Is age just a number?

[Son of Wobble]

Two of the most thrilling shows I ever witnessed: Iggy Pop with The Stooges at the Wiltern Theater, Los Angeles, on his 60th birthday...And John Lee Hooker backed by Canned Heat at an LA club, name forgotten, circa 1980, when Hooker was about 63.

Iggy was in fact WAY better in 2007 than when I had seen him tour the album Solider in 1980.

 

[Fabio_MIJ]

It is probably just a matter of what resonates more with you, try different musical situations an take what suits you the best. You can feel it without overthinking.

 

[philvanv]

Our entire line up is between 40 and 50. We've all played in semi successful line ups at some point. Believe it or not we are playing the same music as we were playing in the early 1980's just to a different crowd. This question was on my mind last night, the age thing. Then I was thinking, we more often then not are playing with bands that are coming out of hiatus or doing a reunion tour etc and the age difference recently has been more with the crowd rather then other players...all and all I think as long as it's still fun more power to you...

 

[philvanv]

Two of the most thrilling shows I ever witnessed: Iggy Pop with The Stooges at the Wiltern Theater, Los Angeles, on his 60th birthday...And John Lee Hooker backed by Canned Heat at an LA club, name forgotten, circa 1980, when Hooker was about 63.

Iggy was in fact WAY better in 2007 than when I had seen him tour the album Solider in 1980.

Yeah agreed X 10 !

 

[YosemiteSam]

I'm 57. I currently play in 3 bands, some with people in my age group, some a bit younger. I live in a college town and did a "Band in a Hat" project earlier this year where I was playing indy-style rock with a bunch of 20-30 somethings. I went in with some of the same trepidation as the OP, saying, "I know I'm old (white haired), so if I don't fit the image you're looking for, I understand." The response was overwhelmingly, "We would love to have the experience you bring." I was surprised, but did it. In fact, I ended up filling in with a 2nd band it that show that lost their bassist. So I played two sets in front of millennials that night, and got a great response. Still friends with everyone, too. It was a great experience.

Every band and experience is different. Just show up and keep the lines of communication open.

 

[Gianni "Orlandez" Orlati]

For me, age does not matter. I've played with people up to the age of 90. I am only 32. I play primarily jazz, so if i didn't get in with the guys who have been doing it their whole life, i'd be truly missing out on something. If they didn't accept playing with those younger and less experienced...well they just might not have a bass player.

Now to some, age DOES matter, as evidenced by the multitudes of craigslist ads that specify no one over the age of 30. They are free to do it, but it all comes down to the image of the band and the desire to hang out with people your own age. I don't think this way, but pretty much any original rock startup probably will(with founders in their early twenties). The thing to remember is that it has nothing to do with your ability to play the instrument, it's just for looks. Even at age 32, i am excluded from playing in a number of projects that want someone in their 20's. Normally these are groups playing music i am not interested in anyway, so i am not losing out on much.

At 30 you're already old for doing the stupid things you do at 20 ... I'm a conservative thinking guy ... in general I'd like to be with people of my age but music can help bridging the gap ...

 

[Ewo]

I'm an old cat, too. Recently retired from my day gig, and it wasn't early retirement.

Aging does mean the body's gonna develop some aches and physical limitations--even when you take decent care of yourself.

But I'm feeling pretty good about one thing: I can make better music with my bass now than when I was younger. What I lost in velocity I made up for with a better ear, better tone, and better taste in what I choose to play, moment to moment in a tune. That's pretty cool.

 

[Oddly]

OP, unless the others in the band bring it up (and it sounds like they haven't) I feel you're worrying about nothing.
Carry on.

 

[Deleted member 165050]

Ages in the band I play in range from early 30s to mid 60s. I'm inbetween but nearer the higher end The difference in ages doesn't seem to be in any way significant to my perception...

 

[StatesideRambler]

age doesn't matter until your body starts failing on you. But as far as 'looks' goes,
Ed Cassidy always looked older than the rest of Spirit, although he really wasn't that much older, but he looked very cool.

Um, he was born in 1923; the rest of the original members of Spirit were born between 1943 and 1951.

If your bandmates are good with your playing and your presence and you're getting gigs then age don't matter.

 

[dcr]

Nope! I'm the "middle guy" in our 5-piece band. Sax guy is 63, keys is 57, I'm 52, drummer is 54, and lead guit/singer is 44. Everybody does exactly the thing they need to. But I won't say that the day afters aren't a lot harder than they were 20 years ago, either.


dcr

 

[Kmonk]

In my opinion, age means nothing. One pet peeve of mine is when people post ads looking for musicians and they specify an age range. Many major pop artists have musicians in their band who are 2 or 3 times their age. They do this because they know that these musicians are seasoned pros who can do the job. If you fit in with the rest of the band members and can play your parts proficiently, age should never be an issue.

 

[Canadian APII]

I've hesitated from posting this but here goes.....some self-doubt at play here.

I am retired, getting Social Security and playing in a 90's cover band with three 30-somethings for the past 4 years. I love the music and the challenge of taking myself out of my comfort zone. I love the energy the younger band members show. Great chemistry. We are ascending in the local area. Gig venues are getting into the "prime" local area places and the money is getting good but none of us are into it for the money.

