Getting guitar players interested in groove

[Tony In Philly]

I'd love to see a list of 100 songs that fit that criteria! But I'm all for a compromise, so long as it gets gigs and repeat gigs. So far we are stuck in the basement.

I hear what you're saying. I think the answer is research for good, usable tunes and then look and see what other gigging bands are doing. As for my band, we play a lot of repeat gigs in selected bars and we try to a mix of late 60's, early 70's, maybe a few 80's, and some 90's covers. We try to cover a few bases and that helps. If the guitarist wants to gig regularly he'll need to open up maybe just a little to some styles that may not necessarily be what he normally listens to.

 

[devnulljp]

Remind them that they are there to play for the audience, not their own egos.

These are guitar players we're talking about ...

 

[Bass Viking]

Yeah, it's getting the "other stuff that has dance grooves" that's the problem.

How about Mustang Sally?

 

[MtManiac]

I hear what you'e saying. I think the answer is research for good, usable tunes and then look and see what other gigging bands are doing. As for my band, we play a lot of repeat gigs in selected bars and we try to a mix of late 60's, early 70's, maybe a few 80's, and some 90's covers. We try to cover a few bases and that helps. If the guitarist wants to gig regularly he'll need to open up maybe just a little to some styles that may not necessarily be what he normally listens to.

Want to share a set list? I'd love to see it.

 

[Ostie]

How about Hard to Handle? Also, women like slow dancing, so play some soul songs like These Arms of Mine or Thats How Strong My Love Is, or Dark End of the Street.

 

[TheDominoKid]

Make them listen to old funk—James Brown, Tower of Power, Larry Graham, etc.—and just give them a solo section in whatever old R&B tune you want to cover. Worked for me and I turned my old guitarist into a groove lover.

 

[BassikBrad]

Most hobby guitarists are more interested in what I call guitar wankery than they are in being part of a synergistic musical team. For 90% of them, the rest of the band is there to provide a platform for endless (and usually poorly executed) soloing.

It's often said that guitar players are a dime a dozen. Good ones, though, not so much. I spent a couple of years trying to find a really good player for one of the bands I'm in. Finally found one, and I'm not about to let him go. Guitarists like that are actually quite rare.

"GUITAR WANKERY" IS NOW MY NUMBER ONE in my Bass Players Dictionary. No sleep tonight. I shall be repeating this all night long.

 

[Tony In Philly]

Want to share a set list? I'd love to see it.

I'm literally doing this off the top of my head because I don't have an active electronic list with me at the moment - our main guitarist has a heavily edited master printout that we use to spin off individual sets or just call them out as we're reading the crowd. So here's my attempt at a master list from memory. Songs listed are by the artist's rendition and not necessarily the actual authors:

Red House - Jimi Hendrix
Tightrope - Stevie Ray Vaughn
Five Long Years - Eric Clapton
White Room - Cream
The Bends - Radiohead
Cinnamon Girl - Neil Young
Badge - Cream
LaGrange - ZZ Top
Under The Bridge - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Good Time Bad Times - Led Zeppelin
Paranoid - Black Sabbath
White Wedding - Billy Idol
Everlong - Foo Fighters
Sunshine of Your Love - Cream
Maybelline - Chuck Berry
My Hero - Foo Fighters
War Pigs - Black Sabbath
Why Does Love Have to be So Sad - Derek and the Dominoes
Mississippi Queen - Mountain
Mary Jane's Last Dance - Tom Petty
Shooting Star - Bad Company
Roadhouse Blues - Doors
Crossroads - Cream
Just What I Needed - Cars
When You Were Young - Killers
Comfortably Numb - Pink Floyd
Scar Tissue - Red Hot Chili Peppers
The Seeker - Who
You Wreck Me - Tom Petty
Love Me Two Times - Doors
Creep - Radiohead
Down By the River - Neil Young
Leave My Little Girl Alone - Stevie Ray Vaughn
Hey Joe - Jimi Hendrix
Working Man - Rush
Sultans of Swing - Dire Straits
Family Tree - Kings of Leon
Day Tripper - Beatles

...I'm sure there are a few more that I just can't recall at the moment, but you get the basic idea.

 

[MattZilla]

I don't know that I've ever seen a red house. Over yonder or right up close.

 

[J-Mags]

Simply ask the question, "What do you want people to be doing when they listen to us play?" If the answer doesn't sound fun, OUT! If the answer does sound fun, see if he's willing to do what it takes. If not, OUT!

 

[Keger Jupit]

Getting guitar players interested in groove

I wish you luck with this, sir! Most lead guitarists I've played with are more interested in their pedalboards than groove...sigh...

Pure rhythm guitarists, or BL's who play guitar, are a little easier IME

 

[obimark]

Anybody else doing the "dad rock" thing and having trouble with guitar players and song selection?

For example - current band, I really want to do some older R&B and British blues rock tunes that carry a beat and a groove, as well as pretty much anything from the 70s-10's that can be adapted to two guitars and has a groove (like Daft Punk "Get Lucky, for example). The drummer and I can carry off our parts, but the guitar players are uninterested. The lead guy wants to do Kenny Wayne Shepherd "Blue On Black", Jimi Hendrix "Red House," and songs that are fun for lead guitar players. The Rhythm guitar player is a bit more on board with the "danceable" aspect of songs but really doesn't know a lot of danceable songs outside of the country genre. Sometimes too, when there's a part where the bass and drums are supposed to play together without guitars, he will copy the bass line on his guitar, which to me totally kills the groove.

