Earbrass Posted December 13, 2020 Share Posted December 13, 2020 (edited) Väsen Edited December 14, 2020 by Earbrass 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peteb Posted December 13, 2020 Share Posted December 13, 2020 6 hours ago, Barking Spiders said: AC/DC are probably one of the bands it's easiest to copy. Actually, I have to disagree. Not the most technically difficult music to play ever, but there are a few nuances in AC/DC stuff that many pub bands just don't get. More difficult to get right than you might think. 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meterman Posted December 13, 2020 Share Posted December 13, 2020 I'm surprised nobody has mentioned Zappa yet! I've tried getting into his stuff many, many times and I just don't enjoy it. If I want to listen to music with comedy lyrics I'll stick on a Grumbleweeds LP or something. But from all the Zappa records and live performances I've heard and seen footage of, there's no doubting he generally had top flight players playing pretty intricate stuff at a very high level. I just can't sit through a whole album of it. Captain Beefheart on the other hand, all day long, but that's a different skill set I guess. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LeftyP Posted December 13, 2020 Share Posted December 13, 2020 For me it has to be Fotheringay. I saw them at Newcastle City Hall in the very early 70s and was totally blown away by their tight, but natural playing. Sandy Denny on lead vocal was in front of a superb group of musicians. Trevor Lucas on Guitar, along with Jerry Donahue with some great bass work from Pat Donaldson and spirited drumming by Gerry Conway. The night lives long in my memory. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
meterman Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 (edited) 27 minutes ago, LeftyP said: For me it has to be Fotheringay. I saw them at Newcastle City Hall in the very early 70s and was totally blown away by their tight, but natural playing. Sandy Denny on lead vocal was in front of a superb group of musicians. Trevor Lucas on Guitar, along with Jerry Donahue with some great bass work from Pat Donaldson and spirited drumming by Gerry Conway. The night lives long in my memory. Jerry Donahue I met many times, as he used to stay at a friend’s place whenever he came to the UK. Such a fantastic musician but so humble and easy going. I’d stand there open mouthed watching him play seemingly impossible licks. Gerry Conway I also met a couple of times and possibly freaked him out a bit by being a total fanboy, pumping him for stories of recording with Cat Stevens, Sandy Denny etc. He seemed totally bemused that anyone would rate his playing. I would have loved to have seen Fotheringay 👍 Quite jealous! Edited December 14, 2020 by meterman Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmccombe7 Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 Rush ? 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barking Spiders Posted December 14, 2020 Author Share Posted December 14, 2020 (edited) 10 hours ago, peteb said: Actually, I have to disagree. Not the most technically difficult music to play ever, but there are a few nuances in AC/DC stuff that many pub bands just don't get. More difficult to get right than you might think. Yes but the gist of the OP is not about difficulty of covers bands trying to do accurate covers but which ones can play complex music where there's limited repetition at an extremely high technical level with apparent ease. AC/DC's music doesn't demand great technical skill and the music is pretty rudimentary with no tricky tempos and frequent changes unlike this.. Myung is one monster bass player. Edited December 14, 2020 by Barking Spiders 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Leonard Smalls Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 Ozrics, in all their incarnations, have never failed to impress! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fozza Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 Free - Rodgers, Kossoff, Fraser & Kirke. Perfect. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FinnDave Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 I won't mention the Grateful Dead in case people think I'm a little obsessed, but if I was to mention them, I'd find it difficult to single out any individual examples - but the extended jams and transitions from one song to another (it is often possible to hear one of them suggest the next one some time in advance with a little hint) are a perfect example of a band thinking and moving as one entity. I'l especially avoid mentioning the years 1973 and 1977 and songs such as Playing in the Band which often enclosed several other songs between its start and finish. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdown Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 19 hours ago, Chezz55 said: Tower Of Power 'nuff said. Certainly on of my favourite bands (along with Steely Dan and Toto. TOP, back in their hey day had arranging chops, playing chops and vocal chops of the very highest standard. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
