This is an offshoot of the "have you ever been fired" thread.
So why did you quit?
So why did you quit?
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Why did you quit a band?
- Thread starter Cut the middle
- Start date
I had to move to Arizona. The band got along great, though!
I was concerned about driving home with drunk drivers on the road. We were playing every Friday and Saturday night and I had a couple of close calls and decided that my family was more important. This was a cover band I was in from 2002 until 2012.
Usually just tired of dealing with the people in it, or disillusioned with the music in general. I gave it up periodically throughout my life for those two reasons.
I came close to quitting my main band last year because one guy wasn't pulling his weight with his playing and the whole band was suffering. But when I told them I was going to leave, they all decided to fire the other guy instead.
Another band I did quit last year because the music wasn't challenging me and the personnel were a revolving door, which meant that we kept hashing over the same music week after week, but everyone was coming in with their new "take" on the music I'd spent time learning. It was that band that finally made me realize I didn't have the energy or time to practice weekly with everyone. I can't set aside four nights a week for four different bands.
I came close to quitting my main band last year because one guy wasn't pulling his weight with his playing and the whole band was suffering. But when I told them I was going to leave, they all decided to fire the other guy instead.
Another band I did quit last year because the music wasn't challenging me and the personnel were a revolving door, which meant that we kept hashing over the same music week after week, but everyone was coming in with their new "take" on the music I'd spent time learning. It was that band that finally made me realize I didn't have the energy or time to practice weekly with everyone. I can't set aside four nights a week for four different bands.
The other 3 members were alcoholics to one extent or another. The night we played at the best gig in town, they all got drunk on stage. I finished the gig and quit.
Three years in realized we didn’t share same performance goals.
Why didn't I quit is the real question:
- The constant fighting
- cocaine and pot and booze all over the place all the time
- drug dealers everywhere.
- drug deals gone bad and drummer on probation
- drummer drinking pickle juice all the time because he thinks that'll make him pass his urine tests for probation
- cops constantly being called by the neighbors when trying to rehearse
- the terrible gigs where nobody showed up
- lugging huge cabinets everywhere
- and those who did come to the gig hated us
- girls only liked the guitar player. Always.
- no pay
- s*** job at the BBQ joint just to buy strings and cords and keep the amps working
- the constant fighting.
You can handle the music biz for a while when you're young, but eventually you get tired of being a working musician. No pay, fighting, drug dealers and having to deal with stoned drunk people all the time and people being in jail for drug dealing and making no music.
I don't miss it personally, but YMMV.
L
- The constant fighting
- cocaine and pot and booze all over the place all the time
- drug dealers everywhere.
- drug deals gone bad and drummer on probation
- drummer drinking pickle juice all the time because he thinks that'll make him pass his urine tests for probation
- cops constantly being called by the neighbors when trying to rehearse
- the terrible gigs where nobody showed up
- lugging huge cabinets everywhere
- and those who did come to the gig hated us
- girls only liked the guitar player. Always.
- no pay
- s*** job at the BBQ joint just to buy strings and cords and keep the amps working
- the constant fighting.
You can handle the music biz for a while when you're young, but eventually you get tired of being a working musician. No pay, fighting, drug dealers and having to deal with stoned drunk people all the time and people being in jail for drug dealing and making no music.
I don't miss it personally, but YMMV.
L
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Because the guitarist was a total narcissist. Always complaining about others' mistakes but never admitting to his own.
In the end he just became too unreliable live-wise. He stopped playing once due to the drummer hitting a cymbal out of place and just decided on the fly to restart a whole section of the song leaving me with absolutely no idea what was going on.
The time before this he asked the crowd to help me find the correct speed and rhythm to a song that I started in exactly the same way and speed as I had always done. There was no coming back from this little tantrum -and I promptly left!
In the end he just became too unreliable live-wise. He stopped playing once due to the drummer hitting a cymbal out of place and just decided on the fly to restart a whole section of the song leaving me with absolutely no idea what was going on.
