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Lounge noodling beginner has sudden rush of courage


2wheeler
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I had a sudden rush of courage yesterday evening and took my bass to the local Jazz jam night. I stuck to a walking bass line through "Straight, No Chaser", got lost :) a few times but got through it and had a very good time most of the time.

First time ever in a jazz jam. First time ever playing bass in front of an audience. Not last time!

Loved being part of the music, seeing the audience "getting it". Huge respect to the experienced players who make it look so easy.

Huge thanks to York's Black Swan jazz jam players for encouraging me and being very kind about the whole thing :huh:

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[quote name='2wheeler' post='156634' date='Mar 13 2008, 12:06 PM']I had a sudden rush of courage yesterday evening and took my bass to the local Jazz jam night. I stuck to a walking bass line through "Straight, No Chaser", got lost :) a few times but got through it and had a very good time most of the time.

First time ever in a jazz jam. First time ever playing bass in front of an audience. Not last time!

Loved being part of the music, seeing the audience "getting it". Huge respect to the experienced players who make it look so easy.

Huge thanks to York's Black Swan jazz jam players for encouraging me and being very kind about the whole thing :huh:[/quote]


Well done!! And great to hear others encouraging you. First time is always scary, especially in front of an audience, even worse when there's other players there too. I love jamming with others but don't get chance to do it much these days.

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Outstanding! Well done.

In June last year I did exactly the same thing (though a blues jam rather than jazz) and I haven't looked back since. Earlier this week one jam session invited me to join the House Band for the next few months - I've been walking on air ever since.

Keep going.

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ya, fair play 2wheeler... i've been playing with the same guys (my long term band) for so long, i'd brick it playing with anyone else... let alone an impromptu jam infront of an audience... good work, keep it up; i'm sure you'll become a much better player for it... word. :)

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[quote name='2wheeler' post='156634' date='Mar 13 2008, 12:06 PM']I stuck to a walking bass line through "Straight, No Chaser", got lost :) a few times but got through it and had a very good time most of the time.[/quote]


I still get lost after 28 years of playing it. Its kind of part of the deal. At the stage you are at you just need to get out there and make a noise - remember; there is no such thing as a wrong note, just a poor choice. If you are lost, just keep goign until you find it again. There are 12 notes in an octave and eight in any given key. That's a 66% chance of hitting a 'right' note even if you try it randomly. Noone is listening to you anyway, you're the bass player! BE LOUD, CONFIDENT and WRONG! :huh:

Just play, play, play and have a ball! ;)

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[quote name='bilbo230763' post='156837' date='Mar 13 2008, 04:51 PM']There are 12 notes in an octave and eight in any given key. That's a 66% chance of hitting a 'right' note even if you try it randomly[/quote]

[pedant]Surely there are only 7 notes in any key? If you include the octave as well as the root, that's 13 notes in an octave! So it's not quite 66%...[/pedant]

Congratulations on finding the courage - now just keep at it! :)

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[quote name='GreeneKing' post='157149' date='Mar 14 2008, 06:43 AM']Did 'Crossroads' this week, great fun.[/quote]

[i]Crossroads[/i] is a funny one for me. For some reason the only version which sounds "right" to me is the Cream version where, at the V, Jack Bruce goes E / F# / C# / A. Whenever I hear [i]Crossroads[/i] played as a straight boogie or shuffle it irritates the hell out of me.

Completely irrational, of course. No version is "better" than any other ... it's just a matter of what floats your boat.

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[quote name='queenofthedepths' post='156876' date='Mar 13 2008, 05:34 PM'][pedant]Surely there are only 7 notes in any key? If you include the octave as well as the root, that's 13 notes in an octave! So it's not quite 66%...[/pedant][/quote]

You are, of course, correct. It is, in fact, 58.3333% not 66%. I stand corrected. :huh:

That's far too risky! Don't do it :)

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[quote name='queenofthedepths' post='156876' date='Mar 13 2008, 05:34 PM'][pedant]Surely there are only 7 notes in any key? If you include the octave as well as the root, that's 13 notes in an octave! So it's not quite 66%...[/pedant]

Congratulations on finding the courage - now just keep at it! :)[/quote]
are you suggesting pedant, that middle C and the C an octave above are the same note, they vibrate at different speeds and by my estimation are different notes :huh:

Edited by jakesbass
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[quote name='bilbo230763' post='156837' date='Mar 13 2008, 04:51 PM']I still get lost after 28 years of playing it. Its kind of part of the deal. At the stage you are at you just need to get out there and make a noise - remember; there is no such thing as a wrong note, just a poor choice. If you are lost, just keep goign until you find it again. Just play, play, play and have a ball! ;)[/quote]
I like the sound of that! I keep getting lost at the moment when I jam with some jazz dudes, feel wholly inferior esp given the sax player is an awesome bassist too :) My jazz playing is cr*p so am trying to squeeze some study into my hectic life!

