Does anyone have a definition of what groove is or is that subjective? When I think groove I think of the bassline from "Stranglehold" by Ted Nugent but I'm not sure if there is an objective opinion on the matter.
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
What is "groove"?
- Thread starter LotusCarsLtd52
- Start date
I can't recall who said it but...
"If you have to ask what groove is, you'll never find it." (Just kidding, Lotus.)
I'm pretty certain the expression comes from the days of vinyl records. The needle had to be in the groove for the music to sound good.
"If you have to ask what groove is, you'll never find it." (Just kidding, Lotus.)
I'm pretty certain the expression comes from the days of vinyl records. The needle had to be in the groove for the music to sound good.
I think it's quite subjective within a margin. I can't really describe it myself, but I have an idea of what it is.
yeah, words don't do it.
I used to tell students "Groove is a good feel with the beat" - it takes years to develop good groove (unless you're a mutant). Kinda like soul.
Yeah, I think you'll know when you have it. Just keep working on playing and it should come to you.
Alvaro Martín Gómez A.
TalkBass' resident Bongo + cowbell player
A groovy player can make you tap your foot and/or snap your fingers (In other words: Feel like dancing) just with his/her playing. Groove isn't about playing the right notes. It's about transmitting feelings when playing them. Here's a couple examples (that work for me, at least):
There is this guy I heard of named James...uh...uh Brown. He's not very popular and kinda of underground,but if you look him up, he's pretty good at the so called 'groove'...
GROOVE...
What is it?
It is primitive in my opinion.
Some have it and some will never feel it.
One of the most simple examples (without any technical explanation) is a song that Billy Cobham and George Duke play together called 'Stratus".
As a bass player, try to keep up and stay with Billy.
Another is Eddie Harris's "Listen Here". Very simple bass line but if you aren't able to "feel" the primitive movement through the tune then you ain't "in the groove". Almost hypnotic with the timing and interaction.
IMHO the "groove" is what pulls a person into another zone.
I love playing with a drummer that makes us do it. Priceless.
What is it?
It is primitive in my opinion.
Some have it and some will never feel it.
One of the most simple examples (without any technical explanation) is a song that Billy Cobham and George Duke play together called 'Stratus".
As a bass player, try to keep up and stay with Billy.
Another is Eddie Harris's "Listen Here". Very simple bass line but if you aren't able to "feel" the primitive movement through the tune then you ain't "in the groove". Almost hypnotic with the timing and interaction.
IMHO the "groove" is what pulls a person into another zone.
I love playing with a drummer that makes us do it. Priceless.
The groove develops when you let go and move with the music. By move - physically moving, your head, your body, you can not stand still. If you are not moving your not grooving. 
http://www.music.vt.edu/musicdictionary/
http://www.music.vt.edu/musicdictionary/
Alvaro Martín Gómez A.;9277918 said:
That's how I see it as well. You can get two guys with different feels to play exactly the same thing and one might move you whereas the other may do absolutely nothing for you. A lot of people associate groove with funkier music but for me it's about doing what's right for the moment which is why I consider Cliff Williams from AC/DC to have a groove in the context of the music.
Stevie Wonder's "Superstition" is one of those songs which has me tapping my feet whenever I hear it, for reasons I can't explain. Simple four on the floor from the rhythm section but they're doing something right. Led Zeppelin's "Trampled Underfoot" has the same affect which could have something to do with it being similar to the Stevie Wonder song. Both have solid quarter note grove from the rhythm section while the clavinova fills in the gaps which makes the whole band groove.
Groove is a vague, relative, imprecise term and conveys no useful information to somebody trying to actually learn how to play bass.
We are better off thinking about specifics: rhythm, tempo, pitch, dynamics, articulation, etc...
It is the way in which the specific aspects combine and the ears of the listener that determines if it is or isn't a "groove"
We are better off thinking about specifics: rhythm, tempo, pitch, dynamics, articulation, etc...
It is the way in which the specific aspects combine and the ears of the listener that determines if it is or isn't a "groove"
groove is as groove does
It's when band members come together on feel and execution in a way that proves that time is indeed mutable and malleable and that only real musicians can bend it without breaking it.
That meter is only the parameters that define where one bar ends and another begins - but how you proceed through them is a constantly evolving as the music demands.
It's the intangible, but universally perceptible vibe that, when properly created, has the power to make babies.
It's when band members come together on feel and execution in a way that proves that time is indeed mutable and malleable and that only real musicians can bend it without breaking it.
That meter is only the parameters that define where one bar ends and another begins - but how you proceed through them is a constantly evolving as the music demands.
It's the intangible, but universally perceptible vibe that, when properly created, has the power to make babies.
This is one of those key phrases players use all the time. Every experienced player has a reasonable concept of what it means, but it is never articulated AFAIK.
The best I can give you is playing with a rhythmic figure and feel which effectively "kicks the 'rhythmic' can down the road.
As an example, get a recording of Jaco's Opus Pocus, and listen to the rhythmic figure starting at about the 2:00 mark. That is for me about 100% pure groove.
Hope that helps.
IMO/E
The best I can give you is playing with a rhythmic figure and feel which effectively "kicks the 'rhythmic' can down the road.
As an example, get a recording of Jaco's Opus Pocus, and listen to the rhythmic figure starting at about the 2:00 mark. That is for me about 100% pure groove.
Hope that helps.
IMO/E
Latest posts
-
-
-
Future Impact now available!! WAS: deep impact reissue!!! interested?- Latest: Andras Szalay
-
