What do you think might be a realistic annual 'earnings'

[Alan Brookes]

I've always thought that anyone can sing, but it takes talent to play an instrument. I think they had it better in perspective in the old days of the big bands, when the records would say, "Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra ...vocal by Frank Sinatra."

[Russell Adkins]

you got that right Allen.

[Wally Moyers]

In some ways thats what the Time Jumpers are doing.. I wish we could see more musicians get together for the sake of making great music like they do...

[Rondall Jones]

Back when I was younger, playing the bars and clubs, instead of making money,we would end up owing the owner for all of the beer we drank...

[pdl20]

now days its, how you want yours, Heads or tails.

[Jack Hargraves]

Back in the 70s I averaged $30.00 per night in the honkytonks, and in the 80s I usually made $50.00 a night, sometimes 5 nights a week, sometimes 2 or 3,
but I always kept a day job, except for two years, 1974 and 75, when I played 5 nights every week in St. Louis, Mo. I'm Retired now and the only place I play is in Church.

[DG Whitley]

When I was working in bands, I just figured if I broke even at the end of the year I was good.

My 2 cents, YMMV.

[chris ivey]

my mileage varies.

[Joachim Kettner]

I've always thought that anyone can sing, but it takes talent to play an instrument. I think they had it better in perspective in the old days of the big bands, when the records would say, "Tommy Dorsey & His Orchestra ...vocal by Frank Sinatra."

Good singers are the ones that attract me mostly. It takes talent to sing.

[Roger Rettig]

Alan's statement was a bit sweeping, I'd say. I can't agree with him.

Yes, everyone can open their mouth and 'sing' but musicality is something else. The good ones have worked hard at their craft - just as an instrumentalist has. It's true that some singers have been blessed with a voice that's pleasing to the ear but never underestimate the effort that goes into perfecting technique.

Topic drift, but I couldn't let that go.

[Joe Naylor]

Mine - spent many years building flour mills and feed mills and always wanted to "DO MUSIC" - finally bought steelseats.

"Retired from my real job about 6 years ago and am full time steelseats and lovin it

Not really retired but do not want to be. Between the steelseats, emceeing and some commercial work on radio and TV (voice only) havin fun and doing OK. You may hear me on a radio near you.

Joe

[Donny Hinson]

One thing that always made me upset is why does the singer get more money than the guys making the music that the singer NEEDS to make his song sound so good...

I've felt that way too, at times, but the answer to your question can be found by just listening to the radio or watching TV nowadays. Instrumental music, which was so big up until the late '60s, died. I can't think of any instrumentals that have made the charts in the past 20 years.

Sorry, the public wants and needs the singers. Instrumentalists are, to the vast majority of listeners and watchers, like the tires on a car. Everybody knows that they're there, and that they're very important, but nobody pays much attention to them.

[chris ivey]

just think of the effect duane eddy and the ventures had on guitar sales!

it's a shame that corporate greed is so shortsighted as to not leave the door open for this type of art.

[John Booth]

Personally my best year was in the mid 80s when I cleared
just north of $20K but I did 182 shows that year.
There's not nearly enough money to make it worth it as a living I would guess,
just the love of doing it instead of being he guy that cleans porta-potties for a living
JB

[Gary Lee Gimble]

any instrumentals that have made the charts in the past 20 years

Cliffs of Dover give or take a few years

[Bill Sinclair]

Recent instrumentals:

Man, I can't think of anything much after "Music Box Dancer", "Hill Street Blues Theme Song" and "Songbird". Maybe lame instrumentals are what killed the genre.

[Tom Gorr]

When a person reviews the history of pop music there was as much or more success that came from team player band models as came from Prima Donna singer songwriters with employees. The fact the business model has evolved to dramatically favor the prima donna model may very well be because the industry has fragmented so heavily. .. everyone can produce or publish great songs with a thousand bucks of software and hardware and a subscription to youtube.

