Retiring from Cover Band Scene- had more than enough- What now?

Yup, you're dreaming. Jazz gigs pay very little. Think $50/man maybe
and very few to be had. Most are picked up by music Professors in my area.
Low audience turn out.
Think acoustic gigs with no drums, duo/trio. Usually play around the diner time.
Low pay, home early.Playing Pop/Rock tunes.
Don't blame you for dropping out of the cover scene.
It does get old.

 

What about a tribute band?

 

Sounds more like a function of the bands you are playing in than the entire world of cover bands. I've played in lots of cover bands where I could hear every note I played, there were no volume wars, we played lodges so we were done before midnight with $100 - $200 in our pockets.

 

Do you wear earplugs when you play? I do.

 

We stumbled upon a venue where the owner isn't an idiot - always though they all were LOL. 8:30 to 11:30 play time and OK pay. NOTHING good happens after midnight and four hour gigs are just stoopid. Most venues compete to attract the worst of the alcoholics as those are the ones they make the most $$$ on. This one goes after those that won't go to those other venues - who sane wants to hang out with the areas worst alcoholics every weekend (the typical bar band LOL)?

 

YEs, you are dreaming.. at least in my neck of the woods you are!

Sounds like what you REALLY WANT is another band.. not retirement..
Something with some pros who know how to play, are not hearing impaired and get decent paying gigs ??

 

The grass is always greener. I feel you'll find reasons to dislike the jazz scene after a while too. Pick the music you enjoy listening to and playing most, and find people on the same page to play it with. If you're just playing music for a job then the fun factor slowly dissipates, no matter what genre you choose.

 

I was in the same boat as you...for about 10 years (90's to early 2000's) I played in a very busy cover band, 3 nights a week, 50 weeks a year. I got to the point where i really wasn't having fun, all the same reasons you posted +. I dropped out of the scene for a several years, woodsheded at home, focused on my day job, and got to a comfortable point where I no longer need to do music for money. Now I can pick and choose what I play and how often, i'm a better player now and much happier.

 

Pics or no drunk "tease" girls.

 

My gut reaction, because I'm nearing the end of that arc myself:

As I got older, I naturally found myself playing music with younger people. It's all good, I'm young at heart and in good shape physically and mentally. But I have something they don't: Experience.

I'm determined that when I quit weekend cover bands altogether I'm going to still find ways to work with younger musicians. There is a lot of mentoring you can do and help musicians avoid the litany of counter-productive behaviors that we gripe about here on TB and elsewhere.

I've also gotten pretty good at band management/administrative details, so even though my stage time may be reduced, I can still help bands with promo/marketing/booking/image/polishing their product, etc.

I've also gotten fairly competent with recording, sound, and lights. I can help bands stage themselves to look and sound their best. I can help bands with demos, and songwriters with getting good marketable demos of their material. And I still play several instruments half-way decent enough to be of assistance tracking parts.

I can see where the weekend warrior thing will loose it's charm soon (I estimate I've got a good 5-6 years left), but I doubt I'll quit being active as a musician and entrepreneur, and might even find other performance avenues. It would be a shame to just shelve all this experience that I have acquired over the decades.

 

Dreaming? No. That's what I do (and have a country band that plays 2-4 times/month). I'm also an acoustic guitar player and sing. I get plenty of calls for sit-in gigs, and have a trio (sometimes a duo when one of us gets double booked) and we play wineries, restaurants, house concerts and such ... no bar gigs ... ever. That $100-150 is reasonable for a gig ... but not "per man".

 

Jazz stuff can be hard to break into. The top dicks (and dickettes) in Denver are maybe pulling 150 a night but its not every night or even every weekend, and those guys are a tight knit group of 100 or so guys.
If you can get it, then go for it. But id recommend just taking a break, because every time I'm ready to call it quits on a particular scene I take a bunch gigs outside that scene and end up craving it

 

as a quite inexperienced player myself, I have to say its frwst to see more experienced players actually wanting to help out! really cool!!!

 

Thanks.

And it's not like I'm the next Berry Gordy or anything, but I care about my local music scene and would like to instill healthy standards in entertainers in my area and help if I can.

 

I play in a trio cover band.
We have no egos, no volume wars and we are all about the same age.
We don't play in January, February or March unless one of our regular gigs needs us. We play mostly Sundays 3-7/ 4-8.
We give the owners an option 3 hr $300 4 hr 375.
We gig 1-3 times a month.
This is the most fun I've ever had in a band.
Good luck

 

Do a tribute band. I am in a Beach Boy Tribute band. We do some travel in Fla, play hr and a half shows, all corperate gigs, condos, festivals, etc. and the money is GREAT!! Whatever you do, you have to get out of the bar/night club scene. Sometimes, easier said than done