[Harp-L] re: New Band

[Jim McBride <jpmcbride@xxxxxxxxx>]

Several of the recent replies to the thread about playing harp in a classic rock/pop  setting have focused on the music being blues-based and being suitable for blues harping. This is all true, and all good info. 
   
  But remember, you don't have to play "blues harp" on the harmonica. You can just play harp. I play in a duo with a guitar player who is not a blues player and most of the songs we do are not blues. The harp can fit into lots of great rock/pop songs if you're willing to work at it. Some songs work great in 2nd position with our favorite blues licks, others not. Sometimes you need to play 1st position, and third position is great for those minor key rock songs. When faced with a chord progression that isn't 1-4-5 just noodle around and find the notes that work. Maybe even get out a piece of paper and map out the notes of the chord and your harp and figure out what works. The following are some random suggestions, ideas, comments on playing rock/pop harmonica.
   
  1) Lots of minor key rock songs sound very cool with 3rd position harp. Try playing Santana's "Put your lights on" in third position on a G harp - sounds very cool.
  2) Copy guitar (or other instrument) solos. But don't spend endless hours trying to copy them note for note because you either won't have the notes or they won't lay out well on the harp. Guys that overblow and play all 12 positions might be able to do it, but the rest of us can't. What I do is listen to the solo then turn it off and just try to copy the feel of it. 
  3) Play fewer notes than the guitar solos you copy. Substitute good tone, vibrato, and feeling instead. 
  4) Don't be too cool to play 1st position :-) Go ahead and learn a few Neil Young songs in 1st. People love that stuff. It won't hurt you, I promise.
  5) Also consider playing the melody in 1st position occasionally. Yes it might be very easy and you might, as a harp player, think its lame, but it fits well in some songs. 
  6) As a harp player YOU will have to make your spot. This means you have to become a song arranger to make the harp work. Insert intros where you want, same thing with solos, don't feel obligated to stay with the original arrangement of cover songs.
  7) Find rock/pop songs that already have harmonica in them, convince the band to play them, and embellish the harp part. You're probably a much better harp player than the guy that played it in the original recording!
  8) Get comfortable standing up on stage and not playing. Many songs only want a little harp and you'll have to get used to not playing all the time. You can't chug along and play as many fills as you might in a blues setting.
  9) Don't always use a bullet mic and tube amp with distortion. Often a vocal mic into the PA with good reverb (and maybe a little chorus) is a much more appropriate sound for some classic rock songs. Use different sounds for different songs.
  10) Don't force your favorite blues licks into songs where they don't work. If they work, then thats great. But listen carefully and see how they fit. Be willing to play around and find something that sounds good. Sometimes simple is better.
  11) Find blues oriented rock songs for the band and use all your best blues playing. People will love it in a rock setting.
   
  Jim McBride
   
   
   
   
   
   

 		
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