I've noticed quite a few HOD members who say they're 50+ yet this is not confined to them, everybody's got a birthday coming up. Maybe a survey has been taken and I overlooked it but I feel the average age of a HOD drummer is 35. I've learned from some very savvy drummers via trading that they were only 19 or 20 but you wouldn't know it from their learned posts. On the other hand there is the 40-50 contingent that balances the 'young' and the 'older.' I revel in the international immediacy of the site so much that I quit reading MD once I discovered HOD. The sophistication level of the drummers here, be they hobbyists like myself and others whom I won't mention or working professionals who I will mention like Fuse, Randy, DSOP, to name a few, is invigorating and rewarding. It's like Cheers, you see people you recognise in here every day. But I digress.
Anyway, being 50+ I find the amount of gigs available to me are drying up unless I want to play country or some Texas blues. I love to shuffle, but not at less than 86 bpm. Personally I'd rather be playing rock but all my friends my age have settled down and given up their guitars. Fusion? Gettus realasaurus, this is George Bush Jr. country. I feel like an anachronism.
I played in a metal band a couple years ago, old enough to be everybody's dad. They respected my playing but made fun of the fact my wardrobe didn't contain enough Slipknot T-shirts or Pantera watchcaps. So I quit and joined a country band I really thrived on (much to my surprise) because of the untempo nature of the tunes and the often hilarious lyrics. But I wearied of driving over 100 miles round trip to rehearsals. A local Top 40 band, all aged around 30, passed on me despite my faithful recreating of the My Sharona-Brickhouse-esque tunes in their book at the audition because I may not look like I'm 50, but I don't look like I'm 30 either.
Sooner or later everyone's going to face the age dilemma and the prejudice that comes with it. So if you're not satisfied playing styles of music that don't really move you or reduced to associating with some really poor older hack musicians who haven't learned anything new since they were 17, what's to be done?
<font size="2" face="Verdana, Helvetica, sans-serif">"You've got to remember that these are just simple farmers. They're people of the land. The common clay of the New West. You know - morons."Originally posted by Five Eight:
. . . Fusion? Gettus realasaurus, this is George Bush Jr. country. I feel like an anachronism. . . .
- Gene Wilder (The Waco Kid), Blazing Saddles
I don't get much work from rock bands any more, mostly due to the age thing. I'm 53. Someone asked me recently if I?d been playing all my life and I told her I wasn?t dead yet.
Still, I?m working consistently now more than I ever have, maybe 4 nights a week freelancing in different jazz, R&B, blues and African situations. It?s nearly impossible to commit to one thing, unless you?re happy working maybe 4 night?s/month, so I freelance. I am fortunate in that there are a lot of different musics and a diverse populace in the DC/Baltimore/Annapolis area.
I also find that the professional standards of musicianship in these bands is higher, as folks tend to know their instruments, their idioms and have good work ethics and people skills. Unlike most of the rock bands I?ve been in, where folks generally can?t read, haven?t done their homework, often lack people skills, and require excessive rehearsal to go out and earn the same or less as I do freelancing, with no rehearsal.
If you are frustrated with the talent pool locally, you may want to consider studying to improve your skills. That may introduce you to better musicians.
Or, if possible, relocate. If you want to catch marlin, you gotta go where the marlin are.
<font color="#a62a2a" size="1">[ May 01, 2005 01:47 AM: Message edited by: Riddim ]</font>
I'll be turning 51 on Monday. I'm working 2 main situations now. I have a thing that leans in the Classic Country vein that is my main commitment. We're all in our 50's as well as our management team. We have 3 cancer survivors, one open heart quadruple bypass, a diabetic and myself (healthy so far). We are about to hit our busy season with fairs, festivals etc. and we'll be pretty busy as the calendar looks now. This is like a group of brothers. We've known each other for a long time and it shows in the consistent level of performance from night to night. Even when there are long dry spells we come back as if we had played all week.
