Who here has done music full time?

Yup, 79 to 94. Western U.S., mostly California,Ariz,Colo,Nev,NM. One 2 week tour of Japan in 86. Then a few years in NY after I relocated here. Booked the gigs, drove the truck,paid the band and techs. We played everything from bar gigs, one night showcases, opening act for some big names from the day, and the occasional private show.
 
I haven't played out in over 10 years now, other than a one off at a private party last summer. I relented to pressure from some friends who had heard my stuff online, but hadn't seen me play live. I played with a guy I'd never met til the party. He was decent, but not used to playing with others. It went pretty much like this. Him: " Oh....I know one we can do.." and he'd start playing on his acoustic facing away from me. It left me guessing what the song was if I didn't recognize it immediately or trying to figure out what key he was playing it in. After about 5 songs of that, he took a break and my wife said "screw that clown, go up and play what you want to play". I did about 45 minutes of covers and originals, and he didn't even try and come back up. It was fun after that. He didn't want to play anymore after I stopped and we left about an hour later.
 
I still get calls now and then to play one offs with old bandmates, or come jam with others. I always decline the offers. I'm just not interested in "slopping" around musically. I was fortunate to play with some seriously talented guys over the years and I got spoiled by it. I have great friends and memories from my gigging years. No sense trying to re-create it now.
 
Randy

bapu
Music is (dang near) full time in my head.
 
Does that count?

those are voices, not music. 

I was full time as a guitarist in the USAF band till 94'. Then to North Texas University 95-99'. then to Branson and Lake of the Ozarks till Oct 03 when I was informed I had stage 4 cancer. On that day my life in music ended. I didn't touch a guitar for 6 1/2 years and due the radiation/chemo/hardcore drugs etc. I'm in the process of rebuilding my playing abilities. I moved to South Louisiana to be near my sisters but here on the north shore music as I once knew it does not exist. So now I live in a van down by the river 

I only wish I had a river to live by.
 
I have a van, and a P.A.
 
Am I in the band?
 

bapu
I only wish I had a river to live by.
 
I have a van, and a P.A.
 
Am I in the band?
 

What are you doing in PA?  I thought you lived in Cali???

Y'all prolly heard it before (my lost opportunity).
 
Late 1971 - I'm in a band with Chas Sandford. He says "we have to go to England to make it". I say "Nope, getting married next year".
 
He goes on to co-write "Missing You" with John Waite, produces the likes of Chicago, Steveie Nicks and a whole host of others. Lives outside of Nashville and has a "pro" studio with living accomadations (and has a studio in Hawaii IIRC).

Tough one there Ed!  Well, at least you've got the woman you married.  Oh wait... 
 
(I wouldn't have minded mixing a young Stevie Nicks...  )
 
I still only have my short and useless story.  Wanted to be in a touring band, but not as a front man or lead - I wasn't good enough for that.  Got a chance to play for six weeks with some really talented guys, then the lead guitarist (Craig Goldy) went off to form Guiffria (before moving on to Dio) and the drummer Mike went off to play with Mickey Ratt (dying before they changed their name to Ratt - Drummers!).  Then, a couple years later, I had to go and break my arm.  With months of nerve regrowth and physical therapy ahead of me, my music days were numbered early.  It wasn't until 1987 that I discovered this software called Cakewalk (v1.0) and started having fun with music again.  To this day, I still can't tweedle tweedle tweedle like I used to (damn, sounds like a prostate issue, doesn't it?).
 
When I look back at all the REALLY talented musicians that never went anywhere, I think I made the right choice staying in the IT world. 

craigb
Tough one there Ed!  Well, at least you've got the woman you married.  Oh wait... 

 
We're still friends even though we've been divorced for just over 30 years now. In fact I may be getting a shirt order from here come Monday.

I hear ya Danny. I couldn't even try to come up with a number of nights played, or the places. Every once in awhile, a song on the radio, or just face on the street will remind me of a gig from back in the day. The wife and I went out for ice cream a week or so ago to this little town about 15 miles from home. I hadn't been on that road in over 10 years, and as were driving along she says "Oh look...Night Owls is gone!". I looked over and it was just grown over empty field where this great roadhouse used to be. That got us talking about the people we met there and some of the crazy things that happened. One Saturday night these 2 brothers came in with their girls and started dancing and partying. A little while later, another brother showed up and all hell broke loose. They apparently had issues with the one brother and ended up kicking his ass out the door, where one brother got in the back seat of a car while holding his barely conscious brother by the arm, while the other brother got behind the wheel and they proceeded to drag him down the road for about a 1/4 mile. Almost killed the guy, and there's 200 drunks standing out in front of the bar watching the whole thing happen.
 
