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How good do you think you are?

#81
I can get a bit cocky with my playing. I think I'm pretty good, as a matter of fact I think I'm really good. Why should I put myself down by saying I suck? Are there bass players better or worse than me? Yes. Is there room for improvement in my playing? Absolutely. I'll never think I can't improve. But ultimately it's really not about me, it's about the song. If I do my job and lock in with the drummer, the song sounds good, If I don't the song sucks.

Being a bass player is kind of like being an offensive lineman in football. If you're invisible and they don't call your name, then you're doing your job. ;)
 
#84
Is it important to you to feel successful?

Sure.

Is it important to you that your peers see you as successful?

To a limited extent, yes.

Do you have something to prove?

No.

How do you measure your own success?

Am I satisfied with my performance?

How do you think others measure your success in their minds?

No clams = success.

Do you think of TB as a place where you can compare yourself against others and measure your success?

No.

Do you think your own sense of status on TB translates to status in the real world?

Not at all.

Do you think people on TB look up to other TBers they see as successful?

I'm sure some do, but not all.
 
#85
Is it important to you to feel successful?
yes

Is it important to you that your peers see you as successful?
No, what peers might yu be referring to anyway?

Do you have something to prove?
No

How do you measure your own success?
If I am happy with the result and how I got it. Musically, the crowd liked it and I got paid. If the crowd didn't like it and I still got paid, meh.

How do you think others measure your success in their minds?
They don't, my success could figure less on anyone's mind aside from my family.

Do you think of TB as a place where you can compare yourself against others and measure your success?
Hell no.

Do you think your own sense of status on TB translates to status in the real world?The average TB'er likely cares a lot less about what I get up to that than real people
.
Do you think people on TB look up to other TBers they see as successful?
I'm probably not the only one.
 
#86
Big Brother said:
This is why I feel music careers are almost sad.

A performer on the upper fringes of success, after a lifetime of work and luck, pulls in about as much as a sorority-bred Verizon store manager. With twice the workload and no benefits. And feels it is so wonderful that it is to be bragged about.

The work required to make it in this industry compared to the potential payoff makes the lotto look like a sound business plan.
Click to expand...

And yet, the sorority-bred Verizon store manager can be laid off at a moments notice and have nothing, while a good player can get another gig.
Somehow, people still want to learn bass, brides still want bands, people still dream, record and hire studio players and club and restaurant patrons still want good Jazz from time to time.
If you work a straight gig and it goes away you're screwed. If you work a Music gig and it goes away it's probably one of 5 things you do in The Biz to make a living and the others pick up the slack.
 
#87
A question to original poster.
What is you definition of success, it means different things to different people.
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How good do you think you are?
... as a bass/player musician?

I'm only as good as other people think I am, what I think doesn't really matter (only to my personal pride) as I only get gigs based on how others see me. I know the areas that I could do to improve on (lots of them) and I know my strengths which I play on, consequently people probably think I am a better bassplayer than I am.
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Is it important to you to feel successful?

It is important for me to be playing and know that I have played a good gig. If the band went down really well that is a bonus. If we got more gigs out of it double bonus.
---
Is it important to you that your peers see you as successful?

It is important for me to be playing
---
Do you have something to prove?

After 44 years gigging definitely NO.
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How do you measure your own success?

How long is a piece of string
---
How do you think others measure your success in their minds?

I haven't a clue.
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Do you think of TB as a place where you can compare yourself against others and measure your success?

Not really, it is a great place to come and hang with other bass players. I have learned more about basses and gear (and GAS!) in the few years I have been on TB than in the decades before.
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Do you think your own sense of status on TB translates to status in the real world?

Eh?
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Do you think people on TB look up to other TBers they see as successful?

Eh?
Unless the "other TBers" are known in the public domain I have no way of knowing how "successful" they are as they are just another forum poster. Even if they are known in the public domain I will still probably have to look them up as I haven't followed that sort of thing for decades. I trust and respect some TBers, am easy about others and think some are best ignored (but don't put anyone on my ignore list as I still like to read the crap that they come out with).
---
 
#89
Like many, I had aspirations when I was 18 years old to be "the best bass player in the world.". It was a serious ambition, but I am confident that I failed (look up Daniel Cox bass player online...if you find me at all, it's not in a bass player magazine interview or on a list of the top players in the world :) )
In my early twenties I sidelined myself and only played in church for many, many years. 3 years ago, at the ripe at of 37, I started "playing out" again. Since that time I've played over 200 shows, at some of the best and worst venues in southwest Florida. Some places I made less than $30, and I've had a couple where I've made several hundred dollars. I've been at the bottom of the totem pole in the local scene, and now am a known bass player in the area. In happy with where I am, but am always hungry for more.
When I was young I thought I was amazing. Now that I'm older I know that I am solid in more than a few genres, and ignorant/inept in a few as well.
I do value the opinions of others, especially musicians. To say that it doesn't matter would be dishonest and disingenuous on my part.

Really fun and informative thread! :)

-Dan
 
#90
Roy Vogt said:
And yet, the sorority-bred Verizon store manager can be laid off at a moments notice and have nothing, while a good player can get another gig.
Somehow, people still want to learn bass, brides still want bands, people still dream, record and hire studio players and club and restaurant patrons still want good Jazz from time to time.
If you work a straight gig and it goes away you're screwed. If you work a Music gig and it goes away it's probably one of 5 things you do in The Biz to make a living and the others pick up the slack.
Click to expand...
Well, so can a 28 year old retail manager. Very easily. There are plenty of retail stores and they generally all bring in about 80x more annual revenue than your average band. She has a much better chance of landing on her feet than an average musician. Much.

The point is not that a career at the mall is a wonderful thing.

