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Location: cincinnati, ohio | So - my question is, "Am I too old to be doing this? Is the music I play still relevant?"
I'm going to be 62 in July. I play out live about 5 to 7 gigs a month (on average), between solo gigs and band jobs. I've been playing the same Ovation Balladeer since 1971 (except with a new pickup). I don't look like Brad Pitt; by the same token, except for being tubby (and I'm working on that; 30 lbs. off since New Year), I've held up a damned sight better than a lot of guys my age. Most of the folks playing regularly (at least around here) are my age or just a little younger.
I play classic acoustic rock almost exclusively. It's the music I grew up with, the music I love.
The last few months, every now and then I've wondered whether or not I should still be doing this. No particular reason; just idle wondering. At this time, I have no intention of stopping. I'll go out with a walker or a wheelchair if it comes to that.
Still, sometimes I idly wonder. Will I know when to quit if it comes to that? How long will the music last, too?
It's still fun. I still sound good; I still play and sing well. People still like it. There's a built-in Boomer audience out there that loves the music I play. You have to know where to find them. I do more restaurants, coffee houses and wineries now instead of bars and clubs.
The wondering happens more often in the coffeehouses. Coffeehouse audiences turn over several times a night, and for some reason there's at least one wave of high school age kids a night. Do they even know these songs? Then I look out and see them singing along with James Taylor and Eagles and Crosby, Stills and Nash. I hear a little 15 year old kid explaining to his little 15 year old girlfriend what The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald is all about, and giving her a seminar on Gordon Lightfoot. The kid knows almost as much about Lightfoot as I do. I feel vindicated.
That's when I realize just how powerful that music is, and, no, it's not time to hang up the old six-string just yet.
Wonder if anyone else has had similar experiences? |
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Location: Michigan | good songs pass the test of time . there are more fans of the british invasion now then there were back in the 60's & 70's. the music keeps selling and the bands that still tour still sell out to smaller crowds . csn&y music seems to fit every bodys musical style so keep on jamming . here is a you tube that i posted earlier . it is relevent to what you are playing and the crowd at the end shows ages of all sorts enjoying the music.
keep up the good work. GWB
http://youtu.be/S23VK1v9dB8 |
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Location: Flahdaw | If you look at youtube covers you will see young kids playing Jackson Browne, JT, Bob Seger, etc.
Almost all of the songs on my tutorial channel are OLD songs, and out of 930+ subscribers, a LOT of them are young people in their early 20's.
A good song is a good song. |
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Location: New Hartford CT | Rick - great topic. I think you've already made the case within your post that what you're doing is working well and is relevant. You have your health, love what you're doing and connect with your audience.
Many of us have gone through the same evolution musically and can relate to your experience. To me it's even more satisfying now than back in the club days.
As far as waiting for that tap on the shoulder that it's time? Ain't gonna happen, we'll play on until our bodies give out. |
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Location: Outside Providence | I'll be 59 next month. I've been playing since I was 13 and only (foolishly) put it down once 30+ years ago when the first wife didn't think I should be married and hangin' out in bars anymore.
I stopped for 2 1/2 years. BIG mistake. As soon as we were separated, I started playing again. The next time I foresee putting it down is when I'm dead.
NEVER quit!
There are alot of "kids" that are very familiar with the music from our era. It's all my kids ever heard in the house growing up. I remember when my now 26 year old son found my old vinyl record collection and turntable in the basement. He was probably around 12 or 13 and he thought he died and went to heaven. He listened to pretty much every album in the collection. Some of which I don't even believe are available any more. The radio stations in his truck are set to mostly Classic Rock stations and he's pretty good at identifying artists by some of their more obscure material too.
All in all, our music is, IMO, trans-generational. As someone said earlier, "a good song is a good song"!
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Location: cincinnati, ohio | GWB: Thanks for the validation. And a great video!
