You're The Drummer. Figure It Out! (Do Guitarists Think Different From Drummers?)

[BertTheDrummer]

I wonder what guitarists would do if the drummer all of a sudden during a song was like "Hey, that doesn't sound right." "I think you should play it like this..." Sing some kind of note and try and sound like a chord or whatever. When the guitarist tries say "No it's not like that, you need to play it lighter and more like ______ band." When they try again, be like "Nahh not quite there, you still are a little too _____ you need to be more like _____."

Heh I just wonder if the guitarists out there would get mad? Then I wonder what their reaction would be when we point out "Hey that's exactly what you do to me normally."

[theDan]

Most people assume the rhythm section of the band as the least important and inferior, which is why they like to write out your parts for you.

[FitchFY]

Kinda OT, but when reading threads like this, about the trouble musicians face with their band mates... crap, I just want to go give the guys in my band a hug and say "thanks for not being a total tool bag."

[1001gear]

What I can say: He has stated he has done allot of acid in the past and he's up to thumb size "hits" now. (Whatever the hell they are?)

Good question. 1 square inch of L ?

THIS, in a nutshell, ...

[J.A.G.]

Kinda OT, but when reading threads like this, about the trouble musicians face with their band mates... crap, I just want to go give the guys in my band a hug and say "thanks for not being a total tool bag."

Yes indeed Fitch! Well stated.

[J.A.G.]

Good question. 1 square inch of L ? THIS, in a nutshell, ...

Out of all my years on the road, I'm so happy I never got started with that {censored}. I don't know much about the long term effects, but all I have to do is look at those eyes looking at me and it gives me the creeps.

[J.A.G.]

Most people assume the rhythm section of the band as the least important and inferior, which is why they like to write out your parts for you.

I agree that percussionists are underrated. I don't think most people know how hard we work to make the entire arrangement blend together and become solidified.

I can understand the audience being somewhat ignorant, but when it's your fellow musicians?

[J.A.G.]

I wonder what guitarists would do if the drummer all of a sudden during a song was like "Hey, that doesn't sound right." "I think you should play it like this..." Sing some kind of note and try and sound like a chord or whatever. When the guitarist tries say "No it's not like that, you need to play it lighter and more like ______ band." When they try again, be like "Nahh not quite there, you still are a little too _____ you need to be more like _____." Heh I just wonder if the guitarists out there would get mad? Then I wonder what their reaction would be when we point out "Hey that's exactly what you do to me normally."

Be careful man! We have sticks we can throw, but those guitarists have strings they can use as a garrote!

[Mogwix]

The only time I tell a drummer what to play, is when he's overplays a part that I really strongly heard as being dead simple. My drummer overplays all the time and IMO it ruins the songs, but it's his world and while I disagree I don't really want to tell him how I think it "should" be played unless I wrote the song and the part in question is very specific.

 

I'm the bassist, by the way. The guitarist doesn't say {censored} all to anybody how a part should be played, except if, same as me, he really heard a part a certain way and it just can't be any other way.

[Old Steve]

Right on with Fitch's post. Last night rehearsal was real "work" for my band. We were doing the boring stuff....reviewing old stuff to make sure it was tight, working out endings to songs, and repeatedly playing troublesome spots over and over again. Generally not a lot of "fun", but necessary work if we want to sound good at our next gig. You've all been there, done that.

What pleased me most about it, though, was that despite the lack of "fun" playing stuff, I sincerely appreciated the guys that I play with. I've been in the same situation where you're working hard on something, and you don't get along well with one of the band members. In those case, the music isn't giving you much joy, and certain individuals can make it even worse. Anyway, it makes it a whole lot easier to put in the hard work when you're with people you like being with. Everybody can deal with a prick in the band if/when you're having fun (i.e. in the middle of a great show with a great crowd). It's a whole different strain on band relations when you're sweating it out at 10:30 at night in a hot and crappy little practice room.

One other point here: I have nothing against taking suggestions from bandmates. If you have a good relationship with the people in the band, it's easy to tell (or receive) somebody "hey man, that sucked. Let's try it again" without hurting anybody's feelings. Generally, decent musicians know when it doesn't sound right. Again, it all comes down to how the message is delivered, and how you relate to that person. My guitarist and bassist are good people, so if/when one of us screws up, it's not uncommon for the others to be pretty brutal with the criticism (i.e. "Hey guitar-boy, if you want to start the song off, why don't you just pick ONE tempo for now", "Nice job drummer-dude, it takes a lot of skill to miss both the transition into and out of the chorus..."). Still, we know each other pretty well, and it's all lighthearted. When we first got together, the same comments would have been made with MUCH more diplomacy.

[Vibroluxman]

I wonder what guitarists would do if the drummer all of a sudden during a song was like "Hey, that doesn't sound right." "I think you should play it like this..." Sing some kind of note and try and sound like a chord or whatever. When the guitarist tries say "No it's not like that, you need to play it lighter and more like ______ band." When they try again, be like "Nahh not quite there, you still are a little too _____ you need to be more like _____." Heh I just wonder if the guitarists out there would get mad? Then I wonder what their reaction would be when we point out "Hey that's exactly what you do to me normally."

 

 

Had a bassist do that to me actually. I double on saxophone and guitar. He hands me a sheet written in concert (my saxophone reads in Eb) so naturally I go and grab my guitar to play it. Start playing the tune, and he goes no that isn't what I want at all, its too slow. So we pick up the pace a bit. Still doesn't like it. Has me switch to saxophone, transpose his melody on the fly and raises the tempo even farther. Basically took a guitar swing style ballad and turned it into a latin fast paced groove on saxophone. Took double the time of what it could have if he had just told me he wanted me on saxophone in the first place, and told everyone else he wanted it fast not slow. And no, it wasn't because he had thought it was a slow piece, he had always wanted it fast. Just took him 2 months and 2 shows to decide to tell us.

 

So yup, as a lead instrument I have had that happen to me. You just have to be able to adjust to what people want you to play.

[BertTheDrummer]

I double on saxophone and guitar.

 

I also play sax myself, in fact was a jazz sax player in for my university's jazz band (I played alto, tenor, and bari depending on the semester, we had like 1 main drummer and 3 alternates already) and classical clarinet player for the university orchestra. So I have some experience with the melodic instruments. I guess my main rant comes from the drummer stereotype that drummers aren't real musicians, and I've had guitarists treat me like that... just gets annoying especially when you've had more music theory and all that junk that the person who's getting on your case about stuff. And the problem isn't adjusting to what people want you to play most of the time, it's people wanting you to adjust to a sound they have in their head, but they really don't even know what that sound in their head is or how to articulate that to you.

[danrothmusic]

hey, all you winds should join us on the brass forum!

(I also play trombone)

[someotherguy]

But yes, I too have noticed that some guitarists are just not very bright when it comes to articulating what it is they want, be it music or any other subject. I remember once I was in a similar situation, and the guitarist just couldn't explain what it was he was looking for, so I got up, walked over to him, handed him the sticks and asked him to play me what he had in mind. He snapped, "I can't play the drums!", at which point he handed me his guitar and said "Here...you try it." I then proceded to play some tune I can't remember (he didn't know I play guitar also). He stormed out of the room. The rest of us had a good laugh!

Too funny.

[someotherguy]

Most people assume the rhythm section of the band as the least important and inferior, which is why they like to write out your parts for you.

You could take that the other way, too. If they are writing out the parts, it could be because they are the most essential. They may not be thinking this way, but they must think it's important if they are making that sort of effort.

I'm a bassist and may be taking the glass half full approach here for us both.