From my experience, a young 20 year old prolific song writer/guitarist type will have about about 40+ songs together when he records his first album. These songs are the cumulation of years of work and the artist will get two maybe three good albums out of it. I have been in this situation twice, original music, same numbers, approximately 40 songs honed sharp in the clubs.

If the album bullets (not in my case) then the pressure is on to keep producing (and sound like the last hit) every year and tour too. The quality is bound to suffer.

Later, when the label cuts the artist some slack and doesn't expect a hit record every year, the artist can relax and start writing good music again. Twenty years later here comes another gem.

Nothing too exciting to tell Paul, the bands were called 'Paradise Alley' and 'The Fuzz Ducks', names that would only mean something to those who were there.

I felt the bands were good (I still like listening to old recordings), we worked hard and even had followings, but we never got the breaks. Had a lot of fun though. I like working original music.

As they say, it's one for the history book now... unfortunately we never made the page.
 

In the original post the line was drawn at 40.  

I'd like to add my two cent's worth to this thread -

A few of the posters here know that I play for a Country artist in Branson, Missouri.  He has racked up 39 hits, and of those hits, 17 of them were #1 on the charts.

IMHO, the artists who continue to be successful are the ones who never forgot their audiences.  They continue to do the hits that made them who they are, and add new songs to their set lists, as well.  The artist I work for still does many of his hits, using the same arrangements that were on the original hits.  Since we have a two hour show to do, he puts a few of the songs in medleys, and the audience still loves him to this day, and our show is one of the top-rated shows in town.  I'm not saying this to brag, please don't misunderstand me here, but I'm saying that the artist who remembers to "dance with the one who brung ya" is the artist who will still be popular in his/her later years.  

As an example, I saw (of all people) Chubby Checker ("The Twist") in Tunica, Mississippi last year.  Let me tell you - he can still rock the house.  He did his hits, and intermingled them with new songs, plus some songs that were made famous by other artists.....And he did them well.  I sat there mesmerized by his performance.

The point I'm trying to make here is just this:  You want to stay popular and keep working into your later years?  Well, don't forget what made you famous in the first place.  It's that simple.

As for me, I'm 58 years old now, and I feel like I'm playing the best I have ever played.  I will stretch out on a few numbers, but for the most part, I always play "for the song",  and although at times it seems repetitive, it still sells, and that is what is most important to me.  Physically, it's a little harder to do these days than it was twenty years ago, but I'm not having any major problems in my playing or thinking.  And hey, if you saw a face like mine, you'd know I mean what I say.  :-)

To put it all in one nutshell, you can have your cake and eat it too, provided that you never forget the recipe.

Just my humble 40someyearsinthebusiness opinion here, folks.

Regards,
drumz1

I have a question for you young guys. Do you think when you turn 40, 45, 50, etc. You're not going to want to play any more because of your age?

me very interesting points throughout.

i think a lot of factors are at work: industry pressure to put out hits, the physical demands on an aging artist's body, competition from the outside and a general mellowing of our mindset as we age.

the physical 'breakdown' is a big component. playing an instrument can wreak havoc on one's body over time. i think you mature musically as you age, but it's sometimes a case of 'the mind is willing but the body's weak.' so, some artists may choose to not fight nature so much and pair down their playing a bit. the others dye their hair, get botox injections,  a personal trainer and tummy tuck, and keep on rockin' [that's my game plan, btw -- minus the botox].

i've also heard a lot of very talented, well-regarded musicians [eg; herbie hancock, george harrison, george benson] say that as they aged, they began to see the beauty in simplicity. that attitude was reflected in their music. they felt less pressure to do something outlandish or uber-creative and abstract, and just play things that made them feel good. this may go hand-in hand with the nostalgia point someone raised -- they go back to their roots or the musical influences that inspired them.

i think most artists improve with age, if they're willing to evolve. others get stuck in a formula. i haven't listened to very new king crimson, but i remember when they came out with 'the trilogy' [discipline/beat/three of a perfect pair], i thought the music was so different from what they had done, and so good and creative. those dudes were not spring chickens when that came out.

i repeat it a lot, but i feel the same way about tom jones. he had a downside for a while when he busted his vocal chords, but in the late 90s he hooked up with younger performers and did some great 'dance' and rock albums. i just think the guy is a living legend. i want to see someone in the rock world belt it out like that.

america has little regard for aging hipsters, which is a shame, because they bring a lot to the table. their influences tend to be more diverse, and those lucky enough to have been around during the 60s have a real musical open mindedness that you just don't see that much in younger players.

i'm excited to see nektar play come september. the last time i checked in with them was like 1981 or something. i read a huge interview with roye albrighton recently and it was so encouraging. the dude is as fired up at 50+ as he was at 19. i'm really excited to hear the old stuff and see what new things they're thinking about. i love his musical mindset -- he's so diverse, and so committed to not getting pigeonholed into one style of playing.

anyone else a nektar fan? i could listen to 'recycled' and 'remember the future' for weeks on end. part of that is nostalgia, but most is sheer inspiration.

smoggy


p.s. on a tangent: james walker i think, mentioned george carlin. i was a huge carlin fan -- but i always felt he got LESS funny as he aged, and after he got off drugs. he is a genius, but he seems so bitter and jagged now [or, last time i checked in]. and that TV show was really uncomfortable to watch. i guess that was the point, but i still liked him better when he was younger.

I think some people do.
I seem to remember Mr A saying he was quite happy doing the odd gig and spending more time on the other things in his life (I could be misquoting ).
Also, if you haven't already 'made it' or are changing careers, the decision can be taken out of your hands. As I mentioned earlier, the 25 - 30 year old drummer can be a much more attractive proposition for artists/bands.

Im only 31 (considering my health, probably middle aged   )  and I think Ive finally found "my voice".   Like Ive found an area to work "within" as opposed to "toward".   But I sincerely hope there is still plenty of "toward" left in me.  

Id be really dissappointed in myself as an artist if I was making what amounts to the same music as I am now in 10 years.   Even if it was what people expected/wanted.  

I do think that the larger shifts in creativity slow as you age.   Not in a negative way mind you.    But in the way I was saying happened to me.   In younger years there is a lot of searching for an artists voice ... then that voice is honed.   Its like a ball bouncing, an exponential decrease until it reaches its natural state.    As we age, hopefully we learn about ourselves and know who we are more.   The more we know ourselves, the less variation there is in the expression of who we are.   Make sense?  

That doesnt mean later work is inherently lower "quality".    It means that its going from larger changes to smaller changes to stability.  

 

chrisso-

the remedy for this is to start a band with your mate!

none of us bandmembers has too much tolerance for the 'afterhang' post-gig, but we're still very much teenager-like in our zealousness and rock-outedness. i'm sure that would change if any of us had kids, but none of us does, so we continue on our quest to rock out and have fun. after gigs, we hang out on the roof and drink beer, or play videos, instead of mingling with the beautiful people. but we're still up till sunrise. it makes me feel really good when we play to 15 year olds and they are into us and appreciate that we are giving it everything we got; they don't often get treated to shows that upbeat with bands half our age.

i think when you're young, you're busy searching for your voice. as you grow older, you find it, and are more confident in yourself in many ways. so you can focus less on irrelevent stuff [eg; getting wasted, gettin' it on with an audience member, etc], and focus on what matters, which is the music. i think you can synthesize ideas with a bit more... integrity, i guess is the word.

and james walker, you'll just have to forward me some new carlin material. i know there would be SOMETHING i'd find entertaining.

OMG... 40!

I have 4 months until I official "suck," I suppose.