I took a couple days off this week to participate all too briefly in a Rock and Roll fantasy camp in New York. Eighty people paid serious money to hang out with Rock Royalty to watch them play, talk music, gawk adoringly and maybe get an autograph or two.
The deal is: Campers spend four days playing and practicing and on the fifth day, they cut a demo CD and stage a battle of the bands at New York's fabled House of Blues (search). So who could blame the adoring fantasy campers?
Rock stars aren't like the rest of us. They're rich, famous. They do stuff they love and millions of others love, too.
Even though I was only a bit participant, I had a great time. I got to play a little although I'll have to confess, players of flutes and saxes weren't exactly in great demand. And I also got a pretty good reminder that nothing in life is easy especially nothing cool.
You see these guys? They know about a bazillion songs. They can play them in 12 keys. They can play them an countless tempos and moods. And they can look good doing it.
The rest of us -- if we're lucky -- we can crank out a few notes and most of us will look like idiots. But, oh, the lure of the stage. There's nothing like it.
Which is why: Next time I'm not going to be a part-time participant. I'll stay for the full five days and, of course, become a rock star.
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