In Praise of Simplicity and Space

[FragileThunder]

Life has conspired against me getting much opportunity to play with others of late, so it was soul refreshing to get in a 4 hour jam session yesterday. I played with my two oldest friends and musical co-conspirators. We've been playing together- sometimes in bands, sometimes for a quick pick up gigs, but mostly just for the joy of playing- for almost 35 years now. We had no drummer available, so it was going to be the 3 of us playing guitars, swapping off bass duties and a few songs with keys.

One of the best things about playing with these guys is that we know each other so well, we listen to each other and everyone plays somewhat sparsely. There is space for each person's contributions, which creates a nice dynamic as we are distinctly different musicians: The Prodigy, The Perfectionist, and The Improvisor (me).

After a string of texts about what people felt like playing, we decided it would be a mostly electric day. Now I normally roll with my full pedal board with all the toys at my disposal, but for air-conditioning reasons we were playing at The Perfectionist's house and space was going to be a little tight as we also wanted to record the session. So I took the SE HBII, the RMC picture wah and my amp (Peavey CL-MH) which I had pumping 1W of tube-y goodness. My mates were equally restrained in their set-ups.

For the better part of 4 hours we played some (mostly) really beautiful music, in particular in an expansive take on Wooden Ships where there were enormous caverns of space in which we delicately wove parts, The Prodigy and I trading licks and doubling up while The Perfectionist held together a light groove. If the recording came out alright, I'll post.

So why am I posting this thread? Because in the afterglow of a good session, it is nice to reflect on how, for all of the tricks of the trade at our disposal, the best music is often crafted with the simplest of approaches. So here's to simplicity and space.

 

[bodia]

Now that sounds like a great time!

 

[László]

I've played with rhythm sections having a groove that seemed like it was a mile wide and a mile deep. A great player leaves a lot of space, and many play very simply.

It's a joy to play with people who not only play well but have the musical generosity to leave other players room to do their thing.

 

[dmatthews]

Nicely done, and well put mate!

 

[Moondog Wily]

I hope we get to hear some takes from that session! Sounds like a perfect jam!!

 

[FragileThunder]

I hope we get to hear some takes from that session! Sounds like a perfect jam!!

Initial report from The Perfectionist is that his new recording set up was not perfect. Haven’t heard them yet but sounds like he had some issues. It was just room mics, but he says sounds like they were about 4 miles away and had grounding issues.

 

[FragileThunder]

It's a joy to play with people who not only play well but have the musical generosity to leave other players room to do their thing.

I love “musical generosity“ so much I’m stealing it.

As I’ve gotten older, I think being a great “complimentary player” is my highest musical goal.

 

[László]

I love “musical generosity“ so much I’m stealing it.

No problem!

As I’ve gotten older, I think being a great “complimentary player” is my highest musical goal.

Great musicians elevate the playing of the rest of the people they're working with. It's their nature. The music-making is also more enjoyable for them when the band sounds good.

Musicians who hear only themselves are never great. I don't care how many 32nd notes they can rip through in a measure. If they listen to only themselves and step on everyone else, the band will be torture to listen to. They're shooting themselves in the foot. No one will want to come see them perform or listen to their records.

Here's the sad thing: Musical narcissists aren't going to recognize themselves in any part of this conversation. They're hopeless and best avoided.

 

[Greywolf]

The greatest joy in music to me is getting together with kindered souls and jam for a few hours . Each respecting the diversity of experience and inspiring eachother to push to places we haven't been. Bravo on the great Jam ..

 

[Bogner]

The More People That Are Together Playing Music The Less Each Individual Needs To Play (In Essence). I Play The Most Amount Of Notes At A Time When I Play Alone Because It Is Just Me. From My Perspective, The More Players That Are Involved It Shifts From The Amount Of Notes And Which Ones Played To Which Ones Aren't Played And How Much Breathability Is Able To Be Dispersed. Just Because Things Are Busy Doesn't Mean Things Are Productive.

 

[Greywolf]

the wisdom of Jeff Beck :
Art Thompson
Mon, September 11, 2023 at 6:10 PM EDT

“I’ve found that my best friend is the straight-ahead amplifier with very little effect pedal. If distortion is needed, I’ll use a much smaller amplifier and overload that rather than use a pedal to alter the circuitry. When you go through a pedal you’re going through some guy’s circuit before it gets to the amp. I want the amplifier to get the most honest and direct signal from the pickup. That way, you get the tonal advantage of the guitar and the fingers.

“Some people can’t do without lots of volume to get their tone, but I think if you can’t get it without four million watts, something’s wrong. Because a mic doesn’t read volume, it reads tone. You’ve got all the level in the world at your disposal in the console, and the remixing and the rest of it to compensate for lack of power. But the tone is the thing, and that’s something that came from Scotty Moore, who once told me, 'Get some better tone and you’re there – volume you don’t need.'“

 

[Gtrbldr]

I

the wisdom of Jeff Beck :
Art Thompson
Mon, September 11, 2023 at 6:10 PM EDT

“I’ve found that my best friend is the straight-ahead amplifier with very little effect pedal. If distortion is needed, I’ll use a much smaller amplifier and overload that rather than use a pedal to alter the circuitry. When you go through a pedal you’re going through some guy’s circuit before it gets to the amp. I want the amplifier to get the most honest and direct signal from the pickup. That way, you get the tonal advantage of the guitar and the fingers.

“Some people can’t do without lots of volume to get their tone, but I think if you can’t get it without four million watts, something’s wrong. Because a mic doesn’t read volume, it reads tone. You’ve got all the level in the world at your disposal in the console, and the remixing and the rest of it to compensate for lack of power. But the tone is the thing, and that’s something that came from Scotty Moore, who once told me, 'Get some better tone and you’re there – volume you don’t need.'“

I completely agree with the man.

Between guitar and amp I rarely use anything. After the amp is a different story. In church we sadly have to use a butload of delay and reverb effects to fit "the sound" of contemporary worship. Great thing about my kemper is the option to use differently gained profiles instead of the inevitable stompboxes you see on so many mega boards in church. My chain is always guitar--> profiles with several gain settings --> eq for volume boost (or not) --> delay (s) --> and reverb.

Let's say this works very well ;-)