How do you play covers with many fills/variations live?

[electracoyote]

That's all I'm saying. In many other threads I've seen people advocating playing (or claiming to play) songs 100% like the original.

I believe close, I don't believe 100%.

Even when you can play an entire song exactly like the original, it's not a given that you should. Most recordings have multiple guitars, keys, horns, background vocals, extra percussion, etc. If you play only the notes on the original recording, it still won't sound like the original. If someone wants to play as close to the record as they can get, that's their business. If they think that other musicians and the audience will notice the difference between close and exact, I think they are kidding themselves.

We're on the same page. My band uses it as a starting point: Shoot for "just like the recorded version we decided to use."

Does it turn out that way? Not very often. But it does get us all in the same ballpark, to the infield, sometimes right up on the pitcher's mound, and saves us huge amounts of time and haggling over what's right or wrong. We all have good ears, so there's no debating as to how a part should sound, and if we all do it, it comes together very similar to the way the hit recording did.

 

[lfmn16]

We're on the same page. My band uses it as a starting point: Shoot for "just like the recorded version we decided to use."

Does it turn out that way? Not very often. But it does get us all in the same ballpark, to the infield, sometimes right up on the pitcher's mound, and saves us huge amounts of time and haggling over what's right or wrong. We all have good ears, so there's no debating as to how a part should sound, and if we all do it, it comes together very similarly to the way the hit recording did.

Sounds like a smart group!

 

[JimK]

My band takes the same approach and we don't have to run a song more than once or twice before it's ready to roll.

Lucky. EVERY band I have played in always had that guy who never learned anything outside the practice room...

Unlike you, I'm not real fond of rehearsals; I like my band mates but I have better things to do with my time than run a song that I've already heard a billion times over and over until we finally get it "right."

Unlike you...I had no life.

 

[JimK]

I believe close, I don't believe 100%.

Probably true...