Alternatively, perhaps our society has fallen victim to the Cult of Celebrity and mostly see value in a narrow presentation of talent akin to etalk daily...etc... Lord knows that some of the highest profile entertainers use every trick in the book to keep in the public eye no matter how trivial trite or disgusting... the playbook is voluminious. Professional managers and promoters know how to work the media to create stars out of otherwise uninteresting people.

The thing that was cool about the great bands though was they were almost genres unto themselves due to the musical influences of highly talented individual members who had a stake in the outcome. The Doors and Queen are two example of genre bands. ..Bands like The Doors had band agreements where everything was put on the table that was of creative value and everyone participated in developing the ideas. I am pretty certain from brief reads on the subject that the keyboardist drove much of the musical innovation that really set them apart. I bet no one knows his name although I am pretty sure most will recall the singers name. What made the singer a valuable member. ..His bizarre and dark mystique. There are tens of thousands of people with better singing ability who choose to stick with their day job.

The new production model is pretty much like what rolls off an assembly line.

There is a third band model which I call the DisIngeneous Model which is a faux band model in the service of a prima donna.

[Jim Cohen]

...Bands like The Doors had band agreements where everything was put on the table that was of creative value and everyone participated in developing the ideas. I am pretty certain from brief reads on the subject that the keyboardist drove much of the musical innovation that really set them apart. I bet no one knows his name although I am pretty sure most will recall the singers name.

Sure, I remember his name: Ray Manzarek. And he's still gigging with the Doors' guitarist, Robbie Krieger.

[Craig Baker]

One of the greatest quotes of all time. . .

"I'll Drink All Night for Twenty Bucks and All I Can Play!"

. . . Thumbs Carllile, Steel Session '84 Lansdale, PA

[Rick Schacter]

Sure, I remember his name: Ray Manzarek. And he's still gigging with the Doors' guitarist, Robbie Krieger.

Ray Manzerek died a couple of years ago:

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/ ... 4-20130520

[Jim Cohen]

...Bands like The Doors had band agreements where everything was put on the table that was of creative value and everyone participated in developing the ideas. I am pretty certain from brief reads on the subject that the keyboardist drove much of the musical innovation that really set them apart. I bet no one knows his name although I am pretty sure most will recall the singers name.

Sure, I remember his name: Ray Manzarek. And he's still gigging with the Doors' guitarist, Robbie Krieger.

Ray Manzerek died a couple of years ago:

http://www.rollingstone.com/music/news/ ... 4-20130520

Yeah, but that don't mean he stopped gigging..

[Rick Schacter]

Referring to what Tom Gorr had to say about The Doors singer being the only one that people remember:

The Doors are one of the bands in rock history where most people could probably name every member of the band.

[Tom Gorr]

Haha...reminds me to reread the cautionary notice of making overly definitive statements....they become easy pickin's.....

If it is true that most can name the members of the Doors... then I guess that goes to show that their full membership band model made even a larger footprint than just innovative music.

In any event. ...I think my point was more toward exploring band membership models.. the reasons why the norm had evolved. ..and the impact the models can have on creative results.

[Kenny Davis]

Not long after I started playing, I worked in a four piece group that booked through Sam Gibbs. He's the guy that put a blindfold on and threw a dart with a band's name on it at a map! We always averaged around $300 per week, with rooms. We paid our own fuel and eats. Back then, all the alcohol was free, of course. It was fun at first, but got old in a hurry.

Now, average money per job is a little less than a week's pay back then, and all smoke free. Problem is, (if I was doing this for a living) we only work around 12 times a year! It's more about the enjoyment now, and It's more enjoyable when you don't have to worry about paying the bills.

A few years ago, I was talking to a guy in a well known country band about the pay. He said they got paid per performance, paid for rehearsals, record label insurance, and a cut of the artist's concert concessions.

[Alan Brookes]

Give me a bag of doughnuts and a bottle of whiskey and I'll play all night.

In fact you might have to throw me out.