The Funk

[quote name='umph' post='577843' date='Aug 22 2009, 08:42 PM']that might be the problem, for a short and simple solution i recomend sticking a sm57 infront of a cranked valve amp[/quote] Nothing sounds better

[quote name='Alien' post='579754' date='Aug 25 2009, 12:40 AM']The alternative blues name game: 1. Think of an affliction 2. Think of a fruit 3. Think of a US president eg. Blind Lemon Jefferson, or possibly Squinting Mango Nixon[/quote] Syphilitic Kumquat Obama? I don't think I'm very good at this. When I was younger, I tried coming up with a very 'funk' sounding name. I tried Cornelius Funk for a while and then Curtis Jackson. The second one stopped being usable once 50 Cent came along. For the record, Miles Davis sounds like the name of a repressed Welsh librarian.

Fingerstyle - Lenny Kravtiz's bass sound on the whole [i]Mama Said[/i] album, especially [i]Always On The Run[/i] and [i]It Ain't Over 'Til It's Over[/i].

[quote name='Musky' post='576108' date='Aug 20 2009, 09:30 PM']The Roland Cube, Ashdown Perfect 10, Line6 studio 110 or plenty of Peavey models all sell secondhand within your budget. They're all regularly recommended as practice amps, and something like a Peavey TKO would probably fine for a small gig.[/quote] I've seen people gig with the Line6 Studio 110 through the PA as well - and it sounded great. Raptor - keep checking the For Sale: Amp sub-forum below.

Good for you! It can be good to shake things up every now and then. I once did a gig with my band where one of the singers and I had written the tune the night before. 15 minutes before we went on, I taught the music to the guitarist in my car, while one singer taught the vocals to the other in his car. I was very pleased when we managed to pull that one off!

[quote name='silddx' post='576224' date='Aug 20 2009, 11:37 PM']I'm not religious about all this "purity" any more.[/quote] I guess I'm a purist when it comes to the music I make or listen to. (Not saying the music I make or listen to is any good - but I like it). [quote name='silddx' post='576224' date='Aug 20 2009, 11:37 PM']I do what I need to do to help the singer and her songs sound as good as they can be.[/quote] That's definitely the most important part of your job. [quote name='silddx' post='576224' date='Aug 20 2009, 11:37 PM']Whatever you do in your band, it should be compelling for the audience.[/quote] And that's definitely the most important part of the job for any band!

[quote name='Rowbee' post='576176' date='Aug 20 2009, 10:43 PM']I assumed this thread was created by a troll!! [/quote] I was feeling mischievous so that was the vibe I was going for! I'm still undecided about his playing. There are certainly a few things I'm going to steal from him and a few parts I found enjoyable but then there were bits I found boring.

[quote name='thisnameistaken' post='575708' date='Aug 20 2009, 04:04 PM']I just think live should mean live, it's a unique performance especially for whoever's within earshot, done right there and then, warts and all.[/quote] That's my approach but then I'm a firm believer in different 'live' and 'studio' arrangements (and 'acoustic' arrangements too!). I do understand that for a lot of musicians (and fans) a live show is about perfectly recreating the record. I don't see that approach as not being valid, musically, ethically or otherwise. It's just not for me. Having said that, when I see a live arrangement of a tune that misses out the good bits of the studio arrangement, I get annoyed. I think the most important principle (and maybe the only principle) to go by is that you can't please everyone - so just try to please whoever you're doing it for.

[quote name='ironside1966' post='575510' date='Aug 20 2009, 01:34 PM']Successful cover bands don’t please musicians they please your average punters[/quote] That's very true and like I tried to say earlier, I've got more sympathy for a covers / function band using backing tracks. Do whatever will please your audience, build your reputation and attract more/repeat business. Your average punter probably can't identify which instrument is making which sound anyway.

[quote name='bilbo230763' post='575108' date='Aug 20 2009, 09:06 AM']Many of those people see the use of a backing track as compromising that integrity (there are still some that wince at the use of a synthesiser ).[/quote] I saw an Isaac Hayes gig from a few years before he died and he had two or three keys players other than himself who seemed to do nothing but play the strings and brass parts to his tunes. He had about 15 people onstage with him. Why not ditch two keys players and replace them with a cellist and violinist? It definitely diminished my enjoyment of the show - but the show was still so good that I enjoyed it anyway. I have no problem with analogue synths (or someone playing a Nord-style virtual analogue synth or a vintage keyboard-sampled soft synth through a MIDI interface and a laptop) but when I see a Yamaha Motif onstage and hear stale brass in the mix with no horn players on stage, it really bugs me. In my singers' church, they have a big tradition of a capella singing - even instruments are seen as cheating! The sound some of those groups make with just 3 or 4 unaccompanied voices is enough to fill Wembley Arena (which I've witnessed first hand). It's all about the arrangements and the strength of your performance for me. Having said all that, I've encouraged one of the singers to get a Korg KaossPad (which is excellent btw). He uses it to great effect at gigs - and can create, trigger, manipulate, loop and/or layer samples live. Is it 'cheating' to preload a drum loop onto it for him to load into the vocoder together with his voice and trigger, manipulate, loop etc.? I don't think so and I don't think it's a double standard.

I do it and you can end up with a very powerful right hand plucking technique, which [i]can[/i] slow you down a bit. I like being able to play the bass anywhere I want in my flat without anyone else being able to hear me.

