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Post by jack1982 on Apr 5, 2020 7:29:01 GMT -6
I started on a new "challenge" at that other site, this one is BB King licks. They're pretty interesting, not exactly what I'd call typical BB stuff, but kind of quick, technical type licks. So I'm working on that. Also ordered a couple of toys - an MXR Eddie Van Halen distortion pedal (that will make me sound exactly like Eddie ) and of course you've got to get the MXR Eddie Van Halen Phase 90 pedal to go with it lol. They should be arriving this coming week hopefully. I used to (kind of sort of) "know" quite a few Van Halen tunes so that should be fun stuff to play with.
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Post by bluesbruce on Apr 5, 2020 8:51:48 GMT -6
If anything good has come of all of this isolating at home stuff, it's at least jump started my guitar playing again. Been playing with the easy songs in the first part of BYCU, trying to get some calluses back. Even got out the acoustic and tried to finger pick "Sam Stone" since I heard John Prine is bad sick with the Covid-19 virus. That's pretty rusty, too. I might try to make a recording or a video, but it's been so long I'm not sure I remember how all this stuff works!
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Post by Phil on Apr 5, 2020 8:54:46 GMT -6
I started on a new "challenge" at that other site, this one is BB King licks. They're pretty interesting, not exactly what I'd call typical BB stuff, but kind of quick, technical type licks. So I'm working on that. Also ordered a couple of toys - an MXR Eddie Van Halen distortion pedal (that will make me sound exactly like Eddie ) and of course you've got to get the MXR Eddie Van Halen Phase 90 pedal to go with it lol. They should be arriving this coming week hopefully. I used to (kind of sort of) "know" quite a few Van Halen tunes so that should be fun stuff to play with. I recently read that BB King started off imitating the playing his hero, T-Bone Walker. I found that interesting because there's nothing in the style that BB eventually developed that sounds anything like T-Bone's more jazzy, west coast sound. It's amazing how some people can be so heavily influenced by someone else's playing and still go on to develop their own unique style of playing. Flamenco legend Paco de Lucia started his career as a clone of his hero, Niño Ricardo. Wes Mongomery copied Charlie Christian note for note. And I'm sure many others started out like this. I think that's kind of interesting. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I had every intention of just putting my phone on a tripod and recording something, but another week just slid by. Maybe this week. I'm still plugging away on some Jazz standards. Been focused on coming up with a one chorus solo on each song I know. I got one I'm really happy with. I definitely need to record and upload it to get some impartial feedback from you guys. And, since I mentioned T-Bone Walker above, I want to say how happy I am to hear from our own T-Bone again.
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Post by cunningr on Apr 5, 2020 11:01:17 GMT -6
I started on a new "challenge" at that other site, this one is BB King licks. They're pretty interesting, not exactly what I'd call typical BB stuff, but kind of quick, technical type licks. So I'm working on that. Also ordered a couple of toys - an MXR Eddie Van Halen distortion pedal (that will make me sound exactly like Eddie ) and of course you've got to get the MXR Eddie Van Halen Phase 90 pedal to go with it lol. They should be arriving this coming week hopefully. I used to (kind of sort of) "know" quite a few Van Halen tunes so that should be fun stuff to play with. Nice pedals! In high school I had a friend could play damn near every Van Halen song out, then got killed in a bike accident quarter mile from home. I just purchased a mint copy of their first LP, now if our mail ever starts arriving again.
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Post by cunningr on Apr 5, 2020 11:04:36 GMT -6
Well on the playing front asides from that gilmour lesson i was working on did get a online class in with my instructor. Started back over some leads on that Santana tune Chill Out, and he sent me Chitlins con Carne to work on again, not sure why but cool song.
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Post by Phil on Apr 5, 2020 11:16:22 GMT -6
Well on the playing front asides from that gilmour lesson i was working on did get a online class in with my instructor. Started back over some leads on that Santana tune Chill Out, and he sent me Chitlins con Carne to work on again, not sure why but cool song.
It's definitely a cool song. Check out the album it came from, "Midnight Blue," there's several very cool tunes on it. Kenny Burrell is one of the more bluesy Jazz cats as was Grant Green.
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Post by jack1982 on Apr 5, 2020 13:18:59 GMT -6
I started on a new "challenge" at that other site, this one is BB King licks. They're pretty interesting, not exactly what I'd call typical BB stuff, but kind of quick, technical type licks. So I'm working on that. Also ordered a couple of toys - an MXR Eddie Van Halen distortion pedal (that will make me sound exactly like Eddie ) and of course you've got to get the MXR Eddie Van Halen Phase 90 pedal to go with it lol. They should be arriving this coming week hopefully. I used to (kind of sort of) "know" quite a few Van Halen tunes so that should be fun stuff to play with. I recently read that BB King started off imitating the playing his hero, T-Bone Walker. I found that interesting because there's nothing in the style that BB eventually developed that sounds anything like T-Bone's more jazzy, west coast sound. It's amazing how some people can be so heavily influenced by someone else's playing and still go on to develop their own unique style of playing. Flamenco legend Paco de Lucia started his career as a clone of his hero, Niño Ricardo. Wes Mongomery copied Charlie Christian note for note. And I'm sure many others started out like this. I think that's kind of interesting. __________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
I had every intention of just putting my phone on a tripod and recording something, but another week just slid by. Maybe this week. I'm still plugging away on some Jazz standards. Been focused on coming up with a one chorus solo on each song I know. I got one I'm really happy with. I definitely need to record and upload it to get some impartial feedback from you guys. And, since I mentioned T-Bone Walker above, I want to say how happy I am to hear from our own T-Bone again. There is one lick we're learning that has a real heavy swing-feel to it, reminds me of something from "Jazzin' the Blues". I'll probably get it recorded eventually
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Post by joachim on Apr 5, 2020 14:31:20 GMT -6
Not too much practice for me this week. Playing over ii-V-I progressions, and started to get a little dull doing it, so for at bit of diversity I picked an old Fleetwood Mac song I worked on before.
