Backing Tracks

[John Rhodes]

I see posts about "pre-recorded" backing tracks. So when performing single, duo or other wise what backing tracks are there. Just drums? Drums and Bass? Entire songs. Do people just put in a Karaoke CD and go to town? What are we talking about here? I am interested in the lazy way of performing in a single or duo setting then moving up. Have all of the pa, vocal and bass guitar equipment...now what? THANKS

[pogo97]

start here: http://www.harmonycentral.com/forum/forum/LivePerformanceCategory/acapella-161/401907-

there are other threads you can find if you search

[Shaster]

If you are thinking (not sure if you are) that backing tracks are the easy way to go, I'd like to dispel that notion. I have literally spent thousands of hours on my backing tracks over the years. In fact, I just spent two hours today on some Xmas backing tracks that I used last year, but just needed to polish them a little bit more. I have about three hundred tracks and have probably spent an average of eight hours per tune - even if I was just editing an internet file.

 

IMO it's way easier not to use tracks, but you might have more options of tune style, approach and so on if you do use tracks. Sadly it ain't easy, unless you can find tracks that suit your needs and are easy to edit - then you'll usually have to pay. Time or money, ease of use or quality. Maybe you can find that balance - if so, hats off.

 

BTW welcome to the forum. Hope to hear more from you.

[MDMachiavelli]

Most backing tracks, in my experience anyway, contain the song minus the guitar and vocals. You can find them for free all over the internet. There are some that use basic MIDI and aren't very good, then there are those that Shaster is referring to. These are ones that people make that are usually to a specific musician for a specific performance or set of performances. Those are, as Shaster stated, very time consuming.

 

Also backing tracks are very popular nowadays with various songbooks and instructional books from publishers like Hal Leonard that make what are called the play along series. Now these are made for just about every instrument imaginable. They have them for guitar, bass, drums, piano, violin, my daughter even has a Queen greatest hits for the clarinet. These backing tracks provide every instrument MINUS the instrument the book is designed for. Some even have both, one with the instrument, and one without.

[Notes_Norton]

OK, it's not the lazy way, but I make my own backing tracks. Why? A couple of reasons:

 

1. I use synth parts for backing vocals, so it doesn't sound so karaoke-ish
   
2. I can change the key if necessary without any artifacts
   
3. I can change the arrangement, lengthen the song, add solo spaces, extend them, and so on
   
4. I find most karaoke tracks balanced well for recordings, but not for live performances. Live performances often need more snare drum and other exaggerated dynamics, like louder horn stabs, or even an exaggerated groove
   
5. Using good synth sounds makes it sound more like you are playing it and less like karaoke
   
6. Sequencing the parts myself makes me know the song inside and out, what chords are used, what substitutions are made, and how all the parts interact with each other
   
7. I can change the speed without artifacts, perhaps only a couple of beats per measure in the B section, more if I want to get dramatic or put more energy into it.
   

 

The way I see it is: It may take me a day or two go get the track just right, but if I'm lucky, I'll get to play the song thousands of times. If I do get to play the song thousands of times, I want it to be as good for the audience and as good and inspiring to my ears as I can possibly make it.

 

I have an old "how I did it" page on my site (needs updating) http://www.nortonmusic.com/backing_tracks.html

 

But as we all know, there are many ways to do it right, and what works best for me may not be best for you.

 

Insights and incites by Notes

 

[Gigmeister-8YMGf]

I have written parts from scratch, found GM files on the 'net and even used Band In A Box to start the process. I then move to Pro Tools and spend many hours adding real guitars, bass, pedal steel and mandolin before spending more time mixing and remixing the song. Bob, you're correct- a good sequence can make lots of memories, money and repeat gigs. I enjoy playing and singing against my tracks because I know they sound excellent. I did an article about this very thing on L2Pnet.com which should be out any day now.

 

Riley Wilson

http://www.guitarmadesimpler.com

http://www.wrileywilson.com

[Notes_Norton]

Plus you have the satisfaction knowing you did it yourself.

[gypsyjohn]

I heard a guy that plays keyboard and guitar(not at the same time:lol:) directly over standard karaoke tracks

He's gigging all the time.

[GtrGeorge!]

I heard a guy that plays keyboard and guitar(not at the same time:lol:) directly over standard karaoke tracks

He's gigging all the time.

 

GROSS.....just disgusting. I have to ask....where is the creativity in that? Where is the artistry? What does he offer, that others can't???

[gypsyjohn]

 

GROSS.....just disgusting. I have to ask....where is the creativity in that? Where is the artistry? What does he offer, that others can't???

