My One and Only Love

[gravitas]

The Richard Page Group - 2011-04-05 | Richard Page

What do yall think? Would love some feedback, positive or negative

[wizard3739]

I enjoyed listening to your version of this great tune! The guitar part was really nice with some very tasty lines, a nice jazz tone and the comping was also very tasty with choice voicings. I thought the sax was pretty good but I would like to hear a bit more breathing space and a clear statement of the the melody at the start. Overall, IMHO, it was very well done and I would like to hear more of the same.

wiz

[fumblefingers]

Originally Posted by gravitas

The Richard Page Group - 2011-04-05 | Richard Page

What do yall think? Would love some feedback, positive or negative

critcal comments per you request. just IMO. cheers.

sax should have played the entire head. sounds like he was soloing from almost the get go. this song has a very nice melody. why bother if you're not going to play it?

liked the sax players tone.

sax over-played on his solo. needs to hold back a little and build up some tension. need to be on guard against being too busy.


guitar solo was too aimless (sorry)

guitar playing was competent.

guitar tone and a few solo devices were too much from the "rock school"

[kris]

I do not like the sound of the guitar. The"rock school"---good name.
I do not want to talk about playing...:-)
Best
Kris

[gravitas]

Originally Posted by wizard3739

I enjoyed listening to your version of this great tune! The guitar part was really nice with some very tasty lines, a nice jazz tone and the comping was also very tasty with choice voicings. I thought the sax was pretty good but I would like to hear a bit more breathing space and a clear statement of the the melody at the start. Overall, IMHO, it was very well done and I would like to hear more of the same.

wiz

Thanks man! Happy to hear positive feedback from a GIT grad.

Originally Posted by fumblefingers

critcal comments per you request. just IMO. cheers.

sax should have played the entire head. sounds like he was soloing from almost the get go. this song has a very nice melody. why bother if you're not going to play it?

liked the sax players tone.

sax over-played on his solo. needs to hold back a little and build up some tension. need to be on guard against being too busy.


guitar solo was too aimless (sorry)

guitar playing was competent.

guitar tone and a few solo devices were too much from the "rock school"

Cool man, I'm always looking for more stuff to work on. An outside perspective is super welcome. You're right, I feel like my solo was wandering around too much to actually take anybody anywhere. Hearing someone else voice that opinion helps me to know that A: when I'm reading I need to get better at internalizing the changes during the first pass through so that, when it's my turn to solo, I can hear where I'm going and avoid "reacting" to every change as if I were hearing it for the first time... Also, B: I need to memorize more standard repertoire so I don't wind up in the same scenario again.

As for the guitar sound, I guess I prefer a brighter tone than most jazz guitar dudes, but mostly because I'm going for Lenny Breau chordal thing. I find when you try for four part harmony with a dark Metheny-ish tone, you can't hear the individual voices very well at all. I'll probably keep my tone the way it is, but thanks for your input anyway.

Which solo devices did you find to be too rock? If I had a better idea of which ones you didn't like, it would help me to be more sensitive of which ones are going to make people falsely connote me with the Police or something.

Originally Posted by kris

I do not like the sound of the guitar. The"rock school"---good name.
I do not want to talk about playing...:-)
Best
Kris

Well, thanks for your non feedback... I guess I'll go back to rock class and work on my hairstyle some more.

[mr. beaumont]

See, I did like your guitar tone...the solo probably meandered a little--but there were some nice moments, particularly when you did the chordal stuff, like around 3:30.

Nice little motif around 6:30.

Maybe just too long of a solo...I wasn't sure I was hearing the changes sometimes, and it's a very slow tempo, which means you're on the spot for a LONG time!

Nice chords at the end of your solo, right before the sax comes back in--very Ed Bickert. Loved that.

Sax player...jury's out for me...I'd have to hear more from him. Definitely has some chops, but "My One and Only Love" is one of the most beautiful melodies ever written...he should interpret a melody, not forget about it!