It's been nice with all the forum activity lately!
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Post by grampalerxst on Apr 5, 2020 14:58:55 GMT -6
Decent week for me, didn't get sick and die. There was one day I didn't play at all, but got an hour or more all the other days. Last night and this morning I recorded roughs of all the bed rhythm tracks fot the project I'm working with my s-i-l. I still pretty much suck but some of it sounds okay. He'll probably rearrange the drums while I punch in over two little sections where I had a defect that escaped the first 3-4 listens. Then it will be time to work out some melodic parts to go over the top. I'll probably record those before we record drums, but maybe not.
Still working Electric Gypsy intro. Even after all this time I can feel my fingers getting a little more agile week-by-week. I might get there from here.
My new pick grip experiment is interesting. In my regular/old grip I hold the pick with the bottom of my finger (where the print is, like you'd hold a sheet of paper between thumb and finger. I now notice that I was extending/withdrawing the pick up and down into/away from the strings. Using the side of my curled index finger I cant make the same movement, and I've noticed I hit the strings harder, and most of my string-to-string movement is parallel to the tops of the strings. Anyway, I using the alternate grip alot of EG. For April I'm going to keet the same tempo range I used in March, 70-95%.
Still do
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Post by wannaplayblues on Apr 5, 2020 15:46:27 GMT -6
Still working from home, but evenings have been free.
Worked on another piece from the other site and recorded it yesterday. Enjoy
Finally, I'll be taking the site's April challenge that has just a bass and drum backing track and you have to create something with it. Chords are implied - but it's free to interpretation. This needs to be in 24th April. Working on something as we speak.
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Post by bluesbruce on Apr 5, 2020 16:04:27 GMT -6
Sounding really good there, WPB. Very soulful.
We haven't had this much input on the forum for quite a while - we just all needed a pandemic to get our focus back.
Oh, and +1 to both "Midnight Blue" and Van Halen's first album.
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Post by cunningr on Apr 5, 2020 16:21:42 GMT -6
Well on the playing front asides from that gilmour lesson i was working on did get a online class in with my instructor. Started back over some leads on that Santana tune Chill Out, and he sent me Chitlins con Carne to work on again, not sure why but cool song.
It's definitely a cool song. Check out the album it came from, "Midnight Blue," there's several very cool tunes on it. Kenny Burrell is one of the more bluesy Jazz cats as was Grant Green. I have a 45rpm master version, awesome album.
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Post by jack1982 on Apr 5, 2020 18:06:56 GMT -6
Really nice stuff WPB! Good emotion to it. Reminds me very much of a hit song by somebody, but I'll be darned if I can remember the name of it lol.
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Post by Phil on Apr 5, 2020 20:00:55 GMT -6
Not too much practice for me this week. Playing over ii-V-I progressions, and started to get a little dull doing it, so for at bit of diversity I picked an old Fleetwood Mac song I worked on before. It's been nice with all the forum activity lately! I've never practiced phrases over ii-V-I progressions because I've never been able to practice stuff out of its musical context. It was too much drudgery for me. However, now that I'm trying to work up some solos on Jazz standards I regret not having done it. I can assure you that those ii-V-I licks will come in handy one day and you'll be ready.
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Post by Marc on Apr 5, 2020 21:23:04 GMT -6
I took a break from my BYCU book but it does not mean I ain't playing. I've been working on a version of ja da that I posted in another thread. It was nice to totally change gears.
I purchased an add-on to my DAW to support vst's so I've been in a rabbit hole of VST and IR collecting. I think I'll do more recording now, because of it.
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Post by grampalerxst on Apr 6, 2020 2:55:56 GMT -6
Really nice stuff WPB! Good emotion to it. Reminds me very much of a hit song by somebody, but I'll be darned if I can remember the name of it lol. To me it has a bit of the vibe of the live version of No Woman No Cry.
Great job, wpb!
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Post by grampalerxst on Apr 6, 2020 4:42:40 GMT -6
I uploaded the son-in-law project rough and since everyone is in a sharing mood, and we're all sort of grounded, I thought I'd share it. Definitely a WIP. He did the drums on a VST which facilitates the composition process. We have an iterative thing thing doing where we react to each other's updates. What's here is just the basic skeleton. I think it needs one more section between the chorus redux and the outro, but he likes the sudden shift. So we'll see. Some of you who have been around might remember an earlier version from many years ago that I had up after I unearthed a couple years back.
Edit to add: Insofar as it was mixed, which it basically wasn't beyond dialing in guitar tones, it was done with better-than-average headphones, which might make it more bearable, or at least closer to my intent.
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Post by bluesbruce on Apr 6, 2020 5:05:18 GMT -6
That's cool, grampa. Very reminiscent of Rush to me. Thanks for sharing.
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Post by grampalerxst on Apr 6, 2020 5:45:32 GMT -6
That's cool, grampa. Very reminiscent of Rush to me. Thanks for sharing. Thanks, Bruce! I appreciate that. I hear Rush and vintage Kansas in it. Even though it's origins date back more than 15 years old, at this stage the motivation to drag it over the finish line is as a tribute to Neil Peart, so the Rush influence will probably increase as it gets finalized.
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Post by jack1982 on Apr 6, 2020 6:30:01 GMT -6
Grandpa, that was excellent! Totally professional sounding in every way, the bass and guitar were both tight as hell. Now all it needs is some vocals and a couple of guitar solos
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