Musician's Life: When Touring Isn't Fun 

Mark Burdett... aka Noah Guthrie 😂

he obviously plays guitar too..

Mark Burdett and nobody ever (from my long personal experience) will help drummer.

Played with some lead guitarists. And my experience is that they are talking to the fans while the band breaks down. Especially noticeable when you’re the drummer LOL

That drummer is on point!

Honestly. I rate this comment so highly, but hey man chase your dreams if you really want it that bad you will find a way to make it happen. Thats life, we are human beings capable of anything we put our minds to. Life is your oyster.

Be careful what you wish for.

@@55vermeer That's right Zach. I just checked out your rendition of Gary Moore's "Empty Rooms". Keep workin' it. Keep the focus. Sounding good.

Ya no kidding

Yea...When I clicked on this I thought they had road dog stage hands, guitar techs sound and lighting engineers, tour bus etc. etc. This level of musician keeps you humble. What's the name of this band?

I saw them live last year and I’m thinking he did sing some backup vocals. Might have been one of the other players.

Vocal harmoniser pedal for the win 😂

I won’t go to an arena concert ever again. Unless someone gives me VIP passes for standing backstage🤣. Outdoor summer venues pretty much suck too..as far as sound etc..

What band were you in?

Not when the players don't make enough money to buy burgers, or pay for hotel rooms, or pay for the inevitable breakdowns on the road, etc.

@Bad Guacamole No it is not. It's exceedingly rare. So if your reason for enduring the privations and poverty and indignities of a musical life on the road is to acquire fame, you definitely need a backup plan.

Yep, I truly hear ya brother!

may i ask what band you were in

This

@@youpeopl_music3220 You're doing much better as a weekend warrior....trust me. Here are some fun facts about touring that most amateurs don't know about. 1. Unless you have some sort of record label push, which means your band has some tunes on the radio or some shit, you're not getting anything. You hump your own gear. You set up your own gear. You might get a 30 second line check. Your sound guy, if you have one, might get to use 5 or 6 channels on a 64 channel sound board. You might get 4 lights on a good night. And you might get to use a third or so of the PA. If all of this happens on any given night, that's a damn good night. 2. Money? Uh, no. Trust me when I say this, you're probably making more as a weekend warrior. Any money that you get goes to your food, gas, strings, sticks, heads, clothes and whatever else is necessary. If there's anything left over, which most of the time there isn't, you get to split it up. If you make $50 a night after your expenses, you're doing very, very well. 3. Unless you have some sort of label backing, you're pretty much on your own to get from show to show, which are often several hundred miles apart. Imagine humping those miles in a minivan or an 82 Pontiac Station Wagon with 3 or 4 other musicians 275 days a year. 4. Relationships? Nope. Not unless you don't have any scruples about hiring professional help or wenching the occasional bar maid. 5. But, the crowds are big, right? As a rule, no. Again, unless you're hooked up with a popular headliner, chances are you're going to play what I affectionately refer to as the "fried dough tour." That's all the carnivals, fairs and "field days" in every podunk town from Maine to Malibu. Maybe once in a while you might get a small 2,500 or 5,000 seat arena show. But, most of the time, you're playing music festivals, fairs and clubs. If you're band has the misfortune of not playing anywhere near the headline slot at music festivals, chances are you're playing for the sound guy and the roadies. 6. Good luck washing your own clothes. 7. Truck stop food. Fast food. Microwave food. I promise that inside a month, you'll probably have eaten everything on the IHOP menu at last three times and know the ingredient labels to at least 3 microwave meals by heart. 8. On the occasion that you get to sleep in a motel, you will quickly learn to bring your own sleeping bag and bug spray. If you haven't caught crabs from motel sheets, you've never been on tour. Happiness is being forced to fumigate your ride because someone caught crabs. 9. That guy in your band that you think is a really great guy and really funny? Yeah.....that's going to change. The road is the #1 reason why bands break up. 10. After the first 30 or so shows, your numb. The music doesn't stop. You have to play it with equal enthusiasm night after night. Every song gets stale after playing every night for weeks at a time. These are just the highlights. Its a job and its a grind. There are times where it can be fun. But, its not the "dream job" that you think it is.

@@akasgsvirgil9503 I’m gonna quote one of my favorite singer songwriters Shawn Mullins. “Yea man but ain’t it a blessing just to do what you wanna do?” With all that considered you get to make music and that is an amazing opportunity. Isn’t the grind that sharpens the sword?

@@Wheelhousebandetx Or ruins the blade. You see, that's just it. You're not really doing what "you wanna do." Sure, you get to make music but, its always on someone else's terms, someone else's music and by someone else's rules. That's what it means to be a professional musician. Im not saying that its the worst job on the planet. Far from it. But, its not the glamorous, never ending party filled with laughs and excitement that everyone thinks that it is.

@@akasgsvirgil9503 I suppose you don’t know how others shoes feel..etc. I would however like to point out that I would take any crap outdoor gig any day over clicking that mouse around a spreadsheet for 10 hours a day. Music drives my existence. I will say that I have become a lot more familiar with Noah’s music via your series so he needs to thank you for that. Also, you are a great resource for gear info and your vids are entertaining if not informative. All I can say is this. It may be their music and their rules but it’s still playing music and that’s better than a day of literally any other job on the planet.

Could you do a video on how getting paid works for a set of gigs like this?

Thanks man!

was expecting more love for vocals in the comments, didn't find much i loved them lol

paulthelefty it is now.

I was thinking exactly the same thing, with elbow patches no less!

Thanks Jeff!

We’re playing CMA fest in Nashville this coming June