Learning songs on stage

[SamuelBLupowitz]

A few years back I was filling in with a cover band, and they called some modern country song I didn't know. So I was learning it on the fly, and quickly ascertained that it was the "Don't Stop Believing" changes. So when they pointed to me for a solo, I played the "Don't Stop Believing" guitar solo on piano. Apparently they had never noticed that the changes were the same, and this completely blew their minds. Then next set they called some other modern country song that I also didn't know, which also turned out to have the "Don't Stop Believing" changes. So I did it again. After that one I said "You got any more? I'll keep doing this all night."

BRILLIANT.

 

I live for stuff like this. I want to be as prepared and well-rehearsed as possible, but I thrive when given an excuse to wing it. Been up against this with a few band mates lately, and it"s been bumming me out â not specifically winging it onstage, just risk-taking in general (more stretched out improvisation sections, learning more challenging music, calling audibles, that sort of thing).

 

I think as a general goodie-goody, high-achiever growing up, I learned that music was the place where it was safe for me to be bold and take risks and not have to deal with consequences for flying close to the sun. It"s liberating for me to push myself.

[Docbop]

Since I come from the guitar world Bruce Forman talks about when he used to play with legendary bassist Ray Brown. Bruce was talk to Ray about the tunes and changes. Ray just looks at Bruce and says.... It's all just cadences!

 

Frank Potenza was working with a pianist who was terrible at calling tunes and it messed Frank up a number of times. So Frank decided to tell the pianist to not even bother calling the tune just play. Said first week was a bit rough, but after that he got good at just listening and playing everything flowed.

 

Then my favorite comment on the topic was trumpeter Jeremy Pelt sat in at one of the jam at Mezzrow. Pianist who was running the jam was having trouble getting rest to the people to decide on a tune and key and Pelt was frustrated hearing all this going on and just ignored them. Finally they seemed to of decided on a tune and she asked Pelt you know ? Pelt just said "just play I'll catch you by bar two" and he did.

 

[MathOfInsects]

I would also add...if a group calls an audible of a song that they know and they know I don't, it would be highly unusual and unexpected for them not to give some visual cues when harmonic changes are coming. Usually a subtle head nod will signal expected changes, and eyeballs open, exaggerated fingers on the neck of the bass or guitar, will signal something more out of the box. A hang on the root note can usually buy a beat to catch up, even if the change is to the V. Hey, I meant that sus, what makes you think I didn't?

[allan_evett]

A few years back I was filling in with a cover band, and they called some modern country song I didn't know. So I was learning it on the fly, and quickly ascertained that it was the "Don't Stop Believing" changes. So when they pointed to me for a solo, I played the "Don't Stop Believing" guitar solo on piano. Apparently they had never noticed that the changes were the same, and this completely blew their minds. Then next set they called some other modern country song that I also didn't know, which also turned out to have the "Don't Stop Believing" changes. So I did it again. After that one I said "You got any more? I'll keep doing this all night."

 

 

1 5 6 4 (with sub chords, or variations). Yes, been there many a time. Wish that was the easiest thing I had to wing. Sometimes it's a high-wire act with no net

[J. Dan]

I've done a lot of filling in with bands and they usually send a set list ahead of times, but it's not unusual for somebody to call an audible that wasn't on the list they sent me. Sometimes it's no big deal, other times it's a song that requires a very recognizable sound/part from the keys. Luckily in most cases it's at least a song I've heard, and luckily I'm pretty good at coming up with sounds on the fly.

 

Sometimes when I'm filling in, I'm not the only one, so the band is struggling to get enough songs together that everybody knows. There have been more than a few times that I've listened to songs in my phone from YouTube during break, made sounds, and learned it for next set. What's best though is when they call a song they know I haven't played with them before, but it just so happens that I've played it with another band and end up nailing it. Feels Like the First Time (foreigner) was like that. No warning, the guitar player just starts doing the opening riff. I quickly found my combi for it and came in with the arpeggiated sound. He looked over at me and had the biggest grin on his face.

[El Lobo]

What's best though is when they call a song they know I haven't played with them before, but it just so happens that I've played it with another band and end up nailing it.

Love it when that happens.

Makes the band think I know what I'm doing.

[Adan]

I still have my Farfisa Compact. My first electronic keyboard. It"s at Dad"s house but I have not turned it on in years. I"m afraid what it might do if I turn it on. Caps are probably all dried out or worse.

 

Just want to comment that this is CEBs sexiest avatar, ever. Keep up the good work.

