Wired after a Gig

Dale Proctor

Here’s a question I’ll throw out there.

How many of you have played a late night gig, concert, rehearsal, etc., and when you get home you’re too wired to go to sleep? It happens to me about every time, and I have to unwind before going to bed. That’s especially difficult if you have a day job and have to get up early the next morning to go to work. About the only time it doesn’t happen is if I have an hour or two drive home from an out of town gig, and then I’ve already unwound by the time I get home.

J. Jericho

One of my previous dentists (also a trumpet player), long since retired, was enthused that he discovered Yoga as a means to relaxation and a sense of well-being, to which I responded: "That's what alcohol is for!"

Mike Ansberry

I guess it may be not the mark of a real pro player, but I am pretty up after any gig that goes well. It helps if I hang with a friend or two afterwards. Hit the Waffle House or something.

I guess if I was playing 5 nights a week it would be different.

Dr GO

I am playing a gig tonight at a coffee house (Wholly Grounds). I think I'm going to be doubly wired!

GeorgeB

I don't play many late gigs these days (before Covid, anyway) but when I had my 5 piece band back in the 50s/60s I did a lot of late gigs, mostly weddings where we played overtime and by the time I would get home it would be 1 or 2 in the morning and man, I'd be so wound up it was near impossible to get to sleep.

barliman2001

@georgeb Weddings? Coming home at 2 am? That's a tame wedding... here in Austria, a wedding starts at 6am, with a rousing fanfare played in the street in front of the groom's house; then there's the morning snack and schnaps; then the registry office wedding, afterwards the church wedding, then the reception. After that, the dance band takes over from the oompah band until midnight, when the newlyweds retire; and the dance band continues, because next morning, the wedding guests have to wake up the honeymooners... so if you are lucky enough to be in the dance band and sub in the oompah outfitm you are getting up at four am, play for more or less 24 hours flat out, and are back at home around 10am... tired, not wired!

Dr GO

@dr-go said in Wired after a Gig:

I am playing a gig tonight at a coffee house (Wholly Grounds). I think I'm going to be doubly wired!

Here is a clip an audience member posted on facebook of a brief moment of me playing at the coffee house last evening. I will leave it up to you to rate how wired I was at the time:
https://www.facebook.com/stories/1222546287858279/UzpfSVNDOjEwMjI1NzQ1NDAxMjA2Mjg1/?source=notification&notif_id=1620407678780327&notif_t=camera_post_user_tagged&ref=notif

GeorgeB

@barliman2001

Play 24 hours flat out ? What kind of chops do you Austrians have and how do you get that way ? Even in my younger playing days 3 hours flat out was the limit of my endurance.
Sounds like a lot of fun, but......................

GeorgeB

@dr-go

Gee, Doc, I would have liked to see that but I don't like Facebook.

barliman2001

@georgeb With breaks, of course. Austrian weddings involve many speeches all over the day, and lots of pranks. In total, there's perhaps twelve ours playing time in 28 hours of attendance.