General Music Chat

... for Art to decide if he can find the time to continue our duo thingie, I've been checking CL regularly.
I see an ad for a duo looking for another guitarist who can harmonize. I reply, get no response, so shoot a whole bunch more responses over teh last week, figuring they are not getting my emails due to the sucky CL annoymous email system.
Then this morning I see they have updated the ad and added that one of the members of the duo is 42 and they are 'looking for a similar age person' - f*cking ageists! My wife (who is only 43) says I don't act/look like any one near my age. F*CK 'EM! Rock and roll will keep you young.

I've been having the same problem Mike! Been keeping my eyes peeled for a 2cd band to keep me busier! It's hell getting old isn't it?

I resemble that remark!

I'm in two bands and I've never been busier! Recorded a new song last night, tonight the cover band rehearses in preparation for our next gig. I could give any twenty-something a run for their money!

I thought I would dip my toe in the musical waters again, and run a little ad on CL, written simply as "guitarist available" with a description as it is not the musical prowess that is important but the chemistry or feeling of a harmonious nature spirit wise.. showed up 20 minutes early.. I had learned my 7 songs I was given a week or so earlier (I did not realize the lead solo in "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" was so easy) even played lap steel on Billy Currington tune, a Darius Rucker tune, etc. but the funniest thing is nobody showed up ..we were going to be stuffed into a small dining room and if the drummer would have shown up with a decent kit it would have ate up half the room.. the noise level (sound pressure) would have destroyed ear drums in that tight of confinement at the least.. the place was the sound man's he was supposed to be part of the bad getting a full cut but would not play or sing.. his female partner I did not even get to hear, she was somewhere else in the house most of the night popping in for a minute or two to spout off how good she was..really odd.. no drummer no bass player, no second guitar, showed up.. 3 no shows.. and I had to drive 25 miles into Springfield for that? needless to say I am not taking phone calls or emails..

I thought I would dip my toe in the musical waters again, and run a little ad on CL, written simply as "guitarist available" with a description as it is not the musical prowess that is important but the chemistry or feeling of a harmonious nature spirit wise.. showed up 20 minutes early.. I had learned my 7 songs I was given a week or so earlier (I did not realize the lead solo in "Hit Me With Your Best Shot" was so easy) even played lap steel on Billy Currington tune, a Darius Rucker tune, etc. but the funniest thing is nobody showed up ..we were going to be stuffed into a small dining room and if the drummer would have shown up with a decent kit it would have ate up half the room.. the noise level (sound pressure) would have destroyed ear drums in that tight of confinement at the least.. the place was the sound man's he was supposed to be part of the bad getting a full cut but would not play or sing.. his female partner I did not even get to hear, she was somewhere else in the house most of the night popping in for a minute or two to spout off how good she was..really odd.. no drummer no bass player, no second guitar, showed up.. 3 no shows.. and I had to drive 25 miles into Springfield for that? needless to say I am not taking phone calls or emails..

Dane - that's why I've gone the "no videos/music available - not interested" route. Too many wannabes. Sorry you went to so much effort for nothing - if the 'band' doesn't show for an audition, it ain't gonna work come practice/gig time, either. And big quesiton in this instance - why didn't they have a full-time practice place set up already?

It's hell getting old isn't it?

Who you calling OLD, Jeff?

LOL You think that's bad?

I stuck an ad on CL trying to be the last part of a puzzle piece for someone's band. I figured I'd play bass since every dullard and their brother thinks they are the new thing for guitar.. I just want something quality to play along with and I get sick of trying to deal with morons. I figured support would be easier and I could pick someone who has something wonderful going on, maybe. (gulp)

So I get email from this one guy. I ask him for a sample.
He doesn't send me one.

I write him again and ask him if he's still breathing.
He replies that he didn't get my email address. LOL (??!>!?!?!>?)

So I give him one and ask for a sample again.
This time I list my bmix url to show him I have samples as well.

Well this time he writes me back and copies a dropbox link labeled DEMO that doesn't work. I write him back and tell him that whatever he tried to send me doesn't work and that dropbox is something I would use to collaborate with someone in Romania, not to get a sample from a local.

Next thing you know, he sends me this ? email about how he's 39, owns his own home and spends most of his time practicing/playing out but either doesn't have a sample or doesn't know how to upload/attach it to an email.

He further goes on to tell me that he listened to the samples I have and he's been studying hard to play leads over that stuff. He exclaims that "how can he ever get any better if he doesn't play with people better than himself" or something to that effect.

He finishes by saying that I am degrading him by asking for a sample and he doesn't know how to use a computer well enough to attach/send a sample.

I just threw up my hands in despair and told him that to attach a file isn't all that difficult, GO ASK GOOGLE. Otherwise, I wasn't interested as these days especially, if you have no sample, you aren't serious.

No sample - novice, period, end of story..

AND CL is a mental asylum, you never know who you'll meet and what they'll do.

(I think my rabbit is done cooking, WITH ALL IT'S FUR STILL ON IN THE BOILING POT.) lol YEOWCH!!! THAT's HOT!!! lol

I used to think you saw whackos at your local open mic, CL is far worse...

The Farleys found our latest drummer Mikey on CL - he just happened to be running an ad looking for a band the same week we were looking for a drummer. Of course there are nuts and flakes on CL, but they are in exactly the same proportion as any other place. Ask the right questions, and if you don't get the right answers, stop!

