YTSEJAM digest 3825

From: ytsejam@ax.com
Date: Fri May 01 1998 - 21:08:45 EDT

  • Next message: ytsejam@ax.com: "YTSEJAM digest 3839"

                                YTSEJAM Digest 3825

    Today's Topics:

      1) Bassists and Me.
     by "Giannotti, Nick" <GiannottiN@hanscom.af.mil>
      2) Washington-area Jammers
     by rpark@space-dye.com (Ryan Park)
      3) elton
     by RASI2290@SPLAVA.CC.PLATTSBURGH.EDU
      4) Bass Players
     by Ivan Carvajal <usnavi@rocketmail.com>
      5) Re: Fastest guitarist (new spin on a BAD thread)
     by Al Balkiewicz <balkiewi@UMDNJ.EDU>
      6) Disappearing digests
     by Simon Wilkins <s.wilkins@rocketmail.com>
      7) FS: Japanese "Awake" w/ Eve Bonus Disc
     by James Utz <james.utz@usa.net>
      8) Music Street Journal 4
     by Yes0001 <Yes0001@aol.com>
      9) ? for whoever has the Rollins sig.....
     by Al Balkiewicz <balkiewi@UMDNJ.EDU>
     10) bahr 'jam contributions
     by "Tedesco, Matthew" <tedescom@BDD.com>
     11) just plug the IV in...ahhh, much better...
     by "Michael J. Emerson" <cthulhu@CYBERNEX.NET>
     12) Peter "Mars" Cowling
     by "Tom Baddley" <tbaddley@aircell.com>
     13) Re: Bass players
     by Matthew Smith <ktulu@arches.uga.edu>
     14) Image Beyond
     by Awake77 <Awake77@aol.com>
     15) Blipiblip
     by Adam Barnhart <adamb@cfmc.com>
     16) Re: JP video
     by "James C. Shields" <jimbob213@mail.utexas.edu>
     17) Chicago Jammers Thang
     by Christopher Ptacek <someone@enteract.com>

    ----------------------------------------------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 09:02:04 -0400
    From: "Giannotti, Nick" <GiannottiN@hanscom.af.mil>
    To: "'ytsejam@ax.com'" <ytsejam@ax.com>
    Subject: Bassists and Me.
    Message-ID: <4AA929543BC8D111A4E800600808ACE51B6D64@HAMSXHA2>

    D-Man wrote,

    >So, I'm interested in the opinions of everybody (bassists, other musicians,

    >non-musicians) on what makes a bass player good, and how, if at all, they
    may
    >be compared.

    I've said it before, and I'll say it again: it's called "Bass" for a reason.
    So, in my opinion, a bass player who can hold the groove of a song (be that
    song a James Brown Funk Jam or The Foo Fighters or Morbid Angel) is doing
    his job. The trick here, though is that - just like in a normal 9-5 job -
    you just don't want to 'do your job' - you want to rise to the occasion, so
    to speak. So the challenge that every bass player has is to take the groove
    of the song and keep it intact and then embellish what you're playing.

    Simon Gallop of the Cure and John Taylor of Duran Duran are masters of this,
    right off the top of my head, as is Geddy Lee. They'll take a basic beat and
    do something totally different with it, making it sound their own, and yet
    keeping with the spirit of the song (listen to 'Fascination St.' by the Cure
    for an example of this, or 'New Moon on Monday' by Duran Duran).

    >But, most importantly, I
    >realized that I did not have to sit back and play quarter notes when the
    >guitarist in my band wanted to wank. As a result, I realized why a guitar
    >solo can sound so thin if the bass isn't supporting it, and, more
    importantly,
    >how to fill in the gaps.