To the OP - well done, kudos and all that. Nice pub too :huh:

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[quote name='Merton' post='157300' date='Mar 14 2008, 11:29 AM']I like the sound of that! I keep getting lost at the moment when I jam with some jazz dudes, feel wholly inferior esp given the sax player is an awesome bassist too :) My jazz playing is cr*p so am trying to squeeze some study into my hectic life!

To the OP - well done, kudos and all that. Nice pub too :huh:[/quote]

I always get lost on jazz gigs.
If only I could get to them first!

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[quote name='jakesbass' post='157292' date='Mar 14 2008, 11:21 AM']are you suggesting pedant, that middle C and the C an octave above are the same note, they vibrate at different speeds and by my estimation are different notes :)[/quote]
Ahaha not at all, although only one of my basses can play the octave above middle C (not that that's the point at all) - but if you include the root, the octave and all the notes in between, you have 13 notes; not 12! And if you include the octave below that, it's still only 7 more notes - after all, you only count the middle C once...

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[quote name='Happy Jack' post='157162' date='Mar 14 2008, 07:53 AM'][i]Crossroads[/i] is a funny one for me. For some reason the only version which sounds "right" to me is the Cream version where, at the V, Jack Bruce goes E / F# / C# / A. Whenever I hear [i]Crossroads[/i] played as a straight boogie or shuffle it irritates the hell out of me.

Completely irrational, of course. No version is "better" than any other ... it's just a matter of what floats your boat.[/quote]

There are some distinctly dodgy notes in the live Cream vs. I first tried to learn it note for note, went slightly mad as a result and then decided to try to get most of the general 'feel' of that version without it being a carbon copy (which I was probably always technically incapable of). It's a few years back but IIRC the guitarist I was playing with used to moan that he didn't know where I was, probably due to that odd turnround (sometimes he goes E-F#, other times E-D). I think JB also puts in occasional short D based runs where it would be expected to be staying on A throughout that section which I think throws a curve for some guitarists. This probably all sounds gibberish, i'd better go learn it again...get the padded cell ready.

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[quote name='dlloyd' post='157345' date='Mar 14 2008, 12:34 PM']Middle C is fifth fret, G string unless you're taking the bass's octave transposition into account?[/quote]

I don't think taking transposition into account is at all pedantic - you can't shift a note up or down an octave without significantly changing the sound of the music.

Alex

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hey well done .. That really is jumping in the deep end .. I play at a general jam most weeks and get caught out regularly with obscure album tracks, orginals (for goodness sake how am I supposed to know how someones original song goes??) and stuff from kids bands .. just smile and keep going, then go home and look them up on Chordie and youtube for next time :)

As an aside, on this video of Straight, no chaer,
[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3-kr5M1fF4&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3-kr5M1fF4...feature=related[/url]
Roy McCerdy is credited with playing "Slagwerk" .. :huh: What's that then? Best I can find is "Clockwork"

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[quote name='OldGit' post='157399' date='Mar 14 2008, 01:48 PM']hey well done .. That really is jumping in the deep end .. I play at a general jam most weeks and get caught out regularly with obscure album tracks, orginals (for goodness sake how am I supposed to know how someones original song goes??) and stuff from kids bands .. just smile and keep going, then go home and look them up on Chordie and youtube for next time :)

As an aside, on this video of Straight, no chaer,
[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3-kr5M1fF4&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l3-kr5M1fF4...feature=related[/url]
Roy McCerdy is credited with playing "Slagwerk" .. :huh: What's that then? Best I can find is "Clockwork"[/quote]

Thanks for that: both the encouragement and the youtube link!

Love the comment about playing along to an original song ;)

I am pretty sure that
Slagwerk = Drum kit
but I'm stuffed I know what the language is. I guess Dutch? Anyone know?

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[quote name='2wheeler' post='157704' date='Mar 14 2008, 08:58 PM']Thanks for that: both the encouragement and the youtube link!

Love the comment about playing along to an original song :)

I am pretty sure that
Slagwerk = Drum kit
but I'm stuffed I know what the language is. I guess Dutch? Anyone know?[/quote]
freetranslation.com says it's Dutch for "blow work" - so the linguist in me says it's "percussion"

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[quote name='queenofthedepths' post='157705' date='Mar 14 2008, 09:02 PM']freetranslation.com says it's Dutch for "blow work" - so the linguist in me says it's "percussion"[/quote]


Dutch Blow Work? I think I was offered some of that through a window last time I was in Amsterdam .....

Seems Roy McCurdy is, indeed, a drummer :)
[url="http://www.insidejazz.com/Roy_McCurdy%2FRoy_McCurdy_Bio.htm"]http://www.insidejazz.com/Roy_McCurdy%2FRoy_McCurdy_Bio.htm[/url]

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[quote name='2wheeler' post='157704' date='Mar 14 2008, 08:58 PM']I am pretty sure that
Slagwerk = Drum kit
but I'm stuffed I know what the language is. I guess Dutch? Anyone know?[/quote]

Slagwerk is percussion and drums.. hehe. And the language is Dutch. :) Well guessed!

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