Yep, me too. I did pretty well through the late 70s. The it died out.
I do get tired of and irritated by the originals elitists. Sorry guys, but you are not superior musicians. Maybe it is that you aren't capable of learning others' material. I hear a lot of "original" material that sound just like all the other "original" material. And maybe they are just covering feeling inferior because the only gigs they can get are pay-to-play.
Please forgive the derail rant, but it is annoying when someone jumps into an otherwise fun thread and starts with this kind of crap.