[quote name='skankdelvar' post='574376' date='Aug 19 2009, 04:17 PM']Ah-ha! Here's a solution. Bass pedals, like the old Moog jobbies. Play the bass lines with your feet, deliver guitar on a double-neck, while the gtrst does his synth stuff![/quote] You forgot about the xylophone next to the drum kit and the theremin for the singer!

You can get lead vocal-less backing tracks for most current chart hits. This female singer of yours could decide to just use backing tracks and take all the money herself.

A similar idea to the Southern Rock Appreciation thread we put together a few months ago. Post videos/stories/comments of '50s rock n' roll! Little Richard - Lucille Chuck Berry - Johnny Be Goode Elvis Presley - Hound Dog Eddie Cochran - Come On, Everybody

[quote name='alexclaber' post='574341' date='Aug 19 2009, 03:50 PM']I presume you'd want the Compact to match cosmetically as well - custom colour and grill![/quote] You can't inject GAS into my bloodstream! It's unethical!

[quote name='skankdelvar' post='574252' date='Aug 19 2009, 02:48 PM']Using electronic / pre-recorded augmentation: * If you're an 'Artist' - say, Kraftwerk or Moby and performing your own original stuff, it's OK. Challenging, even. M'wah, M'wah, air-kiss. * If you're doing covers, you're a plodder, reeking of cheap cider and Superkings. Weird, innit. We're edging dangerously close to the 'Covers / Tribute' debate. [/quote] My attitude is almost the reverse. I'd have more sympathy for a covers / function band using backing tracks than, say, Destiny's Child. That's a f***ing disgrace. I don't have any time for 'artists' playing to a backing track (even hip-hop artists - get a live band or a DJ) or getting the keyboard player to do little more than press the space bar on his Macbook Pro at the beginning of each song. It's different if their music relies on triggering samples for sound effects rather than instrumentation (such as Pink Floyd), or on live looping, or live programming - which I've never witnessed but would like to see happen.

[quote name='bilbo230763' post='574220' date='Aug 19 2009, 02:29 PM']Seriously, though, I can't see that there is anything wrong with electronic instruments, electronic effects or even samples as a tool. My problem is with the idea of pressing a button at the start of a live song and letting machines doing stuff 'automatically' while the humans play along. Its partial karaoke. Its the tail wagging the dog, If you can't do it without a machine, do something else better.[/quote] Bilbo has the guts to say things I wouldn't dare say in this thead because I don't want to be rude to people who do feel they need a laptop onstage with them. I always change the channel or go to the bar when I see a band on with a laptop playing 35 instruments already programmed and sequenced (and much better than the 2 live plodders onstage). I just don't see the point. I always think email me the file and I'll load it into my sequencer at home. As for the live band, spend some time trying to arrange the songs for your line-up. Until last year I'd never played covers in bands but when I wanted to get my band battle-hardened doing 3 x 1 hour set residencies, we augmented our material with about 15 covers. I have so much fun arranging songs for the band and the most satisfying part is when audiences can't tell which songs are ours and which are covers. EDIT: One thing I want to add is that strings samples these days are pretty good whereas brass samples will always be total sh*t. But then again, I have more of an idea of how I want brass to sound than strings.

Basses: an '80s Warwick NT Thumb 5, a custom '70s Fender Jazz-alike 4 (Walnut/Rosewood/blocks/binding/bullet truss rod/Delano Hybrid bridge pick-up/Bare Knuckle P pick-up). Amps: exactly what I have now but with a second Eden WT1000 power amp and two more Acme B2s (to give me a cross-firing double stack), a vintage Matamp head to go with my Barefaced Compact. Effects: an Electro Harmonix Golden Throat talk box.

[quote name='MythSte' post='574168' date='Aug 19 2009, 02:02 PM']If you like! I believe its enough for me to offer some useful insight [/quote] I found it useful.

1:03-1:07

[quote name='lowdown' post='571474' date='Aug 17 2009, 11:34 AM']In my head i know what i am banging on about[/quote] Makes sense to me. Modes, innit.

I always found this article useful too. I keep going back to it. Music's a tough thing because you need the confidence to keep going AND the awareness to gauge exactly what's currently working and what's not. Kind of like keeping your feet on the ground and your head in the clouds. [url="http://www.getsigned.com/8reasons.html"]The Eight Reasons Why You're Not Signed[/url]

[quote name='arabassist' post='570112' date='Aug 15 2009, 05:30 PM']let's take this random chord. I play 1st, 4th and 6th note of G major, so: G D 2 A 3 E 3[/quote] [quote name='Eight' post='570132' date='Aug 15 2009, 05:56 PM']G D A E... er.. G6/9 maybe a Emin11b5 without the Bb. I have no idea where my brain was going with that one...[/quote] [quote name='arabassist' post='570368' date='Aug 16 2009, 12:30 AM']im sorry i didnt understand any of that [/quote] The confusion here is that the first post is written out as a sort of Tab. G(open) = G, D2 = E, A3 = C, E3 = G. The second post dealt with the notes G, D, A, E instead of G, C, E, G. Alun's right that GCE would usually be the second inversion of C major but I think there's a typo in there. G is the 5th, not the 6th.

[quote name='Low End Bee' post='568713' date='Aug 14 2009, 10:02 AM']He's definitely the best bass player in the RHCP.[/quote] That was going to be [i]my [/i]smart alec answer!

Bloody hell. I want to see this thing and then hear it too. And then borrow it. And then weep with joy.