Was Neil Diamond Right?

[Timbofood]

Ask me again after I’ve broken the $500 threshold in musician profit!

[Dave Fultz]

As I ripen over the years, I realize I will never be a great guitar/ukulele/mandolin player. However I will constantly strive to improve.

[Ivan Kelsall]

JAK beat me to it !. Be yourself & strive for your own goals in life in whatever you seek to do. Somewhere along the line,you'll do 'something' better than anybody else has ever done - unfortunately,you might not realise it !.

As for anybody at all forgiving themselves for NOT being Beethoven,why would they ever wish to be Beethoven in the first place ?. For all my imperfections,i've never wished to be anybody else - i'd only end up with their imperfections,& i'm much happier with my own thank you !,
Ivan

[MontanaMatt]

I had a fantastic fiddle and mando teacher when I was starting as a professional player. In a lesson he asked what I wanted out of our work together. I sheepishly said I wanted to sound like him, and he refused. He said I should work on sounding like myself. Best music advice I've yet received.
I've resisted learning others "licks" or sound. So far so good

[Daniel Nestlerode]

I strive to be the best mandolin player I can be. But I'm never going to be as good as my favourite players. With a day job, two small kids, obligations, and bills to pay I lack the time necessary to practice and develop.

Still I do my best to play well, write well, sing well, and share what I can do by gigging and recording.

I suppose Neil Diamond has an easier time forgiving himself for not being Beethoven than I have for not being Tim O'Brien because Neil is a very successful songwriter and performer in his own right. Lacking that success makes forgiving yourself a little more difficult. But I am who I am, doing the best I can with what I have. And people like it. Stopping now, even if I never get as good as I want to be, would betray the incredible support I have to keep trying. So I forgive myself, and keep moving forward.

I'm working on CD number 3 right now and I'm very happy with most of what I've got in the can. Will it stand up to Tim O's work? Dunno. And that's not really for me to decide, because I doubt anything I ever do will stand up to his work in my mind.

I just keep trying to be the best me possible. As the man said, everyone else is taken!


Daniel

[fatt-dad]

"On the road to excellence, enjoy mediocrity."

That's my mantra from a few years back. It still comforts me!

f-d

[Mark Wilson]

He said I should work on sounding like myself. Best music advice I've yet received.
I've resisted learning others "licks" or sound. So far so good

I totally agree but imo the process will take longer maybe

Somewhere in the pursuit of just being me, I realized that the fastest way to sound like myself was to learn from others until I gained the necessary tools to get the sound in my head out to my fingers. Into my 5th year and I haven't studied a tab in a while and the stuff I play now that's most fun is mostly my interpretations.

I think(at least I hope) there is plenty of room to borrow and steal and remain unique.

[Jeff Mando]

Who knows what Diamond was trying to say? Maybe it was just a clever response to an interviewer's question. Maybe, it showed he was striving for excellence despite knowing 3-chord rock'n'roll songs were considered "simple" by the classical crowd. (or, what my father called "that, long-haired music" referring to powdered wigs, etc. -- which was all the more confusing to a kid like me growing up in the 60's with the then new era of Beatles and long hair for men, etc.....) Maybe, Diamond was raised in a similar household? Who knows?

[chasray]

A by product of trying to play well is that you really appreciate what the best musicians can do. I admire their passion, discipline and hard work as well as the talent.

[Louise NM]

Musically, Beethoven changed the world. Neil Diamond did not. Very few do, and that's the way it is. Diamond is a wiser and no doubt happier man for realizing that. Red Sox fans sing "Sweet Caroline" at ball games and not the Grosse Fuge, and that's OK too.

[Mark Gunter]

Somewhere in the pursuit of just being me, I realized that the fastest way to sound like myself was to learn from others ...
I think(at least I hope) there is plenty of room to borrow and steal and remain unique.

I think you're not alone. Mike Marshall spent a whole lot of time learning Grisman's licks, to the point that when he showed up at the Dawg's house, he could play it all. Sam Bush learned licks from Monroe, Bobby Osborne, Jethro Burns, etc. etc. I think most of your "heroes" would have learned the licks of people they admire, from records or one on one. Many even transcribe them to paper!

So I have great respect for folk who just work everything out on their own, but no less respect for (and no shame in) studying other people's style and licks, either.

[roysboy]

Like Neil Diamond , I have made my living as a musician for over 50 years . I 've never stopped practicing , being interested in it learning , performing , writing , recording and have generated over 90% of my income from it in that time . I NEVER take that fact for granted. Nope ...don't have Neil's mansion or bank account ...but , fortunately , I suppose , I never wanted it , don't need it and am not the least bit bothered by that fact . I GOT TO MAKE A LIVING DOING WHAT I WANTED . I'm blessed ...I'm grateful..... and anything over and above that fact has been gravy . For me , that's the definition of a life . I feel that if you're chasing new cars , bigger homes , backyard pools , vacations in Maui ,6 dollar coffees , or some other material goal it may well be to compensate for the solace ,spiritual peace and simple joy that comes from being able to survive by doing what you'd do even if you weren't paid to do it . I'm the luckiest guy I know . I hope you are too .

[Ivan Kelsall]

Daniel Nestlerode has it !. Regardless of your limitations,always strive to be the very best that you can,you might just surprise yourself.

When i started teaching myself Scruggs style banjo back in 1963,i never doubted for one second that i'd make the grade. It took a monumental amount of hard work to get there,& i certainly didn't 'arrive' all in one lump. I became a good player,but as we all do,i continued to improve over the years.

However - I feel that it's mainly about one's individual attitude & aspirations to your playing. Some folk really do want to become 'professional' standard players,others don't. Nevertheless,as Daniel correctly says,strive to be the best that you can be,only that way will you ever really know your true potential - in anything !!,
Ivan

[sbhikes]

Embrace the mediocrity.

[Russ Donahue]

Several days ago I heard a quote that was attributed to Neil Diamond. Apparently while discussing songwriting, Diamond said; 'I have forgiven myself for not being Beethoven.'

In the days that have passed since hearing the statement, I have been somewhat ambiguous about my own thoughts on the subject. While I fully realize that I will never be Jethro Burns, Bill Bolick or Dave Apollon - have I 'forgiven myself for it'? I guess if I were being honest, I would have to answer 'no', because I am probably afraid that if I forgive myself, I will not continue to strive to be the best that I can possibly can - (which will be at least three steps below the low/intermediate level).

Thoughts?

The real question is, have any of us forgiven ourselves for not achieving the heights we imagined we could?

[Bertram Henze]

The real question is, have any of us forgiven ourselves for not achieving the heights we imagined we could?

I obtained permission first, so I didn't have to ask forgiveness.