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DO's and DONT's Please

#2
Going to try and put together a 4-5 piece Blues Band from scratch in 2017. This has been on my bucket list so I'm going to give it 1000% and see what happens. Some do's and don'ts from those with experience in bands will be greatly appreciated. I got the pray part down. Thanks.
 
#3
Finding like minded players helps. It also requires that you define the band's purpose up front.

Play out or a rehearsal band? How often to rehearse, expenses to members?

How long do you plan to spend in rehearsals, six weeks or six months?

What is the musical focus: recreating SRV like tunes (guitar centric); or vocal based like Solomn Burke, etc.

It's rarely the same as the plan but it helps to try to outline.
 
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#6
A. Ensure everyone's in the same general area with the definition of "blues". I saw an ad for a blues band that listed the Yardbirds, Zep, and Molly Hatchet, but no Kings, Muddy, or Wolf.
B. Get people who you want to be with, that's more critical than chops.
C. Chops are less important than feel for blues.
D. Be clear about time commitments and expectations- both rehearsals and gigs. Jioning a band expecting to gig twice a month and finding it's every Saturday will kill things quickly.
E. Be realistic about gig opportunities
F. Have a leader- a singke decision-maker who is genuinely ooen to all ideas is critical to the business side.
G. Treat the business side seriously as husiness, the music seriously, and the performance as fun.
 
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#11
garp said:
DO consider adding a keys player to your ensemble – particularly one who's well-versed in blues piano.

Love,
Bill Payne
Click to expand...




Indeed!




Also, treat the blues as a singer's medium and not a big excuse to play twelve guitar solos and sing three verses.


Edit: Nothing worse than having to hear, or play, a box shuffle for 10 minutes.
 
Last edited:
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#12
Yeah, I would try to avoid anyone who confuses blues rock with blues. Why be an imitation of a mutation? Same for those who are a little too wrapped up on Clapton, Vaughn, Bonamassa, and the like. Their playing was great and all, and they certainly advanced the cause, but you should do some scholarship and seek out names like Otis Rush, Magic Sam, Hubert Sumlin, T-Bone Walker, and so on; but at the same time don't overlook people like Lonnie Mack or Peter Green. I'm sure you'll be required by popular demand to choose some old warhorse tunes to play, but, once again, dig a deeper into the back catalogs of the greats and find some songs that are just as worthy, but underexposed. To keep 'em dancing, throw in some late 40's jump/proto-R'n'R like Louie Jordan or Bullmoose Jackson, and bluesy early R'n'B/Memphis Soul, a lot of that stuff fits right in. One of Albert King's best albums was done with Booker T and the MG's as a back-up band.
 
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#13
Yeah. What is the purpose?
Do you sing? How "loose" do you want things to be? What will you tolerate in imperfection? Or ramp up time?

I started something similar..just for fun, so I could work on my guitar skills. I put together the charts, print the out, keep things organized.

After a while we decide that we wanted to play out. So we've played a couple of open mic things. Been a lot of fun. Everyone's agreeable since its been just for fun and nobody expects anything specific.

My other band is a lot more varied...in terms of interest, experience and skills. Its more of a challenge.
 
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#14
I'd really focus on the core of band - assuming guitar-centric, so guitar, bass, drums + vocals. Get that chemistry down and see what develops out of that in terms of style and song selection. Build band around that. No sense trying to onboard a horn section early if what you need is harmonica or keys.
 
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#15
5StringBlues said:
Indeed!




Also, treat the blues as a singer's medium and not a big excuse to play twelve guitar solos and sing three verses.


Edit: Nothing worse than having to hear, or play, a box shuffle for 10 minutes.
Click to expand...

Exactly, make sure you have a vocalist who can bring it, especially during slow blues or ballads. Listen to Ray Charles' "Drown In My My Own Tears" or the original version of Buddy Guy's "Five Long Years"(although Buddy tends to get a bit histronic at times). Pick a variety of rhythms and grooves; there's nothing worse than song after song of straight Chicago shuffle. There's different types of shuffles as well, plus rhumba beats, eight-to-the-bar boogies, latin beats, double time, boogaloo, Chuck Berry style chunka-chunka, two-steps, and so on. Make sure you don't do too many, if any, songs in the same key in a row. Be entertaining in your presentation. Don't be afraid to work/jive the crowd. A few years ago, I saw Big Jay McNeely, one of the great 40's/50's sax honkers, in his mid-eighties, no less, actively sliding on up to and flirting with the sweet young things in the audience, on the dance floor itself.
 
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#16
DON'T be afraid to have a sax player instead of a harmonica player. It's still blues, just Memphis blues and not Chicago blues. Personally, after 35 years, I admit that, with rare exception, I've had enough harmonica playing to last the rest of my days, I think.

DO acknowledge that while the blues are accessible, I can only take so much mediocre blues... and I've been in some mediocre blues bands. Thankfully, I have had the honor to be in a few stellar ones as well. Don't just hack the blues to death, please. It deserves a better fate.
 
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#17
Michedelic said:
Exactly, make sure you have a vocalist who can bring it, especially during slow blues or ballads. Listen to Ray Charles' "Drown In My My Own Tears" or the original version of Buddy Guy's "Five Long Years"(although Buddy tends to get a bit histronic at times). Pick a variety of rhythms and grooves; there's nothing worse than song after song of straight Chicago shuffle. There's different types of shuffles as well, plus rhumba beats, eight-to-the-bar boogies, latin beats, double time, boogaloo, Chuck Berry style chunka-chunka, two-steps, and so on. Make sure you don't do too many, if any, songs in the same key in a row. Be entertaining in your presentation. Don't be afraid to work/jive the crowd. A few years ago, I saw Big Jay McNeely, one of the great 40's/50's sax honkers, in his mid-eighties, no less, actively sliding on up to and flirting with the sweet young things in the audience, on the dance floor itself.
Click to expand...



YES!
 
#18
blooz-300x300.jpg
 
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