Basslines

I spent a few hours this arvo going over and over the basslines of those handful of those songs we'll be trying out on Saturday. Just so I don't have to think about them when I sing at the same time. Getting feels and riffs and intervals and fingers all happy and down pat. Practising is lots of fun, because I can hear what's happening (and supposed to happen) inside my head, which transfers straight off when I get to 'musically-direct' another bunch of guys at rehearsal.

It probably sounds silly, but it works for me - as soon as I stop thinking about what I'm playing, and just feel it, then it works brilliantly. As soon as I start thinking about exactly what notes and intervals I'm trying to play, ker-splat! So yeah, to sit and play the same notes, intervals and feel over and over means that, in the long run, I won't have to think about them again.

The funny thing is, while I was running thru a certain very-simple AC/DC song, do you think I could 'get' a single note in a simple short lick/phrase? Just one note, dagnammit! Normally I can nail things like that easily, without much thought or effort, really.

I mean... this is normally a guy who can work-out "Yes" lines easily enough! Must have been an off arvo, perhaps? No no... just out of practise, actually having to work something out. Tis a lovely change, believe me.

Simply, it was an interval I just wouldn't normally play. That was all.

So, doing something different to what I'm normally doing is a good thing. Making me stretch in a refreshing way.

And yes, it's all good now, even tho I had to put it down and walk away for a few minutes. The frustration at not being able to play one single darn note in a pattern got to me! But I nailed the lick easily enough, once I had a cuppa.

Always the way... of all the billions of songs I know how to play (without thinking about it), it was just this one that forced me to stop and think for a little bit. That's a good thing in the end, I think?

Blah blah blah.

Oh, I did another quick music song demo this morning too, with just drums, bass and guitar. When I do a final mix/balance, I'll put the two songs I've done in the past few days online, for you to have a good laff at, Paige. I do these little demos simply because they're FUN! wOOt.

Yes yes... I'm fully aware of how lucky I am having the time availability to be able to do things like this. Even tho they throw my body-clock into dissaray...

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Andrea has been talking about mix tapes/CDs you can make for yourself. Assorted various collections of songs to listen to along your days' journey. I don't have an iPod or any kinda mp3 player (apart from the computer, but I don't usually use it as a music listening machine, just as an editor etc), so I burn CDs for myself instead. Call me Ishmael... erm, I mean old-fashioned. Maybe I should make 8-track cartridges instead? Good gawd!

A couple of months ago, I made for myself a whole swag of 'mix CDs', using this as my source: Rolling Stone Top 500 Songs! In the end, along with a whole swag of other classic songs I downloaded off LimeWire, I'm upto about 30 CD's of just mix music so far! Whew! All sorts... country, rock, punk, reggae, jazz, do-wop... all sorts! From the early 1950's until recently. It's interesting to put them on every now and again, just to mix things up to my musical listening day.

Normally, I listen to whole original albums of a particular artiste. Tho mixing it up makes a refreshing change as well.

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more cat pictures

Peas be with ewe

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