This is a note to myself…
… and any other geezers who’s trying to be too clever in our musical story telling…
… truth is, as we’re focusing on production skills, we should be able to take even a mediocre story and make it shine… like those good metal bands, right?
Here’s the low-down behind Ringo’s off-beat drumming, which was (with his astrology) behind the real success of the Beatles… it certainly was NOT a case of being “too clever” - forward to 2:00 for this revelation !!
S
Related to this is this rather excellent demonstration:
That was great, thanks for posting…
S
Love those videos! Ringo is the king of serving the song.
What I find interesting about the video is that so many listeners, and those who have studied his parts assumed he was trying to be clever, yet that was just how things came out when he played for the song and within the confines of his limitations.
I remember from the Lennon biography I read that Ringo was the last member to be added to the Beatles. He was the most accomplished musician of the four at that time and already had a good gig with a band that was working regularly, unlike the other three. Somehow they talked him into joining; I guess he saw some potential.
All because his aunt wanted him to be right-handed… could not make this crap up…
I have a cousin who is ambidextrous, simply because they wouldn’t let him write left handed at school. Every time he tried to use his left hand to write, the teachers would slam a ruler across his knuckles.
He summed it up very well when he said if it didn’t come to him quickly, it wasn’t going to come. Agonizing over every part of a song usually means it isn’t a very good song. For me, it’s kind of the same as practicing. The few times I’ve tried to get a tricky pattern down, I’ve spent hours and hours on it, and when I finally have it, I can’t figure out how I’m ever going to use it.
You of course need to practice to learn how to play your instrument, but once you reach a suitable level, you need to get out of the way and let your music come out, rather than try to figure out where you can jam in that hot lick you’ve worked on for a month. Dexterity helps, but it’s not necessarily music.