Bob: “A good song is a good song.” Wow. That is so simple, and yet so profound at the same time. That’s the main reason the music still works. And I spend a lot of time surfing your wonderful tutorial channel. Love every song on it. You provide a valuable service to guitarists with your great arrangements (Just started playing “Wind On the Water” – thanks!). You take songs that are inaccessible and put them within reach of solo guitarists who might otherwise not even consider playing them. Thanks again!
Geostorm: “You keep on rockin’ in the free world.” (Yeah – I forgot to mention Neil. EVERYBODY loves Neil Young!). So nice to hear from all you kindred spirits. Nice to know there are still a lot of us out there.
Lapetrarca: “Never quit!” What a great motto – one that I hold close to my heart. I hope when I go, I collapse coming offstage at age 97, playing for my fellow “inmates” at the nursing home (I have this image of Led Zeppelin blasting over the speakers when our generation gets to the rest home - “Hey, hey, mama, said the way you move…”). My son, who’s 26, got his Bachelor of Music Performance in trumpet from NKU last weekend. He grew up with our music and loves it; he’s on his second copy of Eagles’ “Long Road Out of Eden.” He wore out his first one. He likes very little of his own generation’s music, and he’s pretty eclectic. So, yeah – our music is trans-generational.
I remember my mom shaking her head when James Taylor first exploded on the scene in 1970. She said, “A year from now, no one’s going to remember him, not like people remember Sinatra.”
Now he IS Sinatra to our generation.
The year she passed away, she grudgingly admitted that JT had “done pretty well for himself.”
Luckily for us…
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Location: Miami | Great thread. I'm "only" 47, but I have already had the pleasure of seeing so many young people - and their kids- singing along to songs I once thought I would only be playing for my own gratification. I also love that nowadays it no longer matters how old you are or look. Look at all of these music festivals on Palladia. Now, instead of seeing an old band and thinking "aren't they too old to be doing this", the more common sentiment is seeing a new young band and thinking "and they're so young" (assuming they both sound good)! The playing field has completely evened out. It's not how old you are or how old you look, but how good you sound, and kids no longer seem to care as long as you've still got the chops. |
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Location: cincinnati, ohio | Forty-seven. I have bunions that old! 
Good point, Joe – I’m glad that people are accepting performers for the music they play and not whether or not they look like a matinee idol or a supermodel. I hope that becomes the norm in mainstream music as well. I think of the late Phoebe Snow. She was overweight and rather plain-looking, but she sang like a bird. Fortunately she came along in the ‘70’s. I’m afraid she couldn’t get arrested today.
And I’m glad to see you’re still out there playing.
Edited by rick endres 2012-05-15 8:44 AM
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Location: Northwest Arkansas | I'm 54 and my story is virtually the same as Rick's. I play cafes, coffee shops and things that aren't full of smoke. My music hasn't changed. In 'em singin' every chance I get. In fact, I added about 40 new tunes a few weeks back. "Oh Lord, It's hard to be Humble" will get 'em singin' every time. "Drift Away", "Use Me" by Bill Withers. I just worked up "Walkin' in Memphis" on acoustic and I got the riff. It's cool. Older music still had acoustic and was easier to play than a lot of this over-produced stuff out there today. Plus, it's still melodic. With a lot of today's stuff, you can't hum it. It's all drum, percussion-oriented. I see an audience for our music for a loooong time to come. Jackson Browne will be 64 this year. He still brings stuff to the table. Same with Clapton. Van Halen just came out with a new album. Great music always endures. Always. Honest to God, we had 'em singin' to "Rockin' Robin" doin' the tweet tweet's. A few people knew the words to "Secret Agent Man". I do a lot of America, Doobies, Croce, Loggins and Messina, Steve Miller ("The Joker" still goes over huge.) Some guy tipped me his 2-dollar bill the other night. That's way cool. I saved it. Keep playing and I know they'll keep coming. Kudos Rick! If my arthritis holds out I'll be playin' into my 70's.
