Pretty sure My Gigging Days are Over...

[Aberdumbie]

I'm sure there's some saying about old musicians... I'm in the same boat.

They don't die.... They De-Compose.....

 

[M-Mittlesteadt]

It's clear both of these issues added to your frustration or you wouldn't have mentioned them.

IMHO, only play when you are willing/able to do the work necessary to make it an enjoyable experience. That means if you need a stool, bring stool and if you want your sound, bring your own amp.

Yes, they both did add to my frustration.

But in this case, it was not a pre-planned thing other than a day before my old guitar player asked if I would like to play a few songs with them. I didn't need to bring anything actually, and it was quite possible I ended up not playing at all. The bass player would have let me play his bass too.

I only brought my bass simply because it is more personal and familiar for me to play it and it was easy to just throw in a gig bag and toss it in the back seat of our car.

Everything was just kind of an "up in the air", spontaneous moment. I was going to a friend's wedding, not a gig.
I wasn't going to it with my wife and bringing the band bus "just in case". LOL. I played for over 45 years in just about any and every scenario one can imagine. This was just a wedding where I happened to go onstage and play a few tunes.

Had this been a gig, yes, I would have been "prepared" and brought more with, but for a handful of songs, the hassle of bringing any more gear than my bass, was not worth it. But...even doing those few songs enlightened me to the reason for my post. I can't foresee me doing full gigs like this in the future. If only 4 songs was this big of a hassle, I can't see myself doing full gigs anymore. It's been a long time since I played out live.

If I do, I need to rethink what and how I'm going to do it.

 

[tpaul]

Sounds like it's time to start a dad (probably granddad) band so you can play what you want, how you want, when and where you want, with whomever you want. Sit, stand, whatever. "The Bluebeards of Blues" has a nice ring to it. If you care more about the music and the hang than about the money, there are plenty of opportunities to play fundraisers, community events and assorted other good causes. Make your own rules.

 

[BigJohnAZ]

Sad to hear about your situation. As they say, Father Time always wins.

Keep playing for yourself, your own joy. Be thankful for all the good and joy it has brought you in your life and others.

 

[M-Mittlesteadt]

First of all, don’t quit. Pace yourself. Play a little each day working towards being able to play a complete gig. I’m 76 and still playing. (And standing) through 4 sets up to 3 times a week so know you can do it.
Secondly, blame the guy who owned the Bergantino and the cabinet, not the amp. I’ve had 3 of them and not one of them was anemic. They all have plenty of low end.

Oh yeah...I wasn't blaming the Berg rig. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised to see it up there. I just didn't have any time at all to work with it. The bass player just had it dialed in for him and his needs.

This was also "mid set". It wasn't as if I were going up there between sets, or breaks and getting familiar. I was invited to play a few the day before and there was no discussion about when I'd play or anything. I was sitting in the "audience" with my wife and other friends and the guitar player asked me over the PA to come up and play a few. I didn't know ahead of time when that might happen, if at all.

 

[M-Mittlesteadt]

Sounds like it's time to start a dad (probably granddad) band so you can play what you want, how you want, when and where you want, with whomever you want. Sit, stand, whatever. "The Bluebeards of Blues" has a nice ring to it. If you care more about the music and the hang than about the money, there are plenty of opportunities to play fundraisers, community events and assorted other good causes. Make your own rules.

Absolutely. I'm looking into possibilities, limited as they are at the moment.

This past weekend just kind of opened my eyes a little more into what the future may no longer hold.

 

[BassicJazzy]

You make me feel blessed that I haven't played in a band since the early 70's. I haven't even jammed with another instrument since mid-90's. I have a young guitar-playing friend but we both live in apartments, so jamming isn't a possibility. He plays in a band and has tried to drag me to open mike nights, but that would be difficult since they start at 10pm and I am in bed by 8 or so. Not to mention I hate bars. I guess I'm unusual in that just playing alone gives me immense pleasure, and I seem to be able to entertain both myself and my wife. At 70, I don't need the demands of a formal band, but I do wear my bass player tee-shirts to the gym, hoping I see someone with a different instrument on theirs (and a house to play in), just for the possibility that I may play with another human again someday?

 

[SactoBass]

After 45 years of playing and taking a brief hiatus, I've been working towards playing some light, short, early gigs again. A bunch of my old friends and bandmates (of various bands through the years) got together to play a wedding for one of them over the weekend.

I was only going to play about 4 or 5 songs. I only had to bring one of my basses and it was just to play some ZZ Top, SRV and a couple of loose blues jams. So I brought my 4 string P/J bass. I had a stool to sit on as standing (especially in the 90+ degree heat) was not good for me, But at the last minute a mandolin player took it as a stand for his little amp. The bass player had a nice upright and a killer Rickenbacker 4003S and played through a little Bergantino amp and 110 cab. Of course his URB didn't need much additional volume and his Rick was strung with flats so his tone controls were set flat or very bright with little to no low end dialed in.

