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Notes_Norton

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    Music Association Thread - Take 3

    in Sound, Stage, and Studio

    Posted · Edited by Phil O'Keefe
    (Edited by Phil to embed video for Notes... )

    "Surfin' Bird" - The Trashmen

     

     

    Consistently on the top 10 list of the worst Rock n Roll songs ever recorded. We play it every once in a while as a goof, and the audience loves it.

     

    Notes

     

    PS Haven't played this game in a while, and with my slow connection I don't have time to find, listen to and post videos, I hope you all don't mind.

     

     

     

    [video=youtube;9Gc4QTqslN4]

     

     

    • Like 1

    Language difficulties and impossible people

    in Backstage With the Band

    Posted

    Many years ago I was in a band that was hired by a divo primo donno who thought the world revolved around him. He had lots of money, was a good singer, and had connections in Las Vegas (found out later he was blackballed by being difficult to work with).

     

    He would change from day to day, keys, arrangements, or just get lost. We tried to be as tactful as possible because the rehearsal money was good and we thought there were possibilities for future connections if nothing else. For example: If we tried to say, "this is what we did yesterday, and how do you want to change it from here" or something like that, his brother/manager would yell at us and say he was doing it just like we rehearsed yesterday and we were screwing it up.

     

    After a few of those it wasn't worth getting paid for rehearsing with this guy any more.

     

    It's tough to work together if everyone isn't working together.

     

    I'll give most things more than one chance, but for me there is a point where I don't need aggravation or constant frustration.

     

    Of course, there is more than one right way to do this. YMMV

     

    Insights and incites by Notes

    When is technical ability/obsession a hindrance to our musical creation?

    in Sound, Stage, and Studio

    Posted

    I'll make an analogy to movies.

     

    When the movie serves the effects instead of the story, technology got in the way.

     

    When the technology serves the story and the story serves the music, the technology is used right.

     

    In music it's the same way.

     

    When the recording serves the technology instead of the music, it's in the way.

     

    If the technology serves the music, then the technology is used correctly.

     

    The focus must be on the music, not the technology or the perfection of the recording. Anything that gets in the way of the music is wrong. Anything that helps the music is good.

     

    Notes

    When is technical ability/obsession a hindrance to our musical creation?

    in Sound, Stage, and Studio

    Posted

    Fairly related.

     

    I haven't watched TV since the 1980s - no cable, no antenna, no digital converter. I've never seen Simpsons, Cheers, Seinfeld, Sopranos, Taxi, MASH, Sex in the City, Thrones and I haven't seen a Macy's Day Parade since perhaps 1980 or so.

     

    This Thanksgiving we got a gig at a nursing home. We don't pursue those gigs, but the manager found us on the Internet, liked us and offered it to us. We don't turn down gigs that we think we could do a good job on either.

     

    So while setting up, on the huuuuuuge screen TV is the Macy's T-Day Parade. I see dancers and singers lip syncing to a recorded vocal/music track. Some without mics and no place to hide a body mic, and some with mics but obviously only for a prop.

     

    I've played in a lot of bands where the background singers share a mic, looking at each other's lips so we can sync our consonants together. I know when someone is lip syncing because the mouth and the consonants are out of sync. And they were not just delayed, but sometimes ahead, sometimes behind in the same line of the song. Even stars who can sing like Gwen Stefani were just pretending.

     

    Is this what entertainment has evolved to? The technology used to put pretty people out there dancing and pretending to sing with completely recorded sound tracks? Not one voice or instrument live?

     

    Well I for one don't care if I ever see another Macy's T-Day parade again. I guess it's OK for the masses, because people watch it, but I don't want to see them pretending to sing.

     

    I know it's done in the movies, and back in the Black & White TV days the stars would come on American Bandstand and lip-sync their songs, but the pantomime I saw was done in front of a live audience, and to me that makes a difference.

     

    And what about the idea of a parade? Did the Broadway acts and featured Stars participate in the entire parade? Or did they just come out, interrupting the parade to pretend they are singing?

     

    I don't meant to be extremely negative here, because I'm sure that it works for a lot of people, and many would prefer it that way, but basically, it's not my 'cup of tea' and I don't care to watch that pretending.

     

    Insights and incites by Notes

    When is technical ability/obsession a hindrance to our musical creation?

    in Sound, Stage, and Studio

    Posted

    With almost any technology there is the use and the abuse.

     

    I've seen movies where the movie serves the technology and others were the technology serves the plot.

     

    And I've heard recordings that serve the technology and others were the technology serves the music.

     

    I don't think the tools are the fault, sometimes it's the people using them. But in the right hands the tools can make something beautiful

     

    Insights and insights by Notes

     

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