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POLL: Do you play your gigs sober? Why or why not?

20K views 126 replies 59 participants last post by  notes_norton 
#1 ·
Do you play your gigs sober? Why or why not?

I like to "loosen up" a little at some gigs, but not others. Definitely if it's a party atmosphere, I need to participate in the party a little, and I do play better if I do. In my earlier years I definitely overdid it a few times. But now I know my limits which are pretty low. And at retirement home gigs and other daytime functions I find I play better straight.
 
#36 ·
Most of my gigs are two sets - so usually one beer at the break and maybe another after the gig. Or maybe one while playing the first set to keep hydrated, then one during the second set. But usually just two for the gig....except the monthly gig my jam band has at a local micro brewery. The beer is too good - so one before the gig, one during the first set, one at the break and then my playing goes to hell - but by then the crowd is lubricated enough and up and dancing that they probably don't notice anyway.
 
#42 ·
+1...and there have been a few times...argh...
 
#40 ·
FWIW, when I used to play a lot more guitar, I noticed that my ear was the first thing to go when I had a drink. Critical tuning was challenging.
 
#41 ·
My ear actually gets better after one or two drinks. The time I tried to play on cocaine though, my ear went to hell really fast, and more importantly my chops. It numbs your embouchure muscles and you can't feel how much pressure you're putting on the reed. For me at least, it also numbed my emotions to the point that I couldn't really express myself. Really glad I had no taste for that particular substance, because I could easily see how one could get hooked on it. Even though I hated it I for some reason wanted another line. That must be why they call it blow, because you blow all your money fast! But you sure can't blow your horn...

Oh and weed makes my fingers lazy, missing notes, stumbling through fast phrases. The time I tried playing on acid I just couldn't get over the vibrations coming up into my head and would just play one note and then stop and say "wooooowwwwwwwwwwww"
 
#44 ·
I have one [light] beer per set, so yes I stay sober. Gets me in the mood, shows I'm in the same place for the same reasons as others, and signifies celebration, without pushing my limits. If I'm on an extended practice session at home, I'll enjoy a bit of bourbon.
 
#47 ·
If you identify your emotions as "excitement" or "anticipation", instead of "nervousness", you might enjoy it more. :bluewink:

I wonder if people sometimes mislabel their feelings.
 
#51 ·
when i was in college (not studying music), i played for awhile in a band that played mostly parties around campus, and would get pretty damn drunk before, during, and after the shows. i thought i sounded fine at the time, but looking back i have no doubt i didn't.

now i usually have no more than whatever free drinks i get at a bar gig, so no more than one beer per set. that way i play better and i'm safe to drive home.
 
#53 ·
Another reason for not drinking and playing-?
I was speaking with Myron Walden over dinner after his gig at Smalls,here in NYC, and then before he went to a second gig at the Roxy. I had vodka negroni and he declined till after the show. We were speaking about saxophones and my on /off sticking G# pad problem.He felt that alcohol turns to sugar and that he didnt drink before he played as he didn't want to gum up his horn pads with sugar. He drank a lot of water though, and I could see him loose it during the shows. Playing a gig is physical work! He enjoyed the drink right after the show!
 
#54 ·
I usually have two or three drinks at a gig, unless it's a new situation/difficult music and I need to be extra on my toes. A few years ago I used to get a buzz going before gigs to combat awful stage fright/social anxiety; fortunately that no longer plagues me so much, but the habit of drinking a couple on the gig has remained. Also, a couple of party bands I work with tend to really go for it with the alcohol, and I am not good at resisting the urge to join the party (I don't drive, btw)... particularly if the alternative means putting up with a loud drunken last set as the lone sober one. I don't think this is wise, and am making my yearly resolution to cut down.

What I have noticed recently is that I can feel the difference when I start the gig sober, and then have even 1 drink. It's not extreme, but I can tell my response time is a little slower, I don't think quite as clearly, or hear harmony as quickly.

Pot or any other substances, forget about it! haha. I know so many people who love to play stoned, and sound great.. but it doesn't work for me. So no, I don't usually play my gigs sober, but I think I should more often.
 
