How Many Have Stopped Playing?

[ClintN667]

I'm 43, play as much as ever, and I have made it a point to be in a band the last 7 years after taking off for 3. I live to play live and get loud, rude, aggressive (Mars) tones on stage.

I'm lucky I can do that, but I also chose not to have or do other things that would make it harder for me to do what I really love.

I'm curious of this comes with age more so than the other duties (kids, etc.). Curious what y'alls ages are. Do you lose interest with age, because I understand just not having time due to kids, etc.

Im 42 with no kids. My wife gets annoyed that I spend so much time playing but its been a life saver for me. It keeps me sober and has really helped me with my major depressive disorder.

 

[romanianreaper]

I'm going to play until I physically cannot play anymore. If I have to get up at 3 am on a worknight and play for 2 minutes, I'm doing it and will go to work the next day tired. I don't gig anymore but do recordings and even if I didn't do those, I'd still plug in and just play.

I'm going backwards in life. Everyone is running to their phones and technology and I'm trying to run the other direction. Me and my buddy go to shows sometimes and take in the sweat and the noise and talk to random strangers about random shit. I'm telling you, going to see bands in small clubs is making a comeback. I was talking to this 17 year old working at Starbucks and she was talking about newer rock bands and had this energy while she was talking about them and so much enthusiasm. She said she started with Zeppelin, Sabbath, etc. and now seeks out shows and bands, etc. Kids are getting burned out on this fake world they thought they wanted. I went and saw a band recently in a small club and nobody was recording with their phones, other than an occasional pic, etc. but people were moshing, dancing around, and headbanging. It was awesome!

 

[JackBootedThug]

i'm done.

 

[skoora]

Just turned 49, the fire is going out!!

 

[glpg80]

I play more now than I have in a while. Certainly not as much as when I was gigging though. I don't play in a band - still working on getting my rig back together.

 

[panhead]

Used to be pretty painless to put a decent rock band together and play bars. Not so much anymore. Played in bands from 17 till I was 53 and when it stopped / been 5 years now playing by myself and not with a band just doesn't do it for me. I play maybe 1 time a week. Got a lot of vintage marshalls that may hit the block/ just not sure.

 

[Fret-Shredder]

I'm 54 years old. Started playing when I was 14. I go through phases of not playing for a couple months at a time but I always find my way back. I'll play until I'm too old and my hands dont work anymore. I hope that's still many years from now.

 

[errrrrl]

I stopped for about 9 years when I had my first kid, picked it back up 5 years ago and planning on keeping it going as long as I can. I got to tell you though.. getting old sucks. Just today I was riffing and out of nowhere crazy pain in my wrist....

 

[skoora]

Used to be pretty painless to put a decent rock band together and play bars. Not so much anymore. Played in bands from 17 till I was 53 and when it stopped / been 5 years now playing by myself and not with a band just doesn't do it for me. I play maybe 1 time a week. Got a lot of vintage marshalls that may hit the block/ just not sure.

The thought of trying to put a group together today is just fuggettaboudit. I always found bands from being in whatever scene was going on and word of mouth more so than using the Reader (Seattle) or whatever indie local paper is around. I remember when you still called in ads for guitarist available to be put in print...lol Now, far removed from any scene here in Georgia I couldn’t imagine putting anything together.

 

[guitarmike]

I quit playing in bar bands in 2017 after a 20 year run. Now I play in God's band every Sunday. The church band is a cross between a gospel, country, Metallica, and Poison. We take worship music and put our spin on it, I still get to shred and chunk on power chords and do a ton of inspirational improv. I use a stereo rig with either my old Freidman modded Marshall or some of the synergy stuff through Scumback load 4x12's. As much as I miss playing some of the old stuff I don't miss getting home at 2am Sunday morning and having to be at church by 7:30am.

 

[Racerxrated]

I quit playing in bar bands in 2017 after a 20 year run. Now I play in God's band every Sunday. The church band is a cross between a gospel, country, Metallica, and Poison. We take worship music and put our spin on it, I still get to shred and chunk on power chords and do a ton of inspirational improv. I use a stereo rig with either my old Freidman modded Marshall or some of the synergy stuff through Scumback load 4x12's. As much as I miss playing some of the old stuff I don't miss getting home at 2am Sunday morning and having to be at church by 7:30am.

You got got home by 2am?????!!! You must've had someone help with teardown......