Edited by AdamasW597 2012-05-15 9:13 AM
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Location: SoCal | I always find it interesting that the music I grew up with is now 40-50 years old and seems to still be going strong. In 1970, the music that was popular 40-50 years prior was big band music and never heard in 1970....... |
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Location: NJ | they will have to pull the guitar away from my fingers |
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Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | I turn 61 in a few months. Been playing since 1959. The genre I learned playing (rockabilly, do-wop, surf and folk) is pretty much gone. While I still love honkin' those tunes out in my own band room with the aid of a looper, or accompanying a bunch of singers in the hotel lobby when our symphony chorus is on tour, this music is generally not what the coffee house crowd wants to hear, and it most certainly is not for the club scene. About 20 years ago, I started playing more improv blues and jazz, then mixed it up with some classic popular music that could be played as instrumentals, which appealed to the art house crowd as background music. I play in one professional contemporary praise band, and have declined several opportunities to join other local "classic" bands due to time constraints and scheduling commitments (they seem to do a lot more rehearsing than gigging). Even if I had more opportunity to play the coffee house scene, I don't have time in my schedule to fit it in at this time. One thing is for sure. Nothing contributed more to the expansion of my musical interests as well as my personal improvement than joining a professional band and playing with real musicians, even though their ages range between 10 and 30 years my junior. As a solo artist/accompanist, it was difficult to push myself to learn new material and expand my interests. This all changed after I joined the band, and I feel very honored that they think enough of me to keep me in the band. I regret the day that I will be unable to play, not just because I'll miss creating music collaboratively with others, but, seriously, what the hell am I going to do with all the gear I've collected? |
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Location: Boise, Idaho | I'm 59. Today our baby turns 25 and over the weekend I gave her the 87 Collector. She plays and sings new songs, Nora Jones and such, but also really likes the old acoustic rock stuff that you're talking about.
Tomorrow I play my first nursing home gig and the activities director seemed really enthused about the Croce, Denver, S & G type stuff I play. We'll see how the audience likes it. They are only 10 to 40 years older than me. There aren't too many people around that grew up in the big band era. Like I told the first nursing home director, who thought the residents wanted stuff from the big band era, it's tough for a guy with a guitar to do the Andrews Sisters and Benny Goodman. |
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Location: Colorado Rocky Mountains | Funny, Mark. How about a rocking instrumental version of "In The Mood" on the guitar? You can pretty much swing it or "blues" it to your own liking. I've done it both ways. |
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Location: Flahdaw | I think the fact that so many singer songwriters from the 70's are STILL performing today is a testament to their relevance. JT, Jackson Brown, CSN, etc are still packing concert halls. I think you could play a set of 70's songs and mix in a current song here and there, and still make a coffeehouse crowd very happy. |
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Location: Massachusetts | I turn 69 in August and still gig regularly with a band playing 50's, 60's, and 70's music. We do clubs, restaurants, concerts, weddings and class reunions.
You name it we'll be there. I have no intention of quitting as long as the mind and body stays in shape. So, Rick.... keep on keepin' on. |
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Location: sitting at my computer | rick, I intend to keep playin' (and learnin') forever... so far so good! LOL "A good song is a good song". Absolutely! Think of how many "oldies", "classics" and "standards" are redone (sometimes straight up, sometimes newly arranged) by the new upcoming artists. Just like we were inspired by musicians and songs that preceded us, so are the new generations. And, like with every generation, new songs emerge that will become their "classics"... so always keep looking for and learning new, contemporary songs that you like too. Play what you enjoy... they'll enjoy what you play. |
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Location: Boise, Idaho | I don't really see any staying power to rap. I'm sure no one who was "old" in the 60s thought that in 50 years we'd be singing and playing Beatles tunes in the nursing homes, but they have almost all become classics. I really have a tough time envisioning some geriatric patient rapping to some song that was popular back in his high school or college years and fellow patients saying, "Yeah, wasn't that a classic?" We can argue about whether the lyrics or the melody make the song, but rap doesn't have any melody and most have poor lyrics.
