General Music Chat

Ha Ha

I remember busking for a few bucks lol

I enjoyed playing bars but have since recovered from the mental disorder that caused me to try to entertain people. Once I stopped playing cover songs I really didn't feel, my cover playlist went to less than 10 songs.

I quit hanging out in bars long before I stopped playing in them. In a down economy musicians go from hookers to cheap hookers. Then you start to turn tricks for free. The bar bands of the late 70's would be 1st rate acts today. The few bars that still have live music are few and far between.

Maybe things will get better sure as heck can't get much worse

old Russian saying;

it can always get worse.

old Russian saying;

it can always get worse.

HA HA

And still we wait for others to provide ...

A more intelligent thoughtful group of people I believe I have never had the pleasure of knowing.

Surely one of us has an original idea in our heads to bring music to the fore?

Sans, - any suggestions?

Playing in the churches or the bars is about
the same, there both unappreciative audiences
with other things on there mind than your music.

Back in the day we'd throw all weekend long parties,
sell tickets, have bands and kegs of beer. There'd be
partying, dancing, drinking, slipping off in the woods, or
even the parking lot, with a good looking woman. We made
piles of money, I was going to college at the time and would
hide the money in various different financial instruments so
nobody knew how much we were making. Say 7$ a ticket, and
sell 3,000 of them, the beer companis would bring a refrigerated
truck out, with taps all around it(it gets a little muddy around the
beer truck).

If your not making it in music the way you'd like to, it's your
fault, not the bars, or there customers, or the church and there
customers, you have got to make it happen. Most people can't
control themselves much less there future.

That's my 5 dollars worth, I'm going to record all day to day
Ha Ha Ha Ha

The basics are the same no matter where you play, bring more people make more money.

If you cant draw any people then why should you be paid, I dont get the feeling that just because youve spent all your life playing music and developing your craft that you just think you should get a pay check for being there. Kinda sounds like someone that just wants welfare to me.

I no longer have any huge aspirations at all about getting rich with mucis, but when I was younger and we couldnt get a gig in a bar, we would have our own gigs, buy a few kegs, sell tickets, we didnt draw people like Lynard speaks about, but we did quite a few gigs that we made between 2 and 3,000 dollars after expenses, the only problem for me is at this point in life I dont want to deal with the logistics, deal with making sure the people are of age, handling ever aspect of it, I would rather make my 5-700 dollars a night and not have any of those issues to deal with.

As far as christian music, when I did that we didnt expect to be paid, we got love offerings, we did benefits for other causes or to help the less fortunate, but the goal of that was to never line our pockets or be rock stars, it was to spread Gods Love, plain and simple. Nothing wrong with that if the whole group is on board with that.

My band Aint Yo Mama did some tent revivals at one time that our singer still talks about. No we didnt make any money on those shows, but we didnt expect too. I think we just enjoyed doing that cause we felt it was the right thing to do, plus it showed people that had seen us that we were way more versatile than the average band, and willing to step thru that doorway when asked.

The only way in music to truelly make more money is to drive more and more people to shows, sell more tickets and sell more merchandise. You cant expect some bars to make you rich , it just aint gonna happen. If you come away with 50 to 100 dollars per man, thats about all you can expect, if you dont get offers for at least that amount then you might want to rethink your set list.

I agree blaming the bars or promoters for your lack of monetary offers isnt going to change things, think outside the box, promote your own shows, but in the end if noone wants to come see you on a regular basis, you will be playing for free no matter how good you are.

I don't think the law will let you throw a party
like that anymore. We didn't check ID's and if
you got out hand we threw your ass out. There
is alot to the logistics, and now you've got all
kinds of laws to deal with, andthe large numbers
of people that partied back then, don't today,
partying's bad if you need to get high we'll put you
on some Dr. dope, is the way it is today.

Of course the churches don't pay, not when you
got to pay the preacher a 100 grand a year, and
the youth pastor 50 grand, and the music director
50 grand, but by God if your on the praise team, it's
be in your place at 8:29 ready to go. I think that
preacher don't like me since I quit the praise team,
I always say "Well if it ain't the highest paid preacher
in Marionville. (Were Baptists we've got our image to
think about). I have a personal relationship with Jesus
and it has nothing to do with the church and that
bunch of social climbing motherphukkers.

LOL, Lynard, a couple of years ago I wanted to promote a music festival with beer of course, there is so many permits and red tape that I just let it go.

It just wasnt worth the hassle for me, plus you might still not make any money and the liabilitys of checking IDs and keeping beer out of the hands of minors, its just not worth it to me.

I play music these days cause I enjoy it, and I do get paid.

I see your point, but you are missing a couple key elements.

Everyone wants to be a rock star, including people that have all the money to spare for all of the expenses you are talking about. Regardless of how horrible they sound when they play their instruments, and yes, they will play for free, and the bar owner will have to listen to their horrible playing and sound setup all night. Some of them even will pay to play. Like you have to at Whiskey's Go Go's on Sunset Strip in L.A.