My other project is a Rock, Blues Celtic thing with a couple of 20 somethings. The leader is 25 and not very happy with the other drummers he has to use when I can't be there. He says they haven't got the feel and I've also heard a few horror stories about immaturity (one guy thought he was Vinny Jr. and tried to prove it all night; no groove, lots of notes, came to the gig with a wreck of a kit that sounded horrible). The gig has a lot of variety with material ranging from Rock Classics, Funk and Blues. And the Celtic fiddle tunes are interesting in that there's a "fusionesque" sensibility about them. There's room to stretch and improvise. Great fun. There are nights when I'm the oldest in the room. I get to hear, "Old dude, you rawck!" It makes me feel good that I can still move people.
Someone out there is going to want what you have to offer. If you have the tools and can make the music sound good you'll be found. Go sit in at jam sessions. If you impress people word of mouth can go a long way in any town.
I've heard on several occasions that musicians really don't reach their prime till around age 54. That's when the mind and body are most in synch. I think I first heard it from Gary Burton, then again a few years later from Phil Woods. I get it though, as I find it much easier to learn new things and it's also surprising how new ideas seem to happen with more spontineity and with greater frequency.
[QUOTE]Originally posted by Riddim:
[QB] I'm 53. Someone asked me recently if I?d been playing all my life and I told her I wasn?t dead yet.
What a great line!!! I, too, am the great age of 53, been playing since I was 7, and still have the same approach to playing that I had in my earlier, more youthful years - it's a shame that, as we've all experienced, the modern criteria of style over substance still applies - even in this very personal craft of ours.
[img]graemlins/hmmm.gif[/img]
I'm turning 50 in September. I do feel the age discrimination thing here in New York. I feel it both in Technology on Wall Street and in my music career.
I play both Keyboards and Drums with Drums being my primary and most adept instrument. I have found that I've had to outwork my peers to get work at this age. I learn my parts, arrangements, beats, etc. better than anyone in the band.
I'm currently playing in a Wedding / Dance band playing 80's, Disco, rock, and Contemporary music. We play songs from Babe (which I sing) to Hella Good, to Karmastition, to Rich Girl (Gwen Stefani), to Since You've been Gone by Kelly Clarkson. We play 1 1/2 hour sets in local clubs, then go out and do weddings.
To try and distinguish myself in my craft, I have worked very hard on being versatile in all genre's be it Jazz, Country, Rock, Alternative Rock, Disco, R&B, Funk, Reggae, etc.
Even at 50, I get young guys coming up to me giving me respect because they just don't expect a guy at my age to nail all the contemporary songs we do. This in turn has caused me to develop a good reputation in the local music community as a hard working, progessional musician.
So matter what your age, you need to outwork the competition.
I'm turning 50 in September. I do feel the age discrimination thing here in New York. I feel it both in Technology on Wall Street and in my music career.
I play both Keyboards and Drums with Drums being my primary and most adept instrument. I have found that I've had to outwork my peers to get work at this age. I learn my parts, arrangements, beats, etc. better than anyone in the band.
I'm currently playing in a Wedding / Dance band playing 80's, Disco, rock, and Contemporary music. We play songs from Babe (which I sing) to Hella Good, to Karmastition, to Rich Girl (Gwen Stefani), to Since You've been Gone by Kelly Clarkson. We play 1 1/2 hour sets in local clubs, then go out and do weddings.
To try and distinguish myself in my craft, I have worked very hard on being versatile in all genre's be it Jazz, Country, Rock, Alternative Rock, Disco, R&B, Funk, Reggae, etc.
Even at 50, I get young guys coming up to me giving me respect because they just don't expect a guy at my age to nail all the contemporary songs we do. This in turn has caused me to develop a good reputation in the local music community as a hard working, progessional musician.
So matter what your age, you need to outwork the competition.
My recommendation - get the hell out of Texas.
I'll be 41 this month and after lastnight's wedding I felt as if maybe i were 55+....never give in and drink cheap tequila, only drink the good stuff. The last set of the night was brutal.
Letting the music do the talking has always been far more palatable to me than strolling into an audition with fresh tats talking Call-me-BlingBling-yo-I-see-you're-down-with-the-420-is-my-doo-rag-on-straight.
People don't see you coming that way. That's why I like playing a dinky beat-up kit with an 18" bass. No one's expecting much bombast from 'toy' drums and when they get it, the impression is much better, as is the chance of getting the job.
Posting Permissions
Bookmarks