Songs written for acoustic guitar are somewhat uniquely portable, not far removed from folk songs, where they can be sung along with one guitar on street corners or coffee shops or amplified for larger venues. That portability or accessibility makes them popular and gives them staying power. |
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Location: Orlando, FL | Relevance is relative. As a blues guy, most people have never heard most of the songs I like to play.
Classic acoustic rock has a big audience. You are giving the people what they want and having a great time. What more can you ask for.
A good song is a good song, although sometimes one can elevate a song by what they bring to it. Here's another relic from our era (not acoustic though) - Jeff Beck, playing a lady Gaga tune...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cVNFCJoy1hU&list=FLyBxmeeh1XzfRbqzCm... |
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Location: Hot Springs, S.D. | I teach lots of kids, and more often than not they want to learn classic rock songs. There are quite a few covers being made of old songs by new artists too. Some of these kids think they are new songs. I remember one night at an open mic, a 19 year old kid played an "Eddie Vedder song" - The Last Kiss! We old folks laughed ourselves silly, then enjoyed this kids heartfelt performance.
The term "classic" used to mean something lasting, back before it became another cliche. But in the case of classic rock, it looks like the old meaning still applies. |
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Location: Miami | Wow that Jeff Beck rendition of Lady Gaga was pretty cool. I love what almost looks like a "should I like this" look on some of the audience's faces.
I know I shared this before but the greatest gig moment of my life had to be when I was playing an acoustic rendition of "Another Brick in the Wall" at a sports grill and a team of about 20 little league soccer kids came in singing along in unison "We don't need no education..."
For everyone making me feel young on this thread, and for the younger ones keeping the music alive, the short answer to the thread's question is "100%". |
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Location: Spain | Been reading this thread over last couple of days and found t interesting, then left it at that. Last night I played a solo gig, and I realised the best received songs were the old rock ones...
That's IF I understand properly what exactly "classic" rock is....I mean, I did Hotel California with the hell freezes intro, which really went down well, for an over-played, over-gigged tune... also Hey Joe, Long Train Runnin, and that sort of stuff....accept my apologies if it's not what's considered classic rock 
Whenever I tried to slip in something modern, it didn't seem to go as well as those classics.., so for the sake of this thread I'd say there is a lot of value in it.
What I need now is to learn a load of these songs....just don't know what to learn... |
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Location: Miami | I wouldn't play the old stuff exclusively though. People love hearing new stuff as well (in my experience). I've always tried to balance playing what I like with what other people like (more me than them), but thanks to the staying power of these classic rock songs, the line has gotten nice and blurred. If it's a classic and I like it, chances are they will too. And I agree with the Hotel California comment. Just when I feel like I never want to play Hotel, Alabama, Margaritaville, or Brown Eyed Girl again, I see the enthusiasm with which someone asks for it, and it makes me play it like I've never played it before.
Edited by Jukebox Joe 2012-05-16 11:57 AM
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Location: sitting at my computer | martinez - 2012-05-16 11:32 AM ....just don't know what to learn... martinez, you're gonna need to get a nice 12 string O now for playing Hotel California. That was my excuse... er, I meant valid rational. Tequila Sunrise and Lyin' Eyes sound nice with the 12 string too. 
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Location: cincinnati, ohio | Either that, or get an amp or effects box with chorus on it and turn it w-a-a-a-a-a-y up.
Fascinating insights here; I love it. Moody and the comment about Big Band music. Mark's point about the portability of acoustic music. Al "They'll pry my guitar from my cold, dead fingers" Pep. Bob's comment about the fact that classic artists are still on the road (I'm going to see Crosby, Stills & Nash and America this summer, and if I have any money left, I'll catch Jackson Browne :D ). Those guys are all coming to my area this summer, among others.
My favorite quote (from SOBeach): "Play what you enjoy...they'll enjoy what you play."
Just in general, it warms my heart to see all you folks (my age and even older) who are still rockin'. Keep it up! |
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OT: HOW RELEVANT IS CLASSIC ACOUSTIC ROCK?
