Just digging it?

lowdowner

Senior Member
Just wondered when was the last time you enjoyed drumming so much that you just laughed, or felt high, or just smiled 'cause you were enjoying just playing?

Do you often find it 'just feels good' and you'd rather be here, playing, than anywhere else - or is drumming just everyday stuff?
 
The magic gigs don't happen as much as I'd like them to. Last one I had was probably 4 weeks or so ago. At the height of it all, a drunken man laid on the floor and kissed the guitarists shoe. Not in a good way either, he was really creepy. In fact I had to intervene when he was really bothering this female patron. I ended up getting him kicked out because he was obnoxious. That was one of those full moon nights you hear about. We could do no wrong. People danced from front to back. That's the feeling I am perpetually chasing when I play. But those gigs are the exception not the rule. Still, they happen often enough to keep me interested.
 
The magic gigs don't happen as much as I'd like them to. Last one I had was probably 4 weeks or so ago. At the height of it all, a drunken man laid on the floor and kissed the guitarists shoe. Not in a good way either, he was really creepy. In fact I had to intervene when he was really bothering this female patron. I ended up getting him kicked out because he was obnoxious. That was one of those full moon nights you hear about. We could do no wrong. People danced from front to back. That's the feeling I am perpetually chasing when I play. But those gigs are the exception not the rule. Still, they happen often enough to keep me interested.

Wow, that's kind of intense! (nay... creepy even!) :)
 
Most often, when I play, it's because I want to practise something. It's usually enjoyable, but sometimes it's plain hard work.

But today I smiled when I played. I was doing some basic jazz exercises and they actually sounded like jazz. It felt great!
 
I think this is the one area where amateurs might have a slight advantage. As an amateur, I am never required to do anything. I am not required to take any particular gig, or play any song or genre I don't care for, or play with anybody I don't want too. In fact, when it comes to making music, I only ever do exactly what I want to. Of course, I'm nowhere near as good as I would like to be, which can be incredibly frustrating, and, worse still, I have the dreaded day job that dictates when and how much I can play. But whenever I make music, I have at least a little smile, usually a big one.

FYI, the word 'amateur' comes from the French "lover of". http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Amateur
 
It really depends on your drumming. Drumming, photography, flower arranging... are great relaxing and enjoyable hobbies. When they (anything) becomes a job that you do to pay the rent, buy cars, put braces on the kid's teeth... it is work. Work, even when it is something you love is different than "for fun" or hobby or even an avocation. So I have more purely enjoyable moments now that I'm mostly retired than when it was pure work. Even work for the love of it.
 
I tend to put a lot of pressure on myself when playing live or practicing so the moments of pure bliss are pretty few and far between. They do come however, and usually during practice with one of the bands. We will be working on something new or just jamming and I will just be riffing on the drums. Those are the fun moments and the times when I feel like I am actually creating something.
 
For the time being I'm very fortunate to be getting gigs that I am excited about both before and after the gig. There have been times in my life when I played gig after gig wondering why
I was bothering hauling the stuff etc and then there would always be a gig where it was so good you forgot about all the others. Maybe it's because I'm older, have played longer, can be more selective etc that I am getting gigs that satisfy and also have figured out what it is I truly love in music and try to get those gigs. There are some types of music I love but are
too physically demanding for me to do justice to these days so I avoid them. Drumming and music is being very kind to me lately.
 
I always enjoy playing. Always.

I'm retired and I can play if I want to play or not play. I can play for money or for no money.
No pressure at all. I'm enjoying making music the way we all wish we could.


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last night at practice my bass player sat down at the keyboard in the studio and started to play Baba O-reily and we jammed it, then jammed Wont Get Fooled Again. it was such a blast! we wont do those songs but to play them last night got us fired up and we were laughing.
 
there are definitely moments in a room with musicians when everything is clicking so much that the sonic atmosphere almost changes and we are almost looking at each other as listeners just riding the wave..... like each musician is a note in a perfect chord and we hit that chord ..... uncontrollable smiles and often laughter occurs in those moments out of pure euphoria.
that feeling becomes sort of like a high from a drug that you chase to get again and again
 
Last time was yesterday. Was jamming with my guitarist and we were just locked in. You know the type where both of you will go completely off and not look at each other but land on the I chord after some crazy section of improv at the same time. But since i teach music lessons playing drumming is also everyday stuff for me. I love my job for that reason alone
 
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