Remembering Mistakes

[Joe Nerve]

Not sure yet if this is a good thing or bad thing ...

I was just reviewing some covers for tonight's club gig, and I had a realization. I remember parts I flubbed, even from bands I was in many many many years ago.

The good is that I'm hard on myself and when those flubs happen once, they rarely if ever happen again. I flub minimally these days, and have had many nights of 3 hours worth of material without a single flub.

The bad is in the first part of the "good" above. I feel I'm sometimes a lot harder on myself than I need be.

I think also the fact that I don't drink at all adds to all this . In my drinking days I didn't even remember the gigs. Forget about flubs.

What's YOUR experience?

 

[Brad Johnson]

While I prefer not to learn through adversity, the painful ones definitely stick. Keeps me from getting complacent.

 

[Groove Doctor]

I started with the wrong song (about 10yrs ago). Bass intro to both of them, & the names were almost identical. I was the MD at church that day so we just ploughed ahead. It wasn’t until afterwards when I asked what heck happened that I discovered it was me.


This year....
I missed a ‘key change at an unusual spot’ on a brand new song. I thought the singers sounded funny.... until I got a tap on the shoulder from the keyboard player to remind me. I’m usually the person reminding others...

 

[LBS-bass]

I'm with you. I remember the stuff I mess up. Hopefully, most of those messes occur in rehearsal.

Night before last, rehearsal, I kept starting songs in the wrong key. Don't know why; it was weird. Last night's show, nailed all of that. Messed up a few other things but overall a pretty good show. I guess this was one time when full rehearsal was beneficial.

 

[Bob_Ross]

I started with the wrong song (about 10yrs ago).

That reminds me of a gig I did in the Spring of 1978. Opening act was a friend of mine's band, then my band followed with our set, and then for the Big Show Finale they all joined us onstage and we combined bands to play a number that we both happened to know, including trading solos between the bazillion players now on stage.

Tune was in E minor. My turn to solo comes up and I launch into a ferocious lick
...in Eb minor.

I still remember that crestfallen feeling to this day, some 41 years later.







The funny thing is, nowadays I'd probably do that intentionally!

 

[Julian G]

Yeah unfortunately I Remember Mistakes and then forget how it's supposed to go.

In some songs we play in our covers band I remember the mistake and how it's supposed to go and sometimes find myself trying to quickly think which is the correct one I should be playing!! For Halloween we played My Immortal which we had not played for a while, rehearsed it a couple of days before seemed OK. We got to the bridge and neither me nor either of the guitarists could remember what to play we just looked blankly at each other - we will all be remembering that mistake for sure.

 

[Orion1985]

I'm with you. I remember the stuff I mess up. Hopefully, most of those messes occur in rehearsal.

Night before last, rehearsal, I kept starting songs in the wrong key. Don't know why; it was weird. Last night's show, nailed all of that. Messed up a few other things but overall a pretty good show. I guess this was one time when full rehearsal was beneficial.

It may be a touch superstitious but in my experience it seems that bad rehearsal = good gig.

 

[juancaminos]

I still remember starting Dock Of The Bay in the wrong key at a bar in the early 80's!

 

[Joe Nerve]

It may be a touch superstitious but in my experience it seems that bad rehearsal = good gig.

What's worse than that is that the opposite is also true.

I don't think that's a superstition either. I think its a reality and experience that most share. For bands that care, anyhow. Bad rehearsals put everyone on their best game for the gig. Good rehearsals tend to make bands overly confident.

 

[MonetBass]

The goofs certainly make for colorful stories later. But yeah, I always go back and figure out what I did wrong and fix it so it doesn't happen again.

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

Yup, some major ones still haunt me to this day.

Happens to everyone.

 

[Wanker_Joe]

I definitely recall the mistakes. Unfortunately I don't always remember what precisely I did wrong (or how to fix it), which means that on occasion I'll get a spike of anxiety as I'm playing a passage which my mind is flagging as "screwed it up last time" and I'll have no idea how to make sure it doesn't happen again...

 

[Julian G]

I definitely recall the mistakes. Unfortunately I don't always remember what precisely I did wrong (or how to fix it), which means that on occasion I'll get a spike of anxiety as I'm playing a passage which my mind is flagging as "screwed it up last time" and I'll have no idea how to make sure it doesn't happen again...

Oh have so been there and done that

 

[bolophonic]

I definitely know how it feels to hit some big clam. I never ever improvise in a live setting because the probability of wiping out is around 100%.

That reminds me of a gig I did in the Spring of 1978. Opening act was a friend of mine's band, then my band followed with our set, and then for the Big Show Finale they all joined us onstage and we combined bands to play a number that we both happened to know, including trading solos between the bazillion players now on stage.

Tune was in E minor. My turn to solo comes up and I launch into a ferocious lick
...in Eb minor.

I still remember that crestfallen feeling to this day, some 41 years later.







The funny thing is, nowadays I'd probably do that intentionally!

I bet it sounded cool.

 

[Joe Nerve]

I definitely recall the mistakes. Unfortunately I don't always remember what precisely I did wrong (or how to fix it), which means that on occasion I'll get a spike of anxiety as I'm playing a passage which my mind is flagging as "screwed it up last time" and I'll have no idea how to make sure it doesn't happen again...

Because I remember, I'm always sure to review whatever I flubbed when I get home. I make certain I can play the part in my head, know the actual notes, and basically know it inside out and upside down.

 

[lfmn16]

Reminds me of something I read about football. A good defensive back needs to learn from his mistakes, but not dwell on them. Just my opinion, but I've found it's the hacks that blow off their mistakes like it's nothing and the good players who learn from them and don't repeat them. There are no "happy accidents" just mistakes, IMHO.

 

[mambo4]

I strive to recover gracefully, forget and move on, especially in the moment. As a result I remember far less flubs than I probably make.

I'm convinced that the best players are not mistake free but faster and more musical in their recovery.