On a related note, there was a good piece in the Guardian the other day about "unofficial" band members (people who play with the band, sometimes for decades, but aren't "in" the band).
https://www.theguardian.com/music/2024/mar/20/touring-musicians-who-play-with-bands-but-arent-official-members-manic-street-preachers-simple-minds
I have to be honest that it sounds like a pretty good setup on the whole - getting paid to play but none (or very little, anyway) of the politics, drama, publicity etc.