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more noodles than a ramen store!
- Thread starter great bleudini
- Start date
Wow, You just reminded me of the only guitarist I didn't mind seeing live who incessantly noodled, Danny Gatton.. Saw him in the late 80's close-up at the NYC Lone Star Roadhouse, I believe when he noodled it was a show within the show!
I'm in a band with a guitarist/noodler. After trying to verbally correct the problem until I was blue in the face, I've had to take more dramatic steps to fix. Lately, when we're having a discussion at rehearsal, or between songs at a show, and the noodling starts, I walk over and stomp on the tuner on his pedal board. He's not a fan of that move, but it gets the point across.
Very unprofessional.
I used to make all kinds of noise between songs too when I was a drunk 20-something, but I'm over my noodles now after playing in hard working bands for the last bunch of years.
Soundcheck? Set up, plug in, set EQ, set pedals, set levels, mute. Done. Total amount of audible noise should be less than 5 minutes.
During the set, if you need to fidget between songs... tune your instrument (silently).
Between sets, gtfo the stage and go do something else. Mingle, smoke, whatever. But making noise on stage on set breaks is absurd, unless you have some technical issue that needs to be worked out.
I used to make all kinds of noise between songs too when I was a drunk 20-something, but I'm over my noodles now after playing in hard working bands for the last bunch of years.
Soundcheck? Set up, plug in, set EQ, set pedals, set levels, mute. Done. Total amount of audible noise should be less than 5 minutes.
During the set, if you need to fidget between songs... tune your instrument (silently).
Between sets, gtfo the stage and go do something else. Mingle, smoke, whatever. But making noise on stage on set breaks is absurd, unless you have some technical issue that needs to be worked out.
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I used to stand right beside my guitar player's amp at our jam space. More than once I just reached over and hit is standby switch when we were trying to talk something through. Usually pissed him off pretty good, but always got the point across.
I'd respectfully disagree.
Sure you get people who want to tell you the whole history of a tune sometimes (folk singers especially!)
but introducing a song, giving a shout out to the bar-staff, an occasional SHORT anecdote or joke ... helps get the audience involved.
Someone like James Taylor or Bruce Springsteen really know how to do this right, taking a show from just a run through their hits to something that feels (even if they're faking it) more personal).
This completely depends on the charisma of the talker to me. I used do play with a singer with an amazing voice who was a black hole of energy between songs. She just didn't know what to say. She'd usually just set there in complete silence, or sometimes she'd literally ask the audience if they knew any jokes while the guitar player switched instruments. Oh what I would have given for one of those singers who will tell you about his day between songs.
At some point I told her to pretend she was making enthusiastic small talk with a little kid who was only giving her yes or no answers, "How are you doing?" "It sure is pretty out here on the water (one of our most common gig locations was a city park water overhang thing) isn't it?" "You guys enjoying this summer?" "That one was by Tom Petty, anyone here a petty fan?" You'd be shocked how well it works.
Jesus Christ, Option 2 and if the idiot/s are not responsive Option 3....punch out!
I'll admit it, if I'm not constantly policing myself I'll sometimes start to . . . I don't even know if it rises to the level of "noodling," more like "fidget while I happen to be holding a bass," but I know that about myself, so the second a song is over, I step on my tuner and kill my sound. I still try to watch myself, but at least this way I know I'm not activey disrupting something else.
I honestly think it's an unconscious behavior at least in my bands situation. Sort of like an ADHD type fidgeting. If there is a silver lining to any of this it's that we only need to show up with two hours of prepared material for a three hour gig because the noodling can eat up an hours worth of time!
“I believe you’re a fine guitarist. Well, until the noodling starts. Then you come off as nothing more than a wannabe riffing at Guitar Center. That’s pretty embarrassing for all of us. I’d like to think you’re better than that. Can you show me that you are?”
nearly every band I've performed in has craved a good talker. one of things that most younger bands are terrible at is entertaining the crowd. as you get older, that gets easier. normally in my bands, we find out who is most interesting at brief fun anecdotes and doesn't meander or get boring, and get them to talk between songs (every 3rd or 4rd song, normally). depends on the crowd and the gig though.
I guess though, more I think about it, that is more for music that actually benefits from a 30 second journey down the "how they hell did they end up playing THAT song?!" path... I've done a lot of music/gigs like that...
option 1 has worked VERY Well for a couple of famous examples mentioned here - jerry garcia, derek trucks (Based on reviews of trucks tedeschi, I'd say it was a huge success... and I just saw a video where he started a jam on a miles davis tune and the band gradually jumped in and played along... that's the organic jam stuff that I actually love to listen to).
But yea LoL, in a normal working band, option 2 or option3 - I fully agree.
Low points of their shows - when they start talking. Music is ruined by talking - music is abstract art at its best - whereas talking just drags it down to precise and mundane. Shut up and play your guitar. Talking establishes who the talker is - mystery all gone. Talking is amateur only enjoyed by fandom - time wasted where a song might be played. Live records with talking - second time fast forward. Dan Hicks had the only line I ever enjoyed- This next song is about ... 3 minutes long.
