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Hi dear AM-fellows,
In a few weeks, I could have another tryout with a Blues band, and in August I’ve scheduled a rehearsal with a band that claims to play “everything” – though it sounds like it’s mostly rock, from the ’70s up to today. Id love that!
Over the last few years I always tried to stay somewhat prepared in case some band thing would come up, but it really hits different once you’ve actually got a date on the calendar.
Since I don’t have much of a rock repertoire (just bits and pieces of a few songs), I figured I’d start by focusing on rhythm. And to be honest: I actually find rhythm playing harder than lead! Not that soloing is easy (just look at my lead in this video 😉), but keeping a steady groove throughout a whole song and making it sound interesting feels like a bigger challenge than throwing a pentatonic solo on top.
Bottom line: I probably need to practice both. Luckily, AM has a lot of fantastic material for rhythm AND lead. I didn’t really know where to begin, but I ended up doing EP239 for now – it’s a great rhythm workout and I honestly have to tell you, it’s addictive!
I play it once with a short improvised solo and then the first half again. Plus some rhythm improv in the end – just to make it feel a bit more realistic.
Warning: purists might cringe a bit – I don’t stick 100% to the tab. For me, keeping the groove was my primary goal. But I think I did alright on that front.
Curious how you all approach it – do you spend more time on rhythm or lead parts when you’re preparing for a band situation?
Anyway, thanks for watching and don’t hold back with your opinion or tips!
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Hi all, Thanks for commenting!
I just noticed that I forgot to play the A and B-part in Brian‘s rhythm lesson! Also, the Solo definitely needs a work over. I know I can do better than this!
I don’t want to miss the May-challenge, so it may take some time before I have worked out a solo and record the whole thing again, but I plan to re-post again as soon as possible.
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This actually sounds pretty good to me Tremelow. I really do like that low fat sound you are getting out of that guitar of yours.
Unless the band tells you what songs they want you to play, I am not sure there is any way to prepare for a band session. Is this just a jam session or something more structured ?
FYI : I was thrown into a band situation last year with a bunch of people I had never played with before. Thought I would be intimidated but it was just a bunch of fun. The one thing I could have done better there was to keep it simple – there is always the temptation to do more than is strictly necessary. Just my 2c.
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Hi Geoff, thank you for taking the time to listen and comment. I’m glad you liked it 😊
The first meeting is indeed “just” a Blues jam. I played with the group before and I enjoyed it a lot. The group is playing on very mixed levels, ie some were utterly inexperienced and others true oldtimers.
The August event will be a tryout to see if the group gels and if we all meet expectations. Come what may, I’ll take the bull by the horns. My plan is to play as much rhythm and lead as possible until then as possible, just to buld up enough trust in myself.
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Yeah that sounded pretty good to me Trem.
You’re right Brian has a lot of great rhythm lessons but I would suggest trying to find a backing track to a song that you know quite well with a simple chord progression and spend some time jamming along to that.
I’ve never had much experience in a band situation myself but if it came up I’d want to be able to keep time with a drummer and bass player before considering anything to do with solos etc.
Please let us know how it goes and even some footage would be great.
Best of luck bud.
Liam.
“We are the music makers, and we are the dreamers of dreams. “
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Trem
You are cuttin’ a good groove here. Love this tuff. It’s smooth and fluid with a gritty sound.
The more I play the more I realize THAT ESTABLISHING A GROOVE is far more important than note for note blazing speed. Well done on that.No need to stick to any tab 100%. You gotta make it yours and let ‘er go.
I suppose it depends on what the band is looking for; me personally, I would wow them with my rhythm chops. Everybody plays lead. Good luck with the tryout. Create some cool grooves and they won’t be able to resist you. Have fun.John
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Hello dear AM-friends, I still owe you an update on how my first jam session in a long time went. I had it a few weeks ago, but haven’t had time to write about it until now. To be honest, I also wasn’t very keen on writing about it because I wasn’t sure how to evaluate it for myself . Now I’m on vacation, and in retrospect, I’d say that my initial bad feeling persists to this day and that means it wasn’t a success. Of course, every experience also bears something positive in it, but at the end of the day it was a failure.
This is what happened: I went to a jam session that wasn’t really a jam session as I would have understood. That night there were different groups performing pieces they had already mastered perfectly. Other players like myself were invited to play along, but the ones I saw at least knew the songs they were about to play. I eventually found a group that was kind enough to allow me to play with them. Before we went on stage, they took me aside and told me what the chord progressions for the next three songs would be. I didn’t know any of the songs, but at least I could remember all three chord progressions.
During our set I played rhythm as best I could, but that doesn’t mean much: none of the songs had the typical 1-4-5 blues structure, and I constantly lost my bearings. At least one song was entirely in a minor key, so I couldn’t even just stay on the 1-chord. Copying another guitarist wasn’t an option either. And as if that wasn’t enough, I could barely hear myself in the mix! No joke, I played my rhythm part by hitting the pick in time with the rest of the band! I’d rather not imagine what that must have sounded like to the rest of the audience (about 50 people). I was allowed to play solos too, and at least once I started in the wrong fret. If I look at the bright side: at least nobody laughed or booed. The audience politely clapped their hands and I received a few pats on my back. So, unfortunately, this was not an evening that I will keep fond memories of. My takeaway is that it’s probably better for me to find a group to play with in a “safe” environment, ie where we can practice a little before we go on stage and play before an audience. Or option B, find a venue where they play standard Blues progressions where at least I know the chord changes. Also, I think it would be a good idea to learn some Blues standards.
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Your rhythm was pretty steady.
Nice that you add your own material.
Well you know when I was younger a guy that I played in a band with, called me a few years later to audition with his new band. Well I thought that since we played together with him doing original stuff I could play with his new band.
I get my big Ampeg amp up with my LP and damn I couldn’t play a note. Those guys were advanced jazz players.
So I get my stuff in my car and there I went. LOL.AndréM
AndréM
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