Eventually everybody came back inside, and just started the party again like nothing happened. I still see those guys every once in awhile, and all 3 of them act like nothing ever happened. Makes me wonder what that childhood must have been like.
 
Randy

1971 till 1984.  Most of that time touring or in Nashville.  I could live 1982 over and over again like Bill Murray in Groundhog Day.  I do miss it so.  Course I'd be dead already ten times over probably...maybe...or would I?
 
 
 
PS: Course, Since 1987 I've still sort of been doin it as an independent music producer and studio owner.  Although times is tough...I tell ya.

Hey, can you guys play Freebird and Brown Eyed Girl?

Batsbrew, this has been a very entertaining thread. Thanks for posting.
 
In my 30+ years of playing guitar, I think I played for 5+ people once. But it was a holiday and my whole immediate family was over. :-)
 
I have to live my rock n roll dreams through you all, so keep them coming! lol

Late 70's I was a full time musician. No other income and playing 4 to 7 nights a week. I was jumping bands on occasion. One would break up or I would leave and the following week be in another working band. I was blessed to live in a town which, at the time, had a minimum of a dozen working bands, (most were full time) playing the various clubs that were in that town. Plus we had a huge club scene on the military base there. A tourist beach area with more clubs was just 20 miles up the road as well.  Even crappy bands could find weekend gigs somewhere.
 
One band I helped to start was gigging every weekend after just a few weeks to practice. I ended up almost from the start as the booking agent for the band. If my phone bill wasn't over $200 (at the time) we weren't working. I started booking us into the big regional nightclubs. The ones that had bands which were regional attractions. We were naive enough to not know that we had no business being there, but we went, and with the stage show we had, and the diverse repertoire of music, we managed to impress most of the clubs.  This band lasted around 1.5 years before the drummer quit/got fired, as a result of a disastrous gig related to a personal problem.  So began the rapid decline.
 
This full time playing went on for the better part of 3 years. Toward the end of the full time era, (with the band mentioned above) the last band I had finally broke up and I continued to play full time as a solo act for another 6 months.  The traveling and constant running to do all the work, booking, roadie, musician, truck driver, accountant, was getting old. I needed a break before I burned out. I was playing in NC, SC, and VA mostly. 
 
After the solo act ended, I put the guitars away.  A phone call a year or so later held the promise of a house band gig. The club owner was agreeing to buy lights and a sound system of OUR choosing.... basically a blank check. He held good to his promise and we had a nice PA and light set up. The holy grail for many musicians. With 12 rehearsals, and never playing through a complete song, we started the first weekend after the New Year. The club owner was apprehensive since he listened to our rehearsals and we had to play him a complete song just to show we could do it. That band lasted two and a half years. Drama got the better of that band  around the 2 yr point and it was a downhill slide. Since I didn't need the PA I still had in the shed.... I sold the PA I owned to a band who just won a national talent show and had $50,000 burning a hole in their pockets, and started working a "real job" for a time. ( that band crashed and burned hard with in the year...all that glitters is not gold)
 
About the time I started to see the classic symptoms of a band about to crash and burn, AGAIN, I started to buy up some gear to start a small home studio. This was before digital.
 
It was fun while it lasted. In most of the full time bands, we had a home base of operation and were able to be home quite a bit. The money made was enough to pay the bills (most of the time) and allow us to buy more gear, fix the truck, and party.
 
Since the demise of the house band, I did stop live gigging from that point till this. I can count on one hand the times I have played live and got paid. Maybe a dozen free jam sessions in front of an audience in that time.
 
Now days, it's studio stuff.

Haven't ever done it full time, but I will be doing just that in 29 weeks and two days.  It's called retirement.  Music will get top priority, but it will be competing a bit with woodworking, cooking, reading and exercise (not necessarily in that order).
 
But to keep things simple, I'm going to have a daily to-do list with exactly a single entry for each day: "Abide".