How old are you?

[byudzai]

One of my favorite things about playing/singing is it seems to defy the age constraints that limit some other endeavors, sports etc. I take comfort seeing a lot of folks in their 60s+ here on the forum enjoying making music.

As I was thinking about that, it struck me that most photos I see on here are of folks in the 50+ category, and it made me wonder if playing/singing is dwindling in popularity among younger generations. I know guitar sales are still robust, but I wonder how popular acoustic guitar + singing is among different generations at this point. My mentor, 68 I think, professional singer/guitarist, said that the 70s were the heyday, that you couldn't walk by a group in a park that didn't have someone with a guitar singing.

Now we have so much digital stuff going on, and so many portable speakers and so much streaming music, I wonder if the draw to sing and play is dying off.

So I'd be interested in these poll results and in your thoughts on the topic!

[Rev Roy]

Well...I’m 67. Didn’t even start playing until I retired at 63.

[Silly Moustache]

70 +

I took up guitar after a career as a drummer and that was nearly half a century ago!

Ah I remember those days when Queen Victoria was on the throne and the streets were full of horses, and we all lived in thatched houses!

[CASD57]

Originally Posted by byudzai

One of my favorite things about playing/singing is it seems to defy the age constraints that limit some other endeavors, sports etc. I take comfort seeing a lot of folks in their 60s+ here on the forum enjoying making music.

As I was thinking about that, it struck me that most photos I see on here are of folks in the 50+ category, and it made me wonder if playing/singing is dwindling in popularity among younger generations. I know guitar sales are still robust, but I wonder how popular acoustic guitar + singing is among different generations at this point. My mentor, 68 I think, professional singer/guitarist, said that the 70s were the heyday, that you couldn't walk by a group in a park that didn't have someone with a guitar singing.

Now we have so much digital stuff going on, and so many portable speakers and so much streaming music, I wonder if the draw to sing and play is dying off.

So I'd be interested in these poll results and in your thoughts on the topic!

61, took up guitar and singing when I was 36, but I did play Sax In school. Always seemed to be around music in one form or another but yeah got serious at 36

[Paddy1951]

I was going to post a similar question and yours is close enough.
I too, have noticed that it seems like a very high percentage of the members of this forum are Baby Boomers.This got me to wondering why?

Here is my take.
I think a great many of the performers we listened to and admired are no longer touring and doing rock n' roll. (The Rolling Stones as the great exception.) So where do we go?

I have gravitated to the singer/ songwriter side of things and I think many of you have. Maybe, this is a kind of evolution? It 's a lot easier to do an acoustic thing by yourself or perhaps with a partner than with 4, 5 or 6 member band.

Acoustic guitar sales seem pretty stable but the young kids don't seem to want to be in a rock band. ( Electric guitar sales are really off.) Not like in decades past when garage bands were so popular. When the Beatles hit, so many of us wanted to join in the fun! Not so much anymore.

American Idol and other shows created the mentality of everybody being a star overnight. Why spend so much time paying one's dues, learning to play an instrument?

The music business got even more greedy. They wanted lots of hits fast. Consequently, there is so much of a clone effect. In the 60s and 70s, even the 80s, you would not easily mistake one band or artist for another no matter what genre of popular music you listened to. Where is today's Aretha Franklin or Tom Petty? I think this even happened to Country music.

De-regulation of radio killed diversity of programming. A few large concerns bought up radio stations like crazy. Then put them under business formulas that eliminated a great many dj's and dj oriented song playlists. You can set your watch by today's programming.

I think if you grew up during the 60s, 70s and 80s, going acoustic was just what had to come next for we Baby Boomers.

Good music from the younger folks can still be found but you have to seek it out. Without any statistical evidence available to me, my sense of things is that making music is not as much of a pursuit as it was in times past.

How old am I? 67. Old enough to have seen many things happen. Don't get me wrong. Much is still good. Like this forum that keeps us thinking and sharing. My 5 cents worth. You may see things differently.

[RedJoker]

I'm on several music sites and this one has a much older demographic from the others. I think this type of forum is what the younger folks don't use, not acoustic guitars. Heck, we've seen how many folks here eschew Facebook, Twitter, and other technology forums.

