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You know what? I'm going to tell you a story!
#1
It's after midnight and I'm wide awake. I don't really want to be, but I am.

I already have this month's posts covered and enough for a VPS, but that doesn't concern me. I enjoy writing!

I'm going to tell you why I don't play weddings anymore.

If you're unaware, the short version is that I am a mostly retired musician. Even when I had a real job, I have pretty much spent most of my life involved in music. Musicians are poor, so many of us play for a small secondary income - but it really is more that we enjoy it than it is about money.

And it is a pretty enjoyable thing to being music to people. It's great that we get to make them dance, sing along, and forget about life for a little while. However, it's not always as good as you might expect.

No, most of us don't have a backstage with hookers and blow. In fact, we're lucky if we even get a dressing room. Most of us are't stars with lucrative concerts.

Which is why we take gigs like playing at a wedding...

The last wedding I played was in June of 1998. I remember the year and month exactly, because I've refused to play another wedding. Weddings have, almost always, been more drama and hassle than any other kind of gig. It's a pain to get paid. It's a pain to satisfy the organizers. It's a pain to emcee the event. They just suck.

I was with a band called Kaös. The umlauts are important, but not for reasons that I'll get into today. Our lead singer was named Paul. Our drummer was also named Paul. So, we called the drummer "Wog", short for pollywog.

The night before the wedding, Wog had (we're pretty sure) had sex with the bride-to-be. At the very least, they were in a bedroom alone for quite some time and there were interesting noises coming from that room. I'm pretty sure they had sex.

Paul, the singer, was the kind of guy who'd jump off the stage and fight with the audience. I have bailed Paul out of jail numerous times.

The wedding reception was really getting started. The newlywed couple had their dance together and things were going just fine. Except Paul kept making jokes and innuendo about the newly married woman.

He's been doing this in-between songs, and sometimes speaking while we're playing, since the very start of our music performance. I should also mention he was very drunk, as was much of the band.

Paul finally said something along the lines of, "Wow, she's got good rhythm! At least that's what the drummer tells us!"

Which was when about half the audience bum-rushed the stage and the other half of the audience started fighting among themselves. It turned into a small riot. The end result was that several people ended up being hauled away in an ambulance and I had about $2,000 worth of equipment damaged beyond repair. Injuries included a broken arm, a broken jaw, and some guy with a nose that was spewing blood and not clotting. There were numerous other small injuries.

Notably, Wog (again, the drummer), did not skip a beat. He kept playing, even though he was the only one playing. Wog kept playing during the entire melee. In fact, one of us finally yelled at him to stop his stupid drumming and to wipe that stupid grin off his face.

See, everyone at the front of the band was involved in the fighting. Wog was the guy that boned the bride. Not a damned thing happened to him. Instead, I had to crack someone with a guitar, hit several people, got hit with a thrown beer bottle, and had some crazy lady trying to scratch me and pull my hair.

Wog, the culprit, got away completely without a scratch!

I haven't played a wedding since. I'll never play another wedding. For my daughter's wedding, I hired a band. (I confess, I did sit a set with the band at her wedding, but I wasn't paid to play, so we're not counting that.)

And that's why I don't play weddings.
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#2
I'm also an insomniac.  So can relate.  I've given up sleeping when I'm supposed to though.  Like I rarely toss and turn.  I just get up and then get into the Internet - do Forums.  Must say however you completely beat me with writing by a million miles!  I can barely keep up ... and you're not just writing nonsense either.  You got me to play music ... am listening to an electric guitar rendition of Libertango.  Have you tried Libertango yet on the guitar?  It's not a perfect rendition.  But not bad.  I'd have preferred some more drama and passion in it ... as that is what the tango is for me.  Like for example the video below is a real work of art - music, song, and production with Mickey Rooney.  Performance, performer and the music itself.  Prayer for Magdalene by Oliver Dragojević.  

I'm almost certain we're going through a new age of music compositions. Like Havasi from Hungary. Even the instruments are being creatively modified.  Like the electric violin for example.  And electric cello.
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#3
(11-28-2018, 12:08 PM)deanhills Wrote: I'm also an insomniac.  So can relate.  I've given up sleeping when I'm supposed to though.  Like I rarely toss and turn.  I just get up and then get into the Internet - do Forums.  Must say however you completely beat me with writing by a million miles!  I can barely keep up ... and you're not just writing nonsense either.  You got me to play music ... am listening to an electric guitar rendition of Libertango.  Have you tried Libertango yet on the guitar?  It's not a perfect rendition.  But not bad.  I'd have preferred some more drama and passion in it ... as that is what the tango is for me.  Like for example the video below is a real work of art - music, song, and production with Mickey Rooney.  Performance, performer and the music itself.  Prayer for Magdalene by Oliver Dragojević.  

I'm almost certain we're going through a new age of music compositions. Like Havasi from Hungary. Even the instruments are being creatively modified.  Like the electric violin for example.  And electric cello.

I am pretty old and do not sleep well. So, I've had lots of time to work on things, such as improving my writing! I've also been paid to write, both music and some actual prose, as well as working a brief stint as a freelance journalist.

It's funny that you mention the electric violin and the electric cello. We have two ladies. One plays the flute, as you know, but they're both multi-instrumentalists and they both play electric violins and one plays the electric cello. They're pretty much played just like the regular instruments, but you can do more processing on the signal.

As I oft say, I'm sixty and that means I'd have slept for twenty years if I had slept for eight hours a day. So, I've enjoyed more of the good years.

And, you may notice that I don't say I'm retired. I'm pretty good at some things. I suck at being retired. I keep finding stuff to obligate myself to!
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#4
@KGIII that's actually cool. I wish I could sleep too but the stress of the modern life is keeping me up. Working part time job and juggling colleges doesn't help me and wonder how I am going to fare in the later life with work on top on that
No one knows what the future holds, that's why its potential is infinite
#5
Don't worry. You'll spend your whole life working hard in an effort to get what you need and to be able to play hard. Then, you'll retire and find that you're really not able to turn it off - and you'll keep finding more stuff to do.

You get used to it! You get used to being tired, to being busy, to being obligated, and to constantly be working on something. As near as I can tell, it doesn't stop. In theory, I'm retired. I'm usually busy doing something all day, every day. I barely have time to hunt and fish!

When I finally do take some time off, I have to "work" to do the things I wanted to do in my time off.

I'm old. In theory, I'm retired. I'm pretty sure I do as much "stuff" now as I've always done - and it just gets to be more and more stuff.

I'm pretty sure monks have the right idea.
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#6
(11-29-2018, 04:30 AM)Kururin Wrote: @KGIII that's actually cool. I wish I could sleep too but the stress of the modern life is keeping me up. Working part-time job and juggling colleges doesn't help me and wonder how I am going to fare in the later life with work on top on that

Same here, busy life with two temporary jobs and studies. I like to concentrate on studies, but now self-dependent. I do post here at late night.


Thank you  Sweet



#7
I'm to lazy to read all the posted thread its like damn how much it have been taken to Post
thank you post4vps and  racknerd for wonderful vps3  Heart
 


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