JTUK Posted November 30, 2013 Share Posted November 30, 2013 [quote name='TimR' timestamp='1385831753' post='2292661'] Like most things in life, it's always more complex than that... Would have ended up binning everything in the set that wasn't rock, which was probably what the band leader (drummer) wanted anyway. He would have struggled getting big paying wedding gigs, which were what he wanted to do. I gave up... You can lead a horse to water. [/quote] yep.. I think you got to the right conclusion...... it was never a viable situation... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JTUK Posted November 30, 2013 Share Posted November 30, 2013 [quote name='Lowender' timestamp='1385831948' post='2292664'] Everybody is being too literal. S[b]he may not know how to describe what she wants, but she knows there's something she doesn't like. That can't be ignored. It's like when musicians say "the audience doesn't know what's good." Oh yes they do. They just may not be able to articulate it.[/b] Perhaps, "too clean" means too bright or too thin or too punchy or nat fat enough. Who knows. But don't discount it. Listen and learn. [/quote] But that would put her opinion to the fore of everyone else's...which may have been a good thing...or just as much, a bad thing. Not sure an audience is the final arbiter either...... in terms of taste. They may not know any better, so I think it is a musical thing to do to try and educate them. You do put yourself at risk and they may not like what you are trying to say...and you certainly need enough of them on your side,... as you have no gig without them, but if you aren't taking risks, then the band isn't going to be very interesting, I'd say. It is a fine line..or else you just rock out to a bunch of Thin Lizzy hacked tunes .... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cameltoe Posted December 1, 2013 Share Posted December 1, 2013 [quote name='TimR' timestamp='1385830512' post='2292645'] Steve, I played We Are Family for years with a drummer who was a rock drummer first and foremost. He couldn't funk his way out of a paper bag. It knocked my confidence a lot. His bass drum trod over the baseline and made the song unplayable in its original form. His random 4.5 beat fills were also a problem He wouldn't budge or improve, I had to rock it up and simplify the bassline to the point that it was very different to the original. The rest of the band said I wasn't playing it right. I tried to explain... Concentrating on the drums shouldn't be necessary, it should be natural to feel, I left the band on the end and played with proper drummers. [/quote] +10000000 Like I said in an earlier post, 'following the drummer' is generally good advice, but if the drummer is getting it wrong, you can sometimes end up getting the blame for trying to drastically alter the feel of the song, just to try and lock in with him. (or her) I've played with drummers who have struggled to stay in time. Sometimes they are more or less in time with the music, but are out of time with themselves (i.e bass drum ok, snare out of time). On these occasions it has previously knocked my confidence, as I could not figure out what I was doing wrong and why I could not lock in. As the above poster has mentioned, eventually you realise you have to change your own timing, how you emphasise notes, and even what you play, to bring it all back together. In all occasions the drummer at fault has eventually been replaced by someone far more competent, and the whole thing clicked together far easier and I realised it wasn't me at fault. In one extreme situation, I had to actually block out the drummer, as they were sooo out of time, I had to just ignore them in order to keep everyone together, and hoped they followed me, otherwise it fell apart. This was a band I had been in for many years and the drummer was a new replacement. We were fairly tight before the new drummer came in, so suffice to say he didn't last long.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
discreet Posted December 1, 2013 Share Posted December 1, 2013 [quote name='cameltoe' timestamp='1385905098' post='2293363'] ...I've played with drummers who have struggled to stay in time. Sometimes they are more or less in time with the music, but are out of time with themselves... ...the drummer at fault has eventually been replaced by someone far more competent, and the whole thing clicked together far easier and I realised it wasn't me at fault. [/quote] So difficult to get hold of a decent drummer. The really good ones are always busy, so... it's a whole new thread in itself really. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinyd Posted December 2, 2013 Share Posted December 2, 2013 [quote name='discreet' timestamp='1385907026' post='2293393'] So difficult to get hold of a decent drummer. The really good ones are always busy, so... it's a whole new thread in itself really. [/quote] I'm sure there are equally scathing quotes about bass players, but here goes anyway:- "It takes a pretty good drummer to be better than no drummer at all." -- Chet Baker Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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