The reality is that there is so many people writing and recording, none of it is getting listened to. Maybe there is another Aretha Franklin out there, but if we aren't listening, we'll never know.

But maybe that's just my experience.

[jonbutcheraxis]

Agree with all of this. One thing I'd add; many of the instruments we own, lust after or admire are pricey- Martin, Gibson, Taylor and never mind the small builder brands. These are expensive toys/ tools requiring serious scratch, hardly the domain of the millennial or college student struggling under crushing student loan debt.
Sure, the other brands - Recording King, Eastman, Gretch, Sigma, Epiphone etc all make budget minded guitars. Some of those we own too.
But the 'good stuff', the guitars of our dreams like the vintage Martin D28's and Gibson J45's, the early Gibson J200's and the dazzling array of customs all come at a cost. Insert 'disposable income', 'retirement savings', 'still gigging' income or six-figure employment, here.
I'm 61.

Originally Posted by Paddy1951

I was going to post a similar question and yours is close enough.
I too, have noticed that it seems like a very high percentage of the members of this forum are Baby Boomers.This got me to wondering why?

Here is my take.
I think a great many of the performers we listened to and admired are no longer touring and doing rock n' roll. (The Rolling Stones as the great exception.) So where do we go?

I have gravitated to the singer/ songwriter side of things and I think many of you have. Maybe, this is a kind of evolution? It 's a lot easier to do an acoustic thing by yourself or perhaps with a partner than with 4, 5 or 6 member band.

Acoustic guitar sales seem pretty stable but the young kids don't seem to want to be in a rock band. ( Electric guitar sales are really off.) Not like in decades past when garage bands were so popular. When the Beatles hit, so many of us wanted to join in the fun! Not so much anymore.

American Idol and other shows created the mentality of everybody being a star overnight. Why spend so much time paying one's dues, learning to play an instrument?

The music business got even more greedy. They wanted lots of hits fast. Consequently, there is so much of a clone effect. In the 60s and 70s, even the 80s, you would not easily mistake one band or artist for another no matter what genre of popular music you listened to. Where is today's Aretha Franklin or Tom Petty? I think this even happened to Country music.

De-regulation of radio killed diversity of programming. A few large concerns bought up radio stations like crazy. Then put them under business formulas that eliminated a great many dj's and dj oriented song playlists. You can set your watch by today's programming.

I think if you grew up during the 60s, 70s and 80s, going acoustic was just what had to come next for we Baby Boomers.

Good music from the younger folks can still be found but you have to seek it out. Without any statistical evidence available to me, my sense of things is that making music is not as much of a pursuit as it was in times past.

How old am I? 67. Old enough to have seen many things happen. Don't get me wrong. Much is still good. Like this forum that keeps us thinking and sharing. My 5 cents worth. You may see things differently.

[Mr. Jelly]

I've been playing for 51 years now. Started when I was 14. I'll start getting it right one of these days.

[viccortes285]

68 closing near to 69. I feel lucky I can still play
Pretty good. We always are learning.
Started playing at age 6.

[DCCougar]

Bunch of geezers! [Myself included]

[endpin]

I am 68, but I think the open mic hit the jackpot with the top three threads being:

How old are you?
What do you think?
They're taking over!

[mtcross]

I'm finishing up my 50's, and have been playing 5 years next weekend. I still have a long way to go. Most of the folks I play with here in town are just a few years younger and on into their 80's. Judging by them I still have time to figure out how to play my guitar, not sure I will ever learn to sing.

[6L6]

I came into this world 59 minutes before Neil Young on Nov 12,1945.

That makes us both 72.

[MrDB]

Originally Posted by Mr. Jelly

I've been playing for 51 years now. Started when I was 14. I'll start getting it right one of these days.

Jelly when you get it right would you please teach me?

I'm 66. Be kind to your elders.

[cotten]

I'm old enough to look in the mirror and honestly think, "I can't possibly be that old!" Seriously. I'm happy, I'm healthy, I'm active, and I'm semi-retired. That means I get paid to do what I enjoy most, and I'm good at it. Oh, I've had a bunch of birthdays, but that's not what's important. Tomorrow, I will take my guitar and visit a 44-yr. old friend who has been in a nursing home for 15 years. I've had more birthdays, but he is much "older" than I.

cotten