[cphollis]

Love this thread. Lots of echoes in my personal experience.

 

Case #1: BL calls a tune in response to a request. Maybe there's a hundo involved? I've played it in other bands, others haven't. Sometimes, I have killer solo parts that had been worked out many years ago. And there they are.

 

Case #2: Same situation, I've never heard the song. After verse 1, it gets obvious, but listen for the chorus or break. Lay out if you have to. Cadences, baby. Maybe take a solo. How hard can it be? Unknown Jimmy Buffet tunes fit this mold well.

 

Case #3: I haven't a clue what is going on. I do sparkly bits here and there where the cadence is stable. No solos when I haven't figured out the cadence.

 

Case #4: BL calls a tune with sophisticated KB parts and I'm flat footed. I tell him "train wreck ahead". We pass.

 

To the comments about open mics and similar: I hadn't thought about it, but might be a good thing for me.

[Josh Paxton]

it would be highly unusual and unexpected for them not to give some visual cues when harmonic changes are coming. Usually a subtle head nod will signal expected changes, and eyeballs open, exaggerated fingers on the neck of the bass or guitar, will signal something more out of the box. A hang on the root note can usually buy a beat to catch up, even if the change is to the V. Hey, I meant that sus, what makes you think I didn't?

 

My favorite personal example of this happened on a gig about 20 years ago. The bass player was feeding me the changes. When we got the bridge he signaled the IV chord by flashing four fingers. Then he gave me the raised eyebrows and upward body stretch that obviously meant #IV diminished, which then resolved to the obvious I over V, to V, to I. Then it happened again, but this time after the IV chord he briefly looked confused like he wasn't sure what to do next. Then he suddenly kind of dropped his entire body down slightly in a way that indicated â and I can't stress this enough â absolutely nothing. And yet in that moment I instantly knew he meant "flat seven." So that's what I played, confidently and on the downbeat, and it was right. Afterward we laughed about it, and that move became known as "the flat seven squat."

[EricBarker]

It helps a lot to know the math. Music is a lot like Chess tactics where you internalize pattern recognition.

 

PS - That probably made no sense but it works.

YES! It makes PERFECT sense! Great analogy. You think ahead about what possible moves your opponent will make, and then come up with responses before they make them. I can sometimes even feel my hands being at the ready to go to the IV or the V, for instance. I hear the bass note, and then my fingers shift instinctively into that position to play on the following beat.

 

A little bit of personal humor ensues when I miss it, like the players jump to a chord I didn't anticipate. Typically I can pull it off by acting like I purposefully played an extension, sometimes I'll even repeat it to show everyone I meant it. Probably the goofiest moment was when I was playing trumpet, jamming with a sax player. I harmonized with a horrific tritone towards the end of the tune. They went up a step, so I purposefully went up to the next tritone, we chased each other through about 3 notes and then all broke down laughing, great moment!

[EricBarker]

What is this "setlist" you speak of? No, I'm partially kidding, but in the working bands I play with, setlists are very rarely a thing. We're watching the audience, judging what they're going to dig in the moment. Originals bands, absolutely, setlists are always there, but never for a dance band. I've also played in Karaoke bands, which similarly don't use a setlist. In my case, I'm the newest member (5 years) of a band that goes back 12 years+. They've played songs together, or in different configurations that I haven't. Sometimes they call one from their back catalog. I can either go take a break, or play along. It's pretty low stress because often they're guitar rock songs with minimal keyboards.

[Stokely]

I don't mind if most of the people actually know the song. I don't think a trainwreck is good for the band or makes the requestor very happy, and I've been a part of a few of those when someone says "yeah, we'll give that a shot! None of us have played it but we've heard it!"

 

Once in a while our guitarist will start a song that he normally does in his solo act, and some of these are easier than others to just learn on the fly. Melissa by the Allmans is one of those that starts off and you think "ok, easy chord progression" but it quickly adds some (odd, to me that hasn't hear the song that much) changes. I just stepped off the stage when he pulled that out last gig, or if it's one I can add harmonies to I'll just turn down and maybe pretend to play a bit and just be a vocalist.

[Mr. Nightime]

Several years ago I was part of a band called "The Old Men Brothers". Lead guitar, slide guitar, bass, drums, and me on keys.

 

This band never rehearsed, but we really didn't need to.

 

We were unique, in that every member had played country, classic rock, and blues for a living, so between us we know a ton of songs. Plus, we knew how to approach each genre, and make it sound authentic.