    Hear, hear. I've always been a fill-y player, trying to throw these little
    melodic gaps in here and there throughout the song, be it trying to support
    the guitarist or the vocalist. But one thing I've always wanted to try to do
    is be tight with the drummer. I don't mean tight as in, "hit the bass every
    time he hits the kick."
    I mean tight as in, "Wow. Not even Ron Jeremy could fit in there, it's so
    tight." A PERFECT example of this is the Dave Matthews Band. The drummer and
    bass player are so tight it's not human. And that's the challenge that I've
    given myself - to get to a point where the drummer and I aren't playing
    separate parts, or even playing 'in the pocket' - but playing as one
    distinct voice in a song that compliments every other part of the song
    around us, while sounding distinctly separate.

    It's easy in the studio. Doing it live in an improvised jam is a LOT harder.
    And, of course, being in a band would help my situation.... :)

    >I'll stop here, because I realize that this post is a classic finals-week
    >avoidance technique (I think I'm going to go home and clean the bathroom
    :).
    >But I really am interested in what you find good, bad, intriguing, boring,
    >tasteful, wanky, etc about bassists. Discuss. :)

    I'm not even IN school, though! :)

    Nicholas Giannotti
    JointSTARS Contracts
    giannottin@hanscom.af.mil
    "Nothing is foolproof to a sufficiently talented fool."

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 01 May 1998 09:23:46 -0400
    From: rpark@space-dye.com (Ryan Park)
    To: ytsejam@ax.com
    Subject: Washington-area Jammers
    Message-ID: <Version.32.19980501092159.00deb900@pop.circ.gwu.edu>

    Hey guys,

    I just lost my transportation to Baltimore for Tuesday night's concert...
    Is anyone from Washington going to Daytona's on Tuesday? Would you be able
    to do a HUGE favor and allow me to grab a ride with you? I don't have a
    car, and I really don't want to pay $40+ to take the train and assorted
    cabs...

    Thanks in advance,

    Ryan

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 01 May 1998 09:44:50 -0500 (EST)
    From: RASI2290@SPLAVA.CC.PLATTSBURGH.EDU
    To: ytsejam@ax.com
    Subject: elton
    Message-ID: <01IWIJFEDP5I0001I2@SPLAVA.CC.PLATTSBURGH.EDU>

    Date sent: 1-MAY-1998 09:41:39

    Merlo warbled:

    >/me sings: Caaaaaaaaaan you feeeeeeel the loooooooooove
    >toniiiiiiiiiiiiight?

    Hey, you know what? Just for that song, if I *ever* see elton john in the
    vicinity, and he's in striking distance, I *will* uppercut him so hard
    his head'll come off, fatality style.

    meltin' josh

    ............................................................
    mailto: rasi2290@splava.cc.plattsburgh.edu
    Check out Another Page at www.j51.com/~mrasiel. Hot Diggity!

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 06:35:52 -0700 (PDT)
    From: Ivan Carvajal <usnavi@rocketmail.com>
    To: ytsejam@ax.com
    Subject: Bass Players
    Message-ID: <19980501133552.22842.rocketmail@web1.rocketmail.com>

    "The bassist in a band (to me) was exactly what D-Man
    said: The guy who
    stands off to the side playing quarter-notes

    There's a couple of other players (Stu Hamm, Les
    Claypool, John Myung) who do something suimilar, and
    I enjoy them for the same reason. Not for huge solo
    work, but for doing something "different" within a
    band framework."
    -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

    I don't blame you for your opinion about bass
    players, because that's what an "average" listener
    would say; but for your conception about band
    framework, and it's relation with bass... Try to take
    and inside, more specific look at DT, and really
    discover why John Myung is said to be the best in the
    band... although they are ALL the greatest musicians
    I have ever seen.