He also seemed flat on quite a few notes--and I was not feeling the altissimo. That was awful, actually--you seemed to follow him up but the drummer's train was still at "relaxation station."--don't tell him I said that, make it sound more constructive.

Overall, though (I'mpicking because you wanted constructive feedback) I enjoyed listening. Any group smart enough to pick this tune has a lot going for it, IMHO...

[gravitas]

Originally Posted by mr. beaumont

See, I did like your guitar tone...the solo probably meandered a little--but there were some nice moments, particularly when you did the chordal stuff, like around 3:30.

Nice little motif around 6:30.

Maybe just too long of a solo...I wasn't sure I was hearing the changes sometimes, and it's a very slow tempo, which means you're on the spot for a LONG time!

Nice chords at the end of your solo, right before the sax comes back in--very Ed Bickert. Loved that.

Sax player...jury's out for me...I'd have to hear more from him. Definitely has some chops, but "My One and Only Love" is one of the most beautiful melodies ever written...he should interpret a melody, not forget about it!

He also seemed flat on quite a few notes--and I was not feeling the altissimo. That was awful, actually--you seemed to follow him up but the drummer's train was still at "relaxation station."--don't tell him I said that, make it sound more constructive.

Overall, though (I'mpicking because you wanted constructive feedback) I enjoyed listening. Any group smart enough to pick this tune has a lot going for it, IMHO...

Thanks man! Haha if anyone in the world can actually see these comments it's probably the sax player. Since he owns the bandcamp account he can see every visitor and source it's being liked from- facebook, myspace, reverbnation, or forums like this. He's showed me the account control panel and there's people following the posts in like Germany and Australia and Italy... It's creepy in an Orwellian way, but I guess that's just the way that site works.

I think you hit the nail right on the head with the "relaxation station" comment... I'm not talking about any one player specifically, but especially with a new group like this it's tough to get everybody tapping into the same solo narrative for each band member's individual personality. I think it'll take more playing and hanging out with each other for the whole band to start playing less like we're jamming and tossing the ball around and more like a group that's focused on a song-long arc of tension, more focused on collectively making great music.

[abdke99]

i like the atmosphere, there will always be things that can be done better and you will get them,

about the tone...well thats personal thing, thats you and i respect it and like it and you sad some nice stuff

sax ... for me in this kind a tune again its my taste i would like to hear some Ben Webster kind of plying but overall well done and post some more

all the best Kerim

[fumblefingers]

Originally Posted by gravitas

Thanks man! Happy to hear positive feedback from a GIT grad.



Cool man, I'm always looking for more stuff to work on. An outside perspective is super welcome. You're right, I feel like my solo was wandering around too much to actually take anybody anywhere. Hearing someone else voice that opinion helps me to know that A: when I'm reading I need to get better at internalizing the changes during the first pass through so that, when it's my turn to solo, I can hear where I'm going and avoid "reacting" to every change as if I were hearing it for the first time... Also, B: I need to memorize more standard repertoire so I don't wind up in the same scenario again.

As for the guitar sound, I guess I prefer a brighter tone than most jazz guitar dudes, but mostly because I'm going for Lenny Breau chordal thing. I find when you try for four part harmony with a dark Metheny-ish tone, you can't hear the individual voices very well at all. I'll probably keep my tone the way it is, but thanks for your input anyway.

Which solo devices did you find to be too rock? If I had a better idea of which ones you didn't like, it would help me to be more sensitive of which ones are going to make people falsely connote me with the Police or something.


Well, thanks for your non feedback... I guess I'll go back to rock class and work on my hairstyle some more.

ok - just listened again. two things came out specifically, and they're not that big a deal.

1. your vibrato early on sounds a bit like a blues or blues rock player. a very minor infraction.

2. it sounds as if you use the blues/rocker version of pizzicato at one point. (side of the thumb and pick). i would try to avoid that one.

