When you play songs live....

jd0272

Voxman said:

Improvisation skills around core chords/scales are definitely very important.  But if you're doing covers there are some solo's that are so well known you mess with them at your peril.  For example, I'll happily improvise many of the runs in Wishbone Ash's 'Blowin' Free' but if I'm playing Free's 'All right now' I stick to the original solo pretty much note for note.  

Of course there are some famous solo's improvised at the recording session that even the original artist could never reproduce again - for example Jimmy Page has never ever reproduced live the solo in Led Zep's 'Heartbreaker' on Led Zep II . It's one of those solo's that I've never been able to replicate exactly but I can get pretty close.  

Yeah some tracks are set in stone, dare he who deviates!!! Most ain't. Beer Drinker and Hell Raisers I'm close-ish but give it some twat about, as I'm not THAT bothered about being note for note on it, I just NEED to b ein the key. That said I'm mainly rhythm and split lead with Pete on things like ZZ Top, Lizzy, Frankie Miller etc. Never have I sat and purposefully done a scale from instruction. Probs a failing, but I'm no Vai so matters not.

And Page is a sloppy fckr anyway.

wave100

For solos I usually try to remember a starting note and then wing it from there - I'm playing originals though so no one else knows if I've done it wrong!

Voxman

I love jimmy page and led zep and he can indeed be a sloppy bugger....but he can also be pure genius as in the 1973 new york gigs with stuff like "let that boy boogie " in the middle of whole lot of love.

One of the other numbers in the 20% I try and play as close as I can to the original is Little Wing...just pure Hendrix genius...tough enough to learn let alone invent..it really is unique and something special.

But other than a few sacred songs most rock and blues stuff you can relax a bit more and just have some fun with...and isn't having fun the real point of it all anyway? I think that if we are enjoying ourselves and look like we're having fun on stage it will be infectious for the audience and they won't give a monkeys whether we have missed a chorus, sang the same verse twice, got chorus and verse the wrong way round, used the wrong effect, hit a few bum notes or any of the other silly crap we all worry about.

jd0272

Voxman;366496" said:

I love jimmy page and led zep and he can indeed be a sloppy bugger....but he can also be pure genius as in the 1973 new york gigs with stuff like "let that boy boogie " in the middle of whole lot of love.

One of the other numbers in the 20% I try and play as close as I can to the original is Little Wing...just pure Hendrix genius...tough enough to learn let alone invent..it really is unique and something special.

But other than a few sacred songs most rock and blues stuff you can relax a bit more and just have some fun with...and isn't having fun the real point of it all anyway? I think that if we are enjoying ourselves and look like we're having fun on stage it will be infectious for the audience and they won't give a monkeys whether we have missed a chorus, sang the same verse twice, got chorus and verse the wrong way round, used the wrong effect, hit a few bum notes or any of the other silly crap we all worry about.

Oh quite, Page's body of work is staggering in its scope. Wish I could play an eighth as well!

koneguitarist

Every solo I do is completely improvised, and is generally along the same lines but different. 

However I do remember songs, and someone once said I have a Filofax of songs in my head and can generally play what's needed, not what may be on the record or original song.

I find when depping with people if they play a song I am unfamiliar with ie never heard it before the moment I am about to play it, I seem to be able to understand chord progression wand where it's going, as I listen to the singer and his phrasing. 

When I started back in 70's my old man used to often say "follow me, it's in E" and we had to be able to play whatever song he came out with. Good experiance when trying to dep with bands. 

thomasross20

That's a great attitude but unfortunately I'm a "by the numbers" guy and usually learn stuff beforehand..!