Was there ever a Tighter band than...

[40Hz]

I think in the last few posts we're getting to the essence of what 'tightness' is.

Rehearsing is one way a set of players gets tight but mega live gigs with the same core folk really makes for communications and the ability to anticipate others playing.

Thrown together things, no matter the level of players, rarely works as a unit.

Careful! Talking like that, you're gonna run afoul of that crewe over on the Band Management sub-board who take pride in the fact they "never rehearse" and play with at least six or nine different bands…

(And btw…I agree with you completely.)

 

[AngelsBassBall]

Don't ever praise Tool AND Perfect Circle in the same sentence!! A Perfect Circle is the reason Maynard won't commit to Tool and release a new album!!!

And the disgrace that is puscifer.

 

[MVE]

Though they have not played live often, Steely Dan is not exclusively a studio act. And they’re tight live.

The live tours they have done over the past few years are certainly tightly orchestrated to sound as close to the recorded songs as possible. But they are still performances of a piece of art that was written to tape.
Yes, the shows are very very tight.

 

[MVE]

Which version?

The one on the Classic Yes album.

 

[MVE]

I disagree, mostly because I'm right, but partly because you're wrong.

Well, I'm glad you recognized I was only partly wrong. Or, am I fully wrong and you only disagree party for that reason?

 

[WaynerBass]

Rush
Dream Theater
Jethro Tull

 

[pnchad]

Six or nine crappy bands. I've moved to a new, smaller city and the bar is so low here no one even notices the poop they produce. One BL wanted me badly but each get together there were different players and often not even a full band. He was so proud and produced a 6 page list of his tunes, about 500. (Yeah, we got 500 tunes but we can't get through 2 of them without a train wreck).

Well, I'd seen them live and on the Tube and it always sucked but still got over cause the comp is just as bad. I told him I couldn't help him out due to being too busy doing my own thing. Now I'm culling the slackers from the cream and will field the most kicka$$ band in town soon

 

[Shortie]

And they’re tight live.

So is the Philharmonic. A formally arranged band based on sheets and written parts, is not "tight" in the same way, IMO. If we go there we can count every band on TV or studio crew that records a jingle.

 

[Shortie]

An excellent point. Agreed

He had a lot of switches in personnel because he was such a hard-ass professional. I read someplace that Bootsy was the only bass player JB ever allowed to play his own lines.

 

[franklindayala]

Tribal tech

 

[Broadbandcorpse]

Extreme.

 

[bassbully]

I've heard that Copeland had a huge tendency to rush songs live.

Also known to play the songs a diffrent way all the time.

 

[BeardedFrog]

They're not all-time contenders, but the one that surprised me with how tight they were live was Bruno Mars' band.

 

[Tim de Martino]

I don't know if anyone's mentioned Chic. Tight AND loose, my favourite combo!

Surely live is the best test of tightness.

311. Probably one of the tightest bands I have ever seen live

My band plays the song "Cali Soca". Always a lot of fun to lock in to that, even if the dancefloor doesn't really know what to do with it....

Cheers,

Tim

 

[L Anthony]

Two I've seen:

Bela Fleck and The Flecktones
Pat Metheny Group

 

[Billyzoom]

WOW. Loved it. Never heard of them.

 

[pudgychef]

Minor Threat were super tight
Minutemen

+1 to Zappa bands..that 2nd incarnation of the Mother's through to pre Cocaine Decisions were stellar...

 

[carrythatweight]

Spoon. Definitely the tightest live group I've heard!

 

[eff-clef]

Minor Threat were super tight
Minutemen

+1 to Zappa bands..that 2nd incarnation of the Mother's through to pre Cocaine Decisions were stellar...

Tower of Power, Aquarium Rescue Unit, and Fishbone (in their hayday). You stole my thunder with Zappa
(during the George Duke/Chester Thompson/Ruth Underwood days) OH, I forgot
have you ever seen KID CREOLE and the COCONUTS ? They're tighter than a flea's a-hole.

 

[Esoge]

Steely Dan
Rush
Secret Chiefs 3
Yes
Funk Brothers
Wrecking Crew
Muscle Shoals Rhythm Section
Tower of Power
Weather Report
Tool
The Roots

Too many to name and most of these already were