Improvise? good or bad?

[eno50]

I'am at a point where cover tunes are getting boring ,so I like to spice things up alittle or even try to get the band to change the song around alittle.
I mean if your going to play it exactly like the record,to me they should get a Dj to play it.
What is wrong with putting alittle of your style into a song?
why can't the guitarist play a different lead in a solo or why can't the bassist do alittle more or change the lines alittle or even over play in some cases ,Improvise ,change the grove alittle make the song in your bands version and style.
Do you feel that you being held back and not being able to unlock your creativity?
When I learn a new song frist I listen to it and learn the original bass lines,then I say to myself this how I would do the bass in this song and try that too.
Are we all becoming clones?
When I go out to see or hear a band play,I know the original tune, but what I look for or listen for is how the band does the song,do they improve on it ,to they add there own flavor to it.
I know alot of club owner want clone music or a live jukebox and some times you have to do this for the gig,but they sould give you the freedom to express..
How to you guys feel about this? is it better to be in a band that you can be free in?

[sleepy_monkey]

I have never played a cover song without improv.

[stevellss]

Maybe it is time to write originals and have the creative freedom to write all of your parts, just a thought.

[wildhorse]

Originally Posted by eno50

I'am at a point where cover tunes are getting boring ,so I like to spice things up alittle or even try to get the band to change the song around alittle.
I mean if your going to play it exactly like the record,to me they should get a Dj to play it.
What is wrong with putting alittle of your style into a song?
why can't the guitarist play a different lead in a solo or why can't the bassist do alittle more or change the lines alittle or even over play in some cases ,Improvise ,change the grove alittle make the song in your bands version and style.
Do you feel that you being held back and not being able to unlock your creativity?
When I learn a new song frist I listen to it and learn the original bass lines,then I say to myself this how I would do the bass in this song and try that too.
Are we all becoming clones?
When I go out to see or hear a band play,I know the original tune, but what I look for or listen for is how the band does the song,do they improve on it ,to they add there own flavor to it.
I know alot of club owner want clone music or a live jukebox and some times you have to do this for the gig,but they sould give you the freedom to express..
How to you guys feel about this? is it better to be in a band that you can be free in?

Depends on whether you are a Cover Band or a Copy Band.
Either is good if you want to play clubs. All originals can get real boring real fast.

[D Rokk]

if your a cover band than your bands style is the style of the song you are playing.. i think you want to have your cake and eat it too.. nothing wrong with that.. just saying.. your walking a thin line. your doing cover tunes for the audience not urself they are the ones getting you payed. if you can make a cover tune more fun for them more power to you, but dont turn living on a prayer into a 48 minute prog rock oddysey just because thats what YOU want. if you wanna do your thing than maybe an originals band is for you.

i'm not trying to sound rude or callous in this i'm just telling you how i see it..

[anthowl]

ya gotta put your own spin on stuff. lets face it, a whole bunch of songs have potential for good bass lines but are freaking boring as they are on the recording!

[TL5]

My preference is to learn the song (melody and harmony/chord progression) and work from there. I rarely try to learn a song note for note unless we're playing something with a signature line. IE if I'm playing Another One Bites the Dust by Queen, the signature lick stays. Everything else is open to interpretation.

That said, the challenge is to be creative and interesting and avoid just busying up the song, which I believe to be the tendency.

[TheVoiceless]

I think it depends. If you improv and it sounds good go for it. But don't change something for the sake of change. And originals will always allow you to stretch.

[BassChuck]

I agree with you totally. But after years and years in cover bands I know that you can get too far away from the original and lose your audience a bit.

That said, there's no reason not to put some original thinking into the covers. But like every group from the most slavish cover band to an all original band, you have to connect with your audience.... and that usually has to do with rhythm and style. Experience will tell you how far you can go and still get away with it.

[JTE]

I despise the attitude that "the record" is the ultimate expression of the song. It goes hand-in-hand with the confusion of "recording" and "song". So, every time I play songs, I'm improvising. What musicians do is to interact with each other. Most of the music I play is stuff where I know that the bass line on the record may not even be the bassist's choice, but the TAKE was the one that worked. Keith Richards once said that if you want to learn Rolling Stones songs, listen to live recordings. Most of the time when they made the record they only knew the song for a few weeks at most. After getting out on stage and playing the song live for a while they honed it to what they really meant.

