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08-21-2005, 01:20 AM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Sep 2004 Location: Melbourne, Australia | | | John Myung: Humble? Shy? or Overshadowed?
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I noticed that I've watched and listened to alot of dream theater's live stuff, and there never seems to be a bass solo. Everyone else seems to get one, but not my good friend Johnny boy. Do you guys rekon he doesnt want to? or maybe he doesnt think he's good enough? or because the others wont let him? |
08-21-2005, 01:23 AM
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Hi-fi into an old tube amp | | Join Date: May 2005 Location: SW | | | I am not the expert on dream theater, but from what I've seen it looks like Portnoy and Petrucci are the more dominant personalities, which is too bad for DT. |
08-21-2005, 01:28 AM
|  | put a bird on it | | Join Date: Dec 2000 Location: Minnesota | | | i saw this one myung bass solo that was floating around on some file-sharing program that seemed pretty cool, but it was short... |
08-21-2005, 03:10 AM
|  | (((o))) Moderator | | Join Date: Jul 2003 Location: Antwerp, Belgium | | | I think he's shy and overshadowed. |
08-21-2005, 07:59 AM
|  | Chronic Pain Endorsed By Fentanyl/Oxycodone/Valium | | Join Date: May 2001 Location: Evansville, IN | | Quote: |
Originally Posted by f'nar f'nar John Myung: Humble? Shy? or Overshadowed? | All three. 
By all accounts both others members of DT and JM himself have commented that his lack of soloing live is entirely his call. From all interviews I've read he doesn't consider himself a "solo bassist" and feels uncomfortable in that role.
...but there's the overshadowed aspect as well, and where you're in a band where virtually every song can be classified as a "solo" and where Rudess and Petrucci have dedicated solos almost every show (Portnoy a fair amount as well) I can see why he wouldn't want to push for one. For better or worse, he's developed into the "bassist in the background" image that we publicly have. Anyone who's seen the "Live in Tokyo" DVD or even earlier footage would be amazed at how much he used to move around on-stage. It seems that while recording "I&W" producer David Prater had JM tone down his more than just his "lead/counterpoint bass" sound. 
Then again, it's nice to be one of the two members of the band with their egos in check.  Quote: |
Originally Posted by superbassman2000 i saw this one myung bass solo that was floating around on some file-sharing program that seemed pretty cool, but it was short... | AFAIK Myung only soloed a few times on DT's "Music in Progress" tour in '92, so if it's live and a flurry of notes and taping followed by a harmonic pattern which Petrucci soloing over it, it's "Moon Bubbles".
More likely by your mentioning of "short", it's either "Solar Groove" (a solo chordal/arpeggiated piece) or "Freeport Jam" (a solo with Portnoy and Sherinian backing him) off his Instructional video "Progressive Bass Concepts". |
08-21-2005, 08:11 AM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Racine,Wi | | | I've got some of his Jelly Jam stuff, not a lot of solo's but he stretches out a little more.
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08-21-2005, 08:52 AM
| | | | he plays a sweet bass solo in the ytse jam, you can see it on their images and words dvd. |
08-21-2005, 10:17 AM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Goldsboro / Raleigh NC | | | Dance of Eternity, Metropolis Pt. 1, and Ytse Jam all have bass solos.
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08-21-2005, 10:56 AM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Apr 2002 Location: West Side SA | | | I heard that JM is going to be retiring from playing very soon. I think he wants to concentrate on teaching....
I could be wrong, but this is what I heard...
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08-21-2005, 11:00 AM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Wantagh, New York | | Quote: |
Originally Posted by NJL I heard that JM is going to be retiring from playing very soon. I think he wants to concentrate on teaching....
I could be wrong, but this is what I heard... | That is very sad, I'd hate to see him leave. I am seeing them on tuesday so hopefully it won't be the last time I see them with Myung! That'd suck... |
08-21-2005, 12:04 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: New York, NY | | Quote: |
Originally Posted by NJL I heard that JM is going to be retiring from playing very soon. I think he wants to concentrate on teaching....
I could be wrong, but this is what I heard... | Good for him. It's about time he ditched DT, Rudess Portnoy and Petrucci are intolerably wanky. It must get pretty old dealing with those kinds of egos.
Anyway, my feeling on Myung is threefold:
1. He is not musically versatile. He does one thing, which is rock. Not a bad thing in and of itself, but he's a particularly bland player.
