Rickresource Rickenbacker Forum

I hear what you say Steve, but the Carnivores are my band & Kit's my drummer & I'm proud of it! He's a great drummer, despite his tender years & really doesn't object to being 'my' drummer. There is no democracy in this band & believe me, everybody is happy about it. The band was formed around an album that I recorded solo & Eric & Kit are very happy to play the music with me as MD. There are no arguments in the Carnivores at all, opinions are offered & I decide....this arrangement really does work & is common in all the pro bands that I know. In no way was 'my' drummer a derogotary statement, in fact quite the reverse!

I've been thinking on Steves post & wondered why he considered me calling Kit 'my drummer' was offensive. I found it very interesting & think that it is a question of perspective.

I am a pro musician, which means that my mortgage payments depend on how well I play my gtr. I have been pro for approx 20 years now, so am pretty confident that I will continue being so. If you own a company & employ people, then they are 'your employees'. I don't see the difference between that & a band. I liase with agents & promoters, I receive the cheque & disperse the pay, I organise the publicity, I replace members of the band that need replacing(!) & my name is on the contract for the work we do...in short, the Carnivores are part of my 'company', with my studio work being another part. The Rampant Carnivores are not just people getting together to play some good music at the weekend as a hobby, they are part of a commercial project that is integral to the individual members living. I am not saying that we're better than anyone else, but just trying to explain the often forgotten fact that being a pro musician, is actually being in 'business', just like any other tradesman.

Interesting points Tony.

As you rightly point out, your band is a major source of your livelihood and a business while others on this the Forum may gig moreso as a recreation with survival depending almost entirely on their day job. I certainly fall into the latter category. Still others fall in between these two end points.

Some band members are on equal footing with other members of the group, such as Steve was perhaps making comment on, while others are often times owned by one or two leaders of a group and the other members become employees. I can think of a number of British groups that fit that paradigm today.

Awesome pics, Tony! Cool guitars! ....And that 4004 looks beautiful! Is it cream-colored or mapleglo?

Thanks Melissa. The 4004 is MG & is a really beautiful gtr. Eric was a dyed in the wool Fender Precision user, but my enthusiasm for Rickenbacker & more importantly, my sound, encouraged him to think Ric. He thinks the 4003's are a little dated looking (his words, not mine!), but he fell in love with the 4004. Great sound, great looks & really light to have around your neck. He is so hooked, that he has ordered a matching 5 string, but we think he'll have a long, long wait unfortunately.

Yeaaaa

Sean: One of the nicest and most inspirational photos I have seen in some time.

Surely the wave of the future.

A Rickenbacker is worth more than a 1000 words. Well done!

That picture would make a good ad for Rickenbacker.

The photographer that took this picture was so impressed that he decided to get a poster sized print to hang in his studio!! I love my guitar!

Thank you for the comments though, I would love this to be used by Rickenbacker. Maybe Mr. Hall with see it and like it! I have a few other photos, but this is best of the bunch.

Ah, the formative years......

Stunning photo, Sean!

One wonders whether there's any wall space available in JH's office - a perfect place to hang a copy.

Sean, that is truly inspirational. The gurlz must love you!

Yes indeed. I'm glad I picked it up in time for College. I have a feeling it will bring me many joys while I'm at school. Not only to fight boredom, but with the ladies too.
. . . . Wall space in John Halls office, interesting. . . .

Aha!! "ladies too", he says! The young innocence depicted in the photo is not indicative of the true nature of the person.

I sincerely hope you don't get bored, Sean. And I sincerely hope you do get............

ha!