I've rethought a lot of my musical tastes lately. Jam bands made up most of my favorite music library before, but lately I've been questioning music and why people choose to play music. Any musician can agree that music if very fun to play, and most musicians love to jam. At what point does jamming become the musical equivalent of masturbating? Am I to judge why people play music, whether the motivation be money, self-glory, or an escape? In my opinion, music played for money destroyed the world's innocence and left many people with no escape. If you are playing an instrument purely to get others to like you, you a CHARADE and you need to be stopped. Music was created and used by mankind as a way to connect to others, a way to escape, and it was a thing that everybody could participate and be appreciated in, but only a few were instinictual about it and played music as easily as a bird in flight.
I would say a great deal of bands play for the love of music. When bands start out they arent making money anyway and the bands that do make money are just the fortunate people who get the chance of a lifetime. But yes i agree that the concept of music should be to connect with others and be a way to share and express creative ideas
i play to escape and to live. but i curse it when i can't escape and i hit the wall and nothing seems to be working. its a beautiful-bitch goddess.....
I disagree. If jamming often is like masturbating, doing ANYTHING you like often is like masturbating. (besides what's wrong with masturbating? :tongue: ) I see jam bands as just making a job out of your hobby (IF they can get around from the profits, which isn't always the case). But I guess it's with a lot of musicians that way. Be glad they're indulging in something productive. They do what they like, and YOU get to reap the benefits: the concerts! Also, you mention a lot of musicians being in it for the money, or to get others to like them. But I think ESPECIALLY jam bands are NOT in it for the money or the fame. You yourself said they're jamming to please themselves. Themselves, not the record companies. And I think that's pretty awesome.
Although they may saw it as their calling or self indulge in it, musicians have been paid for their services for ages, probably since the time people specialized in something. I bet in all times since then some of them are mainly in it for the money. Only for a relative short time people have been able to make music to make as much money and fame as possible with no or very little talent :tongue:. Jamband musicians are generally not such people, I think. They're more the masturbating kind As long as I dig the music I favour the ones who play with eargasms over the ones who play for the money and fame anyday.
Let me ask you this: does a musician, traveling, feeding herself, buying instruments and strings, and all the costs associated with making it to the stage, deserve to make a living: not a killing, a living? If you work for someone do you deserve some form of trade (and money is really just trading coupons)?
Musicians have always been paid - they've got just as much of a right to eat as the rest of us. Jam bands I think are one of the best forms of live music - guys (and gals) just playing what they feel, doing it for the love of music. If it was done for money it'd sound like the manufactured synthetic plastic pop that infests the music charts. THAT's the kind of music I detest - artistic prostitution.
