What do you think about when taking a solo?

[GlennRH]

First: "Stay in key. Stay in key."

Then: "End it soon. It's better if they want more. End it soon. It's better if they want more."

 

[Bassheart365]

God Make Me Funky...

 

[zubrycky]

I don't think. I just play.

 

[ThinCrappyTone]

"They love me! I'm the greatest! Look at me go! Wait, where are you going? Come baaaaaack!"

 

[red_rhino]

(Looking at guitar player) "It's a bass solo! Stop f*cking playing!"

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

Nothing. If I think, I mess up.

 

[TexasHeat]

What do you think about when you take a solo?

Why did the rest of the band stop playing???

 

[IamGroot]

Hey guys, its okay to play notes that arent in the particular scale/ mode, if you can make it sound musical.

Honest.

 

[IamGroot]

Walking bass in jazz is covert soloing, if you do it right

 

[foal30]

I think, "How far am I going to get into this before discovering I've accidentally shifted keys?"

Or I should of set my bass up properly before going above the 12th fret...

 

[Smooth_bass88]

So i recently joined my first band and one of the songs on their setlist is Ben Harper's Steal My Kisses where the bass takes a solo towards the end of the song. While we were practicing it during a session it occurred to me that I don't really know what the idea is behind a bass solo in a "rock" type of setting. I know my grooves and scales, but what exactly is the bass player thinking in the song. So here's the question:


What do you think about when you take a solo?

Nothing. Like when you're having a conversation with someone, you don't exactly think about each and every word that comes out, it just kinda flows and makes sense; there's continuity. Same thing with playing a solo. "If you're thinking, you're stinking!"

 

[arbiterusa]

How to end it.

 

[red_rhino]

How to end it.

Just to clarify, you're referring to the solo, right?

 

[JW56789]

I think about either a) chicken-fried steak, or if I'm REALLY 'on it', b) smoked brisket.

 

[JRA]

I'm not sure what I was expecting, but can we at least try to get a couple serious responses.

my response was honest --- doesn't that count?

What do I think about? Consuming orange sherbet and vanilla ice cream on a dessert island, surrounded by the Swedish bikini team.

I'll quote Carlos Santana when he was asked about soloing,
"If you're thinkin' you're stinkin".

 

[fhm555]

I make sure up front that everyone knows I don't do solos. I've made one exception when I learned something for Momma Don't Allow so I'd have something besides the regular line when I played by myself. Other than that I'm more than happy to let whoever wants it to get all they want. As long as they're testifying I'm there, but when it devolves into aimless wanking, not so much.

 

[seilerbird]

Actually I try not to think of anything while playing a guitar solo. I am not good enough to a bass solo. But my guitar solos were divided into two camps in my last band. About half the songs I had worked out note for note and played them by muscle memory requiring no thinking. The other solos I would just not think and let my fingers do the walking. I would just jam away like an idiot not caring if I hit the occasional blue note. And I learned not to think too much because then my mind gets in the way of my fingers. I am not a very good guitar player and I was playing only for myself. No one ever complained so I wasn't that bad.

 

[logdrum]

Watch Travis Carlton with his dad or Robben Ford. He does not just vamp on play pentatonic. Specially with Robben, who plays a lot of Blues and Blues Rock, it's really interesting how harmonically rich his solos are even with the confines of the blues structure.

Here is with his dad. This could easily be a rock or pop tune even. See how he solos here:

 

[mcnach]

So i recently joined my first band and one of the songs on their setlist is Ben Harper's Steal My Kisses where the bass takes a solo towards the end of the song. While we were practicing it during a session it occurred to me that I don't really know what the idea is behind a bass solo in a "rock" type of setting. I know my grooves and scales, but what exactly is the bass player thinking in the song. So here's the question:


What do you think about when you take a solo?

I think "oh dear god, let this be over soon".

In one of my bands our 'dear leader' chooses a song (it changes every time, we're a mix of covers and originals, ska/reggae with a fair degree of jamming included, so we're used to improvising bits within any song depending on the mood etc) to introduce the band... Sometimes I get just a bar or two, other times it just goes on... Sometimes, I just stop playing during my 'solo' and just smile and look around at people... it seems to be pretty effective

 

[Nashrakh]

In all seriousness, I'll think of a little idea to try out in the solo and go from there. This may be a melodic or rhythmic motif that I'll start with. The rest of the solo I'll think about the underlying changes and the rest just kind of happens on autopilot.

That's one reason soloists should keep a 'tool box' of patterns and musical language handy. As Smooth_bass said, it's much like a conversation - you'll think about what you want to say before you do, but as soon as you start the conversation overthinking every word you say may be detrimental to a fluid statement. Of course there are situations where you may want to put each of your words on the scale, like in court, but usually you're not in court when you're on stage taking a solo. The analogy doesn't quite take us that far.

 

[Undisclosed Recepient]

"Just don't piss yourself, just don't piss yourself ... "