#60 ·
Yeah, me too. I sometimes say that I smoked so much weed in the 70's that I can put myself into that stoned space without smoking any substance now. And I can control it better and I don't lose my sense of intonation. If I actually smoke something now, it just makes me feel stupid and not in control of my high.
 
#59 ·
This thread poses an odd question. For me, even as an amateur, it's the equivalent of asking, "Do you drive your car with your eyes open? Why or why not?" I do understand that there are unfortunate traditions among musicians (not just horn players) of treating this question as presenting two equally viable options, but I'm puzzled that anyone would still take that perspective seriously. Apply the question to any other profession -- or, for us amateurs, to any "day job" -- and see how it sounds. "Do you perform surgery / go to court / drive a truck / perform laboratory experiments / operate an assembly line / do clients' tax returns / wash windows sober?"
 
#61 ·
"Do you perform surgery / go to court / drive a truck / perform laboratory experiments / operate an assembly line / do clients' tax returns / wash windows sober?"
I know some professionals who do their work stoned - not drunk, but high on weed. One of them was an ER doc.
 
#67 ·
I recall seeing plenty of roofers take a beer break. A beer with meals or one with a break is no big deal. Still sober.

I worry about blowing stuff into my horn, though, and brush my teeth or at least rinse well if I possibly can, if I take in anything but water.
 
#78 ·
It’s really beyond normal comprehension to understand why someone feels they can function that way and not get seriously hurt walking up and down a flight of stairs let alone play music. I don’t drink or smoke but have in the past so a part of me wants to say it understands a little but I really can’t say I do at all. At least to those ghastly extremes it just makes no sense at all.
 
#83 ·
When I was a "pro" back in 1980 I was drunk or getting there for all my gigs. It made the life bearable for me. Now with 33 years of sobriety I can't imagine going down that road again. I never had a very good off switch when that was an option. Now when I play a club I'm always the best player by third set when others are relaxed/saucy/stoned/blitzed, you name it. K
 
#89 ·
We've all heard of legendary musicians who played brilliantly while under the influence. Under actual working conditions, however, I've found heavy drinkers & stoners to be an annoyance & an embarrassment. During setup, they're off somewhere scoring or getting high. During the gig, they're difficult to communicate with; maybe they play OK, maybe they only think they're playing OK. After the gig, they're prone to say stupid stuff or behave inappropriately.

In the US, it's such a struggle for working musicians to get decent pay or be treated with dignity. I don't like to be associated with players who project a lack of seriousness about themselves & their profession. For me, making music is fun & deeply satisfying when everybody on the stand is focused on the music. It's harder to focus when you're worried about the player who might get out of control tonight & do something awful.
 
#93 ·
Although not much of a drinker anyways, but always played sober. I've heard a lot of people think they play better after they throw down a few, but that hasn't been my experience personally or those I've listened to. Ever see that episode of that 70's show where they think they have such brilliant ideas 'in the circle' so they decide to record them for later? Weren't such brilliant ideas after sobering up. Sort of the same thing.

Thanks!
Kristy
 
#94 ·
Some years ago I was standing around during a long break with a bunch of the guys from the society band. I was probably the youngest at 45; the rest of them were "well seasoned" pros. Quite a number of them had made 100% of their living by playing, in the days when you could do that.

Waiter came around and asked for drink orders.

"Black coffee."
"Black coffee."
"Black coffee."
"Black coffee."
"Black coffee."
"Black coffee."
"You got any cream or milk? No? Well, then, I'll take it black."
"Black coffee."

I guess we see what the drink of the professional musician is, these days.
 
#98 ·
Some years ago I was standing around during a long break with a bunch of the guys from the society band. I was probably the youngest at 45; the rest of them were "well seasoned" pros. Quite a number of them had made 100% of their living by playing, in the days when you could do that.

Waiter came around and asked for drink orders.

"Black coffee."
"Black coffee."
"Black coffee."
"Black coffee."
"Black coffee."
"Black coffee."
"You got any cream or milk? No? Well, then, I'll take it black."
"Black coffee."

I guess we see what the drink of the professional musician is, these days.
I call coffee "gig juice." Tailor made to get you through that last dance set... or the first!
 
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