    Anyway, TRY RUSH, what more different framework do
    you need?
    _________________________________________________________
    DO YOU YAHOO!?
    Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 10:16:17 -0400 (EDT)
    From: Al Balkiewicz <balkiewi@UMDNJ.EDU>
    To: Multiple recipients of list <ytsejam@ax.com>
    Subject: Re: Fastest guitarist (new spin on a BAD thread)
    Message-ID: <Pine.HPP.3.96.980501101512.27423A-100000@njmsa.UMDNJ.EDU>

    On Thu, 30 Apr 1998, Alan Estrada wrote:

    >
    > > What about Stanley Jordan? Does he count? I'd consider his playing the
    > >fastest among contemporarys. He's not your basic picker, he plays the
    > >guitar like a piano...all tapped.
    >
    > I just saw a concert of him on TV 2 days ago...I was amazed..he was playing
    > with 2 guitars...on one he did only chords on the other he was paing like
    > crazy, but is not standard tapping...is as you said piano playing....I've
    > heard some of his albums and I was not amazed at all until I saw him.
    > ---

            Stanley Jordan is just amazing - I saw a special on him on PBS
            a few years back, and he totally blew me away - and I'm not
            even a guitarist.

            Plus, he does a KILLER version of "Eleanor Rigby", with the
            two guitar thing....unreal

                                            -Al

    =====================================================================
      b l i n d l a b o r s t h e b l i n d a n d I a m
         u n w i l l i n g t o u n c o v e r m y e y e s
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    balkiewi@njmsa.umdnj.edu OR sigma982@yahoo.com OR theprof@bigfoot.com
    HOMEPAGE:http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Towers/9280/index.html
      

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 07:32:40 -0700 (PDT)
    From: Simon Wilkins <s.wilkins@rocketmail.com>
    To: ytsejam@ax.com
    Subject: Disappearing digests
    Message-ID: <19980501143240.22829.rocketmail@web4.rocketmail.com>

    Hi
    I have not received any digests since yesterday and number 3823

    Has anyone else had this problem?
    Could you email me privately if they are still going and forward the
    digests to me if possible?

    Simon

    my band Cereal Killer-not that great really
    _________________________________________________________
    DO YOU YAHOO!?
    Get your free @yahoo.com address at http://mail.yahoo.com

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 01 May 1998 09:37:50 -0500
    From: James Utz <james.utz@usa.net>
    To: Ytse Jam Mailing List <ytsejam@ax.com>
    Subject: FS: Japanese "Awake" w/ Eve Bonus Disc
    Message-ID: <3549DE3E.B4C03467@usa.net>

    Hi,
            I put this up on Ebay last night. If you would
    like this CD, you can use this link to see the item and
    bid.

    http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=12647168

    I've got some other 80's metal singles for sale too. My
    other items are listed here.

    http://cgi.ebay.com/aw-cgi/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewListedItems&userid=jamesutz

    Thanks,
    James

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 11:04:34 EDT
    From: Yes0001 <Yes0001@aol.com>
    To: ytsejam@ax.com
    Subject: Music Street Journal 4
    Message-ID: <9c0a6116.3549e483@aol.com>

    Music Street Journal 4 is up. In addition to the Dream Theater dates, this
    issue features reviews of Tony Levin-From the Caves of the Iron Mountain,
    Anubis Spire-Old Lions (In the World of Snarling Sheep), Ajalon-The Light At
    the End of the Tunnel (includes an interview with Randy George), Lands End-
    Natural Selection (includes comments about the tracks by drummer Mark
    Lavallee), Fish-Internal Exile, Autumn Rest-Poems From the Fire, Fates
    Warning-Parallels, Blue Oyster Cult-Heaven Forbid, and Hawkwind-Levitation.

    http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Arena/9250/

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 11:28:11 -0400 (EDT)
    From: Al Balkiewicz <balkiewi@UMDNJ.EDU>
    To: TheListFromTheDepthsOfHell <ytsejam@ax.com>
    Subject: ? for whoever has the Rollins sig.....
    Message-ID: <Pine.HPP.3.96.980501112658.26605C-100000@njmsa.UMDNJ.EDU>

            Sorry, but someone has a sig with a Rollins quote about
            hope being the last thing before someone's defeated or
            something like that. Can that person please e-mail me.

