Re: [Harp-L] Band Rehearsals -- What is your formula?

["steve@xxxxxxxxxxxx" <swebb@xxxxxxxxxxx>]

Great topic, Rick....    Years back, i played bass in several mediocre country/ country rock bands. We never practiced. Someone would learn a song, talk a little about anything unusual just before we played the next night, and away we would go.   If we kept it in our set list, eventually it wouldn't be too bad.  Some of these bands were better than others, based on the talent of the lead singer. Country music, like Blues.. three chords, not hard, right?
  Three years ago I retired and hooked up with a guy who used to play and bands and was just getting back into it. He was just starting some solo stuff and he and I clicked musically at a couple of jam sessions.  
  Long story short, with his wife on bass and me on harp, we started practicing and we came up with a pretty good trio.  Every weekend that we  had a job booked, we practicing on Wed. night. More practice than I wanted, but I knew it was a good thing.  He had talent, his wife and I did what we could to make it sound as good as possible.  I'm proud of the music we made and it made me a much better harp player.  
  But we got to playing out so much that they couldn't handle it in their lives and it was too much for me, too. So... he shut it down.
   Steve Webb in Minn., where his band is no longer gigging and he misses it.



---- Rick Davis <bluesharpamps@xxxxxxxxx> wrote: 
> I am having an interesting debate with a former member of my band -- a
> guitar player -- about band rehearsals. He is of the mind that that blues is
> so easy that it is never necessary to play a complete song in rehearsal.  He
> apparently wants to jam through live performances.
> 
> My preferred method is to play a song, have everyone suggest
> changes/improvements to the arrangement, play the changed parts several
> times, and then play the song again all the way through to make sure the
> intro, changes, and ending are good and everybody has his parts down.
> 
> Blues is easy, alright... It is easy to play badly. My philosophy about
> practice is a sports analogy:  When I played varsity sports we practiced
> hard as a team, and when we were well prepared we did well.
> 
> How often does your band practice?  When you do practice, what is the
> formula?
> 
> 
> -- 
> -Rick Davis
> The Blues Harp Amps Blog
> http://www.bluesharpamps.blogspot.com/