I've played literally hundreds of songs over the years. These days, we're known for our Pink Floyd stuff, but we'll throw in something to please the punters, if they ask for it. Sometimes, you have to pander to the crowd, at the gigs we play. You should give up playing, then, if you no longer enjoy it, pal.
I don't remember all the places I played - it was nearly 30 years ago. I do remember the George Robey. We used to play that a fair bit.
I don't play football . Funny how you brought up Pink Floyd, I know Nick Mason's daughter and used to go round their house in Southgate, her name is Hatty .
I don't know any of the members from Pink Floyd. A friend of mine - a former Ferrari mechanic - used to know him fairly well, back in the days when he used to race.
28, to be exact. I started playing guitar when I was 12. I formed my first band when I was 17. I had my first paid gig when I was 22. I'm now 55. It's not difficult to work these things out, even with a modicum of mathematical skill.
The Mean Fiddler is another gig I remember playing. The Trolley Stop. The Junction. Brentford Red Lion. The Marquee. I played hundreds of gigs back in the 90s.
28 years ago then fair play but sorry to break it to you but you won't get signed now . The market for 50 plus fat rockers is limited to Weddings and Bat mitzvahs. Fun fact that derelict pub is directly opposite the Osbourne white van terrorist attack .
All I'm gonna say is for hiag to get up on stage and play, must take some balls. OK he hasn't seen his for years, but they must be tucked up somewhere down there. He maybe good, he maybe ****, but the fact he actually gets up in stage can't be knocked...FACT.
That's not even up for debate , most would just play it down as a hobby where he gets to relive his lost youth with his pals rather than make out he's Carlos Santana .
I never wanted to get signed. I had the chance back then, and I turned it down. I don't regret it one single bit. Over the years, I have acted for many musicians and songwriters, some of them very well know, and every single one of them got ripped off and ended up penniless. The deal my band was offered would have enslaved us to the record company, and we would have had no control over our material or our lives. The sad fact is that of the countless bands that have signed record deals, only a very small fraction end up getting rich (regardless of how famous they might get). It really is the ultimate mugs game. For me, playing music and entertaining people has always been the primary drive and incentive. I am fortunate that I have a job that pays my bills and enables me to play what I want, and when I want.
I never want to be "a contender." I am a musician. I take pride in knowing how to play the instrument of my choice, and in continually applying myself to its study. Being a puppet in the hands of a record industry that, even to this day, puts profit above artistic integrity, is not something that I would have enjoyed. Most of the musicians who get trapped in the industry literally have nothing else better that they could have done with their lives to earn a crust. I did.
I'm the same with football, I could have played for Barcelona but I didn't like the corporate sponsorship. I now play at weekends against a garage door for a goal with my kids. I find the whole "pro" thing a bit pretentious.
I was going to be a professional tennis player but the prospect of massive sponsorship cheques arriving for me having to effectively prostitute myself by swinging a certain make of racquet and wearing trainers with a swoosh on them churned my stomach.
Do you know how many professional guitarists there are in the world - people who make their sole living from playing a guitar? Go on, have a guess. A hundred thousand? A million? What fraction of those do you think struggle to keep their heads above the breadline? Half, you say? Two-thirds, may be? Most of them, yeah? There is no fun in being poor, pal. I play the guitar because I love making music with it. I do not play the guitar in the hope or expectation of making a fortunate from playing it. If I did that, I'd be living a life of disappointment, like 99.9% of professional guitarists.
