Steve,

As Doug as has said, making money from actual record sales is not easy considering everything that has to be recouped and everyone from managers to producers getting their piece of the pie. The same goes for playing live - unless you're a well known or at least name artist and you can get some guarantees upfront. Like, I'll be going out later this year tour managing a 4-week US tour with an up-and-coming act. We will be doing half club gigs and half supporting a big act. The budget for this will be around 50k, which will come down to every guy in the band making about 300 or 400 bucks, plus per diems, a week (that's probably in the burger flipping range at McDonald's...), which means that the band as a whole will be 50k in debt one month later (hopefully merch sales will offset some of that - IF the big headline act ALLOWS you to sell your one T-shirt that is!). The whole idea behind touring is that you can turn people on to your band and album(s), which with any luck will be available in stores, and build for the future. Overall, you have to be a lil' bit crazy to be in this business as an artist because you are the last in line to get paid - unless you're Sting or Kiss, people that can call the shots. But as Doug has said - 'it's a complusive thing' and many can't turn it off even if they wanted to.