I am able to play for 4 hours. I don't have a problem with the late hours. I feel appreciated by the other members but I kinda feel that my lower energy level and age might affect the band's image. I move around. I don't jump in the air or run around the stage but I move to the music.

Sometimes I think I am a novelty. Some people have remarked that it is cool to see someone my age playing with guys a generation apart in age. I imagine some feel my age might be a negative.

Most of what I see is similarly aged band members playing music from their generation.

Am I cramping my bands image or does age matter?

 

[Lobster11]

First, if at your age you have no trouble playing 4-hour shows into the wee hours of the night, that's awesome! (I'm only 58, and my preferred limit is three hours and done by 11:00.)

The question of whether the age thing is a potential issue for the band's "image" is an interesting one. I think it doesn't come up very often because bands with such large age disparities don't often form in the first place, and if they do they probably don't often last long because of internal conflicts, lack of common interests, etc. Since audiences aren't accustomed to seeing one "old guy" playing with a group of 30somethings, it's hard to imagine what they would think, or whether you'd be perceived as a "novelty," etc. -- or whether they would even really notice.

My first thought is that even if you are perceived by some as a novelty, it must be in a good way if you're getting the gigs and moving up in the local scene. Nothing succeeds like success, as they say. I imagine that there might be some folks in the audience thinking, "Who's the old dude?", but if so I'll bet most of them follow that thought with "How cool is that?!"

My second thought is that the fact you are the bass player might work to your advantage. Someone mentioned John Entwistle earlier, but apart from him, think about how many bands have been around over the last several decades in which the bass player is the "low-energy" guy who just stands there while everyone else jumps wildly around the stage. That's just what people have come to expect from bass players. As long as you're moving around and look like you're "into" the music and enjoying yourself, you probably fit the audience's expectations perfectly. Keep rockin'!

 

[Sixgunn]

I'm the oldest in my band (only by a couple of years for one member), I'm also the most energetic and the most positive. Our singer sometimes makes remarks like "It sucks getting old" and I say "I wouldn't know". You can sleep when you're dead.

 

[Son of Wobble]

Um, he was born in 1923; the rest of the original members of Spirit were born between 1943 and 1951.

If your bandmates are good with your playing and your presence and you're getting gigs then age don't matter.

That means Ed was a wizened old man of 45 when this album came out in 1968. I say that ironically because
eeing this album cover as a child, I definitely thought Ed was some kind of novelty, a Lurch-type band mascot if you will. Now, at age 53, he looks like a relative kid to me.

 

[Son of Wobble]

Here's a photo of Ed in the late 70's, according the the captions. Pictured with fans.
Does he look like he is "fitting in?" Yes, like a canary fits in the mouth of a smiling cat!

 

[Spectrum]

I'm in my 40s in a band with 20-somethings. They recruited me, so I know they are okay with it. I always figured that if the band blew up big then some industry schmuck would try to talk them into replacing the bass player. I accept that, this business is what it is and I like my day job. But I'm not worried about that since it's not too likely anyway.

BTW, I'm also the only guy in my band with long hair. When did younger guys start getting to be so square?

 

[Doner Designs]

We tend to hang with people who are like ourselves for the most part (at least that is my perception). I think that when there is a common interest like music that can bring together generations, different political leanings, different faiths, etc, etc, we get an opportunity to grow and broaden our horizons while having fun in the process.

Hanging with younger folks helps keep us young and hanging with older folks can give us some great wisdom and insights that we might otherwise learn the hard way.

As for different politics and different faiths, etc, hobbies that bridge us may help compensate for the fact that our society seems to be becoming ever more polarized and hateful of those with differing views.

So rock on and treasure the differences!

 

[Jonithen]

I've hesitated from posting this but here goes.....some self-doubt at play here.

I am retired, getting Social Security and playing in a 90's cover band with three 30-somethings for the past 4 years. I love the music and the challenge of taking myself out of my comfort zone. I love the energy the younger band members show. Great chemistry. We are ascending in the local area. Gig venues are getting into the "prime" local area places and the money is getting good but none of us are into it for the money.

I am able to play for 4 hours. I don't have a problem with the late hours. I feel appreciated by the other members but I kinda feel that my lower energy level and age might affect the band's image. I move around. I don't jump in the air or run around the stage but I move to the music.

Sometimes I think I am a novelty. Some people have remarked that it is cool to see someone my age playing with guys a generation apart in age. I imagine some feel my age might be a negative.

Most of what I see is similarly aged band members playing music from their generation.

Am I cramping my bands image or does age matter?

Be yourself! One of my best friends was a man 40 or 50 years my senior, something like that, and I miss him terribly. When we were spending time together, the age difference wasn't even something I thought about. He was just a cool guy who had killer stories and a fantastic sense of comedic timing.

I can't speak for the dudes in your band, I'd like to hope they wouldn't be that much different about it then me. If you click, you click regardless of the age. It can't hurt to check with the people you are in with to make sure everybody's happy about the direction of the band and the lineup.

Keep rocking.