Am I Famous Yet? Memoir of a Working-Class Rock Star

This is a great conversation with my new pal Greg Potters at the AlbumReview.Net podcast. Greg says: "In this episode, Ivan and I will talk about his life as a professional musician on the road and in the studio as portrayed in his book. With a career that has taken him to more than 29 countries playing to audiences of up to 82,000 people, it is no wonder that Ivan “Funkboy” Bodley is truly a working-class rock star."

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A gig at the Minnesota State Fair with Little Anthony & the Imperials complete with Jumbotron, getting "recognized" in airports and hotels, gig cancellations, and subsequent rescheduling.

In which I discuss Covid testing required for international travel, a one-nighter wedding gig in Tuscany, and getting off a flight from Rome and going straight to a gig.

This week I detail a jam session in Manhattan, a classic rock gig at a biker (adjacent) bar, multiple Covid tests for gig protocols, writing copious charts in preparation, a wedding in Massachusetts with questionable catering, and a little schadenfreude at the misfortune of others...

My heartfelt thanks to everyone who has been with me on this entire journey. What a strange and fun life it continues to be. 

First concert back from the pandemic with Jay & the Americans in Buffalo, NY. A visit to the final resting place of Rick James. A pool party at a billionaire's crib. And more overnight drives through the countryside on the highways and byways.

The chapter in which I attempt to extract life lessons from my aspirations to be a professional musician. Has it all been worth it? It is worthwhile even doing it?

Wherein I recount a jam session gig featuring "Sir Duke" in the key of A, and a road trip to Napa, CA, on very little sleep for a fundraiser where I enjoyed a brief encounter with a drug-addled maniac.

The chapter in which I detail a particularly memorable gig celebrating an historic event by performing with three Rock & Roll Hall of Famers in one night. It was a career-high punctuated with a final indignity.

More tales from the road describing the trials and tribulations of playing in a house band for a blues jam, then a cabaret show with a Tony-nominated Broadway star, a double on Bleecker Street playing in funk bands, a fundraiser in Connecticut, and a wedding in Maine.

The chapter in which I detail the daily challenges of being a freelance musician and the motivation it takes to start each day with step one.

More tales from the road. This week seemed like the first "normal" week back at work since the pandemic. And even though a wedding gig ended with police and EMS responding, it didn't seem out of the ordinary...

The copious logistics necessary to create a ritzy wedding in a remote field at 7,000 feet elevation in the Rocky Mountains. Missed flights. Exercising and performing at altitude and a sound company attitude. Differing levels of road-doggedness noticeable in the touring party. 

Six hours of driving, a six-hour gig, and six more hours of driving all in the same day! Also miscellaneous wedding gig shenanigans therein.

www.funkboy.net

The chapter in which I detail the notable difference between playing in the backing group versus being an actual member of a band.

My book is available at www.funkboy.net

In which I discuss outdoor gigs, weather permitting. Entertaining late-night drunks, the importance of setlists, learning how to improvise cohesive song endings onstage (or not!), and the necessary skills and occasional impediments involved with ascertaining the exact hours of an engagement. 

My book is available at www.funkboy.net

The chapter in which I detail incidents where immediate remuneration at the completion of my duties is neither forthcoming nor expedient.

Get the book at: www.funkboy.net

This week I detail long hours in the car, a country club with in-house noise police, witnessing a traffic stop that was a guaranteed trip to jail, hiring a drummer in Italy via smartphone while underground on the NYC subway, and the definitive answer to the question: how many bandmembers does it take to push the play button on a karaoke track?

My book is available at www.funkboy.net

My former boss, Martha Reeves of the Vandellas, says some very kind words about my playing. 

The chapter in which I detail what it's like to be a substitute musician on a circus gig. Further expounded upon is the fondness I develop for the show's star dromedary and his tale of woe.

My book is available here: www.funkboy.net

#AmIFamousYet #WorkingClass #RockStar #bassplayer #music #memoir #podcast #musician #rockandrollhalloffame #rocknroll #jazzfunk #QuarantineSessions #MusicFromTheVaults #broadwaymusicals #jazz #fenderbass #musicismylife #BassLessons #bassist #jazzmusic #jazzmusicians #broadway #contemporaryjazz #funkmusic #precisionbass #musicaltheatre #bassistsofinstagram #musicvideo

Road stories of the week including 9 hours of driving to a wedding gig, a monsoon that almost canceled the entire event, a guitar player who made some interesting decisions on the gig, a drunken patron who wanted to sit in with the band, and a curious case of indecent exposure among the extremely rich. 

The chapter in which I recount many summer concerts in New York City backing legends of soul music including one show that almost ended in a duel with pistols.

I'm trying something new here. Now that the gigs have returned post-pandemic lockdown, I have decided to regale you with a synopsis of the week's notable events in the life of a working-class musician. The full season of "Am I Famous Yet?" will continue having chapters released on Fridays for an additional eight weeks. After that, I plan to send some re-broadcasts of podcasts where I was a guest down this feed. As always, my book is available via www.funkboy.net. 

The chapter in which I detail specific incidences of receiving very confusing instructions in the form of printed sheet music.

My book is available at: www.funkboy.net

The brief chapter in which I recount a brief incident of receiving a brief from a fellow traveler.

The chapter in which I explore the phenomenon of people remembering my face for some reason when I don't necessarily remember theirs. I detail one jarring incident when I had forgotten meeting a celebrity who nonetheless remembered meeting me. And he had the receipts.

The chapter in which I detail the surprising frequency with which I am assaulted by this question and the variety of people who are insisted upon as answers to this question. It's never flattering.

The chapter in which I detail the social hierarchy almost universally imposed upon lowly musicians at catering halls and the hoops that must be jumped through not to get yelled at by random people who aren't even your direct employers.

The episode in which I give thanks to my viewers and give an update about the status of the physical publication of the book, which is now finally available here: 

https://funkboynyc.wixsite.com/funkboy/am-i-famous-yet

The chapter in which I detail various phenomena that greet a weary traveler upon first walking in the door of a new establishment, which is something as musicians we do constantly, ranging from rare warm welcomes to odd and belligerent reprimands that usually have nothing to do with us.

The chapter in which I detail the many kinds of private parties and the resulting shenanigans therein. A Funeral Directors' convention? You bet!

Also, my book is finally available! Get your copy here: 

https://funkboynyc.wixsite.com/funkboy/am-i-famous-yet

What do Santana, Keith Richards, Joan Jett, Chic, Wilson Pickett, Stanley Clarke, and Rod Stewart all have in common? The chapter in which I quantify my greatest misses.

The dirtiest and also the shortest chapter in the book.