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Freaked Out Beginner

#41
Lots of good advice here! I can only add one thing that has helped me through some difficult spots. Don't practice until you get it right... practice until you CAN'T get it wrong! Human nature tells us that once we have accomplished something to move on to the next task. Now, I realize that the "can't get it wrong" is an impossibility (hey, brain farts happen!) but it reminds me that just because I finally got it right my work isn't over. My personal gold standard for a tough part is 10 correct repetitions done in 10 successive practice sessions. I guess one other thing I might add that works for me is to test if you really have your songs down, try playing them while the TV is on in front of you. I have found this to be a great way to test my tolerance of distractions. Keep working on it, you'll get there!!!!
 
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#42
elgecko said:
All good advice but let me add that you should try not to hold up the rest of the band. Figure out a way to simplify the parts to allow you to play them to hold you over while you woodshed them. After all, the show must go on!
Click to expand...

+1 to simplifying the part. Just so it sounds _like_ the passage and fits the chord changes, it'll get you by until you can get the lick up to tempo.

IOW, the priority is _preservation of the groove_.
 
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#44
as others have said .. practice slowly and correctly .. !! playing something fast and sloppy with mistakes will only ingrain those mistakes into your head .. !

you can also work on a few tough passages right before you go to bed ... ! your brain will keep working on them while you go to sleep ... building muscle memory ...

and ... if you've consistently worked on some basic finger exercises and scales ... then such things shouldn't freak you and your fingers out that much ... except for some weird timing stuff .. !

I've played piano for 50+ yrs ... I still practice scales to keep things limber , smooth and flowing ... !!
 
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#45
What I have found myself doing, is learning the "shell" of the song, to the point that if we played it I could get through it and 99% of the people listening would not know any different. But then I go back periodically as I am more comfortable with the song and start adding the more intracate parts. An example would be Thin Lizzy's The Boys Are Back In Town. I have been playing it for years but never really say down with it. Since the band I am in now plays it (and I was thier first call fill in for their old bass player) I started picking the song apart, even to the point of watching live videos to see the way Phil played it. because of that I have added small extra parts like the walking bassline before the end of the song and some other parts during the verse. Apparently the previous bass player never played these parts so I have had a bunch of people (including the guitar players) mention it. And when I hear other bands play it, I key in on weather or not their bass player does them as well.

I have never been a note-for-note player, so if there is a song I'm not to fond of playing, I'll learn the "shell" and any signature parts and leave it at that.
 
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#46
Keep it simple until you have those parts nailed down. Chances are no one in the audience is going to walk out because you didn't play a particular bass part note for note. How many live albums have you heard where the original artists don't even play the songs note for note, and it's their material? Just don't do some lame attempt that backfires and makes you look stupid. Holding down the fort is your number one priority, and not many bassists have ever been faulted for sticking to the simple lines.
 
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#49
A perfect bass player doesn't make mistakes. A great bass player makes mistakes but you never notice, because he/she knows how to recover before you have a chance to figure it out. Just don't make that "$&# I just $&#$ed that up" face, get back to where you are supposed to be as quick as possible and don't sweat it.

A lot of your problems won't come from how well you play the parts. They will come from how much of a prick your guitar player or drummer is...you know, the dagger eyes guy that shoots you the "If I could murder you this very second I would" look at the smallest bassline impropriety. If that attitude is present, do yourself a favor and tell them to sodd off right now.
 
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#50
Ric5 said:
You don't have to play note for note ... just get the feel and groove of the song.

Look at this video ... about 16 seconds I go to G instead of C but I play through it as if it wasn't a mistake.



So if you make a mistake then keep the groove going and get back to where you need to be.
Click to expand...

Yep, but you made one other mistake. You gracefully got from the G to the C and nobody would have noticed. Then you did the goof grimace and threw your head back. That draws attention to you and then people will notice the mistake.
It's like playing poker, keep the grove on your face as well.
 
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#51
Gravedigger Dav said:
Yep, but you made one other mistake. You gracefully got from the G to the C and nobody would have noticed. Then you did the goof grimace and threw your head back. That draws attention to you and then people will notice the mistake.
It's like playing poker, keep the grove on your face as well.
Click to expand...
Actually I was laughing at myself ... I don't take the music thing too seriously ...
 
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#52
Ric5 said:
Actually I was laughing at myself ... I don't take the music thing too seriously ...
Click to expand...
Yeah, I think that's the key. If you call attention to your error by looking upset or annoyed, you risk looking like you are incompetent or taking yourself too seriously or both. If you laugh about it and let the audience in on the joke, it makes you more loveable.

The opening night of the Adrian Belew Power Trio's last tour, they all (and especially Adrian) made lots of mistakes. (They had put together a very complicated show, with countless stops and starts and twists and turns, and hadn't had much time to rehearse.) They never tried to hide them: They all laughed at loud and looked like they were having a blast. In between songs, Adrian would sometimes apologize, and (semi-jokingly) thank us for serving as guinea pigs while they worked out the kinks. The crowd loved it: It was actually more fun in some ways than if they had played everything perfectly. (Though I also saw a show near the end of the tour when they did play things perfectly, and I have to admit that was pretty awesome too.)
 
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