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#233420 by XhaDoW-6
Sun May 11, 2014 4:53 pm
Are y'all a cover band?

#233421 by gtZip
Sun May 11, 2014 6:00 pm
Learn them at home.
There shouldn't be much to work on if everyone does their work at home - just general band tightness, and 'maybe' some playing around with a song creatively.

Wait until you have 6 to 12 songs learned, then get together as a group.
Working on songs that aren't really known yet serves no purpose. You might as well just jam or play a blues progression for the rest of the night.

#233425 by zar535135
Sun May 11, 2014 8:42 pm
I myself feel that you should learn the songs and play them as a band collected. I was in a situation last yr. were I joined my buddys' band and I had to play catch-up, (they already had gigs scheduled).
I learned the songs on my own time and when it came time to play them at practice I discovered that they either changed key, drop-tuned or improvised on some of the songs. I was told that it is different playing with the band than playing along to the recorded music....(No Sh*t).
Play the songs with your fellow band members as often as you can. Get to know each others timings and little "kicks" that they may throw into the song. Become a cohesive unit,each member playing as one....

#233427 by MikeTalbot
Sun May 11, 2014 8:49 pm
I'm with Zar on this one.

In original bands in particular - working them up with the crew is quickest way. Even if the author has taped it, the band shouldn't be held to the tape. Memorizing a part from a tape is one of those things I find really boring...

I've always liked how my songs sounded after a couple good players added their two cents worth.

Typically the songwriter can lay it down to the band - in my experience good players will run with it pretty quick and everyone will come up with their parts. Then you might want to practice the song at home just to commit it to memory.

With cover songs it's often the same - somebody in the outfit will know usually know all or part of the song. Much quicker that way.

Talbot

#233444 by GuitarMikeB
Mon May 12, 2014 1:00 pm
Establish a game plan at the start. If youare all new to playing with each other, then its ok to goof with a few songs to see how each other plays, but then start getting serious.
Each week, pick 3-6 songs that everyone will work on at home - learning their parts. At practice go over those songs one at a time, repeat each one 2-4 times, as needed. Got time left after doing that, talk/play some more 'possible' songs that you can put on the list to learn for the next week. Next week, go over the 1st batch of songs one time each, make note of any that need real work, then do the new songs, keep going like this until you're ready to play out.
If the other guys want to to jam/goof more than anything else at practice, then find some new bandmates.

#233614 by Christopher Holmes
Mon May 19, 2014 3:28 am
Doing a song multiple times in a rehearsal situation is fine - if there's a purpose. That's the biggest thing, IMO: if you are doing something in rehearsal, it has to have a purpose. Play a song once in rehearsal. Only play it a second time if you need to fix something or change something. And if you're playing with good players, you shouldn't have to play the whole song over; just the part you want to to fix or change.

Bands I've been in, we learn on our own time, and band rehearsal is for getting everyone on the same page and tightening up the songs, doing intros and exits, etc.

I just joined a new cover band. We're working on about 45 songs for our first show in June. The drummer and bassist have played together for years and know about 200 tunes. The singer just came out of a cover band from another area, and has probably 150 tunes down. Most everything we're doing is new to me, so I'm the catch-up guy.

During the week, I sit down and learn the songs according to the tapes - how they were recorded by the original artists. Then we get to rehearsal and we play the songs, one-at-a-time, and discuss any changes we want to make to the arrangement, or anything that went wrong. If we feel we can change or fix something right then, we'll play through the song, or part of the song, again. Otherwise, it's on to the next song.

As for playing stuff you barely know - there's *some* value in that, if you're trying to figure out what songs you want to play, as it can give you an idea of what you are capable of, comfortable with, and how you mesh with the other guys. But if you've been a band for a while, rehearsals should be mostly about putting in real work to sound good, not screwing around trying out songs.

#233618 by GuitarMikeB
Mon May 19, 2014 12:56 pm
Christopher Holmes wrote:Doing a song multiple times in a rehearsal situation is fine - if there's a purpose. That's the biggest thing, IMO: if you are doing something in rehearsal, it has to have a purpose. Play a song once in rehearsal. Only play it a second time if you need to fix something or change something. And if you're playing with good players, you shouldn't have to play the whole song over; just the part you want to to fix or change.

Bands I've been in, we learn on our own time, and band rehearsal is for getting everyone on the same page and tightening up the songs, doing intros and exits, etc.


The purpose of repeating whole songs is to get tight together. That only comes with playing the whole song(s) - at rehearsals and gigs.

Good luck with your new band.

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