                                            thanks,

                                                    Al

    =====================================================================
      b l i n d l a b o r s t h e b l i n d a n d I a m
         u n w i l l i n g t o u n c o v e r m y e y e s
    ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
    balkiewi@njmsa.umdnj.edu OR sigma982@yahoo.com OR theprof@bigfoot.com
    HOMEPAGE:http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Towers/9280/index.html
      

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 11:31:00 -0400
    From: "Tedesco, Matthew" <tedescom@BDD.com>
    To: ytsejam@ax.com
    Subject: bahr 'jam contributions
    Message-ID: <199805011523.LAA07711@bertelsmanncis.com>

    from mike bahr:
    > So just so people know, my long-winded "meaty" posts to the Jam
    have
    >impacted my CD work exactly ZERO PERCENT. :) In fact, just now I have
    to
    >reach over and change the disc in Rand, my main machine, to the second
    >of ten VS disc 2's it's tasked to make this afternoon.

    i'm way behind on 'jams, so i might be about to read a whole shitstorm
    of stuff about this, or maybe not. but frankly, to those people
    complaining about mike writing long posts instead of making his boots or
    whatever, to hell with you. i am enjoying the hell out of some of the
    best threads i can remember in a long time; to that, i want to thank
    mike. this is some of the best reading i've done in recent memory.

     --MATt

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 12:00:15 -0400
    From: "Michael J. Emerson" <cthulhu@CYBERNEX.NET>
    To: "'Lifting Shadows Off A Ytse'" <ytsejam@ax.com>
    Subject: just plug the IV in...ahhh, much better...
    Message-ID: <01BD74F8.B46BFF90@MEMERSON>

    greetings, fellow 'jammers!

    as if seeing OFB 3 nights in a row on the first leg of the tour wasn't =
    awesome enough, now i get the opportunity to do it again!

    5/7 - Birch Hell
    5/8 - Irving Plaza
    5/9 - Electric Factory

    WOOHOO!!!

    i'm gonna be in heaven next weekend!

    mikE

    p.s.: a friend of mine says that his co-worker is...get this...Mike =
    P.'s COUSIN!! how f**king awesome is that? and he (my friend, not his =
    co-worker) is going with me to the Elec. Factory show, so we get to =
    (hopefully) see if he was telling the truth...i'll let y'all know... -- =
    m.
    ____________________________________________________________

    "His final scene, the actor bows /
    And all those years are gone somehow /
    The crowd applauds, the curtain falls..."
    Dream Theater - "Take Away My Pain"

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 10:00:28 -0600
    From: "Tom Baddley" <tbaddley@aircell.com>
    To: <ytsejam@ax.com>
    Subject: Peter "Mars" Cowling
    Message-ID: <001901bd751a$447ec4c0$30c926d1@subtropolis.AirCell.COM>

    >One of my favorites, for the same reasons stated here, is Peter 'Mars'
    >Cowling, who used to play with Pat Travers. He definitely introduced me to
    >how much more a bass player could be, within the band framework. Anyone
    else?

    Wow...another person who was influenced by Mars Cowling. I love his early
    work with Pat Travers, particularly the first PT album. The last time I saw
    Mars, he was playing with PT in Tulsa (mid-80's). Although he looked older
    than Keith Richards, he still had his chops. He made "Crash and Burn" sound
    10X better than the album (I still love the beginning of that song!). Some
    of Travers' best songs, though, were instrumentals such as "Prelude" and
    "What you mean to me". I also enjoyed his "delay-abuse" album,
    Radioactive...lots of great stuff! I really miss his old style of playing.
    In the 90's he was signed to Blues Bureau, and now plays strictly blues
    stuff, which isn't bad...it's just not the old PT I'm used to hearing. I am
    glad that he's managed to stay alive in today's music scene...most musicians
    from his era no longer play. Anyone know what ever happened to Pat Thrall,
    one of PT's early guitarists?