My Precision is strung with bright roundwounds and it a very bright sounding bass, so when I first started playing my bass sounded so anemic and irritatingly bright (and I had little chance to dial in anything even remotely tolerable). Ugh. I sounded like total crap through his amp (no FOH support). I had to quickly roll my tone control all the way back, turn down the highs and boost the lows a lot just to get by. I know Berg's are great amps and cabs, but this one totally sucked tonewise (as dialed in anyway).

I was already having a bad day physically, but mentally, after talking with so many old friends and bandmates it was really depressing. 3 of my 4 old bandmates are dying of cancer. Others are are just in really bad shape (far worse than me) so I had nothing complain about (and didn't want to). But it was just so sad. We should have called the impromptu band, the "Rest Home Rockers". My right plucking hand was giving me a hard time with my nerves and tendonitis. My (fingertips were numb and limiting my ability to play). But you know the old saying,.. "The show must go on". I played the tunes and everyone said it sounded great (friends in the crowd and bandmates) but I can only assume everyone is deaf as well. LOL.

I've spent the past couple of days contemplating what to do. I can't see myself playing an entire gig at this point. I'm still not convinced I can't play and I'm not giving up without giving it everything I have. The drummer's whole body is riddled with cancer and he was actually inspiring as he said he was going to keep playing drums until someone pulls him off his stool. If he ain't quitting I'm sure not going to.

But unless the perfect situation and opportunity presents itself, I'm pretty much done gigging. This entire last weekend should have been a very good time, but it was just plain depressing and I'm still having a hard time dealing with it.

Vent/rant over.

Welcome to the life of leisure! I played bass in various rock bands from 1972 to 2003. It was only an "on and off" hobby for me as my full-time career was in civil engineering (I'm now retired and living the good life). I played bass in bands all those years strictly for the fun of it. In 2003, I quit playing in bands altogether, and it has been ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL! So liberating. So peaceful. So relaxing. No more hauling gear, no more getting home at 2am, no more bandmember personalities to deal with. I still have two basses (a P and a J), and my beautiful sounding all-tube Fender 100T bass amp and a pair of Fender 410 Pro bass cabs, and every once in a while I'll power up those tubes and play some songs in my room just for old time sake. At this point in my life, that's all I am interested in doing, music-wise. I have another hobby that I REALLY enjoy, which is off-roading in a UTV. Could I get back into playing in bands? Of course! I could do that anytime I want to. But I don't want to, and I haven't wanted to since 2003. The thought of doing that simply doesn't interest me. I'm having waaaay too much fun doing other things.

My point of sharing that info is, if you feel that you no longer wish to gig, then don't look at it negatively. Look at it POSITIVELY! It was definitely positive for me, bigtime!

 

[M-Mittlesteadt]

You make me feel blessed that I haven't played in a band since the early 70's. I haven't even jammed with another instrument since mid-90's. I have a young guitar-playing friend but we both live in apartments, so jamming isn't a possibility. He plays in a band and has tried to drag me to open mike nights, but that would be difficult since they start at 10pm and I am in bed by 8 or so. Not to mention I hate bars. I guess I'm unusual in that just playing alone gives me immense pleasure, and I seem to be able to entertain both myself and my wife. At 70, I don't need the demands of a formal band, but I do wear my bass player tee-shirts to the gym, hoping I see someone with a different instrument on theirs (and a house to play in), just for the possibility that I may play with another human again someday?

Yeah...I played full time on the road in my 20's and early 30's as a gigging musician and made my living at it. Then, like many, I got married, had kids, got a "normal" job, but played out almost every weekend. I did that for another 20 years. I enjoyed all of it and the experiences it gave to my life.

I love the feeling and energy of performing live. It fulfills me in a way that writing/playing and recording in my studio does not, though I also enjoy that part of playing. I imagine what an athlete goes through, no longer being able to play sports any longer.

 

[IanStephenson]

Sounds like you had the sort of gig anyone would want to walk away from: Friends wedding, short notice, borrowed gear that didn't suit, short set (higher setup to playing ratio), and a Mandolin player... I'm out...

It's never been easier to be a bass player - amps and cabs are lighter then they've every been, and PA got so good you probably don't need them anyway. A Pre/DI pedal and a cable and you're good to go.

Maybe you don't need to quit gigs - you just need to quit bad gigs.

 

[M-Mittlesteadt]

You didn't say but the "brief hiatus" was medically-induced? If so, continue to take more of a break and maybe it's too soon to come back to full gigs. Figure out if any, how much you can play before numbness or malady sets in, or makes itself known... or even impossible to ignore. If you don't have symptoms or major ones that don't present until you play, try to figure out what you do (consciously or unconsciously) that brings it on. And then try not to do that. Maybe try a different kind of bass that because it's THAT different makes the physiology different and not triggering the ailments. Maybe acoustic bass guitar. Maybe upright. Maybe short scale bass. Maybe a headless bass like a Steinberger.

