I’m always astounded when I hear of the likes of Fleetwood Mac’s Christine McVie, Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters and others out there still touring, traipsing the world and playing their hearts out while pushing their seventh decade.
I just saw Courtney Love live on her UK tour; still ronching and shouting out that timeless passion and rage – pushing fifty…
My point is, at fourty-something, I still want to make a lifelong dream a reality and sing, write songs and perform them.
So, I recently not only put out ads and pounded some of Sheffield’s streets to pen ads on notice boards, I answered an ad – both came to nothing.
Of course the landscape of popular music is typically and tradditionally dominated by twenty-something-year-olds; male and, yep I’m gonna say it, clinging onto cool like a life raft!
So the lads I responded to sent me clips of their punky stuff – it was fine, but after they had described themselves as ‘all between twenty-four and twenty-six, I thought “hmmm, not sure”.
All I said in reply was: I’m slightly wary of my age, which maybe I shouldn’t have said, not actually revealing my age, but the result was: ‘we don’t think it would fit with us, thanks for your interest’.
Okay, so I’m a “late bloomer” and no, don’t really want to tag onto kids where I’m old enough to be their mum, but should age be the ultimate defining factor in considering the dynamics of a band?
I think not!
Of course we all need to creatively connect with like minds and commonalities.
Yes, I wanna sing about the constant barriers I face, loneliness, political decay and life experiences.
While I’m not held down by marriage, mortgage and keeping up with the Jones’ – I still have a life and want to keep it more colourful and vibrant than my eyes can see…
I won’t be adopting a folky, gently gently, guitar strum strum strummy persona with a flowing skirt; the caricature often taken on by more mature female singers. I won’t be blagging it with the mindless/shallow rinky dinky winky the younger girls seem to be happy with in what is so flippantly dubbed pop.
Nope, I’m a die hard, set in my ways and opinions; yet could diversify and cross genres.
I just wanna sing, rock and write the truth.
I have all the pent up passion and rage, moody melancholy and zeal that the big well-known die-hards possess.
Anyone care to join me? HAHAHA – I won’t hold my breath.
I still need a drummer, base and guitar – preferably mature (that could even mean mature-minded) with some commitment, willing to work, real and ready to rock.
Dawn M Sanders