

[saltydude]

Having to hear everything isn’t a valid excuse these days. There are many more options than just the yellow foam plugs now. I have a set of custom molded musician earplugs from an audiologist. The frequency response is flat, I can hear everything perfectly. They kind of act as a compressor, I can hear people speaking and quiet stuff just fine, but the SPL just never gets very high, and you can swap out filters for various levels of attenuation. Etymotic makes non-custom plugs that use the same filters for about $20. $20 is a reasonable price to not have permanent ringing in your ears. The fan you’ll have to buy to put in your bedroom to make enough white noise because you can’t sleep with the ringing in your ears will cost you more than that.

I suppose it hasn’t been a major concern of mine.
I’ve played music for decades.
Shot guns all my life.
Work as a machinist for my career.
Rode motorcycles with half helmets for decades before switching to full face.

My hearing at 48.5 years gets tested routinely and is regarded as exceptional.
I consider myself lucky.

 

[bigdaddybass12]

Speak up, what did you say??

 

[bigdaddybass12]

I suppose it hasn’t been a major concern of mine.
I’ve played music for decades.
Shot guns all my life.
Work as a machinist for my career.
Rode motorcycles with half helmets for decades before switching to full face.

My hearing at 48.5 years gets tested routinely and is regarded as exceptional.
I consider myself lucky.

Same here kinda,, except I worked on a drag car pit crew.

 

[Deleted member 165050]

these days, you always hear the advice “wear hearing protection onstage if you don’t want to go deaf” in the situation of live shows. but… what in the hell were they doing back then??? you don’t hear every musician from the 60s and 70s saying they have significant hearing loss, apart from the odd pete townshend. but even so, they were loooooud back then, and they had to be. amplification was less reliant on venue speakers, and the power was in the amps and how loud the drummer was… which is suuuper loud. these days, playing drums without hearing protection (i don’t do it regularly, if at all) for me literally brings pain to my ears, and i don’t understand how musicians played live with such loud playing environments and loud instruments without being in constant pain. think beatles shows, cream shows, any rock show being onstage with a drummer.

It isn't an issue at the time, it's decades later when you have tinnitus and hearing loss... like me, now! If only I could send some earplugs back to my younger self...

 

[AboutSweetSue]

I’ve had tinnitus for about twelve years, noticeably…IT SUCKS. I’m only 36 so I’m a bit concerned. I practice solely through a guitar amp now to get the tone I want at super low volumes.

 

[saltydude]

Same here kinda,, except I worked on a drag car pit crew.

Sometimes folks suffer with excessive wax for long periods of time without realizing it too.

 

[drumvsbass]

These days there is no excuse, I can understand why a lot of musicians wouldn't want to wear crappy earplugs for the tonal shift, but molded pro plugs are only a couple of hundred bucks (I got my last pair for $180) and are so comfy I forget I am wearing them. 15db cut for playing in a band, 25db cut for going to concerts. For 10 years I played in a band that was excessively loud. 2 mesa triple rec's, a 100w Soldano and an SVT, and the loudest drummer I have ever played with. We had a strict rule about ear plugs. We would literally say aloud 'plugs in' and everyone would have to respond before playing a single note. When we were done, 'plugs out' and that was it. If someone showed up without plugs, they went home without any apology needed. Being late to the rehearsal due to forgetting plugs and going back to get them was a legit excuse. Why so loud? The drummer. It was metal. Testosterone. Youth....

 

[BOOG]

I have often tried to explain to others in the band of the benefits from using hearing protection and they look at me like I’m FOS.

Aside from my ears not ringing for the next 24 hours after a session, I can actually hear the other musicians around me better through the night. I’m obviously not an audiologist but what I think is happening is it’s filtering out damaging frequencies and reducing the fatigue on the ears thereby, allowing the layers of frequencies to be heard separately, easier.

 

[feterpatch]

I’m amazed that I have no hearing loss (yet). I did 5 years playing loud bar gigs, at at least 100- 110db, 3-4 nights a week. We would even practice nearly full volume at practice. We were fools — indestructible in our 20s. My hearing now tests at or above normal.

You and I are definitely in the minority. I spent several years touring with an ACDC tribute band and my current cover band plays mostly '90s classic/alternative rock. Fortunately those bands had/have professional players who understand reasonable stage volumes, etc.
A couple of years ago I got fitted for custom ear protection and my test showed normal in my right ear and near pristine (doctors description) in my left. Somehow I dodged a bullet and I'm grateful for that. I currently use ear protection when playing live. If the venue is not too loud I'll just use them in my right ear (drummer side).

 

[FirewalZ]

these days, you always hear the advice “wear hearing protection onstage if you don’t want to go deaf” in the situation of live shows. but… what in the hell were they doing back then??? you don’t hear every musician from the 60s and 70s saying they have significant hearing loss, apart from the odd pete townshend. but even so, they were loooooud back then, and they had to be. amplification was less reliant on venue speakers, and the power was in the amps and how loud the drummer was… which is suuuper loud. these days, playing drums without hearing protection (i don’t do it regularly, if at all) for me literally brings pain to my ears, and i don’t understand how musicians played live with such loud playing environments and loud instruments without being in constant pain. think beatles shows, cream shows, any rock show being onstage with a drummer.

Many if not most of the older musicians i meet from the days of pre-hearing protection, suffer from hearing loss to one degree or another. I almost always wear 9 or 15db filters in a custom set of ear molds, but also have ringing in my ears most of the time...im sure id be in a LOT worse shape if i didn't.