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What exactly is "in the pocket" playing?

#41
I've always understood "the pocket" to be a place you go to, when it's all coming together. You're "in the pocket" when you find that groove that kinda takes you over, and it almost feels like someone just took over your fingers. It doenst mean that you have forgotten that you're playing in a band, but suddenly you dont have to think about them anymore, because the things you're doing just fit automatically.
It's the musical equivilent of your "happy place".
That's the way me and my former associates used the term.
 
#42
in the pocket is a really subjective term. allot of people don't realise hat your drummer has his own pocket as well, now allot of styles of music dont really allow a clear veiw of in the pocket playing for drum or bass. raggae shows soo much pocket it might as well be a huge pair of raver pants :P

now what is in the pocket playing? listen to this


notice how if you pay attention to the bass, its so simple yet makes you just wanna move your body? also notice its slightly off the kick drum? i find in the pocket is all about feeling, i know when i hear a fat beat and it makes me get my "raggae face" on, then i know that bassist is in a deep pocket
 
#43
The example I usually use for rock is during the song Paranoid by Sabbath, very simple song written very quickly. Geezer always had kind of a hard time keeping things simple and this song is no different he uses a pretty easy fill and a couple of little parts where he deviates from the rhythm to give it his own style but during the lead he hung back "in the pocket" and kept pace with the drums, but literally the next bar though he stuck that fill in there bringing himself out again. Hope that made sense but thats kind of what I think of when Im trying to stay in the pocket, its a simple example and a very easy song to listen to.
 
#46
a good drummer is key... my normal drummer, although my best friend, sucks. no doubt about it. He just don't get it. Needless to say, we are never in the pocket, it never feels right or on time no matter how hard I try.

Anytime I play with a GOOD drummer... Its automatic pockettime!. its really crazy. all the time i was thinking that maybe i was part of the problem.. then i jam with a really good drummer and it was so easy, and the "pocket" made sense...
 
#47
now that I am getting into writing rock music, I am conscious of making sure that I have a pocket for myself and my drummer to fit into. So much so, that I am writing my bass parts last, so that I am locking in with the kick and in the same key as the rhythm guitar. Its telepathy borne of hard work, listening and concentration - being able to let go of your preconceptions and play with the drummer
 
#48
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When preparing to play my first gig, an experienced bass player gave the concept of pocket playing. We were on a 70s hit by Confunkshun called Ffun. He said to pay attention to the bass drum and to practice on my sharpness. That is, how well I’m able to keep the bass guitar in rhythm with the bass drum That was probably the shortest music because that is what make the music tight I’ve ever had but one of the most important lessons as a bassist. From that, when and where I’m playing, get to know the the drummer because we set the tone for the other musicians. They usually appreciate it afterwards because it make their job much easier I am told.
 
#49
As a hobby bass-player, I have wondered about "the pocket" myself as I try to improve. So many descriptions talk about "feel", "groove" or other subjective aspects.

I found this video more objective, though it is limited to the bass/drum relationship:

To my ear, the studio recording of "Pick up the pieces" was a great example of the bass lagging the drums, as described in the video above.
 
#51
Of course it’s just a colloquialism for playing well whose exact definition depends on who you ask.

the closest thing to an exact definition I have read is “ the space between the kick and the snare playing a backbeat“

I would even go so far as to say that if you don’t have a snare (or similar ) holding down a backbeat on 2 and 4 , You will have a hard time finding the pocket.

The most critical point is that a pocket requires space. No space, no pocket.

imho and all that
 
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#52
In the pocket is when you know you are part of the rhythm section and play accordingly. it has nothing to do with how many notes you play, and everything to do with where and when you play them, and how well you listen to what's going on around you.
 
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#54
It's so strange to read old/older TB threads - so many unknown TB members from the past, but...

Here is a nice article about "playing in the pocket".

Playing in the Pocket

Four of the most important necessities for playing in the pocket — timing, accuracy, patterns, and the most important thing, the ability to listen.

First and foremost, a great pocket has great time.

Accuracy
Part of what makes a pocket is the precision of the musicians’ playing — you’ve likely heard bands where the drummer’s downbeat is in one place, the bass player is a little ahead or behind the drummer, and the guitarist is also not quite with the others onstage. That sloppiness will interrupt the groove, which keeps a pocket from developing.

Patterns

When you’re playing a song, you’ll commonly be working with a specific, repeating rhythm. The drummer will (or at least, should) have a specific kick drum pattern, bass players may play both a rhythmic figure and defined notes, and rhythm guitar parts can contain defined chords, specific rhythms, and single lines — or all those things, which also make up a repeating pattern. Keyboard players may copy the bass track in the left hand, while either doubling the guitar rhythm or finding a complementary pattern to the guitar. Only when all the players are playing patterns that work together at a consistent tempo does the pocket develop.

Listening
The single most important part of playing in the pocket, though, is that you must listen to the other musicians. Only when the drummer listens to the bass player — and the bass player listens to the drummer — can you groove together. The other musicians must listen to the bass and drums, and the bassist and drummer must listen to them.
 
#55
I’ve always felt the pocket comes from the band members collectively feeling the pulse more so than being regulated by the downbeats. A mutually experienced sense of time, if you will. And if bass and drums do their job, this is reinforced and supports the other players to play their best, imho. This kind of pocket is my happy place. I’ll gladly hold the groove for 30 minutes while the rest of the band does their thing, no problem.

If you want an idea of what a collectively experienced time/groove/pulse is, throw a track by The Meters in your DAW.
George & Zig are with each other through and through, but visually, the downbeat ain’t always on the one as defined by the software. At least this was the case with the software in my music school days 15yrs ago, not sure what kind of adjustments modern quantization algorithms are capable of.
 
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#56
It is when everything that is important about being a bass player align and everyone in the band can feel it. When timing, note selection, note rhythms, supporting the song, etc. are all in alignment you find yourself in the pocket/groove/on top of it/etc…..
 
#57
I will tell you what the pocket is not...most of the music post 2000's. Most music is quantized. Sterile non organic music. Yes I am aware of some artists that don't quantize the crap out of there music but it's few and far between. We strive to play on time like that and in doing so we achieve that bliss I call the pocket. Behind ahead you know when it's locked!
 
#58
kevindahl said:
I will tell you what the pocket is not...most of the music post 2000's. Most music is quantized. Sterile non organic music. Yes I am aware of some artists that don't quantize the crap out of there music but it's few and far between. We strive to play on time like that and in doing so we achieve that bliss I call the pocket. Behind ahead you know when it's locked!
Click to expand...

Yep. And auto-tune on the vocals?! :drool:
 
#60
This is very subjective but the best explanation I've heard on this comes from the great drummer Steve Gadd.

His explanation is simply this : It is an agreement among the band where the 1 is !! It says it all.

The 1 can be anything: the beginning of a 4-bars pattern, a section, a structure etc. So is it ahead of the beat, on the beat or laidback? That dictate the groove and the pulse for what came before and will come after the 1.
 
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