The time before this he asked the crowd to help me find the correct speed and rhythm to a song that I started in exactly the same way and speed as I had always done. There was no coming back from this little tantrum -and I promptly left!
I guess I quit a lot of things due to coronavirus. Ready to un-quit.
Because I was not interested in the musical direction they were taking and it was that or find something else.
1985-1987... hairspray, spandex, makeup... the hair metal thing was going strong.. I wanted no part of it.
1985-1987... hairspray, spandex, makeup... the hair metal thing was going strong.. I wanted no part of it.
According to the electric guitar pioneer Charlie Christian, there are 3 reasons to get your guitar out of its case:
When you are zero for three (or at least insufficient) that's when you know it is time to bail.
- To make money
- To have fun
- To learn something
When you are zero for three (or at least insufficient) that's when you know it is time to bail.
I was spoilt once in a band where everyone did the homework.
I was in a band with that guitar player. I was also in a band with a drummer who told me my opinion on what we did as a band didn’t matter as I was only the bass player and I didn’t get a vote. He and I almost came to blows. Another drummer was too lazy to write (original band) so I had to write the drum parts, as well as bass and vocals/lyrics (I sang and played bass.) Too many more...it’s very difficult to find the right mix of people.
...because I got sick and tired of dragging my carcass home at 4AM every Friday and Saturday night with a backache.
This thread shouldn't be in the "Basses" forum probably, but here's three examples of bands I've quit, with the reasons ... these were all years ago:
1. The artist was racist, misogynistic, and homophobic
2. The first half hour to 45 minutes of each "rehearsal" were the two guitarists loudly messing with their amp and effects settings, but it was not ok for anyone else who took less time to "set up" to show up a little later in order to miss this part of "rehearsal" ... sounds like a petty reason to quit, I guess, but after a couple of years I just couldn't take it any longer
3. We provided the PA and lights, and the guitarist had an extremely particular way everything had to be done, which resulted in 2 hours setup and 2 hours tear down time. We played 4 sets a night, 45 - 60 minutes a set, so it ended up being an 8 hour night, not counting drive time, for $75 each on average. I just couldn't do it any more, and I was sick of playing covers anyway (absolutely nothing derogatory against covers or cover bands - it's just not what I wanted to do).
1. The artist was racist, misogynistic, and homophobic
2. The first half hour to 45 minutes of each "rehearsal" were the two guitarists loudly messing with their amp and effects settings, but it was not ok for anyone else who took less time to "set up" to show up a little later in order to miss this part of "rehearsal" ... sounds like a petty reason to quit, I guess, but after a couple of years I just couldn't take it any longer
3. We provided the PA and lights, and the guitarist had an extremely particular way everything had to be done, which resulted in 2 hours setup and 2 hours tear down time. We played 4 sets a night, 45 - 60 minutes a set, so it ended up being an 8 hour night, not counting drive time, for $75 each on average. I just couldn't do it any more, and I was sick of playing covers anyway (absolutely nothing derogatory against covers or cover bands - it's just not what I wanted to do).
Yes LBS I could have written that myself, bless you for understanding ...onwards to the next hey ?
1. Their chosen practice day conflicted with another playing opportunity in front of live audiences
2. Not particularly enamored with the song list
3. Had to pitch in for practice facility
4. No short, nor even intermediate expectations of playing out for money.
Money, music, hang . . . Need 2 of the 3 in order to work for me. Guys are nice enough, although they played louder than necessary imo, and I sensed that there was an underlying tendency toward guitar wankery so I pulled the plug on my participation. Singer was really good though.
2. Not particularly enamored with the song list
3. Had to pitch in for practice facility
4. No short, nor even intermediate expectations of playing out for money.
Money, music, hang . . . Need 2 of the 3 in order to work for me. Guys are nice enough, although they played louder than necessary imo, and I sensed that there was an underlying tendency toward guitar wankery so I pulled the plug on my participation. Singer was really good though.