Really sucks, and sorry to hear it. I'm thinking about options on how to continue to play, not knowing anything but what you've said.

I had a friend that had a shoulder/back malady, and he had to basically quit upright bass, but was still able to play electric. I could well imagine someone coming from the other side of that, who had trouble playing their electric (the weight, the position, the.... I dunno) and that person switched to acoustic bass guitar or upright or SOMETHING still bass, but which changed up their physiology JUST enough to stop enflaming an active/temporary flare up of a problem that was increasingly triggered by their longtime instrument, but still allowed them to play an instrument.

I quit playing for a while mostly because I got tired of the cover band routine and the music I once played was no longer relevant to my lifestyle. Being 60 years old with kids and grandkids, music about girls and partying lost it's appeal. I just wanted something different, but not knowing what.

Subsequent injuries caused some heath issues during my time away. I do have some lingering difficult physical limitations and you are right, it required some different kind of bass and techniques to get around. I do play a 6 string bass that is so much easier to play as I can stay in the middle of the neck without reaching too far in either direction. It's actually a much shorter reach than even a short scale bass. I also have extremely lightweight gear with the heaviest being my Fender Rumble 100's (22 lbs.).

I'm still holding out hope that some kind of workable situation becomes a worthwhile opportunity I can do. But I do know the typical gigs I used to play are NOT an option any longer.

 

[Pocket Dave]

After 45 years of playing and taking a brief hiatus, I've been working towards playing some light, short, early gigs again. A bunch of my old friends and bandmates (of various bands through the years) got together to play a wedding for one of them over the weekend.

I was only going to play about 4 or 5 songs. I only had to bring one of my basses and it was just to play some ZZ Top, SRV and a couple of loose blues jams. So I brought my 4 string P/J bass. I had a stool to sit on as standing (especially in the 90+ degree heat) was not good for me, But at the last minute a mandolin player took it as a stand for his little amp. The bass player had a nice upright and a killer Rickenbacker 4003S and played through a little Bergantino amp and 110 cab. Of course his URB didn't need much additional volume and his Rick was strung with flats so his tone controls were set flat or very bright with little to no low end dialed in.

My Precision is strung with bright roundwounds and it a very bright sounding bass, so when I first started playing my bass sounded so anemic and irritatingly bright (and I had little chance to dial in anything even remotely tolerable). Ugh. I sounded like total crap through his amp (no FOH support). I had to quickly roll my tone control all the way back, turn down the highs and boost the lows a lot just to get by. I know Berg's are great amps and cabs, but this one totally sucked tonewise (as dialed in anyway).

I was already having a bad day physically, but mentally, after talking with so many old friends and bandmates it was really depressing. 3 of my 4 old bandmates are dying of cancer. Others are are just in really bad shape (far worse than me) so I had nothing complain about (and didn't want to). But it was just so sad. We should have called the impromptu band, the "Rest Home Rockers". My right plucking hand was giving me a hard time with my nerves and tendonitis. My (fingertips were numb and limiting my ability to play). But you know the old saying,.. "The show must go on". I played the tunes and everyone said it sounded great (friends in the crowd and bandmates) but I can only assume everyone is deaf as well. LOL.

I've spent the past couple of days contemplating what to do. I can't see myself playing an entire gig at this point. I'm still not convinced I can't play and I'm not giving up without giving it everything I have. The drummer's whole body is riddled with cancer and he was actually inspiring as he said he was going to keep playing drums until someone pulls him off his stool. If he ain't quitting I'm sure not going to.

But unless the perfect situation and opportunity presents itself, I'm pretty much done gigging. This entire last weekend should have been a very good time, but it was just plain depressing and I'm still having a hard time dealing with it.

Vent/rant over.

Personally, I would not make such a decision based on this one gig.

Sometimes provided backline is less than preferable, Sometimes it's just what you want.

Next time bring a fan and tell the mandolin player, "that's my stool".

 

[Low Main]

I consider myself lucky. At my advancing age, I've got options. I can play or not.

In my current recovery from GBS, every instrument I touch is electric whether it's plugged in or not thanks to the neuropathy.

Not the condition I would have chosen but at least my signature has become legible again so I can sign for my meds.

I worry about players who are still gigging who can barely breathe. Carrying on out of desire, necessity, or both.

Back in the day, George Coleman was not to be messed with. He was a bandstand drill sergeant.

Now he's 90 and it's painful to watch him try to get through a set.

Other elder players are still touring overseas and I don't know how they do it.

Many have to keep going. Facing medical costs with no other means of income.

