congrats.

sober since 0ct 17th 1996 myself

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63supro
"The good thing is in a club situation, most of the patrons are trashed and really can't tell the difference."

You can never be too drunk to play You can however be too drunk to play well

For band practice I prefer to be sober as a judge, as I think paying proper attention is the best way to achieve results. It is ofcourse fun to have a few beers when jamming with friends. There is a time and place for everything

For shows if there's nerves, one beer couldn't hurt

I think there may have been a couple of times when I was drunk and played shows with my current band. But being a lead guitar player doesn't make that an easy task. I have to concentrate when I do solos. The notes are moving fast. One wrong move and it train-wrecks. My solos aren't improvised, they're written and performed the same way every time. Plus I have to sing. Singing never really goes well when you're drunk. I always play sober now.

I agree with Mike. Our band is starting to put restrictions on drinking, smoking, pill popping, whatever. Time to make certain people behave.

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HaleAmano- House Of Sharks (Now On iTunes)
http://www.reverbnation.com/haleamano
http://www.haleamano.com

Twice I've been too wasted to play.The first time was just at a jam so it wasn't bad,I had drank a 26er of London Dock 100 proof rum and was playing my Hagstrom II when I started to pass out.Just before I hit the floor I had enough presence of mind to hold the guitar out of the way consequently giving my left elbow a severe mashing.
The second time was at a gig,I had a bad flu and was taking a prescription cough syrup with codiene in it.I had a couple of double vodkas and lime and got absolutely pissy eyed wasted-stoned moreso than drunk.I made it through the gig without messing up too much but I was on pins and needles all night despite being zonked out of my tree.

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'65 Strat,65 Mustang,65 Jaguar,4 more Strats,3 vintage Vox guitars,5 Vox amps,'69 Bassman with a '68 2-15 Bassman cab,36 guitars total-15asst'd amps total,2 vintage '60s Hammond organs & a myriad of effects-with a few rare vintage ones.

One beer when you want to cure the jitters, You have to keep practicing to get good at playing inebriated, it doesn't happen overnight.

I want about 3 to get me started and I'm good for the rest of the night. Now the dock sais no drinking at all and thats ok. I've drank a truck load in my time and have fallen from many a stool. I even landed on a friends guitar once. Got a blody nose for that one. I even kept a special pare of dark glaces to cover my black eyes.

One thing that stopped me from gigging the last few years is that I'm not gonna waste my time trying to play music with people who are mediocre musicians when sober and piss poor when they are messed up...like others have said,it makes you look like a drunken fool and a poser with a guitar or other instrument.
Do it on your own,but if you're a gigging musician with others trying to make money or a living,you will drag your azz and find that you will develop a rep as a person not to be taken as a serious player.
I used to party with all the others but as my friends and I got older,the music comes first and foremost,anyone that doesn't see it that way can go somewhere else and find someone to pump their ego,and overlook their shortcomings.

+1

And to true professionals, music is a business.

Arjay

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"Here's why reliability is job one: A great sounding amp that breaks down goes from being a favorite piece of gear to a useless piece of crap in less time than it takes to read this sentence." -- BRUCE ZINKY

David Yow would beg to differ....

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Favorite bands:

Melvins
The Jesus Lizard
Cows
Big Business
R***man
Minutemen
Flight
Minor Threat
Big Black
Shellac
Karp
Scratch Acid
Wipers
Pixies

Done it a couple of times and f--ked up every time i did. The most memorable of which, I broke my nose on the stage floor. The Jackson stayed in tune though.
Haven't done it since.

It only takes one video replay to realize you look a prat when your playing pissed.

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No no and no

Playing while intoxicated, "PWI"...

...also endangers that gear you saved for and care for.

hey thats how it goes bro. the the player takes a lickin and the jackson's keep on tickin.

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63supro
"The good thing is in a club situation, most of the patrons are trashed and really can't tell the difference."

my hats off to you guys that are starting to put your foot down or already have on things like this. a band is a business plain and simple. besides, i dont like keeping company any more with the buzzards and the drunkards. its not for me.
i dont mind so much if you can keep your shiot together and keep it to yourself, its your business. its when folks get out of control or your "activities" start to get me involved
in some BS that i have a problem with it.
please dont get me wrong, i was the worst of the worst before i stopped myself back in 1996, and im not standing on a soapbox either. i just think people have gotten way out of hand with it and since they cant control themselves somebody has to.

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63supro
"The good thing is in a club situation, most of the patrons are trashed and really can't tell the difference."

Approaching 9 years - and I'm feeling great!

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I Can't Explain

I've never been drunk ever, especially not while playing. Hopefully I'll be able keep it that way in the future too. But I've seen some of the best fall within a matter of hours. It's a shame too, because some of them are awesome when they're sober. But drunk, just about anyone could blow them away. There's one drummer in particular who I know, and he's probably one of the best I've been able to play with when he's sober. But there are times when he can't even hold the sticks and I could actually play drums better than him. And I'm an amateur drummer at best. So from what I've seen, gigging and drinking really don't mix well despite what the stereotype is.

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