A lot of people still play for free I hope - personally I play parks, parties, open spaces, boardwalks, fund raisers and coffee shops - for free - most people think I'm a loony. :)
Franken & Davis got their comedic start playing for free at comedy clubs. Al's a senator now.
Playing free I suppose after the fame becomes an impossibility or highly impractical. Its up to us - the not "almost" famous - to blaze new trails. When its a labor of love anything can happen and even if it doesn't mushroom (so to speak) in the moment is where it's at.
I learn something new every time I play and if I turn on one person, spread the news about a new song or remind someone of an old song, help one child smile, ease the burden of the moment for a passerby or parent, bring a smile to anyone's face, or lighten a heart - then I'm repaid a million times over in an intangible way I have come to value much more than money.
Maybe that's the definition of a life well spent - I wouldn't assume to go that far in a self proclamation but it sure feels good to me and I enjoy the hell out of it before, during and after. The rest of it is frippery - interesting, fun exuberant and lucrative frippery, but also dangerous, potentially self deluding and destructive.
The power is in the moment. Make your little corner of the world better any way you can. If we all did that everything would be fine. Find something you love and do it - damn convention, protocol, and expectations. Break out of the malaise and turn the freakin' television off - go to a sierra club meeting, PTA, or pick up a guitar and head for the park! Do what you love!
Look what it did for Butch - well done amigo- keep up the good work.
Played whipping post on a patio the other day and made some people smile - "who did that song" - they asked - and that made me smile....
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