P-Belly Evans Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 Undoubtedly Nomeansno. Underneath the aggressive facade is Utterly sublime playing, incredible tightness and vocal and lyrical genius - with one of the greatest bass tones of all time for good measure driving the whole thing. You can probably feel the incredible love I have had for this band since the mid 80s... Just check out the whole of Wrong for proof. Or this live for starters, especially from about 3 minutes in if you are after the virtuoso playing/vocals Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 Magma ... 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacDaddy Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 (edited) 20 hours ago, Barking Spiders said: Hmm, I like The Meters but the gist of my OP was more about bands whose players who technically very advanced, their music complex and sophisticated and whose interplay seems effortless. AC/DC are really at the other end of the spectrum from the likes of Dream Theater, Animals as Leaders, Aristocrats and Meshuggah. The music these bands make isn't my bag but I'd say outside of classical and jazz they don't come any more technically advanced than this. AC/DC are probably one of the bands it's easiest to copy. Got to disagree and agree with @peteb. Lots of bands do bad AC/DC covers because they miss the subtleties. Simple things like inversions, chord voicings, and octaves. Similar thing with Status Quo covers too. Edited December 14, 2020 by MacDaddy 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacDaddy Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 Iron Maiden have always been tighter than a tight thing. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cetera Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 The Doobie Brothers! They cover a huge breadth of musical styles with ease (from folk to blue eyed soul to heavy rock to dixieland..... and everything in between) while engaging the audience, grooving tightly together at all times AND looking like they're having a GREAT time! 5 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ead Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 14 hours ago, Bassfinger said: Jethro Tull, mid to late 70's - Anderson, Barre, Barlow, Glascock and John Evan. As tight live as they were in the studio. Following the sad death of Glascock the band endured a bit of personnel instability, but came close to those levels of team proficiency with the addition of Dave Pegg and Doane Perry. Good call. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
WAYNESWORLD Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 Toto as together and individually they have played with the best over the years and featured on some of the biggest selling albums of all time. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dmccombe7 Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 Kansas UK Bruford Sweet Slade T.Rex Probably too many to list Dave Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul S Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 6 hours ago, cetera said: The Doobie Brothers! They cover a huge breadth of musical styles with ease (from folk to blue eyed soul to heavy rock to dixieland..... and everything in between) while engaging the audience, grooving tightly together at all times AND looking like they're having a GREAT time! Doobie Brothers! 2017 they played at the O2 'supporting' Steely Dan - in as much as they went on first. Anyone else catch them? Probably the best gig I have ever seen, from the first bar of the DB to the last bar of SD. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris2112 Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 For me, it was the guys that used to play with Lee Ritenour in the 80's. He used to put together bands of sensational players where the objective was not so much solo chops as it were group interplay. The performances they did were just sensational and Lee's written material was at an all time high point for quality. He even had Jimmy Johnson on bass at one point, which was just insane. His drummer, the late and great Carlos Vega, is surely on the tightest pocket players the world has ever seen. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jus Lukin Posted December 14, 2020 Share Posted December 14, 2020 (edited) - Edited March 10, 2022 by Jus Lukin 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Saul Panzer Posted December 15, 2020 Share Posted December 15, 2020 Not strictly a fixed band but I've been impressed by some of the groupings put together to cover songs on Postmodern Jukebox (and Robyn Adele Andersons personal channel) on Youtube. Also some of the older Arctic Monkeys stuff is pretty tight imho. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MacDaddy Posted December 15, 2020 Share Posted December 15, 2020 The Rolling Stones. There's a 'looseness' about them which shouldn't work, but does. Captain Beefheart and his Magic Band. There's a tightness about them which works, but sounds like it doesn't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdown Posted December 15, 2020 Share Posted December 15, 2020 17 hours ago, Chris2112 said: For me, it was the guys that used to play with Lee Ritenour in the 80's. He used to put together bands of sensational players where the objective was not so much solo chops as it were group interplay. The performances they did were just sensational and Lee's written material was at an all time high point for quality. He even had Jimmy Johnson on bass at one point, which was just insane. His drummer, the late and great Carlos Vega, is surely on the tightest pocket players the world has ever seen. Yeah, he was terrific. I have that track on an old VHS tape. Dave Grusin is stunning on that concert (well, they all are really). RItenour and Grusin are still working together, or were before Covid. Dave Grusin is 86..!! and still playing great. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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