Raslee Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 A reggae band that i regularly play with have discussed a new direction and we all like the idea of doing some arrangements around trad ska etc. Also the band members have got wind that i have a 1/2 size DB, albeit a cheap Gear4Music ply. I've had the DB 2-3 years now but barely played it outside of the living room, my playing is on 'L' plates at best - although I'm building up the confidence to take it to rehearsal. Anyhow I'm looking for easy, and simple, tunes to cover...any suggestions? As we're perhaps wanting a simple 'jazzy' edge too I've started on a few YouTube reggae/ska versions of 'Take 5', 'Watermelon Man', 'Cantaloupe Island' etc...obvious directions are Skatalites tunes which i will be looking at a few tunes by them and of course Ernest Ranglin...but any other suggestions massively welcome, equally if anyone has any sheet music of such tunes, or playing advice, then that would be fantastic. Thanks. This kind of vibe: [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOVTa7A3WUo"]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OOVTa7A3WUo[/url] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DaveFry Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Return To Django The Liquidator Rock Fort Rock - ( is a rework of the latin standard El Cumbanchero ) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Clarky Posted September 14, 2014 Share Posted September 14, 2014 Drop thisnameistaken a PM as I am pretty sure he has talked about busking rocksteady/ska songs on his DB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thisnameistaken Posted September 15, 2014 Share Posted September 15, 2014 Haha yeah I did that for a couple of years, good fun. Some of the ska stuff is a bit sprightly (Desmond Dekker particularly, although Get Up Edina is nice and easy) and can be quite tricky to play with good feel, but the older stuff with a strong emphasis on brass melodies like as you say the Skatalites stuff, Byron Lee, Justin Hinds, are all very do-able. Pretty much all the Alton Ellis back catalogue is in G major so that's good news for a beginning upright player, also a lot of the older Trojan ska releases like Next Door Neighbour, No Praise No Raise just have simple 8th note walking style lines, Iron Bar is a nice simple one too. Basically the further back you go the simpler the bass parts are, typically, and those older tunes are often based around 1-4-5 changes so it's easy to pick them up. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulKing Posted September 18, 2014 Share Posted September 18, 2014 (edited) ... and make sure everyone is prepared for the upright to lack the punch and definition you get with e-bass on stage. Amplifying this beast is not for the faint hearted, and getting anything like the power of a loud electric is quite a challenge. Don't give up though, its worth it... I've started doing some rocksteady in my jump blues band, it caught Gaz Mayall's eye and he took us to Glastonbury because of it!! [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l4jz-x-OrCY"]https://www.youtube....h?v=l4jz-x-OrCY[/url] Edited September 18, 2014 by PaulKing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slim Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 You won't get much better than these: Soul Vendors - Swing Easy Lynn Tait and The Comets - Storm Warning Maroon Town - Fire New York Ska Jazz Ensemble - Filthy Mc Nasty, and Buttah Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Low End Bee Posted January 8, 2015 Share Posted January 8, 2015 [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JNp9ymVrugQ[/media] Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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