And most audiences don't really care that you play anything note-for-note dead on. As long as it has the groove, they can recognize it, you nail the hooks, and you have fun it's going to work. The only people in my whole 30+ years of working as a musician that anyone commented on us not playing it like the record were other musicians (who weren't working BTW), and the stupid line-dancers who couldn't dance if the song wasn't performed exactly like they learned it at their $50/lesson line dance classes- those people ruined live country music around here...

But you have to be careful about the liberties you take. My last band did covers of covers- we did a version of "Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" (the Nina Simone song made popular by The Animals) based on Robben Ford's smoking version. But we sort of melded everything we've heard into everything we played. That band works about 60 nights a year for no less than $80/person and it's a 7- peice band. Do the math.

Some stuff you have to get it all correct, but that's generally stuff that's way produced (e.g. Brittney Spears, Janet Jackson, Jessica Simpson sort of stuff) that's got little in the way of real music feel anyway.

jte

[eno50]

Originally Posted by JTE

I despise the attitude that "the record" is the ultimate expression of the song. It goes hand-in-hand with the confusion of "recording" and "song". So, every time I play songs, I'm improvising. What musicians do is to interact with each other. Most of the music I play is stuff where I know that the bass line on the record may not even be the bassist's choice, but the TAKE was the one that worked. Keith Richards once said that if you want to learn Rolling Stones songs, listen to live recordings. Most of the time when they made the record they only knew the song for a few weeks at most. After getting out on stage and playing the song live for a while they honed it to what they really meant.

And most audiences don't really care that you play anything note-for-note dead on. As long as it has the groove, they can recognize it, you nail the hooks, and you have fun it's going to work. The only people in my whole 30+ years of working as a musician that anyone commented on us not playing it like the record were other musicians (who weren't working BTW), and the stupid line-dancers who couldn't dance if the song wasn't performed exactly like they learned it at their $50/lesson line dance classes- those people ruined live country music around here...

But you have to be careful about the liberties you take. My last band did covers of covers- we did a version of "Please Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood" (the Nina Simone song made popular by The Animals) based on Robben Ford's smoking version. But we sort of melded everything we've heard into everything we played. That band works about 60 nights a year for no less than $80/person and it's a 7- peice band. Do the math.

Some stuff you have to get it all correct, but that's generally stuff that's way produced (e.g. Brittney Spears, Janet Jackson, Jessica Simpson sort of stuff) that's got little in the way of real music feel anyway.

jte

That's a good point my friend....

[TL5]

Originally Posted by JTE

I despise the attitude that "the record" is the ultimate expression of the song. It goes hand-in-hand with the confusion of "recording" and "song". So, every time I play songs, I'm improvising. What musicians do is to interact with each other. Most of the music I play is stuff where I know that the bass line on the record may not even be the bassist's choice, but the TAKE was the one that worked. Keith Richards once said that if you want to learn Rolling Stones songs, listen to live recordings. Most of the time when they made the record they only knew the song for a few weeks at most. After getting out on stage and playing the song live for a while they honed it to what they really meant.

And most audiences don't really care that you play anything note-for-note dead on. As long as it has the groove, they can recognize it, you nail the hooks, and you have fun it's going to work. The only people in my whole 30+ years of working as a musician that anyone commented on us not playing it like the record were other musicians (who weren't working BTW), and the stupid line-dancers who couldn't dance if the song wasn't performed exactly like they learned it at their $50/lesson line dance classes- those people ruined live country music around here...

But you have to be careful about the liberties you take..
jte

+1. That's the same message I was trying to express earlier.

[eno50]

Originally Posted by TL5

+1. That's the same message I was trying to express earlier.

TL5, I'am sorry i did not include you in my last quote
I understood your message too .
I think to that you can over do it or busy it up to much and
ruin the song and you have to really kind of walk a thin line.

Thank you all for your input
Eno

[Phalex]

Serve the song. Improvisation is great, over playing is not so great. If it's tasty, and it serves the song, by all means. If you're slapping and playing mad runs with lots of triplets when you're supposed to be playing Brown Eyed Girl the drummer is fully within his rights to break your left index finger with a drum stick.

Don't **** with the groove!

[Mikio]

I hate to mess around other people's music... unless it was made for that, lol

get a jazz band!!!!!!!! or make improvisation breaks!


but let the original songs be.