    Tom Baddley

    "I've got demons inside my head! Gremlins with pickaxes, chopping my mind
    into little tiny pieces"
    Pat Travers - I Don't Want To Be Awake

    "Wanna buy some Mandies, Bob?"
    Frank Zappa - Flakes

    Oh yeah...DT Rulez!!

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 12:15:56 -0400 (EDT)
    From: Matthew Smith <ktulu@arches.uga.edu>
    To: Multiple recipients of list <ytsejam@ax.com>
    Subject: Re: Bass players
    Message-ID: <Pine.A41.3.96.980501121411.107252B-100000@archa16.cc.uga.edu>

    Someone asked about what we consider "good" and "bad" concerning bass
    players, so here's my take:

    Good: CLIFF BURTON!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
    Bad: He's dead!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Album Currently Playing: Dave Matthews Band--Before These Crowded Streets
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------
    Matt Smith "When Dream and Day Unite, Images and Words
    ktulu@arches.uga.edu Awake A Change of Seasons Falling Into
                                    Infinity."
    ----------------------------------------------------------------------------

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 13:11:19 EDT
    From: Awake77 <Awake77@aol.com>
    To: ytsejam@ax.com
    Subject: Image Beyond
    Message-ID: <b685c458.354a0238@aol.com>

    Hey
       Anyone hear ever hear of the band Image Beyond? if got a demo of theirs
    that a friend sent me. I really like their sound, and Id like to hear more,
    but I dont know if their signed or anything. If someone here knows, please
    email me.
      Also, what happened to Power of Omens? Did they get signed? If they havent
    they should! Are they comming out with more music soon?
    -Chris

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 01 May 1998 10:13:50 -0700
    From: Adam Barnhart <adamb@cfmc.com>
    To: ytsejam@ax.com
    Subject: Blipiblip
    Message-ID: <3.0.3.32.19980501101350.00697018@pop.cfmc.com>

    >From: The iban <Theiban@aol.com>
    >Subject: Re: guitarists
    >
    >Kerry King Sucks shit on lead guitar, he should stick to rhythm.
    >the other guy used to suck, but atleast when SITA came out he decided to
    learn
    >a scale and play a solo in key.
    >playing fast means ABSOLUTELY nothing when you don't have ANY idea what you
    >are playing at all, like playing a fast run in Eb when the key is Eminor, and
    >thats what all slayer guitar solos prior to SITA were.
    >
    >Rocky
    >p.s. don't even think of flaming me for this, especially if you are a
    drummer.

    I'm not a drummer, I'm a bassist. And I don't really like Slayer all that
    much (though "Seasons" is actually a great song). But isn't that the
    point, more or less? I mean, a great deal of what Slayer pioneered with
    their sound IS that dissonance. To have someone doing cool, advanced
    playing harmonically...Alex Skolnik or something (within vaguely the same
    genre, that is, I'm not beginning to suggest the guy is Hans Reichel or
    George Van Eps)...isn't really what gives the band its sound.

    >From: "Christopher R. Merlo" <cmerlo@CS.WM.EDU>
    >Subject: Enough guitar. What about bass?
    >Message-ID: <199804302148.RAA31726@ren.cs.wm.edu>
    >
    >So, I'm interested in the opinions of everybody (bassists, other musicians,
    >non-musicians) on what makes a bass player good, and how, if at all, they
    may
    >be compared.

    Now THIS is a worthwhile topic to discuss...heh....

    I'm gonna echo a lot of what our esteemed Mr. Merlo said previously, here,
    I think...