I started in 85, took a few yrs off in the military, gigged for the next 27 yrs mostly weekends. Stopped in 17..rest of the band has kids that are involved in sports, and other activities. No time anymore. Plus, at 52 staying out late just got old...like me lol.
I play more now than I did when I stopped playing out 2 yrs ago..I make myself go down to the jam room everyday, even if it's only for 15 min. When I gigged I treated it more like a part time job, playing covers can get old. Lol. But it became more fun when I started gear chasing with the rest of you clowns back in 2009 or so....the guys started getting used to different amps for each gig. Lol

 

[skullfxr]

I play music two hours a day six days a week. I made that commitment a decade ago and have upheld it other than for rare instances. I have a kid, still find the time.

I don't play out as much as I used to, but I enjoy playing more than ever. It's for enjoyment. I play because I love it.

I also spend a lot of time building pedals, which is a different passion but still interrelated.

I do a lot of buying/selling/trading, keeps things fres

 

[311boogieman]

I'm still fairly new to guitar so learning and exploring keeps me going. My kids are growing up and leaving the house so I actually have more time than I did say 10 years ago when I started. I'm also starting to develop carpel tunnel or nerve issues in my 'mouse' hand so playing guitar really helps exercise and stretch that out. I also put my Peavey Vypyr in the TV room behind the couch for the same reason skoora said. It has a headphone jack so that helps.

But yeah...

 

[guitarbilly74]

I play/gig more than ever but the guy at Sam Ash probably wouldn't know that because I buy 99% of my gear online these days. That's most likely the issue, rather than people quitting.

 

[D-Rock]

It seems like a lot of retailers aren't seeing a new generation of guitar buyers come in. I think there are a lot of reasons for this. The most interesting factor to me is that the idea of musicianship has changed. I remember the first time someone told me they were a musician and that their instrument was a turntable. I had no idea how DJing worked, so I asked. He told me he blended samples and manipulated beats in real time.

Good artistic DJ's are pretty talented.

I don't doubt that.

I was just watching the Avicii documentary and Nile Rogers was in it saying how he himself and other musicians need to pick up a guitar or bass or whatever instrument to generate ideas, where Avicii had the whole thing in his head already. Much like Bach or Beethoven. A real musical genius.
I didn't realize how troubled and tortured Avicii was. It was a real sad, but enlightening watch.

 

[JimAnsell]

haven't stopped, but play WAY less. 3 kids now, job, carpal tunnel, etc. i'll always have that desire to play to some degree though.

 

[Bad.Seed]

My play time goes up and down all the time. I started playing at 13, played in local punk bands and transitioned into hardcore around 17. Those underground types of music were just huge at that time, and going to shows, seeing the massive amount of people only inspired me more.

At 17, I took on drums, as I always wanted to play them, and finally talked my parents into letting me get a drum kit because I had proken fingers/bones in my hand for a year straight due to a bone disorder. Once I started playing drums, guitar went to the wayside, as the band I drummed in started playing a lot, and at the time, I enjoyed it more.

I got back in to guitar when I got asked to tour Europe with my former band, and their guitarist couldn't go. Since then, I've been a huge gear head. That was 10 years ago. My problem is, I focus more on gear and tone chasing, and it shows in my playing 100%. I should be lightyears ahead of where I am ability wise at 31 years old, but I spent years going after gear and tones. Which is hilarious, because the Peavey 5150 and XXX are still 2 of my favorite and most played amps, after all this time.

At 31, I'm thinking about taking lessons up to advance my playing. The band I've been in for the past 2 years has really pushed my playing ability. Playing riffs I never thought I would and I see how quickly I progress once I am determined to play something. Lessons would only push that more.

As far as time, it's still there for me. I work an 8-5 and play drums in one band, guitar in another but they don't take up one 4 hour block every 2 weeks for practice. No kids, girlfriend and probably soon to be wife in the picture, who's typically cool with me disappearing into the basement for an hour. I know it won't always be like that but I should capitalize. The passion is there, more than ever, and the band I'm in now has the most potential of any band I've been in, so it's feeding the flames even more so.

 

[billboogie]

At 53 I’m playing more now than ever..
Two working bands and my church band keeps me playing about every day.
It’s sad to see fewer younger folks participating on the gig circuit, all the working musicians I
come across are all around my age. I feel like we’re a vanishing breed

 

[Bishop5150]

I play and practice way less. Same reasons mentioned above. Life just gets in the way. And when I do have the time to play sometimes I'd rather spend that time doing absolutely nothing. I've barely touched my guitar over the last 2 weeks since our last show. Our next show is on the 12th and rehearsal is this Sunday so I gotta start practicing tonight to get the juices flowing and the fingers limber.

 

[mikey]

My last gig was in 2017 with a band I co-founded in '97. It was on my 50th birthday. It seemed appropriate, celebrate a 20 year run and a milestone birthday. I've had a few offers but I'm not ready to deal with all the band related crap. I've had more fun screwing around with my gear & LISTENING to music for a change. I think I'd like to do something down the road, but not something that requires so much commitment.