Don't forget to use your network of musicians when building a band. We are all at the point where we know many guitar players, drummers, bass players and singers so get on the horn and round 'em up! I put together Dover Soul that way, no ad was run, I put it together from people I knew.

Ive been kinda testing the local CL for a bassist with vocal abilitys, so far no good, it just takes time to weed thru things, and then the serious people when we talk on the phone I already know them.

The group of people actually playing music to any degree is a small group, Im with Jimmy check with active musicians, get off your ass, off the computor and go where people are playing the type of music you want to be involved with and and let people know you are available.

Its so crazy to think that you will find someone worth a sh*t over CL of all places, Ihave met a few but Ive been contacted by way more bozos that its worth to mention.

Capt if someone cant give me some sample of music, then I just dont even talk to them, or if they cant give me a reference of someone or some place they have played, if someone has no experience then Im not interested, my biggest problem is when I get with "real" musicians these days they want way more committment to playing than I can give, so in my case Im the problem, I want a cherry gig where I call the shots, like Jimmy, he runs his bands so he makes it fit his schedule.

Scott - should have given up on that 'guitarist' right away! Problem with the CL reply system is if they use the standard 'anonymous' email address, even when you reply from a real one, it doesn't show to the person, you've got to put your real email address in the body of the email so they can copy and paste it.

Yeah, the 'flakes' are out there in the same proportions on CL as anywhere else (including Bandmix!) Getting out there to talk to other players is just as important as scanning the ads. I talked (or at least said 'hello') to every other person playing at the OM last night, as I usually do.

Still no reply from that duo, although they must have got my message, otherwise why did they change their ad. Losers! Anyone with any common sense and people skills would at least reply 'thanks but no thanks'.

the second time I jammed on a Tuesday night at Lindbergh's in Springfield I was approached and recruited by a Mike Lehar and played lead guitar with his outfit for quite some time.. we rehearsed in a mansion .. so I agree, the open mics are the way to go.. the proof is in the pudding.. displaying your skills will get noticed ..if you have any guitar skills people notice.. the audience at the open mics are generally bar managers looking for bands to hire, and musicians looking to fill positions in a band they are trying to assemble..

You have to realize that this works in reverse at times as well.

I played 3 songs at a open mic not too long ago and all I got was a bunch of open mouths and hanging jaws. They liked it, as they clapped (and not the gratuity clap either, you live people know what that sounds like) but they were pretty much dumbfounded.

The one guy comes up to me afterwards and is looking in my eyes, like he's a doctor or something. Then he asks me if I am stuck in the 60's. lol

I was like, "why, do you think I am"? He goes something to the effect that Hendrix is dead and so is his music.

I ignored his remark and said to him very nonchalantly, "why, what do YOU play"?

He says he plays "the new country". I almost choked when I heard that and was coughing and basically took beer down the wrong pipe.

He then softened a little and said that I had a very "organic" voice, whatever that means and asked me to do a tune with him. The only problem is that the only tunes he knows were country tunes and I know NO country music at all.

So then he doesn't believe me, I guess. He keeps asking me if I know this or that and I just shake my head no.

Finally he gets mad and stomps off, muttering.

I didn't tell him I wouldn't do a tune with him, we just had no tunes in common. He acted like I was snubbing him.

So believe me, so open mics can be very touchy and the people are a crap shoot.

Maybe you meet like minded people, then again maybe you play and the entire house looks like they saw a ghost, it could go either way at any time. It's still a 50-50 thing to me..maybe what I play is too odd, I don't know..who cares..surely not me..

I think I was happier covering Type O Negative, on bass, even with the chick that bit me..LMAO

I hope she sits on a tack..

I ultimately figure that I'd like to play my own stuff, but I would be just as happy playing bass for a bunch of GOOD musicians, no slop in, slop out.
That way, you either do what you love or you are working with people that sound like something you really like. That's a win-win, right there.

that's why you should learn the Nashville Number System Scott.. a well rounded musician should be able to play anything on the spot or within a couple takes, that's what makes a session guitarist so valuble.. time is money in a studio..

Hell the last open mic I did this dude came in wanted to do rock a billy/ country, I just said tell me what key its in and away we went.

CAPT no disrespect but sometimes playing things outside of your confort zone will make you an overall better player. This particular night this chick got up with an acoustic that wouldnt tune and tryed to play that Highway song by Audio Slave, me and the other guys just stumbled along, until she quit, where I went into one of those kill switch solos on the end, and got everyones attention.

Maybe as you get older Capt you will open up more when I was in my 20s I was the biggest most concieted ass on the planet about music.

By the way the rockabilly dude turned out to be a song writer who wrote stuff with Elvis and Jerry Lee Lewis, he got my number and said if he was doing demos he might use me, so you just never know, I may never hear from him again, but it was fun.

Attitude is everything, or maybe i should say no attitude is everything.

So true John. I ran an open mic for almost seven years, it taught me how to improvise and learn how to play with almost anyone. Stepping outside your comfort zone is essential if you want to grow.

So true John. I ran an open mic for almost seven years, it taught me how to improvise and learn how to play with almost anyone. Stepping outside your comfort zone is essential if you want to grow.

Words of wisdom Jimmy and John. If I am in a comfort zone to long I know I'm stagnating. Thats why I like playing with lots of folks.