I'm grateful for these (albeit modestly-financed) get-togethers (including haute cuisine lunches), but wish there was enough money to finance a dedicated trombone/trumpet/drummer (as in the past). Jim doubles on ALL winds (clarinet/sax/flute/trumpet/trombone - plus piano/bass/drums and more), and I can play some decent choruses on valve trombone (with Rene bringing out the left hand on his piano), but a seven-piece band is just so much more fun...and easier.
band members ages are roughly 90, 85, 75, 65...
Re: no-drummer jazz combo gigs...
Posted: Mon Apr 10, 2023 1:29 pm
by the elephant
For about a decade, I played upright bass with a piano and a vocalist (who played some simple percussion toys). It was a lot of fun. Yes, the pianist and I sang backup when we absolutely needed to.
Re: no-drummer jazz combo gigs...
Posted: Mon Apr 10, 2023 1:30 pm
by Three Valves
That reminds me, since our favorite restaurant closed that featured a Sunday afternoon jazz lunch/brunch closed, I need to find where the band went.
Re: no-drummer jazz combo gigs...
Posted: Mon Apr 10, 2023 1:39 pm
by bloke
the elephant wrote: ↑Mon Apr 10, 2023 1:29 pm
For about a decade, I played upright bass with a piano and a vocalist (who played some simple percussion toys). It was a lot of fun. Yes, the pianist and I sang backup when we absolutely needed to.
What I like about Sunday brunches is (if in the same town) they typically end about 45 minutes to an hour prior to when simfunny arkestruh'z Sunday matinees begin.
In Memphis, I would obviously have to play Fat Bastard at the Sunday brunch gig, because I couldn't leave (even) my Besson E-flat in the car - not even in the covered loading dock stage door area...
...OK...I guess I could haul the E-flat inside and set it under one of the backstage tables...
RE: NO DRUMMER...
I view myself as having "good time"...
That having been said, it's nice to work with a GOOD DRUMMER (as I know JUST WHICH DRUMMER we would hire, if there were money for a drummer), as a good drummer and a good bass player can "keep each other honest".
bloke "When you're doing a video for a nationally-known music store, you need to play it straight...but Tom is a nut, and has a really zany sense of humor...I suppose he's sort of a 'bloke'..."
AND,as I think we all know, it takes a really good drummer to be better than no drummer.
Re: no-drummer jazz combo gigs...
Posted: Fri Apr 14, 2023 7:28 am
by bloke
edfirth wrote: ↑Wed Apr 12, 2023 11:20 am
AND,as I think we all know, it takes a really good drummer to be better than no drummer.
excellent comment, and we're certainly blessed with some fine ones around here.
This gentleman is the person who hired me to work an out-of-town Mardi Gras parade and subsequent party (the last couple of years). He's amazing.
James played on all of these tracks (linked below). We did all of them in one day.
A somewhat puzzling strategy to me, MOST ALL of these were tunes that we had NEVER previously played (??) so we "learned"/recorded them all in one day. (The piano solo track was to demonstrate what we could offer during church services, in-the-church funerals, etc...)
In other words, the band leader wrote:Y'all each bring a couple of songs to the session, next Friday. Try to bring things that DON'T sound like what we usually play (ie. not much "brass band" or old "funk" standards), so we demonstrate diverse jazz and jazz-related styles on the c.d.