 

The crowd doesn't care. Beach Tourists

[kbeaumont]

I've seen people who use karaoke tracks. Most aren't very good. I too make my own tracks, I decide what instrument I'm going to play and create the track from scratch. It gives me total control over levels, arrangement, tempo and key. My tracks are usually simple, bass , drums and either keys or rhythm guitar. I usually play either guitar or Piano/EP along with my vocals. I create the whole song and then when I'm satisfied I mute the parts I want to play from the mix and render it as a wave or a very high quality mp3 (256kb). Then I put it into Mainstage on my Mac. Using Mainstage I can have all the tracks in set list order and can use VSTs for higher quality sounds. Mostly I'm using pianoteq for acoustic piano and lounge lizard for EP. For guitar I'm using amplitude 4. Its definitely not the lazy way but it produces the best results for me.

 

[gypsyjohn]

I've seen people who use karaoke tracks. Most aren't very good. I too make my own tracks, I decide what instrument I'm going to play and create the track from scratch. It gives me total control over levels, arrangement, tempo and key. My tracks are usually simple, bass , drums and either keys or rhythm guitar. I usually play either guitar or Piano/EP along with my vocals. I create the whole song and then when I'm satisfied I mute the parts I want to play from the mix and render it as a wave or a very high quality mp3 (256kb). Then I put it into Mainstage on my Mac. Using Mainstage I can have all the tracks in set list order and can use VSTs for higher quality sounds. Mostly I'm using pianoteq for acoustic piano and lounge lizard for EP. For guitar I'm using amplitude 4. Its definitely not the lazy way but it produces the best results for me.

 

Sounds great.

Unfortunately, after working for 40-50 hr weeks most of the time, I don't have the time or the energy to build a catalogue that way.

I'm at the point that I need to gig to be able to work less to gig more to work less to gig more.

With tracks, it does offer more opportunities.

[kbeaumont]

I too work full time. It takes time to build up a repertoire of tracks. Its best to start simple and work them in as you complete them.

[Notes_Norton]

I gig full time. Since 1965 I've been in up to 7 piece bands, and starting 1985 a track-gig duo

 

I've seen people using karaoke tracks, and I don't think that is the best way to do it. Of course, there is more than one right way to make music.

 

I make my own tracks, that way I can:

 

1) Get them in the key I like

 

2) Use synth sounds for backing vocal lines so it doesn't sound so karaoke-ish

 

3) Adjust the song for the proper length for live performance

 

4a) Re-arrange: Put room in for a solo of my own, and make the solo as long or short as appropriate for live performance (I saw a duo where the guitarist played a solo over the karaoke track solo - I thought that was tasteless, the audience didn't seem to mind).

 

4b) Re-arrange: Get to the hook sooner, get rid of rubato beginnings that chase the dancers off the floor, tweak the tempo, sometimes do close covers, sometimes radically different in tempo and style. We do Jimmy Buffett's "A Pirate Looks At 40" like a steel band with a Latin-ized beet. Even die hard Jimmy Buffett fans tell me they like it better than the original (playing weekly on the water in Florida, Jimmy Buffett songs are required). We do "You Are The Sunshine Of My Life" as a jazz swing. Others covers, most in-between.

 

5) Exaggerate the groove for live performance *

 

6) Balance the instruments for live performance *

 

* there is a difference in both the groove and the balance between what is right for a recording/karaoke track and what is right for live performance. By exaggerating the groove and the dynamics, the backing track can sound much more live and move the audience better.

 

One example of many, when you hear a live band doing an up-tempo rock song, the snare is usually very high in the mix, much higher than it is on a recording. If it was that hot on a recording, it would dominate and cover the vocals, but when the vocals are not competing for bandwidth on the same recorded track, the loud snare can coexist with a lead vocal without dominating it.

 

There are plenty of other examples.

 

I might take two days or more to make a backing track, but in the end it is worth it. First of all, I want to hear it right when I'm playing it, and hopefully I'll play it thousands of times. Secondly, it moves the audience better.

 

It has our name on it, our reputation on it, so I want the track to be absolutely as good as I can make it. I want it better than the competition, I want the audience to like us more than the others, and in the end, we gig more than any other duo in the area - by far.

 

On our Tuesday gig at the marina, there is a Grackle (bird) that likes to sit on one of the pilings or a boat and sing along.

 

Leilani also does a song where she makes bird noises, and instead of calling it by the real name, they audience always asks for "The Bird Song".

 

As a goof, Monday Night I did a track for "Surfin Bird' " by The Trashmen. I made a short arrangement of that song using Band-in-a-Box and one of my aftermarket styles (Surf City), exported to MIDI, changed the organ to Clav, pumped up the snare and bass, recorded as WAV then mp3 and it only took about 2 hours (probably the quickest track I ever made). The audience loved it - the response was more than enthusiastic.

 

There is no way I could have used a Karaoke track. I "Standardized" the length of the progressions so that I could know when to stop saying "Bird Bird Bird Is The Word" or "Pa Pa Oo Mau Mau" and go the the "Chorus".

 

This is our 8th year there, and the audience is like family. They goof off with us and totally got the joke.

