Band Has Broken Up

We played our last gig for a private party Sat. night, and drummer told me he was quitting and selling the gear (drums, PA, trailer, etc). He's the father of the lead singer who is supposed to be the leader but dad and I did most of the leading, since we're oldest.

We've done quite a few gigs in last few months, not much money, but had a great time doing what we loved to do...we didn't care what anyone thought, we just played what we liked, and it went over very well.

So, on the search again. Contacted a few people I know, told them I was looking, hopefully something will come along, but I'm getting old, and have some physical disabilities, people on CL all want some metal rockers in their teens or whatever (yeah, right, big market for heavy metal in Alabama!...LOL!)
I was told when I moved up here in 1989 you play country, or starve.

Anyway, so it goes. :neutral:

Have you tried your hand at RAP? :0

Just keep an eye out. You'll see posts for "older" guys. At least I do here. Your area is a good sized population so you should. Or post on CL yourself. Or just tell them you're 20 and had a really rough life. They seem to like 20 year olds with 30 years of road experience around here.

Sorry to hear that.

I was rereading some of the responses I got when I started a thread about quitting my band, and one of the insightful things that someone wrote was that quitting/breaking up a band is like getting a divorce. That was definitely true for me, and I hope that it will be less painful for you.

Don't worry about the age thing. There are a million baby-boomers who like to play music. Keep a positive attitude, and you'll find another gig. Good luck.

Lordy, do I feel your pain, Tim...I'm going through the same thing. I've looked on CL and Bandmix.com. Yeah, there's a lot of young 'uns who want to play alt, punk or some variant of Scandanavian death metal, but even some the older guys and gals (say, 40+) just want to play typical barband '80s stuff...I contend the world does NOT need another version of Joan Jett's "I Love Rock N' Roll".

I mean, jeezalou, hasn't anyone heard of, say, Robben Ford?

Just keep looking, Tim...that's the best (well, only) advice I have. I'm going to start trying open jams; you might give that a go. Too bad AL is a little far from IL...I'd drive down amd jam wit' ya!

It's not the end of the world, I realize that. If I don't find something I'll go back to sitting at home and writing music, and see if I can't go that route. My wife writes a lot of poetry and I've been teaching her how to write it as songs, and a pro songwriter has already gotten one of her poems and turned it into a song. We'll wait and see if that goes anywhere.

Thanks guys for all your kind words and concerns though, I really appreciate it.

I hope you DO find something that suits your needs.

Lets face it, a band you (or any of us) LOVE is an emotional investment.
When you wake-up and realize not only are getting no return on your investment, but ALL of your Principal is GONE too... That sucks.

It takes a while to deal with it.

Get the negative stuff out of your system. BE angry, mad, upset.. Then do what it is that you want to do with your music and don't look back.

Yea it can be a drag, but since the band I was in split back in June I have been working on my skills. Seem to have more time for it cause I'm not working on band stuff. Get together with a buddy once in a while and do the six pack kitchen table acoustic thing. Thats been fun. There are lots of things to do, best part you get to do what you want. Just keep playing.

I ran an ad on Craigs here. I'm 40, into classic rock, blues, surf. Not easy to find some other playas. Seems that the older folks are all playing at home in their basements and maybe figure it's not worth the hassle trying to keep 4 or 5 guys in line. I can see it's going to take some time to round up the right group.

Im gearing up for a solo gig...natural progression 12 years in a 6 piece cover now 5 years into a trio and if my house sells ill be able to move to Hayden Idaho where there is a good outlet for solo coffee house wine tasting house gigs. Have you thought about going solo?

Good Luck!

Have you tried your hand at RAP? :0

Why would you suggest that someone try their hand at Repetitive Artless Plagerism?

Why would you suggest that someone try their hand at Repetitive Artless Plagerism?

I'm gonna have to sample that.

Best of luck -- keep in mind a lot of the time, it's not the destination -- it's the journey.

Why would you suggest that someone try their hand at Repetitive Artless Plagerism?

I merely suggested it.
I had to find out what kind of a funk he was in.

