--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Trying to get my music performed live by…" description: "\"Trying to get my music performed live by bar bands was a self defeating experience. It really just distracted me from what I should've been doing all a..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b2/tom-scholz-11209_along_trying-to-get-my-music-performed-live-by_937821.png" --- # Trying to get my music performed live by bar bands was a… ![“Trying to get my music performed live by bar bands was a self defeating experience. It really just distracted me from what I should've been doing all along, writing and recording.” quote by Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b2/tom-scholz-11209_along_trying-to-get-my-music-performed-live-by_937821.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b2/tom-scholz-11209_along_trying-to-get-my-music-performed-live-by_937821.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/4b2/tom-scholz-11209_along_trying-to-get-my-music-performed-live-by_937821.png) > “Trying to get my music performed live by bar bands was a self defeating experience. It really just distracted me from what I should've been doing all along, writing and recording.” [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. He realized that chasing live performances with others distracted him from his core creative work. **In simple terms:** Focus on your own art instead of chasing others' stages. Key Takeaway Prioritize personal creation over external validation. Themes creativity focus self‑discipline Mood reflective determined Type creative professional When to use this quote - songwriting - recording - studio work - self‑directed projects Key Concepts artistic integrity distraction productivity Questions to Reflect On - What core activity fuels your passion most? - How can you balance collaboration with personal focus? A Different Perspective Risk of isolation or missing collaborative benefits. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Along](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/along/) [Bands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bands/) [Bands Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bands-self-1579508/) [Bar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bar/) [Bar Bands](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/bar-bands-1579506/) [Been](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/been/) [Defeating](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/defeating/) [Distracted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/distracted/) [Doing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/doing/) [Experience](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/experience/) [Get](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/get/) [Just](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/just/) [Live](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live/) [Live Bar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/live-bar-1579507/) [Me](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/me/) [Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music/) [Music making](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/music-making/) [Performed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/performed/) [Really](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/really/) [Recording](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/recording/) [Self](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/self/) [Song](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/song/) [Trying](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying/) [Trying Music](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/trying-music-421809/) [Writing](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/writing/) ## Related quotes > [Australian bands are so self-deprecating - then they go on stage and blow every other band off the stage.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benji-madden/australian-bands-are-so-self-deprecating-then-they-go-on-stage-and/) [Benji Madden](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benji-madden/) > [Trying to put music out there in the world is a pretty exciting, yet terrifying, thing and I've just been through the ringer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/aaron-bruno/trying-to-put-music-out-there-in-the-world-is-a-pretty-exciting-yet/) [Aaron Bruno](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/aaron-bruno/) > [I was in rock music in London when it was the height of Brit pop, with The Kinks revival and Suede and Blur and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gavin-rossdale/i-was-in-rock-music-in-london-when-it-was-the-height-of-brit-pop-with/) [Gavin Rossdale](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gavin-rossdale/) > [I started trying to do my own music at home, and I was like, 'You know what, I can play the guitar, sort of.…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/steve-burns/i-started-trying-to-do-my-own-music-at-home-and-i-was-like-you-know/) [Steve Burns](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/steve-burns/) > [I put in the sounds of instruments such as the guitar and piano, which everybody hears often, and tried to go with melodies that…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/seungri/i-put-in-the-sounds-of-instruments-such-as-the-guitar-and-piano-which/) [Seungri](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/seungri/) > [My biggest obstacle is trying to keep the music pure to what I want to release. I don't want any corporate suit telling me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chamillionaire/my-biggest-obstacle-is-trying-to-keep-the-music-pure-to-what-i-want/) [Chamillionaire](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/chamillionaire/) > [Uhm, I'm the one wanting the lessons! I don't want to say too much about it because I'd rather have you see the movie,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/harvey-keitel/uhm-i-m-the-one-wanting-the-lessons-i-don-t-want-to-say-too-much/) [Harvey Keitel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/harvey-keitel/) > [There's a lot of frustration in trying to get music out when you're the only one who hears it, especially if you have something…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/neil-young/there-s-a-lot-of-frustration-in-trying-to-get-music-out-when-you-re/) [Neil Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/neil-young/) > [I had been trying to do something with music for all of my life. 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I want to keep it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-waits/i-m-trying-to-get-music-ideas-that-come-and-keep-them-alive-it-s-like/) [Tom Waits](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-waits/) > [Touring is everything. Without touring, you're just another artist on the internet trying to get your music out.