At What Age Do I Have to Switch to "The Blues?"

[tkarter]

I like the new stuff. Hangin on the roots is easy.


tk

 

[muggsy]

he he. im makin a run for it when 30 rolls around - but hell, you never know how my musical tastes gonna change in the next 3 or 4 years; but for now i couldnt imagine not playing punk rock - it just feels right

Man, I'm 42 and I still get a huge charge out of playing punk rock. I love all kinds of music (except country, sorry, I can't do it), but punk gets me fired up like nothing else. My old cover band played all kinds of songs, anything we liked was fair game, but Search and Destroy and Chinese Rocks were probably my favorites.

 

[SteveB]

Hmm... I'm 35 and the country mandate hasn't been enforced..

...although I do own ONE country album.. a Hal Ketchum disc, and it's great.

My mom's cousin is a first-rate country player.. had a hit in the 80's as a member of Larry Lee Jones' band.. song called "Sittin' in Atlanta Station", I think.

He's got great chops, and when I see him play (which is very rare unfortunately), I'm amazed at how completely alien that playing style is to me.

I couldn't jump in and play two of his licks. So, I've got a certain degree of respect for country.

 

[muggsy]

Hmm... I'm 35 and the country mandate hasn't been enforced..

...although I do own ONE country album.. a Hal Ketchum disc, and it's great.

My mom's cousin is a first-rate country player.. had a hit in the 80's as a member of Larry Lee Jones' band.. song called "Sittin' in Atlanta Station", I think.

He's got great chops, and when I see him play (which is very rare unfortunately), I'm amazed at how completely alien that playing style is to me.

I couldn't jump in and play two of his licks. So, I've got a certain degree of respect for country.

I respect any musician who can play, no matter what they're playing. It's just that some styles of music are easier for me to appreciate than to like. Country is one, and bluegrass is another. I can listen to bluegrass and appreciate the chops involved, but I get bored after a few songs. I saw Hot Tuna a few months ago on an acoustic tour, and Jack and Jorma are amazing musicians but the acoustic country blues songs they play just start to sound the same to me after a while. On the other hand, on those rare occasions when they plug in and play electric, I can't get enough.

 

[SteveB]

Around here you can find blues jams at various venues around town. You just take your bass with you, sign up when you get there and get up and play when your name is called.

Larry,

Cool places. When I was 21, my favorite local club used to have 'jam' nights on Wednesdays. They had a house band who emceed the night, and got people to sign up to play. I used to take my guitar along fairly often to sit in on some jams. The first time I got up there, I played with a drummer from the audience, the house band's bass player, a guy from the audience who played blues harp, and the house band's singer improv'ed some lyrics. We just did a blues jam and it came together really great.. sounded like we had all played together before!

I really miss those jams. That club is long gone, and I'm not aware of any decent 'jam nights' anywhere else in the area these days.

 

[AnthonyD]

Play it ALL... 'Cause it's all good!

I am not traditionally schooled - play mostly by ear and spent some time with some books, but I have found I learn the most from playing varied styles of music.

It's about exposure - the more of it you get get, the better rounded a player you'll become.

IMHO, of course...

 

[Dr. Nick]

I respect any musician who can play, no matter what they're playing.

+1,000

I have a hard time getting into a lot of country music, but , damn, some of them boys can PLAY Sometimes I find myself watching CMT just to drool at some Nashville guy's purty telecaster or beat up Gretsch.

I've discovered as I grow older I don't move away from my roots, I just keep discovering new stuff to like. Plus, exposure to different styles of music really opens up your playing and allows for wonderul cross-pollenization between styles. I'm afraid those who limit themselves to one style of music really miss a lot of opportunity for muscal growth.

Will I ever be a jazzer? Nah, probably not, but sometimes, on those rare occassions that I get the lead, I may try to emulate Louis Armstrong's trumpet phrasing, for example. (More GUITARISTS need to listen to Louie instead of Yngwie, IMO.) Other times, I'm content just to beat the carp out of some punk or garage rock tune.

I try to pick up bits and pieces from all over the place and put them in the blender. Sometimes the results can be awesome! (and sometimes everyone ends up looking at you like you just gave their mom the finger! )

 

[Mobay45]

Same here. Fortunately, last year a pretty darned good blues club opened up only a few miles from my house ("The Boxcar", complete with life-sized statues of Jake and Elwood outside the door...http://www.theboxcar.com/pages/1/index.htm).

Haven't had the courage to try it yet. I know I'm skilled enough on a technical level, but I have basically no blues background because the stuff I play with my band has nothing to do with the blues.

It's one of those situations where I watch the guys on stage and know I could play as well as they do, but I'm not familiar enough with the material to step up there cold and do it comfortably, ESPECIALLY with people I don't know.

Those pick-up, open-mike situations strike me as really great learning experiences...you have to go up there cold, play with a bunch of people you've never seen before, doing material that you may not be all that familiar with, in front of a crowd, no less. Talk about pressure!

I'm really comfortable with my band, and I'd play with them in front of anyone. But this business of walking in and playing pick-up, cold, terrifies me.

Man, that sounds just like me. I have a hard time getting up in front of a crowd when I don't know the music and musicians too, but it's something at the age of 50 that I'm slowly overcoming. These blues jams are certainly helping with that. I have the chops to play almost any type of music that comes along, maybe no more than roots, but I can play it if someone will feed me that. The more you do it, the easier it gets. Like I said, go to the blues jam, leave your bass at home for the first few times, get some recordings of some of the songs they are playing, get to know some of the players there and learn some of the songs. You'll be surprised at how quickly you become comfortable playing with people that you don't usually jam with and you'll learn from them which will make you a better bassist.

I find that it's a lot like my golf game. Even though I really suck at it, a good player doesn't give me lip about how bad I am, he will usually give me tips to help me improve. That makes the whole game of golf better. Helping another musician makes the music better.