I hesitate to write this as I am unsure of your goals
I think you comp very well with nice tone.
I also believe you havent played in many band situations because your stage presence is kinda "loose".
You dont relate to the other musicians much and just seem to be in your own world. Why would you bend over for a water bottle when the guitar guy is soloing ? You miss the signal to end the song cause your back is to the band
I really dont mean this to be harsh -- maybe you dont want to play in a band and are just using them for a backing track which is cool- In that case your playing is just fine here
solo was a little noodley to me. I would've been happy to hear you repeat the first phrase in your solo over the 4 and 5 chords. Make a statement, repeat it, build on it so you can stretch out a little bit. Are you familiar with Dave Barrett's chorus forms?
doing it all on the bandstand is mush easier said then done, but overall sounds good keep going!! ---------- 4' 4+ 3' 2~~~ -Mike Ziemba Harmonica is Life!
I think your playing is much better than your stagecraft. Goldbrick is saying this in a slightly different way. If I close my eyes, I know why you posted this: because you're making interesting choices, basically, about what to play where. You're listening to the singer. I don't think you're too noodle-y, but you haven't figured out what space you're supposed to occupy on stage, and that creates distraction and confusion in your audience.
My guess is that you have gone absolutely as far as you can go in jam sessions. At this point, you need to make the leap and join a band.
Last Edited by kudzurunner on Jun 03, 2015 4:45 PM
...........My goals? I go out to jam with friends, meet musicians, and most importantly to try to create music that makes the band, and not myself, sound as best as possible.
@slapphappy
Thanks for the input. I have never checked out those books before. I will have to investigate it though:)
@kudz Yes, you are extremely perceptive. You hit the proverbial nail directly on the head. I think it's time for me to take your advice and take that leap. Let's see where it goes:) Thanks for taking th time to post your input/observations Adam. Means a lot....
Jamming has its limits, definitely, but I think you did well. The guys are just offering constructive advice. Jamming can be messy - and a bit nerve wracking in some cases so it's easy to get distracted and not pay full attention to the rest of the guys but it's still better than most jams by a long shot :-)
@carl A -- Staying in the open jam scene far too long will prove to be anything but productive because the level of musicianship among jammers really isn't gonna be enough to help you up your game, especially if the jam is run by musicians who are NOT area blues pros.
Bad habits and bad musicianship is something that unfortunately be quite catching like a bad disease and that's only going to serious stunt your musical growth. The only jams I'd recommend going to if you're not getting into a band with REALLY good musicians are the so called snob/pro jams where the level of musicianship is far higher than the vast majority of open jams. Jams that get run by area blues pros tend to attract far better overall quality of musicianship than ones run by musicians where the jam is their only gig or maybe more rock oriented and so those host bands are getting paid real cheap and they tend to get a much lower level of overall musicianship from the jammers that they tend to bring in. I know this sounds really snobby to some and anyone can take all the pot shots they want at me, but what I'm telling you is the truth.
Listening to the musicians behind you in this video, to be very brutally honest, the groove was a total mess and being around jammers like that really isn't gonna do much to improve your overall musicianship in the long run and the longer you hang with this stuff, you're more likely to musically stagnate or worse, regress. ---------- Sincerely, Barbeque Bob Maglinte Boston, MA http://www.barbequebob.com CD available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bbmaglinte
Thanks for mentioning that ,Bob! I was wondering if I was the only one who thought the band was playing a groove that was difficult for a harp. Carl-time to find a real band. That song was hard to fit in on IMHO.You did great.
Slightly OT- Why ,to me,does the groove of this song feel so hard to fit in?
Chorus forms are something your ear already knows that Dave has distilled down for you. It really does offer an organized approach to blues improv that will make you sound cohesive and musical through repetition, fills, and variation
---------- 4' 4+ 3' 2~~~ -Mike Ziemba Harmonica is Life!
@Tuckster -- It's not that it's a groove difficult for harp, but because the back line was horrible. The time alone from these jammers flat out sucks and in most open jams, this is what you're forced to deal with far too often. There really isn't a such thing as a groove difficult for harp, but in truth, musicians who just can't groove at all, period and it starts with the fact that you'e often dealing with musicians with horrible time, and that includes the drummer and bass players, let alone the lead players and it's hard to really do anything at all when you're surrounded by musicians like that.
