When Did You Know The Dream Was Over

NitroLiq · Post by **NitroLiq** » Thu 11/03/05 9:49 am

s2 wrote:I'll retire at 42 with 3M in the bank and I can take another look at the dream then.

Okay, now this thread truly is becoming depressing.

1Way · Post by **1Way** » Thu 11/03/05 10:19 am

I've always heard this before, but one of the main reoccurring themes presented on this unique thread about "dying dreams" seems to be that the music industry can be incredibly hard and unyielding toward even truly great talent.

Just because your "really good" in no way means that you can reasonably expect to become well compensated financially. Sounds like the classic starving artist syndrome. I realize that money is not usually "the" reason to become an electric guitarist, but surely some of us must have done at least somewhat "ok" at some point...

Question
Anyone out there do "ok" financially from there musical endeavors? I suppose to each his own, but I'm interested in thoughts about where you think the best money is, especially if you are not the next Hendrix (live band performances, session/studio work, forget sleep and take up a third job)?

tubetwang · Post by **tubetwang** » Thu 11/03/05 10:57 am

IWay...

hope could be around the corner...

Do not despair man...

I've lost good friends...drug od.

One dude called once...he was about to hang himself...could'nt take it anymore...we ran to his place and found him...asleep.
He had taken a downer and ...
Today he's paralysed from the waist down.
Fell from his roof top while cleaning.
His wife left him.
Salary's seized...no medical insurance.

It could be worse

TylerSavage · Post by **TylerSavage** » Thu 11/03/05 1:06 pm

A lot of these stories are pretty inspirational.. some pretty depressing, but its still great to hear from people who have been there, and people who are still there.

I'm 21, been in various no-where bands. In an unpopular punk band from southern ontario, although I sometimes tour with a semi-popular punk band from Toronto on bass. Supposed to goto europe next september with label support, should be fun.

The dream for me was never big, which is why I am now typing this from a Signal Processing lab, I'm supposed to be building a Delay filter, and a Finite Impulse response filter rightnow, but instead I'm on this page... 3rd year Systems Engineering student, and hopefully, only one more year.
Got into amp building when I wanted to actually apply everything I was jamming my brain with.
The reality of school and working jobs where I'm not just "the student", as well as a steady girlfriend for the last few years is starting to hit home.. but every time I hit the road, I remind myself that I can do this.

Unfortunately for me, the dream also lives in Mixed Martial arts, and one day fighting semi-professionally.

NitroLiq · Post by **NitroLiq** » Thu 11/03/05 2:05 pm

In the words of Joe Dirt: "Ya just gotta keep on, keepin' on!"

TylerSavage · Post by **TylerSavage** » Thu 11/03/05 2:20 pm

NitroLiq wrote:In the words of Joe Dirt: "Ya just gotta keep on, keepin' on!"

in the words of the infamous "Deaner"

"You just gotta giv'er.. giv'er gaver, gotta gave 'er"

chainsawmillerman · Post by **chainsawmillerman** » Thu 11/03/05 2:55 pm

I was watching TV last month about the happiest guy on the planet, that has been measured anyway. He was a monk that had really no possisions to speak of but was a master at meditation. Which just go's to show money means nothing. BTW Have any of you watched the movie what the bleep do we know? I thought it was an excellent movie. It deals with spirituality from a quantum physics perspective. I plan on buying the movie cause some of it was a little hard to grasp but all in all very interesting indeed.

novemberrain · Post by **novemberrain** » Thu 11/03/05 6:05 pm

WRH18watt wrote:Hey, ever since the Beatles on the TV in black and white (life is contrast), I have wanted to be a part of it.

I got a luvverly 1" type "C" broadcast master of The Beatles at Shea... now if I could only get it dubbed to a format that I can actually play back!

At least it ain't 2" on crunchy old tape!

novemberrain · Post by **novemberrain** » Thu 11/03/05 6:23 pm

novemberrain wrote:I had me shot at the fame and the money. Burned a lot of bridges and pissed off a lot of people who could have helped me along the way but WTF, "when you're ready for the lesson the teacher will come". Ignore the lesson too many times and the teacher will be REALLY PISSED when they arrive! (1way take notice!)

1Way wrote:novemberrain

I have a respectful and clear response to your "pissing people off" idea and then generally implicating myself. If you would offer an email address, I'll send it to you there.

Umm... I decline.

Being anonymous on this site is a two edged sword, on the one hand I got a lot of cool material to share but I like me privacy so I ain't gonna blow my cover.

BUT then I don't get to be "a full member of 'The Club'".

It really is true dude, in fact it's one of the great truisms if not THE great truism... "When you're ready for the teacher..."

The answers are in letters so large you gotta step WAAAAAaaaaay back to see 'em. Trust me on this one.

1Way wrote:Going for the money is all fine and good, but sometimes money changes a person and alienates them from other people.

Very astute.

Just 'cuz I ain't made it big don't mean I didn't tour with a few who did... here's how I think it works: You make it big, you're gonna take care of your friends. But once you've made it big how do you tell who's really with you from them who are just there for the party?

The way I see it... you can't.

So you make it big, you got tons o' toys and tons o' dough. THEN WHAT?

If you're freakin' Bono you try to change the world and maybe he will. But if you ain't Bono all of a sudden your money buys you lots of free time with nuthin' better to do than drink... or do drugs. WHY do successful musicians destroy themselves with alarming regularity? BECAUSE THEY CAN.