There are singers who are major disease survivors and their voices are shot. They should stop but nobody has the heart to tell them.

People are leaving their shows shaking their heads, remembering how great they once were.

Among the players I hang out with, we talk about the band we're going to have in the assisted living facility.

The names Kings Of Leon and Queens Of The Stone Age already taken, so we'll be the Kings And Queens Of The Activity Center.

I said: "I'll tell main office I'm the drummer. That way I'll get an end unit".

When I do a Life Alert ad, my tag line will be: "Help, I want to be funky but I can't get down".

 

[M-Mittlesteadt]

Sounds like you had the sort of gig anyone would want to walk away from: Friends wedding, short notice, borrowed gear that didn't suit, short set (higher setup to playing ratio), and a Mandolin player... I'm out...

It's never been easier to be a bass player - amps and cabs are lighter then they've every been, and PA got so good you probably don't need them anyway. A Pre/DI pedal and a cable and you're good to go.

Maybe you don't need to quit gigs - you just need to quit bad gigs.

Well, I did know almost the entire band and had played with them all off and on for the past 45 years. And while it was my friend's wedding, he was one of the guitar players and he played almost the entire gig! Him and his wife are great, fun people. While he was onstage, she had a drink in one hand and was out dancing and hanging out with everyone and having a great time. It was a far more casual affair than your typical wedding.

Yet it did bring up an awful lot of things I need to consider or reconsider about me playing again.

 

[Paul New]

I still love it and can’t get enough, but know that at some point my sense of humor will be the only thing left. That’s life!

 

[jnewmark]

I'm in the same boat as you, including the bandmates dying of cancer, sad to say. Started playing bass in 1971 and have played on the average of 3-4 nights a week since then. Around 5 years ago, I noticed that musicians my age were gradually saying goodbye, the grind of gigging finally getting to them, most of them stating it was getting to be too much like work and struggling with it. I was a little fortunate in that I was able to transition to more studio gigs as a session bassist for a local record company, and played on about a half dozen CD's that made some noise. But, that eventually fizzled out along with the local bar scene changing into more of an acoustic duo, solo performer scene, in other words, background music to the patrons watching the TV's or playing on their phones. At age 77, I haven't played a gig in two years. It was a great run, but its really looking like the end of the road. Kind of bittersweet, because I still think I have something to offer, but the kind of music I'm good at playing seems to have gone out of favor, also. I'm slowly getting to the point where I have accepted it, along with health issues of my own popping up, like arthritis and lower back pain. Hopefully the phone will ring and I'll get another opportunity, but I'm not counting on it. Nothing lasts forever, all good things come to an end, and all that jazz. Good luck.

 

[kia_forte]

Absolutely. I'm looking into possibilities, limited as they are at the moment.

This past weekend just kind of opened my eyes a little more into what the future may no longer hold.

Do you have any veterans homes or organizations in your area? Hospitals or rehab centers that would appreciate entertainment? Maybe put together a duo / larger act and offer your services?
It is a win/win situation for everyone involved.

 

[Lefty Joe]

Last band I was in, Dave (the drummer) had to tell us: he'd seen a doctor, and yes it was cancer (again). We stuck by him: as he underwent chemo, he'd feel tired, so we'd take breaks during rehearsal. When the band ended, it was due to the BL's unreliability, not Dave's.

A year later, I heard the news: Dave had passed on. During practice with another band, they took a break, went outside to smoke; when they came back in, Dave was still on his throne at the drum set, but he was gone. I can't think of a better way to go: doing what you love, right down to the last beat.

 

[bassbrad]

Outdoor gigs are the toughest! I hope you can find the right situation to keep playing as I certainly understand your situation. I'm 66, partially disabled and not in the best shape but lucked into a situation that fits my talents with some good players that are supportive. We play 2 or 3 3 hour jazz gigs and one of our monthly gigs is outdoors but shaded and lakeside. I carry my own chair and have my gear so it fits on a rock n roller cart for a one trip load in and out and often one of the younger guys helps with the load out. There is no way I would consider a 4 hour Rock, blues. C&W or R&B gig, I just don't have the energy.

 

[kia_forte]

Sad to hear from anyone that they have to make the decision to give up something they love.

I'm getting to the point where I no longer want to haul all the gear necessary for even our small 3 pc. I'm the one with the majority of the workload because I bought and own our PA and lights. Lots to consider. A full time sound person would be great but there's issues to consider with that too.

Maybe after reading your post I realize I CAN still do it at 60 so I should to stay active. Somehow that both does and doesn't make sense at the same time.

Best of luck finding a way to make things work for you and your situation.

Well you can as you have been and it's apparently what you do? (Well, I might add..)
I'm 64, not day job retired and have gigs Thurs /Fri Sat this week. The pain of them is self inflicted as I booked them all.
There's no logic to it except the financial logic of making more money.