Reggae is much cooler than I thought.

[mmartinez]

 

Anyway, I see jazz and gospel guys, players that I admire, fall flat on their face with it. They can't sit with playing the same notes over and over, especially two or three chords.

 

It's the difference between technical playing, versus playing with soul, isn't it... Same thing with blues. A bunch of people play technically "correct" blues, slick-sounded stuff, but you realize what they're missing when you hear someone like Shirley Scott.

 

A lot of musicians can't understand being a small part of a big picture, you can't be busy in Reggae. It's pretty disciplined.

 

The band I'm in now, is a rythmic-based group, heavy on percussion. We do a mix of stuff. The leader - the main guy who put it together - told each of us exactly this.

He wants people who know how to play simple basic stuff. A lot of guys need to stay busy, they don't know how to lay off and play a simple groove ... but do it with soul.