 

Another.........

 

We had to learn a line dance ("Get Into Reggae Cowboy") for a club that we play. The other bands that do it, use karaoke tracks. I made the track, added another A and B section so it is closer to 5 minutes long, and exaggerated the dynamics. The line dance leaders thanked us for learning it for them, and told us that we do it even better than the record. That should be enough -- but -- this year they gave us a few more weekends than all the other bands.

 

One more .........

 

I pumped up Pharrell's "Happy" with more percussion and have even had other musicians tell us it works better that way.

 

Sure, I'd rather play with a real band. But as a duo, we've been working steadily since 1985 and actually have to block out time for vacations or else they would be booked. Plus we are making more money per person than we were when we were in a 5 piece band. One more thing, no personnel problems.

 

So while I miss the good things about playing in a bigger band, I don't miss the bad things about playing with a bigger band.

 

It's about making a living doing what I love, and that calls for compromises. I could play jazz (so called "Art Music") and then I'd need a day job. I could play without tracks and play less energetic music and get fewer gigs. Or I can do what I'm doing, I've paid off the mortgage, bought a boat and a few cars, taken vacations to the Americas, Asia, Europe and Africa all by doing music and nothing but music for work.

 

It doesn't get better that this for me

 

Insights and incites by Notes

[GtrGeorge!]

If its just "Beach Tourists"..then enjoy your short lived gigs. When your name gets stale, another bunch of lip-sync people will replace you. You need (and everyone in the biz) needs to offer something that others can't do...or you are very easily replaced. As David Lee Roth Once said "In this biz, it's Here today....Gone later on, TODAY!!!"

[daddymack]

sadly, some people are only in it for the money. Art? HA! You can't eat artistic integrity, they say, and it is true...but without self-respect, you really have nothing.

[Notes_Norton]

Daddymack, like most thing, there is a sweet spot between the extreme poles. And it's different for different people and in different places. Music is an art and a craft, and yes, most of us need to mix the two and find the right formula where we can play the best music without having to make the ultimate compromise -- a day job.

[GtrGeorge!]

Daddymack, pa-leeeze...I am not talking about ART , I'm talking about VALUE. Wether you sell sneakers or songs, you have to bring it (Value).

[Shaster]

Daddymack' date=' pa-leeeze...I am not talking about ART , I'm talking about VALUE. Wether you sell sneakers or songs, you have to bring it (Value).[/quote']

 

Even value is subjective and at the whims of the audience.

 

I know of a female performer whose value is in her looks and youth. She doesn't play her chosen instrument very well, and her voice while okay, isn't suited to the circuit she is on IMHO. Her selection of songs isn't all that great either, but she is lovely and a lovely person. She works all the time and will continue to do so until her looks fade. But that will also happen to the youthful males that go the pork pie hat and man bun route. Just not as fast.

 

If musicality is your value, you will probably have a longer career, but you won't necessarily work more than the other performers who bring looks, charm, enthusiasm, youth and other non musical attributes to the table. In fact, there are plenty of successful singers in the biz who are entertainers first and singers dead last. It's never seemed to effect their bottom line.

[daddymack]

" I have to ask....where is the creativity in that? Where is the artistry?" Your words, not mine, GG.

Art and value are subjective, as Notes pointed out. But the point of balance should never tip all the way over to the $ to the exclusion of the art. That is crass, and classless. But how can anyone person define what is art, and the value of said art, for an entire population [don't start me on professional critics]?

[daddymack]

Actually, having a day job is not necessarily the worst thing. Starving, having to sell one's instruments, living in your car, unable to afford Obamacare...are all much worse, and I have seen this happen to great musicians here [LA] because the cost of living exceeds the value placed on musicians and performance. I partially blame American Idol and the Voice for making it seem like anyone can wander onto a TV show and become a star.

[pogo97]

VALUE. Wether you sell sneakers or songs' date=' you have to bring it (Value).[/quote']

 

I suspect that there are subtle differences between sneakers and songs that you may have undervalued.

[daddymack]

Well, a commodity is a commodity, but each does, indeed, have its own particular appeal

[pogo97]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commodification

 

or perhaps https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commoditization

 

"In business literature, commoditization is defined as the process by which goods that have economic value and are distinguishable in terms of attributes (uniqueness or brand) end up becoming simple commodities in the eyes of the market or consumers. . . . . Hence, the key effect of commoditization is that the pricing power of the manufacturer or brand owner is weakened: when products become more similar from a buyer's point of view, they will tend to buy the cheapest."

[heritageparksr]

I need some help with this, I am using backing tracks on Digitech JamMan loop pedal for an upcoming show next week & am at a loss at setting the volume for each one... I have a nylon string acoustic with a preamp in it with volume controls, the pedal has volume controls as well as the amp. I am sort of at a loss as to how to get a consistent volume setting for each track, any help?