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Acoustic guitar/bass/drums trios?

D

dougjwray

Jul 20, 2005
7,050
7,915
#1
A singer/songwriter/acoustic guitarist I've been working with would like to start a project with that configuration. He asked me to come up with examples of it. He's mainly interested in ideas to help with switching from rhythm to lead and back, without emptiness happening. He is pretty good with a looper, but he is not fond of backing tracks covering the entire forms of songs (for ideological reasons).
The style is Americana/indie rock, so the music has an "honest" vibe. No flashy gimmicks.
I've mentioned the technique of incorporating open string drones into solos. I also know that I could play more chords, use an octave pedal, etc. But I don't want to be an attention-grabbing "stunt bassist" (to paraphrase Frank Zappa).
I mentioned great solo acoustic people like Leo Kottke and John Fahey, but that's a little different-- the expectations are different.
We're just looking for unthought of, creative approaches.
Anyone?
 
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#9
dougjwray said:
A singer/songwriter/acoustic guitarist I've been working with would like to start a project with that configuration. He asked me to come up with examples of it. He's mainly interested in ideas to help with switching from rhythm to lead and back, without emptiness happening. He is pretty good with a looper, but he is not fond of backing tracks covering the entire forms of songs (for ideological reasons).
The style is Americana/indie rock, so the music has an "honest" vibe. No flashy gimmicks.
I've mentioned the technique of incorporating open string drones into solos. I also know that I could play more chords, use an octave pedal, etc. But I don't want to be an attention-grabbing "stunt bassist" (to paraphrase Frank Zappa).
I mentioned great solo acoustic people like Leo Kottke and John Fahey, but that's a little different-- the expectations are different.
We're just looking for unthought of, creative approaches.
Anyone?
Click to expand...
Although the original duo drifted to this kind of line-up numerous times(plus other variations), if you pursued the addition of drums to the initial Hot Tuna concept, you’d more or less be there. I’m thinking in terms of “Water Song” from Burgers. Then there’s that Donovan album, Open Road, with the single, “Riki Tivi Tavi”, where he was on acoustic, backed only by bass and drums.
Gordon Lightfoot, CCR, Nick Drake? Look up a guy named Sandy Bull, and see if anything he did would be applicable.
 
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#10
Michedelic said:
Although the original duo drifted to this kind of line-up numerous times(plus other variations), if you pursued the addition of drums to the initial Hot Tuna concept, you’d more or less be there. I’m thinking in terms of “Water Song” from Burgers. Then there’s that Donovan album, Open Road, with the single, “Riki Tivi Tavi”, where he was on acoustic, backed only by bass and drums.
Gordon Lightfoot, CCR, Nick Drake? Look up a guy named Sandy Bull, and see if anything he did would be applicable.
Click to expand...
Great suggestions, thanks. For some reason, I forgot about Hot Tuna, in particular.
 
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#13
ardgedee said:
A lot of Thompson's albums are with full bands, but there's Strict Tempo which is him multitracking himself on various acoustic instruments and Industry which is mostly duets with Danny Thompson on upright.
Click to expand...
You can always pare down the arrangements. I’ve seen him with a large band, as a trio, that duo with Danny, and solo. Many of the same songs. I’ve done “Wall Of Death” in a trio.
 
#15
dougjwray said:
Wrong instrument (electric guitar), wrong genre (jazz).
Click to expand...
Is an acoustic guitar using loopers and pickups through an amp really all that different than one of those big Gibson archtops?

At any rate, I think in the "americana" range, whatever that means to your friend, by the time drums are coming in, it's getting loud enough not to be acoustic guitar so much.

Is he looking for groups to copy, or just to get an idea of the kind of sound that would work?
 
#16
turf3 said:
Is an acoustic guitar using loopers and pickups through an amp really all that different than one of those big Gibson archtops?

At any rate, I think in the "americana" range, whatever that means to your friend, by the time drums are coming in, it's getting loud enough not to be acoustic guitar so much.

Is he looking for groups to copy, or just to get an idea of the kind of sound that would work?
Click to expand...
He's looking for ideas about how to play single note solos without the middle dropping out. It's not a "sound" question, but a "playing" conceptual question.
We've played many successful gigs as acoustic guitar/bass/drums, so we know how to get that mix right. You just need a reasonable drummer. 🙂
 
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#17
dougjwray said:
He's looking for ideas about how to play single note solos without the middle dropping out. It's not a "sound" question, but a "playing" conceptual question.
We've played many successful gigs as acoustic guitar/bass/drums, so we know how to get that mix right. You just need a reasonable drummer. 🙂
Click to expand...
Well, in that case, examples from many styles would serve. If a jazz guy playing the typical lightly amplified archtop in a guitar/bass/drums trio is able to avoid things sounding too empty and spare while soloing, then many of the same playing techniques ought to serve an Americana guy playing a Martin dreadnought - and some of them won't.

I'm no guitarist but I'd suggest that if you've only got one other instrument and that preeminently a single note instrument (the bass), the guitar may have to forgo true single note solos. There's always the Carter scratch.

I'd also suggest that if you're talking about "creative, unthought-of approaches", there may not be many examples, otherwise they'd be "creative, commonly used" approaches.
 
#18
Michedelic said:
You can always pare down the arrangements. I’ve seen him with a large band, as a trio, that duo with Danny, and solo. Many of the same songs. I’ve done “Wall Of Death” in a trio.
Click to expand...
Fair enough, but my impression was that OP wanted to hear examples of acoustic trios performing, not just find songs that can be arranged for them.
 

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