General Music Chat

here's the bottom line.!! Every band or artist in history has done covers ! thats the building blocks to your own idenity, call it what ever you want but as musicians i think the reason we are doing this is supposed to be for the music not the ego or the money { what money }
and the quickist way to sink down is by hanging the weight of visions of grandour around our necks and forgeting where we came from i have noted !! in my gigs over the years that when you pull off a cover & do it well, the crowd sets up & takes notice and when you slip that org, in the set they actuly listen which in turn raises a following if they like what you have to offer . todays music scene seems to be more about the presentaion & package so ,don't forget where you came from and it will help you see where your going & that killer verion of what ever cover that the needs of the moment call for, might just give you what your looking for
Capt Rick

:idea: here's the bottom line.!! Every band or artist in history has done covers ! thats the building blocks to your own idenity, call it what ever you want but as musicians i think the reason we are doing this is supposed to be for the music not the ego or the money { what money }
and the quickist way to sink down is by hanging the weight of visions of grandour around our necks and forgeting where we came from i have noted !! in my gigs over the years that when you pull off a cover & do it well, the crowd sets up & takes notice and when you slip that org, in the set they actuly listen which in turn raises a following if they like what you have to offer . todays music scene seems to be more about the presentaion & package so ,don't forget where you came from and it will help you see where your going & that killer verion of what ever cover that the needs of the moment call for, might just give you what your looking for
Capt Rick

Couldn't have said it better myself.

Besides even big name acts will often play a cover or two.

Couldn't have said it better myself.

Besides even big name acts will often play a cover or two.

But there is a galaxy of difference between a band that plays a cover or two, and a cover band.

Gee...I've seen musicians in cover bands with the ability to impress even the most seasoned original players out there. I've learned so much more by copying Halen, Yngwie, Rhoads, Page, etc... than I ever would have if I didn't play some of the best guitar leads ever.... I've learned soo many tricks from other guitarists by learning their leads note for note. I've been able,then, to use this new found knowledge in my own originals instead of being so one track minded and anti-cover!

Yeah, you can learn technique, tricks and shortcuts by watching and immitating others. But you can't learn how to write in your own voice, from them.

WOW!! sooooo wrong.... it's like getting an education without having to pay the tuition! It definitely helps one's ability when they learn to play something they never even dreamed that they could only because they took time out to be "taught" by copies!

Honestly...many of my musician friends formed original bands because there was no way they could even come close to figuring out some of those intricate leads that are out there.... It definitely opens up a whole new world to any serious guitarists. I went to school for jazz and one whole class was learning the techniques of Joe Pass, Al DiMeola, Spyrogyra, etc.. Definitely improved my style immensely!

You're not catching my meaning. YES, you can better your technique (playing technique) by listening and immitating your favorite performers - but they CANNOT teach you to write your own material in your voice. That's just impossible. They aren't you!

That part, well, you're on your own.

Irminsul,

Yep, exactly where I am coming from.

You're not catching my meaning. YES, you can better your technique (playing technique) by listening and immitating your favorite performers - but they CANNOT teach you to write your own material in your voice. That's just impossible. They aren't you!

Wow. Why is this so hard to understand?

You become an original, by working on originality.

As I have said several times here. There is NOTHING wrong with being a cover band. All I have said, is that you MUST decide what you are going to be up front. You can't successfully be both. Being a cover band requires learning new covers every week, in order not to bore your fans that follow you around. The more time spent on covers, is the less time available to work on originals, to develop your own style and sound.

And for the comment about being "deluded" in "making it", in the music business... Following the dream is only one benefit of playing originals. The main benefit to me is, as an artist, covers are NEVER as satisfying as originals. Ideally, as artists, we are creative beings, and expressing that creativity just feels more satisfying than imitating someone else.

Irminsul, you said,
". . . you can learn technique, tricks and shortcuts by watching and immitating others. But you can't learn how to write in your own voice . . ."
.
I think you are 100% right.
When one works on his own stuff (and practices, practices, practices . . .), he can discover new and different shortcuts, ideas, and techniques."
Then . . . other people can learn from you . . .
. . . covers are ok, 'cause that's what the crowd likes. But don't sell your own latent abilities short . . .

Well.... I guess, like I've said before, I got back into this after 20 years of not playing at all so I don't have visions of fame and fortune... I guess you could say I lost that enthusiasm years ago. I'm just so damn excited that I can actually perform live again when one year ago I never even thought I could play an open chord and now I'm figuring out Maiden, Halen, Ozzy, etc... LOL. It's like a dream come true to me. I used to always tell people how I used to tour "back in the day" and now I'm actually even better than I was then cause I practice no less than 5 hours a day...3 on acoustic doing all my exercises and 2 on electric learning all the tunes for my gigs.

I understand where you guys are coming from playing originals... If you make it on your own, it's gonna be your wildest dream... if not, you just fall into a rut, just playing your own tunes in tiny watering holes hoping to get discovered, most times breaking even or playing for free. I'm gonna have fun with this this time around and just entertain the crowds and in the meantime,I'll throw in a new original in here and there. I've, so far, written 2.... just gotta get the other guys to take time out to learn them!

I personally am glad some musicians choose not to pursue original music. We really don't need any more poorly written music lol! Not everyone has the ability to compose a decent tune (it's a gift). Composers write music, musicians play it. Regardless of who wrote it, your audience will recognize a well-written song; it's your performance of it that matters.