SO I'm content with the problems I have, the millionaires I know have problems I just can't afford!

Chappy · Post by **Chappy** » Thu 11/03/05 7:14 pm

Novemberain

I've been in Chicoutimi for 5 years now, and not once have I had the urge to go to one of the nudie bars here. The regular bars are entertaining enough!

Chappy

Post by **jaysg** » Thu 11/03/05 7:23 pm

novemberrain wrote: WHY do successful musicians destroy themselves with alarming regularity? BECAUSE THEY CAN.

I have a friend who used to be luthier until rosewood dust nearly killed him. I was looking for some funny stories about LA in the early 70's when I asked him to tell me about them. His immediate response was, "You've got to understand that these aren't bad people. They're actually doing the best they can with what little they have to work with." He eventually drove to the conclusion that for a lot of them, being a flake is really doing their honest best because the highly succesful ones tend to be very weak on consistency in personal behavior, showing up on time, etc. They're simply not equiped for normal coping and human interactions.

novemberrain · Post by **novemberrain** » Thu 11/03/05 8:20 pm

Chappy wrote:Novemberain

I've been in Chicoutimi for 5 years now, and not once have I had the urge to go to one of the nudie bars here. The regular bars are entertaining enough!

Chappy

Ah! Ya caught that one!

My fave is actually over in Sherbrooke and I ain't been there in a couple years. All I can say is you guys don't know what ya got, it's damn near a national treasure or somethin'!

There used to be four or five of 'em but near as I can tell it's down to one now. The last time I was there I had just broken up with a lady who was very dear to me, I was lookin' at jaybird nekkid wimmens 'n' I wuz lookin' in their EYES, tryin' to see who lived there or somethin'!

Now if THAT ain't the saddest post on this thread!

Oh, I'm off-topic... well, they have a kick-ass P.A., there was a time that if it wasn't for that place I'd have NO IDEA what was going on in popular music at that moment.

LeeMo · Post by **LeeMo** » Thu 11/03/05 8:25 pm

deleted

69SG · Post by **69SG** » Thu 11/03/05 9:21 pm

The electrics in it have been butchered so the switch cuts out and the pots don't work right.

That's called :
I wore it out and I'm the only SOB that knows how it works.

1Way · Post by **1Way** » Thu 11/03/05 11:34 pm

tubetwang,
Thanks! In some neat ways, you guys are sort of like my friends. I feel great getting out and meeting people again, the blues scene is so cool and friendly, it's really amazing. But here we all can be guitar or amp freaks and be respected and understood. And your right, it could always be worse, try to concentrate on and encourage more of the goodness.

novemberrain,
... I hear what you said. This is a cool thread.

I'm glad to hear that you actually toured! Wow, to me, that would be HUGE. In general I really like people. Some folks let you in deeper and others put up fronts. I like those who are approachable. I think I see your point, it can be "very hard" to tell who's really on your side or not.

I like what Solomon did with the two women each claiming the one baby deal. I would (carefully) try to find out who would be there even when things are not going well, and usually that's the sort of folks that are keepers. If someone has goodness to share with others, it can be really hard to keep it from happening.

I have really been blessed recently by two different people who I rarely spend time with at work. They both entrusted in me with things that really touched me inside in a good way. After all is said and done, the amps and guitars and money will all brake and burn and rust and fade away, but for all eternity, people matter.

Maccabee · Post by **Maccabee** » Fri 11/04/05 11:03 pm

When the Rock n Roll dream started becoming the Rock n Roll nightmare. Circa 1979.

The story is here: http://www.geocities.com/bluesaxe4christ/pg2.html

A new vision came and a new dream began musically. Building LowWatt Amps is just iceing on the cake. Life is good.

CR ><>

Robert1950 · Post by **Robert1950** » Wed 11/09/05 9:47 pm

I found photography and then I married a fruitcake. Both died, the guitar and the photography that is. And the fact that I have no entrepener spirit what-so-ever explains why I never got involved with either other than a past time. Which also may explain why I ended up working in social servies.

Photography was resurrected four years ago. Guitar six months ago.

AC-128 · Post by **AC-128** » Wed 11/09/05 10:56 pm

I'm 27 and still blindly optimistic...

Hope you all are doing well!

Legin · Post by **Legin** » Thu 11/10/05 1:50 am

AC-128 wrote:I'm 27 and still blindly optimistic...
Hope you all are doing well!

"Hope you old farts are doing well"

Jlwctn · Post by **Jlwctn** » Thu 11/10/05 2:29 am

69SG wrote:
The electrics in it have been butchered so the switch cuts out and the pots don't work right.
That's called :
I wore it out and I'm the only SOB that knows how it works.

I can't tell you how many cars, trucks and motorcycles I've had that were like that... I still miss a few of 'em.

I _thought_ I wanted to play music for a living, but I guess I didn't want to work that hard at it... "But nitelife, and whiskey and wimmen..."

That's what I became "good" at...

"Picking up hookers,
Instead of my pen,
I let the words of my youth slip away..."

I'm 44, I've got a "real job" and while I think I'm over all of the previous
foolishness, I just feel like I'm treading water in a bigger pool.

I'm old, fat and gray, and I let it get away from me.

Maybe it's a blessing.

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