Re: Play it right

Pt wrote:
My post is aimed at beginners who have intentions of playing in bands.
My first cover band was a top 40 band.
This was way before home computers.
The only ways to learn a song was by the music and by ear.
By reading notes and playing along
I was able to play songs pretty close to the way they were written in
a short time.
Young minds have great memories.
As time went by I was in classic rock, blues and jazz bands where I
learned to improvise.
I love to improv on the old songs.
But now I'm playing top 40 stuff again only this time it's pop country
rock.
There is little room for improv in this music.
People want to hear new music sound like what they hear on the radio.
I can learn the songs close to as written because I have been doing it
most of my life only I'm a lot slower learning than when I was a kid.
Beginners need to start out right.
And right is learning to play the song as right as possible.
If you have no intention of ever playing in a band or if you have no
desire to learn then ignore this post.
I'm sure some of you want to play for audiences and let me tell you
audiences do care if you play a song right and so do lead singers.
In a band situation it is your job to provide the singer with the
music.
If you don't play it right the singer can't sing it right.

Pt




Depends how rigid you are in your interpretation of "right".

If you mean right chords, right melody notes, okay. No one at the pub wants to hear a jazz version of Have You Ever Seen the Rain with major sevenths and ninth.

But it doesn't have to sound exactly like the record in every respect.

--
Stephen
Ballina, Australia
.

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