Bottom line is musical theory is about communication. Good musicians should be able to communicate within the language of music to each other. I don't want to play with a guitarst who doesn't know what chords he's playing, thus I can't play the best bass line to make the music as good as it should be. I think alot of people want to take the easy route, and just get by.Learning theory is hard work. But it's very rewarding. Reading music I don't think is necessary. Music is about having fun, but as my Dad says, nothing really great came from anything that was easy.