I hope he didn't go out and buy bunch of DJ gear.

Finding the right mix of guys is a challenge at any age I think. Take your time and keep up your skills during your down time and pray about it. Seek and ye shall find :wink:

I know how you feel. My band broke up two months ago and there isn't much chance of me finding another. Worst part is I hae a new amp and nowhere to use it!

Me and a buddy had a jam session last night, and man did it feel good to crank out a few tunes again. Except now I remember all over again how much I miss playing.

Justin

I merely suggested it.
I had to find out what kind of a funk he was in.

I hope he didn't go out and buy bunch of DJ gear.

hahaha i was only kidding, man!

if you search the site you'll find that i defend rap all the time...i was only mockingly playing devils advocate :twisted:

I know how you feel. My band broke up two months ago and there isn't much chance of me finding another. Worst part is I hae a new amp and nowhere to use it!

Me and a buddy had a jam session last night, and man did it feel good to crank out a few tunes again. Except now I remember all over again how much I miss playing.

Justin



Why not much of a chance if you don't mind me askin':shock:

CL is ok but Facebook is where it's at right now. If you're not a member join, or for now have somebody who's already on with a large friends list put the word out for you. Also, hit some open jams and post something at your local music store. You never know...

Also, don't limit yourself to just gigging bands. Some older dudes are content getting together once a week for a home jam session and a few beers. Something is always better than nothing.

Why not much of a chance if you don't mind me askin':shock:

Oops! Sorry I missed seeing your post.

It's mostly a matter of where I live. Like a lot of depressed rural areas there are tons of good musicians around, most of them much better guitar players than I am, and very few venues to play. And to make it worse, most of the players my age like country as opposed to rock or blues, so even if I ever do find another outfit it probably won't be playing music I enjoy.

Justin

If there's one thing I've learned about this "band thing", it's there is always another one right around the corner. Something that's popular here right now is to just put a group together for a particular gig. Someone will get a gig and put together the "fabulous availables" and off we go. You get to play with different people and see who clicks. Good luck.

Well, just so happens a guy called wanting me to get together with his band...they kicked their guitarist out - seems he had some Prima Donna type thing going on and when they wanted to do a song he didn't like, he'd lay down his guitar and say he wasn't playing that crap, and walk out....stuff like that. I'll go next Friday.

You guys are right, finding the right people (personalities, music tastes, etc) can be challenging but rewarding.

Funny note...the band posted on FB that they had not broken up just taking a hiatus. The drummer who also owned most of the equipment including the trailer to haul it all sold everything (drums, PA, trailer, etc). LOL! (the drummer was also pretty much the leader even though it was supposed to be the lead singer).

So, I'll go Friday night and see what these other guys are about, I honestly do not expect a lot but you never know huh?

Cool! Good luck with the new band!

Well, just so happens a guy called wanting me to get together with his band...they kicked their guitarist out - seems he had some Prima Donna type thing going on and when they wanted to do a song he didn't like, he'd lay down his guitar and say he wasn't playing that crap, and walk out....stuff like that. I'll go next Friday.

You guys are right, finding the right people (personalities, music tastes, etc) can be challenging but rewarding.

Funny note...the band posted on FB that they had not broken up just taking a hiatus. The drummer who also owned most of the equipment including the trailer to haul it all sold everything (drums, PA, trailer, etc). LOL! (the drummer was also pretty much the leader even though it was supposed to be the lead singer).

So, I'll go Friday night and see what these other guys are about, I honestly do not expect a lot but you never know huh?

Tim, be sure and get at least a partial set list asap and do some serious homework. Make sure you have the right keys that they play in. Put some fresh strings on, go in with confidence and blow their doors off. Good luck and let us know.

Just keep an eye out. You'll see posts for "older" guys. At least I do here. Your area is a good sized population so you should. Or post on CL yourself. Or just tell them you're 20 and had a really rough life. They seem to like 20 year olds with 30 years of road experience around here.

I'll tell 'ya some are more concerned with image than anything else - I'll take experience and dependibility any day! Of course there's some talented youth out there too! :mrgreen:

- Jagg