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Topic: Success in the Studio - Some Thoughts |
Jody Cameron
From:
Angleton, TX,, USA
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Posted 25 May 2016 7:04 pm |
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I do a lot of recording here in Texas, and thankfully I've been on several(Texas)chart records over the past few years. Most is not traditional country in the style of Buddy, Lloyd Green, etc., (although some is) but more often it's Red-Dirt, Americana, Texas Music, Country-Rock, whatever label you want to put on it. There's a fair amount of that style being recorded in Houston lately, with some very talented singers and writers appearing on the scene down here. I'm doing more and more studio stuff every year. It has now become a large part of my income. I have several accounts in Houston that always call me and I think I know partly why I get the calls.
That prefaces my real point here, which is this: if you have a good producer/engineer, NEVER discount their ideas. They are paid to produce good records, and like it or not, your pre-conceived ideas as a steel player may not always be a good fit for the song. So if you want to keep getting those calls, LISTEN to what the producers tell you in the session, and do your best to provide what they ask for. I've done sessions where I'm presented with a non-steel playing producer's idea and I think "really"? But later, it turns out to be exactly what the song needed. Many times the producers and I come up with stuff together; layers, textures, harmonies, etc.
Never discount someone's idea in the studio simply because YOU think they don't know what the steel is "supposed to do". It can really do just about anything, if not put in a box, either by you or the producer(s). Open minds are great. Leave the ego at the door of the studio, and you will get more calls.
Just some of my thoughts....  |
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Rick Barnhart
From:
Arizona, USA
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Posted 25 May 2016 7:17 pm
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What a breath of fresh air. The same ol' topic about the demise of steel and "real country" music does get a little tiresome.
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Clinesmith consoles D-8/6 5 pedal, D-8 3 pedal & A25 Frypan, Pettingill Teardrop, & P8 Deluxe. |
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Jeremy Threlfall
From:
now in Western Australia
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John Billings
From:
Ohio, USA
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Posted 26 May 2016 1:49 pm
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"start calling it my "expression pedal"!
I've been telling guys here for years to do just that! It's an expression pedal, like on a Hammond organ!"
_________________
Dr. Z Surgical Steel amp, amazing!
"74 Bud S-10 3&6
'73 Bud S-10 3&5(under construction)
'63 Fingertip S-10, at James awaiting 6 knees
'57 Strat, LP Blue
'91 Tele with 60's Maple neck
Dozen more guitars!
Dozens of amps, but SF Quad reverb, Rick Johnson cabs. JBL 15, '64 Vibroverb for at home.
'52 and '56 Pro Amps |
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Brett Lanier
From:
Madison, TN
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Posted 26 May 2016 2:22 pm
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Last week I did a session where the producer decided that it was too nice out to be doing overdubs indoors so we took it to the back deck. Couldn't argue with that suggestion.
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Paddy Long
From:
Christchurch, New Zealand
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Posted 26 May 2016 3:16 pm
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Nice refreshing attitude Jody - I think that is the key to being a successful studio player - an open mind :-} !!
I;m like you, I get session calls for all sorts of unusual and out of the box stuff and I really enjoy the creativity it provides - long may it continue.
_________________
14'Zumsteel Hybrid D10 9+9
08'Zumsteel Hybrid D10 9+9
94' Franklin Stereo D10 9+8
Telonics, Peterson, Steelers Choice, Benado, Lexicon, Red Dirt Cases. |
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Danny Letz
From:
Old Glory,Texas, USA 79540
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Posted 26 May 2016 4:07 pm
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| Jody would you come get this Ray Jenkins guy and take him home with you? |
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john buffington
From:
Owasso OK - USA
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Posted 26 May 2016 7:43 pm
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Amen to what Jody said, hit the nail on the head!  |
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Jody Cameron
From:
Angleton, TX,, USA
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Posted 26 May 2016 9:17 pm
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Danny, I've already had Ray here...he kept breaking his chains and chewing his way out of his cage, so I finally gave up. 
Thanks for the comments, guys. |
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Tony Prior
From:
Charlotte NC
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Posted 27 May 2016 12:47 am
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Spot on Jody, although I don't do many retail sessions , the ones that I do are rarely traditional country ,they are some sort of Americana/Quasi Country , the producers want a country feel but not necessarily country music.
Sometimes it's not easy because we as Steel players always want to lean on that A and B pedal which is much easier than finding a passage thats not moaning !
Certainly an exercise of less is more .
_________________
Emmons L-II , Fender Telecasters, B-Benders
Pro Tools 12 on WIN 7 !
jobless- but not homeless- now retired 9 years
CURRENT MUSIC TRACKS AT > https://tprior2241.wixsite.com/website |
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Jody Cameron
From:
Angleton, TX,, USA
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Posted 27 May 2016 3:49 am
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| Tony, I agree with that. I'm finding that the use of the V dominant 7th is also not particularly popular these days either, which is where the steel really used to shine in traditional stuff. To wildly generalize, the new guys think it dates the sound. They seem to dislike the tritone rhat defines it. |
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Bob Hoffnar
From:
Austin, Tx
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Posted 27 May 2016 5:18 am
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Funny thing, I just did a session yesterday where I was allowed to use the Dom 7 tritone move only once during an outro.
Steel players tend not to understand how sliding and bending notes tend to dominate the music. That is rarely called for outside of country music. If the musical role is support you need to stay out of the way but still add something essential to the track. Think viola instead of violin in an orchestra.
In my professional life the money has most always been in the support role.
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Bob |
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Mike Neer
From:
NJ
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John Macy
From:
Rockport TX/Denver CO
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Posted 27 May 2016 7:29 am
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Well said, Jody, and one more addition to that. We producer/engineer types tend to know each other and talk to each other and compare notes and share player suggestions. I was engineering a session for a producer a while back, and he hired this new bass player in town I had been hearing about and was looking forward to hearing. Well, the bassist argued with the producer about parts that were suggested on every song that day, and I made a mental note to never call this guy. I had another producer call me a couple of days later and ask me about him and I shared what went down at that session and he said he would just stick to his usual guy for an upcoming record. And this new guy is a killer player. Moral to this story is your attitude on one session can cost you a lot of work without even realizing it! Being a great session player goes well beyond chops...
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John Macy
Rockport, TX
Engineer/Producer/Steel Guitar |
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Jody Cameron
From:
Angleton, TX,, USA
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Posted 27 May 2016 11:41 am
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| Exactly John! Funny thing, I just got back from another session today where the producer asked me to not play the dom 7th; this time going from I to IV padding during a lead guitar solo. I think he felt it was distracting from the solo. He was probably right, too. So I smiled and said "no problem". Then I drove to the bank and deposited my check. |
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Ben Rubright
From:
Punta Gorda, Florida, USA
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Posted 27 May 2016 6:56 pm
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Hey Jody............sounds like things are going well for you. We missed you on the Bobby Flores cruise. I still hope to drop in on one of your Texas gigs. Best wishes.
Ben and Carol
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D10 Emmons LeGrande SKH (rebuilt by Billy Knowles), D10 Emmons Push/Pull (setup by Billy Knowles) , SD10 Rittenberry
Last edited by Ben Rubright on 28 May 2016 6:39 am; edited 1 time in total |
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Bud Angelotti
From:
Larryville, NJ, USA
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Posted 28 May 2016 6:06 am
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It's called commercial art and it's the same in the visual arts world.
The client wants pink polka dots in their piece, you think they are the ugliest thing you've ever seen, so you're "supposed" to keep it to yourself and instead ask, "how high do you want those polka dots to jump.
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Just 'cause I look stupid, don't mean I'm not. |
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