Overplaying

[fretmeister]

Whichever one I'm playing, apparently.

 

 

[Misdee]

I would have to say accordion, on the basis that to my ears any accordion is too much so a lot of accordion is unspeakable.

[leschirons]

At an open mic night in France, our visiting daughter decided to get up and sing At last, Etta James' classic. I was on acoustic bass, drummer on brushes, mate on keys. However the self appointed house harp player assumed he was included in the line up.  After him playing continuously over the vocals for the first two minutes, I thought I'd really overstepped the mark when I screamed over mic "Shut the f*k up"  but then, a big cheer and applause from every other muso in the place. These people have to be told.😆

[Beer of the Bass]

2 hours ago, prowla said:

 

Jools Holland on Later tries to turn every song into a "featuring me doing meaningless widdles".

 

 

My most egregious example of Mr Holland mangling a song as a guest was when he did "Doorbell" with the White Stripes, on a Wurlitzer electric piano. What it really needs is simple chords, hit insistently right on the beat, but he did some sort of lazy, sloppy behind-the-beat boogie thing that just turned it to mush. 

[anthomp]

23 hours ago, Beer of the Bass said:

Amplified blues harmonica can really grate when overdone. Part of the problem is that many insist on cranking bigger amps than most guitarists use in those settings (often a 4x10" Fender Bassman derivative), the other thing is overblows.

Overblows have some sort of prestige status as the advanced technique that a good player must have, so once players have mastered them they'll shoehorn them in wherever they can. But what overblows do is get you a harsh toned, usually slightly out of tune note that's outside of the key you're playing in, so absolutely excruciating if overused. 

Well informed 👌👌

[chris_b]

20 hours ago, leschirons said:

. . . . I screamed over mic "Shut the f*k up"  . . . .

 

How many times have I envisioned myself doing that!!!

Edited Sunday at 14:08 by chris_b

[Baloney Balderdash]

Theremin?

[Bolo]

Cowbell!

 

Of our five-piece cowbell section the soloists alway get in a ringing war with eachother. Unbearable!

[gjones]

I was at a jam, a few years ago, and a trio got up to play three U2 songs.

 

The bassist proceeded to play slap bass over all three of them.

 

It would have been hilarious if it wasn't so tragic.....

[Elfrasho]

My experience is that people overplay through boredom. Playing the same set every weekend for years on end drains you. But, i find that overplaying on bass or drums can work as long as the players are topnotch. Aslong as the groove and bottom end are still there then really it doesnt matter a great deal. Guitarists that get bored and widdle over everything really destroys the dynamics of the tune, so they get my vote. The pricks.

[prowla]

2 hours ago, gjones said:

I was at a jam, a few years ago, and a trio got up to play three U2 songs.

 

The bassist proceeded to play slap bass over all three of them.

 

It would have been hilarious if it wasn't so tragic.....

U42?

[dave_bass5]

Gong. Just once at the very end of the song is fine, anywhere else is overplaying.....😇

[Dad3353]

18 minutes ago, dave_bass5 said:

Gong. Just once at the very end of the song is fine, anywhere else is overplaying.....😇

 

Ah, Ray Cooper, maybe..? (Watch the reaction of the other players..!) 

 

 

Edited yesterday at 10:30 by Dad3353

[Steve Browning]

Cannon. I mean, that bloke in the 1812. What was he thinking?

[Russ]

On 19/07/2025 at 01:11, Doctor J said:

Oversinging has very much become a thing people think they need to do, all the time.

 

It needs to die in a ditch.

Yep. Lots of melisma and impromptu scatting these days. Thanks, Mariah f**king Carey. 

 

If you've got a horn section, you'll have a tough job getting the sax player to actually play the song. Seems like they're all aspiring Sanborns, Coltranes and Parkers.

 

The two sounds I despise most in music, and that sound the most like small animal strangulation, are harmonica and badly-played alto and tenor saxophone. 

[TimR]

22 hours ago, Bolo said:

Cowbell!

 

Of our five-piece cowbell section the soloists alway get in a ringing war with eachother. Unbearable!

 

You can never have too much cowbell. 

[TimR]

Singer with no sense of time, and a tambourine. 

[Dan Dare]

On 19/07/2025 at 18:08, chris_b said:

No drummer beats a bad drummer every time, but why does anyone put up with a bad drummer?

 

Play with a good drummer and your workload is halved. Play with a bad drummer and your workload increases 10 fold!!

 

Not always possible to do without drums, depending on the type of music you're playing. Why does anyone put up with a bad drummer? Because there aren't enough good ones to go round. Those that are good are a) in demand and b) expensive and/or booked up months in advance. Ask me how I know.

[lowdown]

7 hours ago, Steve Browning said:

Cannon. I mean, that bloke in the 1812. What was he thinking?

 

One Cannon, that's not overplaying in the 1812. Below is an example of overplaying in the 1812:

 

1812 Overture:

 "In the sections that contain cannon shots, actual cannons are sometimes replaced by howitzers, tanks, fireworks, recorded cannons, a piece of staging, usually hit with large wooden mallets or sledgehammers as used in Mahler's 6th Symphony. Bass drums, and gongs/tam-tams are also regularly used as cannon substitutes or adjuncts in indoor performances!"

 

 

[Count Bassy]

10 hours ago, Dad3353 said:

 

Ah, Ray Cooper, maybe..? (Watch the reaction of the other players..!) 

 

 

Can't fault his enthusiasm though.

[Count Bassy]

6 hours ago, Russ said:

Yep. Lots of melisma and impromptu scatting these days. Thanks, Mariah f**king Carey. 

 

If you've got a horn section, you'll have a tough job getting the sax player to actually play the song. Seems like they're all aspiring Sanborns, Coltranes and Parkers.

 

The two sounds I despise most in music, and that sound the most like small animal strangulation, are harmonica and badly-played alto and tenor saxophone. 

Soprano OK then?

[Russ]

Just now, Count Bassy said:

Soprano OK then?

I like baritone sax, and tenor when it's played well. The higher-pitched ones hurt my brain! 

[Newfoundfreedom]

Any and all instruments in a jazz band. 

[Chienmortbb]

On 19/07/2025 at 09:41, bassbiscuits said:

Keys.

 

I’ve been in too many bands where the keyboard player felt obliged to fill any hint of quiet with pointless flourishes adding nothing to the song. 

They would be alright if they stopped that AND kept their left hands away from the LH side of the keyboard. 

[acidbass]

As a bassist there is nothing more destructive to a band's sound than a drummer who overplays.  Sadly we have probably all encountered them!  There seems to be an obsession now on chops over more traditional (useful) skills such as time, feel and dynamic.  I try to think of the patterns I play as being inextricably linked to the drums, which means that I am conscious of not falling into the same trap of overplaying.  It's a tough one.