2. It's my opinion that not only is he shy, but insecure as well. He practices three hours a day still. I know bass players that are just amazing and blow JM out of the water, and only practice for a half hour every day. Practicing that much can't be helping him very much at all.
3. He is hugely overrated by his fans, who put him up on this pedastal and propogate the myth that he has some kind of superhuman ability to be an amazing and versatile bass player, we just haven't seen him do it. Silly, if you ask me.
Anyway, those are my VERY PERSONAL opinions being a former Dream Theater fanboy. |
08-21-2005, 12:31 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: May 2005 Location: Illinois | | Quote: |
Originally Posted by Snarf 1. He is not musically versatile. He does one thing, which is rock. Not a bad thing in and of itself, but he's a particularly bland player. | He played violin, went to school for music and chooses to lay back in the role of bassist for Dream Theater. I don't know a whole lot about Dream Theater, but I was under the impression that John Myung was very versatile. |
08-21-2005, 01:04 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Oct 2002 Location: England | | | I think hes really good, and not overrated, ive got the New york 2000: scenes from new york dvd, he does a bass solo and lots of good bass work, fills everywhere.. good player. |
08-21-2005, 01:57 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Goldsboro / Raleigh NC | | | I think he's a phenomanal player and I don't see him quitting DT any time soon at all. But if he does quit, Tony Levin is a good replacement :-D
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08-21-2005, 02:02 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: florence , mississippi | | Quote: |
Originally Posted by The_Ryst But if he does quit, Tony Levin is a good replacement :-D |
That might hurt Portnoy's ego a little too much........
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08-21-2005, 02:31 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: New York, NY | | Quote: |
Originally Posted by Malodorous He played violin, went to school for music and chooses to lay back in the role of bassist for Dream Theater. I don't know a whole lot about Dream Theater, but I was under the impression that John Myung was very versatile. | He dropped out of Berklee to devote all his time to Dream Theater. That tells me that he wanted to focus entirely on rock. |
08-21-2005, 02:34 PM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Edinboro, PA | | | I completely agree with Snarf.
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08-22-2005, 02:39 AM
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Proprietor, Helland Musikk Teknologi | | Join Date: Apr 2004 Location: Norway | | Quote: |
Originally Posted by Snarf 1. He is not musically versatile. He does one thing, which is rock. Not a bad thing in and of itself, but he's a particularly bland player. | Maybe. Or, to look at it another way: he's a gifted bass player whose main music style is rock. Quote: |
Originally Posted by Snarf 2. It's my opinion that not only is he shy, but insecure as well. He practices three hours a day still. I know bass players that are just amazing and blow JM out of the water, and only practice for a half hour every day. Practicing that much can't be helping him very much at all. | It may be that he's practicing a lot to be able to endure those lengthy shred-fest DT songs for four hours a night, like an athlete needs to keep in shape.
(I'm using some DT songs in my practice routine for that very purpose, namely Erotomania (for warming up) and 6:00 (for endurance).) Quote: |
Originally Posted by Snarf 3. He is hugely overrated by his fans, who put him up on this pedastal and propogate the myth that he has some kind of superhuman ability to be an amazing and versatile bass player, we just haven't seen him do it. Silly, if you ask me. | Possible. I don't know any Myung fans personally. He is an amaxing bass player, we've seen that; though perhaps not all that versatile.
Me, I think JM does a very good job in DT. He plays to support the songs (not his ego (does he even have an ego?)) and that's what a bass player is, IMHO, supposed to do.
What's more is that, to my knowledge, he's come up with quite a number of excellent unison lines, riffs and themes for DT material. Listen to the commentary on the Metropolis pt.2 DVD for some examples.
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08-22-2005, 04:30 AM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Norway, Oslo | | Quote: |
Originally Posted by Snarf 2. It's my opinion that not only is he shy, but insecure as well. He practices three hours a day still. I know bass players that are just amazing and blow JM out of the water, and only practice for a half hour every day. Practicing that much can't be helping him very much at all. | I don't really dig him, but that made me respect him a whole lot more. Impressing. |
08-22-2005, 08:22 AM
| | Registered User | | Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: south wales, UK | | Quote: |
Originally Posted by f'nar f'nar I noticed that I've watched and listened to alot of dream theater's live stuff, and there never seems to be a bass solo. Everyone else seems to get one, but not my good friend Johnny boy. Do you guys rekon he doesnt want to? or maybe he doesnt think he's good enough? or because the others wont let him? |
John WHO???????? 
sorry had to do that.
i like his style and he should push abit harder i IMHO
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