The point is that someone seeking a career in music should come in knowing that they will have to be 10x more talented than the average person to make half as much money, and they will work about 4x as hard to get there.

If you aren't in it for a love of being on stage and performing, or a love of writing and playing music, it is likely going to lead to a disappointing life. I feel sad for people who get into music thinking of the fame or prestige.

If you are in it for a love of performing that is a very different thing. But to get into music so you can 30 years later claim fame by sharing a stage with 3 former members of Kajagoogoo or something, to me that is very sad because your chances of hitting the lotto are probably better than that getting that one $250 gig.

It is a labor of love for all but a very lucky few.
 
#92
Big Brother, obviously San Diego is not experiencing the same recession as the rest of the country if mall stores are begging for middle managers. Two malls in Nashville have shut down and one is hanging by a thread.
If someone "kinda sorta thinks they want to be a Musician cause it's cool" they have no business attempting to do this for a living. However, it can be done and done well. I have a 30+ year career in Nashville as a witness to that. I realize that I may be in a minority on TB because I do that, but I don't want anyone to give up of that's their dream and they're willing to work for it.
 
#94
Is it important to you to feel successful?

Yes.

Is it important to you that your peers see you as successful?

Somewhat, although I know on a deeper level I know it means nothing.

Do you have something to prove?

Absolutely not.

How do you measure your own success?

In ways I'm in the midst of redefining.

How do you think others measure your success in their minds?

I don't think anyone cares. If they do, I'd imagine it's by the quality of gigs I'm playing and amount of people being attracted to the shows I'm participating in.

Do you think of TB as a place where you can compare yourself against others and measure your success?
Do you think your own sense of status on TB translates to status in the real world?

No. And no.

Do you think people on TB look up to other TBers they see as successful?

Probably. Which I guess contradicts my answer to one of the previous questions. :) Isn't that what being inspired is all about?
 
#96
True, jmatt, but I know a lot of out of work twentysomethings that aren't musicians. I've never met a Verizon manager here making 150K, either.
My point was simply that I don't know any working musician who does just one gig like Susie Sorority Cell Phone Manager. You just can't hang your career on one gig, it's total foolishness.
There are volcanic changes going on in the retail sector. Just ask former employees at FYE, Tower Records or one of the number of Best Buys and Guitar Centers in secondary markets in danger of shutting down or actively closing. The rule of the Sure Thing in 2012 is there is none.
 
#97
it's funny this comes up now, as something that's been on my mind a lot for the last month or so.

i'm playing bass in a soul/garage/pop band, and i always get compliments on my playing and my bass sound when we play live.

i won't get into the particulars of why...but at this point, i don't care if anyone thinks i'm good, or if i stand out from the band (in fact, as a bass player...fundamentally, i shouldn't stand out). with that, i think i've let myself get lazy, and have plateaued with my style. i'm almost trying to ditch everything i knew before, and it's hard.

my bandmates all think this is hilarious that i'm kind of on the "everything i thought i knew is wrong" kick. but it's sorta symptomatic of being bored with the band/playing music in that general scene. or maybe i'm listening to too much Jaco and Genesis for my own good.

sorry. rant over.
 
#98
sorry again. i'll answer the actual questions:

Is it important to you to feel successful?
in life, yes. i don't even know how you can define musical success in the year 2012.

Is it important to you that your peers see you as successful?
no. but i suppose getting sucked into the Facebook culture of "look, we bought a house/i got a new job" gives lie to that answer.

Do you have something to prove?
Not anymore.

How do you measure your own success?
am i happy in life? musical "success" has little do with it at this point. i just want to...enjoy life when i can. i don't need a gig or band for that.

How do you think others measure your success in their minds?
i doubt they're even doing this, because they're so wrapped up in themselves.

Do you think of TB as a place where you can compare yourself against others and measure your success?
nope. i like that it's just people talking about gear, music and life.

Do you think your own sense of status on TB translates to status in the real world?
i laugh at the notion of people "pulling rank" on message boards. don't get me wrong, i love reading and posting on TB, but there are plenty who take themselves far too seriously.
.
Do you think people on TB look up to other TBers they see as successful?
in the sense that they impart vibes/attitude of doing what they want with life. who's the guy that collects all manner of Gibson Thunderbirds? God of Thunder? he's cool, because he's doing something he loves and knows a lot about. he's not a jerk about it, either. i enjoy reading what he has to say on the subject.
 
#99
I've been offered the gig for every audition I have ever done. But I have also turned many down because I'm very selective about the people I play with. If I don't get a warm and fuzzy from everyone in the band I will pass on the gig. I can hold my own in almost any band situation, but there is always someone better. Musical success is not important to me, making good music is my goal. If I was in this for the money, I would have been gone long ago. I've had years where I made a lot and years where I made none. I come to TB because I stopped playing for a few years and had lost touch with the gear, this is a great place for info, I don't care about how others here view me, I will never meet most of you. If I can help another, I will. But the fact remains, I'm a Dad first and foremost!
 
#100
How good do you think you are as a bass/player musician?

Good, but not great.

Is it important to you to feel successful? No

Is it important to you that your peers see you as successful? No

Do you have something to prove? No

How do you measure your own success?

In terms of music, I don't measure success. I measure my own success on the quality of relationships I have with the people in my life

How do you think others measure your success in their minds?

The majority of people I've played with tell me I'm the best bass player they've ever played with or the best player in my area... but I don't know who they've been playing with:D

Do you think of TB as a place where you can compare yourself against others and measure your success? No

Do you think your own sense of status on TB translates to status in the real world? No

Do you think people on TB look up to other TBers they see as successful?

TB is a weird place. The really good players are quiet. The ones that want people to think they are good (and they usually aren't) are loud here and talk about their status on TB.
 

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