 

We were quite fearless. If there was at least 2 of the 5 that knew the song, we would try it. In some instances, it would be come a regularly requested song, and possible make it into our setlist.

 

One of our first gigs together, just before we started, some guy at the bar yelled out "Play Free Bird".

 

As a joke, I started playing it. All of a sudden, the rest of the band had fallen into the song. The bass player had never played the song before. The slide player, however, played the signature slide work perfectly. Luckily, I remembered the lyrics.

 

When break came around, I went to the bar, and a patron told me that he normally hated that song, but we had played it the best he'd ever heard.

 

It became a staple for us.

 

I am currently is 2 bands. A classic rock band that plays nothing that has not been rehearsed, and the other is what we term a "Funky Blues Project". We rehearse, but just so that we can get the beginnings, endings, groove, and structure. The best part of that band is that we will try stuff that we don't really know, and pull it off. Mainly because of the onstage communication.

 

Like El Lobo mentioned earlier, if I'm playing something that I don't know, I'll lay back until I get the progression and groove, using the guitarist's left had as a guide. But my years of jam and improvising experience have honed my ear to the point that most songs I can pick right up on, as long as it's not too complicated.

[EricBarker]

On stage communication. Love it, big fan. Love seeing it with other bands, too. One of the things I hate about playing in metal bands: you're supposed to stand there and look angry, and never communicate with anyone in the band verbally or otherwise. I can't do it.

 

My celtic band back in Alaska had these crazy things worked out that would require some real-time direction. Since we were a contradance band, we'd have to watch the dancers, see if they "got it" before doing anything crazy. But there was one song we would randomly modulate during the bridge. Constant hand signals and verbal communication. It was always in the moment, and kind of a whirlwind. I got such a rush from doing that kind of stuff! Came to Hawaii, first band I played with was a goth metal band, huge letdown in stage energy, to be sure.

[Outkaster]

I had to do this a lot about ten years ago with the Legendary Dukes. They had about 300 songs and rotated a bunch of them often. Then one time in 2013 I had to back up a female singer from CT at a local festival. Something happened to their keyboard player and since my rig was already onstage they asked me to fill in. I knew enough about the songs she was playing and the key to pull it off. A couple people thought I was in the band after I was done. The good thing about being thrown in the fire is you learn to develop instincts, doesn't matter the kind of music, and you are playing intuitively.

[AnotherScott]

Something I like about the "thrown into the fire" scenarios, is that there is no pressure. I mean, no one expects you to do a perfect faithful rendition of a song, all they want is for it to sound good. You don't have to worry at all about remembering/duplicating specific parts. It's all just fun. And if something doesn't come off quite as well as you'd anticipated, you can expect folks to be forgiving rather than critical.

[pinkfloydcramer]

Scott nails it (cphollis did a good job of laying out the various scenarios, also). That kind of situation- where the keys don't carry the song- is actually the least-pressure of any. The more-so because it is not likely to occur in a higher profile gig. I would add that what makes you gold, is if there is a signature keyboard intro which a band member sings to you before the song, and you can do it.

 

Like most here, I think I'm pretty good at this and have a good rep for it. But what works against me is having a hearing impairment and struggling to hear audibles (usually chords) called out. So I have to compensate in other ways- for example, when I change programs on my hearing aids they make an "A" tone that only I hear, which gives me a point of reference without risking an initial sour note on my keyboard that that everyone can hear.

 

Alot of it comes down to having a good ear, good relative pitch. I wonder, is there a good online test where you can see how you measure up to other musicians for recognizing intervals, progressions, chord colors? I have seen similar ones for timing.

 

[Mr. Nightime]

The pressure thing can be very real. When I'm playing in a guitar-centric situation, I feel no pressure, because I can just do my thing and everyone will think how much it adds to the sound.

 

But, if I have to play a defined piano intro, like Billy Joel's "New York State of Mind", the pressure is palpable, because any little mistake is compounded by the lack of the rest of the band's support.

 

As far as tones from hearing aids, when I turn on my left one, it will play an arpeggio of C Major. The right, C# major

 

 

[tucktronix]

I have subbed in a quite a bands over the years, and I have the same approach as a lot of you. I was a member of the house band in several open jams. The bass player(formerly of the band Outkaster had previously mentioned.. The Legendary Dukes) had a vast repertoire of songs and often he would ask on stage if I could play them. I've never played a lot of the songs, but he knew I can pick things up fairly quick.

 

A lot of it is listening.. paying attention.. sitting out on sections you are unfamiliar with.