Live Shows and Drinking

It seems that live music and drinking go hand in hand.  I enjoy a good beer as much as the next person and I love trying out new beers wherever I go.  Generally I try to arrive at the venue an hour or so before the first band takes the stage to make introductions, network, and muse over the beer selections.

I used to drink all the time at a show, before, during, and after until the wee hours of the morning.  Then I began scaling that back so that I was not drinking during our set.  I would have a beer or two before stage depending on how long we had before taking the stage.  A rule of thumb that I followed was one beer per hour and no beer inside the hour preceding our set.  Now I have gotten to the point of where I do not consume any beer prior to stage and only have a few after we have all of our gear off stage and safely stowed.

We record our shows and I compare performances afterwards to see where I can make improvements in my playing and performance.  Sometimes it is really difficult to watch myself as I am my own worst critic.  One common thread I have found when it comes to poor personal performance is consumption of alcohol prior to playing.  This is not a judgement of others - merely a personal observation.  I am just not one of those musicians that can pull off drinking before playing and do well.  I made a personal choice to refrain from drinking before playing for the sake of presenting my best at each show.