I'd like to do some old classics, like Knock On Wood, Soul Man, some Spencer Davis Group tunes, etc and have the guitars figure out something to cover the horn parts. I think they would rock *and* be danceable.

Anybody else run into this? Anybody successfully manage through it?

Sure- unfortunately, when they have lead guitarist disease all they want to play is "solo" songs rather than good groove songs. Usually they can't be re-trained.

 

[tubedude]

Spring a Little Feat tune on them. If they can follow the groove, there's plenty of interesting material for guitar, without clearing the dance floor.

 

[two fingers]

I'm literally doing this off the top of my head because I don't have an active electronic list with me at the moment - our main guitarist has a heavily edited master printout that we use to spin off individual sets or just call them out as we're reading the crowd. So here's my attempt at a master list from memory. Songs listed are by the artist's rendition and not necessarily the actual authors:

Red House - Jimi Hendrix
Tightrope - Stevie Ray Vaughn
Five Long Years - Eric Clapton
White Room - Cream
The Bends - Radiohead
Cinnamon Girl - Neil Young
Badge - Cream
LaGrange - ZZ Top
Under The Bridge - Red Hot Chili Peppers
Good Time Bad Times - Led Zeppelin
Paranoid - Black Sabbath
White Wedding - Billy Idol
Everlong - Foo Fighters
Sunshine of Your Love - Cream
Maybelline - Chuck Berry
My Hero - Foo Fighters
War Pigs - Black Sabbath
Why Does Love Have to be So Sad - Derek and the Dominoes
Mississippi Queen - Mountain
Mary Jane's Last Dance - Tom Petty
Shooting Star - Bad Company
Roadhouse Blues - Doors
Crossroads - Cream
Just What I Needed - Cars
When You Were Young - Killers
Comfortably Numb - Pink Floyd
Scar Tissue - Red Hot Chili Peppers
The Seeker - Who
You Wreck Me - Tom Petty
Love Me Two Times - Doors
Creep - Radiohead
Down By the River - Neil Young
Leave My Little Girl Alone - Stevie Ray Vaughn
Hey Joe - Jimi Hendrix
Working Man - Rush
Sultans of Swing - Dire Straits

...I'm sure there are a few more that I just can't recall at the moment, but you get the basic idea.

I don't hate any of those songs. But, man, the kinds of people who would like that setlist rarely stay up past 9:00 these days. If you played a bar around here with that lost, you wouldn't be back. The vast majority of those songs do NOT have a danceable groove AT ALL.

I don't think you and OP are on the same page at all.... or even in the same book.

 

[mattj1stc]

In my experience, they either get it (the groove) or they don't. If they don't already get it, you're probably not going to get them interested in it.

 

[3Liter]

The vast majority of those songs do NOT have a danceable groove AT ALL.

I don't think you and OP are on the same page at all.... or even in the same book.

I agree. I'd like to see what the OP wants to play. I might steal them for my band.
One that we do and like is Wilson Pickett's 'Barefootin'. I'm the guitar player and our bassist grooves, our drummer kinda does. But it's fun.

 

[Hachimitsu]

 

[LetItGrowTone]

I don't know that I've ever seen a red house. Over yonder or right up close.

Rumor is there's one just outside La Grange, TX.

 

[foolforthecity]

I'm in a 5-piece. We solve this by having everyone pick a song they want to do. We learn 5 new songs and drop 5 old songs (one that have been getting the least response). Anyone in the band can veto a song, but you have to state why you are vetoing a song. Also, everyone in our band sings (it's a rule) at least one song. So, if you pick a song outside our lead singer's range, you better hope you can sing it. It is helpful that all the band members understand crowd enjoyment is more important than our own, but we do a good job of picking songs that both we and the crowd enjoy. We still throw in a blues/guitar wank friendly song once a set so the good people of the dancefloor can go get a beer and all the guitar players (owners) in the audience can get excited.

Pretty much sums it up

 

[2F/2F]

Anybody else doing the "dad rock" thing and having trouble with guitar players and song selection?

For example - current band, I really want to do some older R&B and British blues rock tunes that carry a beat and a groove, as well as pretty much anything from the 70s-10's that can be adapted to two guitars and has a groove (like Daft Punk "Get Lucky, for example). The drummer and I can carry off our parts, but the guitar players are uninterested. The lead guy wants to do Kenny Wayne Shepherd "Blue On Black", Jimi Hendrix "Red House," and songs that are fun for lead guitar players. The Rhythm guitar player is a bit more on board with the "danceable" aspect of songs but really doesn't know a lot of danceable songs outside of the country genre. Sometimes too, when there's a part where the bass and drums are supposed to play together without guitars, he will copy the bass line on his guitar, which to me totally kills the groove.

I'd like to do some old classics, like Knock On Wood, Soul Man, some Spencer Davis Group tunes, etc and have the guitars figure out something to cover the horn parts. I think they would rock *and* be danceable.

Anybody else run into this? Anybody successfully manage through it?

Sounds like you have good taste in music, and they have crappy taste in music. You aren't musically compatible, and you aren't going to be able to force musical compatibility. Forgot those guys and find a band who is into the same stuff as you (i.e. good stuff).

If they want to play that crap, they should be going to local crummy blues jams, not playing in a steady live band.