Exposure costs money too, and bar owners have way more costs than you. If you don't bring a crowd, then you don't get paid.

That is why they have pre sale ticket sales, that is why they have percentages off the door.

This is a business man, you get paid if you bring the product. The product is not your music, not that your talent doesn't deserve it to be introduced as such, unless of course you are selling your CD's at your shows. The product is the people, and how drunk they can get, and how entertaining you can be to convince them to spend money at the bar so they can get a girl drunk enough to touch they most intimate pink places.

I am just showing you some tough love, because it sounds like you are getting too involved with yourself.

Please don't take this as a personal attack, it is just fact.

I dig what you are saying, it sucks sometimes to be a musician. Everybody has expenses, just hang in there, and do what you got to do to bring yourself up a level.

I won't be on Bandmix anymore, so I salute you brother, and you have all my best wishes for a successful and FUN career.


Later.

JW we use to throw the 2 biggest parties of
the year at Missouri State, a Barn Dance in the
fall and a Pig Roast in the spring. We had King's X
play at our barn dance one year, they were called
the Edge then. But our pig roast was the big one,
20 or 30 hogs, 100 to 150 kegs of beer, and the
best bands in the Springfield, MO area, this was are
2 fundraisers every year. Now I know back then that
some of those Frat guys throwed some pretty profitable
parties, and have played a few, when there's lots
of money the pay is always good.

The government has stuck it's nose in everywhere nowadays,
and I don't think you could pull it off around here. We never
carded anybody, and I never been to a big Frat shindig where
they did either.

The country players around here play at these little music
halls all over the place here. It's always no alcohol or drugs,
and usually quit by 11 pm, and they charge 5 dollars a head to
get in, don't know how the money's split. My boy is a drummer
and he plays at these when they call and offer cash.

Music isn't a business to me JohnMc, it's a way of life, if you see me
playing at a bar they must be paying me phenomanally well(is that
a word). I don't go to bars anymore and have no desire to play at
them. I use to pick up women at them, but it's way to easy, I got
to where I liked phukking with the bartenders and bouncers more
than picking up women, I had a good woman at home, who thinks
I do no wrong, but you no lord she just ain't always around.

Well I just keep seeing people get on here and say Im a musician I should be paid a fair wage to just get up and play.

Hey its business, no matter how you look at it.

How many young people graduate from college every year only to find that they cant get a job in thier chosen profession? Hey they should get a job cause they put the work in, like many of us who practiced many hours to be the ultimate musicians we are.

When you go on a job interview, they dont care what you want to do, they expect you to fill the job you apply for, you are going to work for them to produce revenue so they pay you and keep you around, when you get hired you dont get to pick what you want to do.

Compare this to the typical first time giggin musician, Im gonna play my music my way, I dont care what the club owner wants or the audience, Im gonna win them over. Take that kind attitude into a job interview do you get the job? LOL

The more i think about the common responses on here some of you should just apply for gavernment assistance, thats what you are asking for an entitlement.

Im a great musician and Im due to be paid playing whatever I want to play, and f**k you if you think different.

Once a band steps out of the garage and into the bar scene they arent in la la land anymore, they are in business.

Most of us in business, realize that we have to meet some need, he have to be available to fill that need and most of all we have to be competitive with what we offer, why is playing in a band and playing in a bar any different? Its not, its all business, and until musicians treat what they are doing as business they wont make any real money.

Sorry for the rant, but it seems most musicians have this democratic complex that just because they can tune a guitar, then they should be paid to do so.

Nicely spoke John! Making the move from your garage to the stage is so much more than the nice gear you have, the fancy clothes you bought or the number of chords you know. Number one, if you don't make a connection with people when you play you will not be making any money. Number two, if you think you should be paid for moving equipment and tuning guitars you will be disappointed! Rock and roll pussies do not last long, only the strong survive!

Sans, - any suggestions?

Certainly ...

Here is my long term project in a nutshell.

Obtain the appropriate gear to not only do live music shows with our band but to be in the position to host others as well.
Obtain develop and network with the appropriate contacts to do audio visual for promotional materials / purposes.
Locate and develop suitable lease-able / rent able locations for presentation of live music and seek out like minded musicians / bands interested in such a broad project.

Yes ... it is being and will be expensive. But someone must make the first steps.
Every piece of equipment I purchase in an investment in either and experimental ( learning ) mode or as a part of the bigger picture.

Pretty big nutshell ...

I could be dead wrong but surely I am not the only person in my area that longs for a music venue that is not hung up with all the trappings of the same old stuff.


Interestingly enough there was a fellow locally whom was restoring and renovating a local movie theater as a musical venue ... until asbestos abatement kicked his financial ass.

Sans there's a place similar to that here in E. lyme CT.
( - an individual - ) . . . holds a coffee house (in a barn) every month or so.
About 35 - 45 musicians or groups show up. When you perform there, you'll have an audience of between 20 - 50 at any given time.
What a GREAT place!
Greaty music great crowd, great food, great fun.
If anyone has an opportunity to do this - don't hesitate . . .