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/classified/touring-is-everything-without-touring-you-re-just-another-artist-on/) [Classified](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/classified/) > [I've been trying to do this music stuff and work it out for so long... I was like, 'Let's do it for ourselves.' All…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/skepta/i-ve-been-trying-to-do-this-music-stuff-and-work-it-out-for-so-long-i/) [Skepta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/skepta/) > [I've been trying to do this music thing for so long, I kind of got addicted to struggle, the grind, so typically once I…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jimmie-allen/i-ve-been-trying-to-do-this-music-thing-for-so-long-i-kind-of-got/) [Jimmie Allen](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jimmie-allen/) ## More by Tom Scholz > [We need a free media, not just freedom of speech.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scholz/we-need-a-free-media-not-just-freedom-of-speech/) [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) > [I don't like the idea of having to reproduce a recorded song live that I sing. I have enough to do on stage. I'm…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scholz/i-don-t-like-the-idea-of-having-to-reproduce-a-recorded-song-live/) [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) > [Virtually every magazine, newspaper, TV station and cable channel is owned by a big corporation, and they've squashed stories that they don't want the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scholz/virtually-every-magazine-newspaper-tv-station-and-cable-channel-is/) [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) > [I'm certainly aware of the fans. I'm always hoping that what I'm doing is something they'll like, because I do appreciate them. But, no,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scholz/i-m-certainly-aware-of-the-fans-i-m-always-hoping-that-what-i-m-doing/) [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) > [I'm a total rink rat. I can do the toe loop, the lutz, a flip, and the Scholz. That's one I invented. It's like…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scholz/i-m-a-total-rink-rat-i-can-do-the-toe-loop-the-lutz-a-flip-and-the/) [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) > [I don't work out a lead section and practice it for a day and then lay it down. I don't do that. The first…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scholz/i-don-t-work-out-a-lead-section-and-practice-it-for-a-day-and-then/) [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) > [I'm going to say this as an ethereal effect, not something that people are necessarily aware of while it's happening, but my theory is…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scholz/i-m-going-to-say-this-as-an-ethereal-effect-not-something-that-people/) [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) > [Music is an escape for me.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scholz/music-is-an-escape-for-me/) [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) > [I played in a couple of really crummy bands, including one in the dorm I was in at MIT, for a year or two.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scholz/i-played-in-a-couple-of-really-crummy-bands-including-one-in-the-dorm/) [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) > [I didn't touch a guitar until I was 20.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scholz/i-didn-t-touch-a-guitar-until-i-was-20/) [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) > [The public has been sold a bill of goods about the free market being a panacea for mankind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tom-scholz/the-public-has-been-sold-a-bill-of-goods-about-the-free-market-being/) [Tom Scholz](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tom-scholz/) > [I'm never too ambitious when I go into the studio. 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I have gone on several horse adventures with my wife - from Guangxi…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/antony-gormley/i-always-like-to-look-for-adventure-when-i-go-away-i-have-gone-on/) [Antony Gormley](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/antony-gormley/) > [I'd always wanted the show to be more reality based science fiction, something along the lines of The Day the Earth Stood Still, which…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gil-gerard/i-d-always-wanted-the-show-to-be-more-reality-based-science-fiction/) [Gil Gerard](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gil-gerard/) > [Each time I think I've created time for myself, along comes a throwback to disrupt my private space.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wole-soyinka/each-time-i-think-i-ve-created-time-for-myself-along-comes-a/) [Wole Soyinka](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/wole-soyinka/) > [Along with a livable wage, many parents are desperate for quality affordable child care.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kirsten-gillibrand/along-with-a-livable-wage-many-parents-are-desperate-for-quality/) [Kirsten Gillibrand](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kirsten-gillibrand/) > [I get along with everybody.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-get-along-with-everybody/) [Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/) > [It would have been an interesting run if we hadn't gotten along! It was good casting, I suppose.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dominic-west/it-would-have-been-an-interesting-run-if-we-hadn-t-gotten-along-it/) [Dominic West](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dominic-west/) > [Defense spending as a share of the economy dropped significantly during the early 1990s, and that was one of the things, along with other…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/peter-orszag/defense-spending-as-a-share-of-the-economy-dropped-significantly/) [Peter Orszag](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/peter-orszag/) > [Just remember: to be grateful and thank the people who are there and support you along the way is a great start to success.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/meryl-davis/just-remember-to-be-grateful-and-thank-the-people-who-are-there-and/) [Meryl Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/meryl-davis/) > [We feel that, with Sidney, we have a great opportunity over the next few years to put a great team on the ice. 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