Dear fellow Harp nerds. I am heading into the unfamiliar territory of Dylan Folkies. Covering a tune (All I Really Want To Do - Dylan) for a close friend's wedding. I am looking for any ideas/experiences/warnings/thoughts in general on approaching such a tune as this...
https://youtu.be/nJSPElT-QWg
Unable to get the video to show up but the above link works. Sounds like a ADAE progression to me.
Last Edited by StalwartJohnson on Feb 15, 2018 9:28 AM
Are you singing the song or is someone else? How many musicians will be playing? Just you with guitar and rack? Full band? Also, what are the capabilities of the other musicians? If they are just guys who can strum a few chords, it will be different than if they are professional or very skilled musicians.
Oh, and do they want it pretty close to the feel of the original?
You have to cut the code after hitting the embed button under the video on YouTube.
Like SweetBlood said, how close to the original are you shooting for? Dylan does harmonica his own special way. Personally, I'd do something different.
When I played the Dylan tribute show (I posted a bunch of videos here) with 5 different singers it was a given that we would do our own interpretation and need not play it like Dylan. I enjoyed the artistic freedom!
Thoughts: If you have to copy Dylan's playing, the video will guide you. If you get to do your own thing, play along with it over and over to find whatever sounds good, and you will arrive at your interpretation.
Warning: Remember, if there is a singer other than you, don't step on any vocals with harp!
Playing behind vocals is a challenging approach best avoided at first. It is easy (and bad) to play OVER vocals. When starting out avoid playing at the same time that the singer is singing. ----------
Q: How many musicians will be playing? A: An acoustic guitar player and me on the harp
Q: Are you singing the song or is someone else? A: Both. Mostly my guitar player will be singing but I will take a verse. We will be harmonizing the chorus.
Q: What are the capabilities of the other musicians? A: He is terrific. A country/folk/blues guy. A heck of a picker buy not overly flashy. More versatile than me for sure (hence my original post). We have jammed together off and on for years (mainly bluesy occasions).
Q: Do they want it close to the feel of the original? A: They have not specified but we definitely want to honor the original while showing off just the right amount.
Nate…
Thanks for the video tip. I’d like to do something different. Not looking to do a straight cover from the harmonica standpoint.
Doug…
Totally agree. I’m always trying to serve whatever song I happen along. I am adept at playing with vocalists.
A little about me…
I play about 4 paying gigs a year (blues/rock). Always trying to improve but I’m afraid I’ve fallen into the trap of 2nd position blues. I’ve played around with some 1st position blues and am efficient enough in 3rd position to use in a live setting. I’ve never attempted a song like this…which is odd because I consider myself a Dylan fan. Have never been compelled to break him down.
I've tried playing second position on some Dylan songs and sometimes it works (You Ain't Going Nowhere) but a lot of the time it just doesn't sound right. If your guitar player is just going to be strumming as Dylan does, I'd stick with first position and maybe sweeten it up a little with some tongue blocking and octaves. A little less huff and puff than Dylan but with a nod to the original. If the guitar player is going for a really different feel, then by all means try 2nd and see if it works. Third position would be a bit of a fight on this song, I think.
Hi- You may be able to go to harptabs.com, find the tabs for this song and play it in between verses. You can use different types of ornamentation to dress it up each time. I imagine you will run thru it a few times before hand so you will be able to try different approaches. Good luck-99
With that arrangement, just guitar and harp, I would personally probably start the song with the signature harmonica riff instead of the vocals. Sitting here messing around with it, I see that you can play it convincingly enough to be recognizable on an A or D harp but I think when I do it it feels more natural with the D harp because all of your second position licks flow naturally from any part of the riff, so personally that is what I would use.
As Doug said above just be carefully to play behind the vocals and not right over the top of the vocal lines. There isn't a lot of space in the song so during the verse that will probably mean playing very sparingly. At the beginning of the chorus I think you can get away with playing stronger long notes right on top of the vocals changing with the chords as it builds...Alllll i...reaally want to do...and right after or on 'do' start a quick fill that ends on 'is'. Maybe not every time but you could at certain points to add a little bit of dynamic. (Edit: I see that you said you will sing together on the chorus). You would for sure have to rehearse that with the other guy before hand so you don't screw him up. Depending on how long they want the song to be, I would get a nice mellow, melodic second position solo in there and then play out the outro with that signature riff again.
Oh, and maybe don't play the harp on the first verse. Just drop out after the intro solo then come back in for the riff after the verse and start adding fills on the next verse.
Anyway that where I would personally start and then when you talk to the other guy and get some rehearsal in he will have ideas too and something will gel together.
Let us know how it turns out. Maybe after you get your arrangement down you could video it and post it after the wedding.
Last Edited by SweetBlood on Feb 16, 2018 8:29 AM