[kris]

Good jazz strings on the guitar will resolve the sound problem.
i.e. flatwound 13' Thomastic.
Best
Kris

[gravitas]

Originally Posted by fumblefingers

ok - just listened again. two things came out specifically, and they're not that big a deal.

1. your vibrato early on sounds a bit like a blues or blues rock player. a very minor infraction.

2. it sounds as if you use the blues/rocker version of pizzicato at one point. (side of the thumb and pick). i would try to avoid that one.

Duly noted, thanks for your suggestions.

Originally Posted by kris

Good jazz strings on the guitar will resolve the sound problem.
i.e. flatwound 13' Thomastic.
Best
Kris

You know I used to use those exact strings. They don't give me the sound I want at all. As far as I'm concerned, there's no problem with my sound that couldn't be resolved with better technique.

It's a pet peeve of mine that people go out and get themselves flatwound 13s because those are the "jazz strings." I had a good conversation with my prof about that. He goes "Haha that's a ridiculous idea. What do you only play jazz notes with flatwounds or something?" I feel like everybody's trying to sound like the same archetypical dude when they buy those strings. I choose not to use them for two reasons: one, I feel like it's a sound factor that levels a lot of the personalities of jazz guitar players and forces everybody into a narrower range of sounds, and two: flatwounds sound way too dark for my liking, they don't project or preserve the clarity of independent voices in four part harmony as well as I'd like.

That's not to say guys who prefer flatwounds (and the list is long) are wrong to choose them, but I'm sure they decided on flatwounds because they personally prefer the sound for their own voice, not because somebody told them to go out and buy the "jazz strings" so they can be a real "jazz guitar player." So thanks but not thanks.

If you need examples of famous players that think along similar lines, you can check out Vic Juris, Lenny Breau, Howard Roberts, or Barney Kessel.

[kris]

I 've used a lot of different guitars and strings...but after that I like to use Flatwound strings on my jazz boxes.
I use them on my Ibanez As-200/12'/ and arch-top box/13'/.
I have better control on these strings and I like that sound/fat/.

If you like to use another strings it is OK.
Vic Juris, Lenny Breau, Howard Roberts, or Barney Kessel...I know all of them./from records...;-)/All of them have great jazz sound.
YouTube - Krzysztof Woli?ski Trio live -- ?34-th blues"
Regards
kris

[Roberoo]

Have to agree with Gravitas on his comments about the obsession with getting that woody, mellow, flat wound sound. Of course, when it is good it can be very good but very often it just muddy, dry and indistinct. At times it also strikes me that the person is also seeking a short cut to that "JAZZ SOUND" by imitating the sound of some players that constituted the jazz sound in the early 70s (when solid state made its appearance). Burrell in his early days had a very bright tone, Django electric was bright and distorted, Grant Green had bright grit in his sound as did Benson. I have a couple of Jimmy Raney Visits Paris albums and his tone is very clear and "toppy" - almost Vox like - and it sounds great.

Overall, I should think that players should try to be as distinct and individual in their tone as in their phrasing and choice of notes.

Just say'n

[Franz 1997]

I enjoyed it. I can understand many of the critical comments above, although in fairness the sax player did state the melody, just bounced the timing and emphases around somewhat.
The guitar playing was more than competent, with appropriate vocabulary, tastefully applied to the changes, although there were a few changes into blues vocab, and I have to agree it didn't have an obvious direction.
AS far as the tone goes, it wasn't to my taste, but taste is taste, just that! Don't know if you're using a tele or similar, but Ed Bickert made it work for him, so why not - and it's distinctive, as noted above.
I thought you did justice to a great tune which is not as easy as it might seem to play well without sounding cliched- not perfect, but pretty good.

[Kman]

I thought it was pretty good. However, the song was very long. Also, I think it would have sounded much better if the bassist was louder in the mix. Some good moments in the solo for sure. I listened to to the whole thing and enjoyed it. Thanks.