If this drummer was in my band, I'd be giving him the biggest, loudest, nastiest ration of s**t because right off the band, he's doing something in a blues setting you do not EVER do, and that's putting the snare drum on the 1 and the 3 and the bass drum on the 2 and the 4, and in blues, you have to be doing the EXACT OPPOSITE of that, and this is the kind of thing I find when there's a rock oriented drummer, especially a heavy metal oriented drummer trying to do a blues groove and they always do this crap and never fail to royally screw up the groove. Would he be deserving of the ration of **t? Absolutely, 100% yes, and many of the old school black blues musicians I worked with would be totally merciless with him.
Too many people in many open jams want to be the "star" or "the legend in their own mind" and these very same people haven't got a clue about the groove. The longer one hangs around with these jammers, the worse of a musician they will succeed in making you, and I'm being 100% brutally honest about it. ---------- Sincerely, Barbeque Bob Maglinte Boston, MA http://www.barbequebob.com CD available at http://www.cdbaby.com/cd/bbmaglinte
I think of jams as a kind of speed-dating service for musicians. I think you should use the jam to get yourself at least a regular guitarist to jam/busk/gig with Carl.
@ carl you are getting the same replies you got on your last Jam post. Even(especially) at a jam you have to look and act like you are part of the band. If you do join a band(and you should) take all the comments above to heart..
Yep- drummer tries to be on the backbeat but he gets lost pretty quick. He cant keep the beat when he returns from his fills and there are too many fills for the song
That type shuffle needs a strong bass drum hit on the one and then the backbeat-kind of a rearrangement of the jazz spang-a-lang ( even dotted 1/8 notes) to accents BOOM( bass) -ba -BOMP ( snare hit)
I have been playing drums since age 13 ( 50 years now) so I guess that makes me an old school drummer ( or maybe just old)
Most rock drummers straighten out the shuffle and screw it all up- a shuffle has to SWING- most rockers dont
Sorry to hijack the thread- but playing with a bad drummer will mess u up
Lots of good advice and discussion going on here. I really appreciate the feedback from EVERYONE, both positive and more importantly the tough love:)
Some background........ I actually started playing harmonica in 1998 in London,England while studying to become a veterinarian. Prior to this, my focus and passion was piano. I was going to major in piano with the ambition of becoming a concert pianist. Reality set-in and I decided to become a veterinarian instead-lol So, because I was a poor student living in a 150 square foot flat at the tune of $1,200 per month, I had no ability to purchase a piano. In the UK, you walk $&@" everywhere. So, I figured why not buy a harmonica. It's easily portable, and cheap. So, I bought my first harp, a special 20 in the key C. I tried to learn a few folk tunes and I mustered the ability to learn meager bends. I carried this harp through the street of Leicester square, Tottenham court road, Camden town( an absolutely $&@" awesome place), and even in front of Buckingham palace. I was the epitome of absolute and total shite at the harmonica harp. Long story short, the love affair lasted very briefly. Fast forward to 2012... I haven't touched a harp since 1998. While cleaning out the garage, I stumble upon my old special 20. I figure to myself, " I wonder if I still got the moves"-lol. I suddenly find myself enraptured my the harps unique sound and feel. I am hooked again, big time! I stumble upon Adam's lessons and become engrossed in them. Go through all 100 plus videos with a desire, passion, and commitment to the 2 ounce instrument. I finally decide to start going to some local blues jams. Some have some seriously talented musicians, some......well, not so much. I am an introvert by nature when it comes to "performing" in front of people, plus my personality is uber laid back. I maybe have a dozen jams under my belt. I practice fairly routinely. I have a hectic schedule and try to squeeze practice sessions in between sets at the gym in the racquetball courts. People give me weird looks, but hey, it is what it is. I love the harp. I believe it to be a wonderful instrument. I personally recognize what I believe to be its strengths and weaknesses. My ambition at this stage is to be the best player that I can become. I love to learn, succeed, fail, achieve, strive, and become a better musician with each passing day. The harp has helped me greatly these past 3 years. It has seen me through the good times, and the bad. Especially at this point in my life, dealing with a current divorce, young twins, and work, the harp meets a need that not much else can. I have a personal faith, but despite that, the harmonica meets something almost esoterical in nature. I believe that God himself knows this, and music is a gift from Him to be enjoyed and to bless others. ........I am enjoying the journey :)