    Geddy Lee is The Man on bass for me. I was drawn to Rush fairly early on,
    before I was really too far down the road, as far as being a bassist goes.
    In fact, I liked Rush before I played bass, but they became THE band for me
    a little after I took up the instrument. The thing that I really dig about
    Geddy's role in the band is not necessarily just that he could flash and
    play technically challenging lines -- there are a fair number of
    bassists...and there WERE a fair number of bassists even in '74...who can
    play technically challenging music -- but that, compositionally, he was
    slotting interesting and melodic bass lines in the context of suprememly
    emotional music. One of the things that bassists sometimes miss is that
    rooted eighth notes are a really useful tool. But they're best used to
    build tension in a line...to create a consistent propulsion that moves the
    song toward a powerful end. But the way they're used in a lot of bands,
    they end up being the static backdrop that something more interesting
    happens on top of. Geddy was one of the guys (along with Squire,
    Entwistle, Bruce, and a few others) who really libertated rock bass from
    being the bass drum personified.

    I've got a number of other role models, too. Jaco was so constantly
    melodic and had the quickest musical mind, I think, of anyone who's picked
    up the instrument. There was just a tremendous fluidity to his playing.
    Steve Harris defined what it is to play dynamic bass for more aggressive
    songs (that trademark gallop, among other things). Jeff Berlin plays some
    incredibly dense, vertical lines and has probably the best right-hand
    articulation in the history of the instrument. Stanley Clarke added a
    greater sense of rhythm to high-technique bass playing, bringing with him a
    tremendous amount of energy. Jack Bruce defined what it is to improvise at
    full volume, with that glorious, ugly EB-3 sound. Chris Squire plays with
    an assertive sound of his own, and plays with that tremendous confidence.
    And Jamerson, of course, brought the instrument out of the closet (funny, I
    didn't know it was gay...).

    Five Gratuitous CD's:
    =====================
    1. Blues Traveler: Four
    2. Shawn Colvin: Cover Girl
    3. Kyuss: Welcome to Sky Valley
    4. Rush: Hold Your Fire
    5. Lost Souls: Howlin' at the Moon

    Adam D. Barnhart
    adamb@cfmc.com
    ydnt85a@prodigy.com
    http://www.cfmc.com/adamb

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 12:52:14 -0500
    From: "James C. Shields" <jimbob213@mail.utexas.edu>
    To: ytsejam@ax.com
    Subject: Re: JP video
    Message-ID: <l03102801b16fbaa7a9a5@[128.83.128.136]>

    I got the Video as soon as it came out, and I really like it. It has some
    really good warmup exercises and practicing tips, and some good excercises
    for building up speed and stamina. He's touched on some of the topics in
    his Guitar World Column, but I think the video is definitely worth getting.
            At the end of the video, as a bonus, JP gives a tour of his live
    rig, which I really dug, being a Mesa/Boogie phreaque. He also does some
    jamming, showing how to put the concepts together, etc, and it's really
    awesome to get a good close up view of how fluidly his hands move. It's so
    weird. His hands barely move, but all that lightning fast stuff comes out
    of his amp.
            Well, I gotta go finish packing; I'm finally moving out of the
    dorm! Woo-Hoo!!!

    James C. Shields
    Undergraduate
    University of Texas at Austin
    +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=
    Man, I know, I've gotta go
    It's the same thing every time
    But I don't think another drink's
    Gonna make me lose my mind.

    So I think about my next drink
    And it's you and me and the bottle makes three tonight

                                                    Big Bad Voodoo Daddy
    +=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=+=

    ------------------------------

    Date: Fri, 1 May 1998 13:21:54 -0500 (CDT)
    From: Christopher Ptacek <someone@enteract.com>
    To: ytsejam@ax.com
    Subject: Chicago Jammers Thang
    Message-ID: <199805011821.NAA24220@enteract.com>

    Hey...

        I mangled that script on the Chicago Jammers Page, so if you tried to
    post and it wouldn't work, or you had posted correctly, yesterday, go
    ahead and repost your info now. It should be working just fine. Sorry
    about the waste of bandwidth!

    http://www.prognosis.com/chicago

    ------------------------------

    End of YTSEJAM Digest 3825
    **************************



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