Jamming

[Anglerfish]

What is your view on "just jamming" with no certain goal? I can't get rid of feeling that it is something bad. Even when i see really talented people doing it pretty well. It kinda disturbs me and I can't properly explain why. It feels like something is being wasted.


Is something wrong with me or do any of you feel the same?

 

[Gorn]

It's fun to play but I rarely enjoy seeing/hearing others do it.

I'm not sure what you mean about a goal though. What goal does playing definitive songs have that jamming doesn't?

 

[whatizitman]

I think the word means different things in different contexts. I'm not a fan of jam bands, for instance. Nor would I enjoy a blues jam for very long. But I do value coming up with a random riff (or one that has been in my head) and letting everyone join in to see where it goes. Lots of good songs have come out of that for me in band contexts. That's the type of jamming I like!

 

[RoadRanger]

If jammin' is the only thing you want to do yah, that's sad. There's a lot of guitard wankers out there who don't want to learn songs, just solo endlessly. OTOH I'll jam from time to time just so I can . I do have a couple bands that I'd call "closed jams" where it's the same guys every week and we choose songs, learn them on our own, and play them together in the basement - maybe gig a couple backyard parties played a year...

Actually went to a jam last Sunday - a guitarist I auditioned once a couple years back for one of our closed jams (but didn't want to learn songs) called me up. We had a blind drummer and a second guitarist who sang great (he's a drummer in a band and wanted to play guitar). It was actually pretty good but I don't see it as a regular thing as I do like learning songs. The first guitarist was struggling a bit when it wasn't straight 12 bar .

 

[bolophonic]

99% of the time someone asks me if I want to "jam," it means they want to be a musician but lack songwriting skills. Not my problem...

 

[preside]

With the correct people and a shared background or musical vocabulary jamming can be an immense challenge and a lot of fun. It must be approached as a conversation and not as one guy wanking. A Love Supreme, VooDoo Child, Dark Star are all jams that are stellar and a real test on the bass players ears.

 

[Michael B]

My buddy (guitarist) is good at writing. He considers jamming a complete waste if time. But if it's done to try out ideas for a specific song he does it. He refuses to call it jamming - though it really is the same thing.

For those with no writing skills jamming is still possible even if writing is not.

There's no right or wrong of course. Just different interests. Depends on the players whether or not I want to hear someone else do it. I rather enjoy participating.

 

[Joe Nerve]

Jamming is a great way to warm up, a great way for musicians to learn to play tightly with each other and grow as a band, and a great way to inspire the writing of new songs. It's also a lot of fun and if done tastefully and in the right places can be a really good place to cut loose and show yer skills. If you have any .

 

[DiabolusInMusic]

I love jamming but most players cannot do it in my experience. Widdling out random notes is not a jam, you need a structure and you need to need to know how work within that structure and alter it if somebody calls for it.

 

[Gorn]

The three guys I play with (that I'd hesitate to call a band) like jamming. Usually after we've played most of our repertoire, the jam just kinda happens. It's fun. And playing like that has helped me learn to play along with the drummer better than any of our covers ever did.

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

Jamming is an excellent way to improve your overall musicianship. You learn to listen and come up with lines on the fly that compliment what the others in the jam are doing.
It is great for your ear. You learn to recognize what notes are being played and when changes are coming.
This translates into being able to pick up parts for a song more quickly.
It is also practice. You're playing, so it has to be good for keeping up and improving basic skills.
My goal is to be a very good bass player. It is just another tool to help attain that goal.

 

[jerry]

Man, I grew up on jamming!

 

[jnuts1]

If people are good jamming can be a lot of fun. but everyone has to listen. it can be magic or a train wreck.

but think about this. ALL of the old school greats went to jam sessions

 

[JimK]

Man, I grew up on jamming!

...and a lost art, IMO.

Almost all the iconic Rock bands jammed (live)...and the audience expected such.

 

[GregC]

I'm not into it, generally--I'm a song-oriented guy. In my originals band, the drummer, lead guitarist and I will sometimes do it for a couple minutes while waiting for the singer/rhythm guitarist to finish setting up his laptop and mic (we usually record practices). But no songs have come out of it so far.

If others find value in it, that's great. It's just not for me.

 

[JimK]

Last year or so, I read One Way Out: The Inside History of the Allman Brothers Band.
Even today...they won't do a gig unless they're guaranteed 3 hours.
Some of their legendary Fillmore East gigs went into the following morning's breakfast.
Compare that to The Beatles last gig at Candlestick Park...roughly about 30 minutes & out!

 

[loveandbass]

as someone who "jams" a lot, its basically a musical group tightrope walk.

 

[Bassist4Eris]

Yes, I enjoy jamming, both as a musician and as a listener. Yes, I can write, learn, and/or play tightly structured songs too. There's room for both.

My band is an all-instrumental, mostly original cross between rock, funk, blues, and jazz. The older audience members like us because they think we're a jazz band, and the younger people like us because they think we're a jam band. The joke is on both camps: I'd say about 90% of our music is completely written out and not improvised at all. Solos are usually improvised, but usually within a very specific number of measures, with composed accompaniment. We do have a couple of songs with sections designated for jamming, with specific cues to get us out.

 

[bassliner50]

Jamming usually means cheap fill.

 

[jerry]

Sometimes jamming is some nice foreplay and has some good organic songs coming from it.