Tips and tricks for learning a large set list

[Fred Treece]

Make sure you get the prominent parts of the songs down, especially the big hits. It seems like you are focusing on learning the whole song and sweating over things that are somebody else’s job. Nobody’s going to notice if you aren’t part of the Old Man groove. In fact you probably shouldn’t be part of it. But if you miss that hooky slide that opens the chorus, you’re in deep doo-doo! It should seem like it comes out of nowhere. Same with the little twangy A pedal thing at the end of the Harvest Moon chorus. That stuff has got be there, and most of it is pretty basic pedal steel 101.

Tribute acts evolve. Don’t expect perfection on the first show. Let the songs breathe a little. You’re tributing the band and the arrangements as well as the artist, yes. But with so many great songs to choose from, chances are good they will stand on their own merits without filling every hole in every measure with something that doesn’t need to be there.

PS: Congratulations, Bill. You got a gig, and it sounds like it could be a good one. Have some fun!

[J D Sauser]

When necessary I have found that the act of _hand writing_ a chart allows me to visualize a tune or arrangement.
....

So true!

My mother used to build an errands list over the week. I used to accompany her to town. Rarely she would forget to take the list along, but usually we came back home with exactly what she had written down.
This is why, in the past, students were to write down the professor's teachings. Now they take a phone-shot or have AI generate them a resume... but they FAIL.

I would urge to understand music (chords) in numbers but not only that, to learn harmonica analysis! Especially if it goes beyond "old school 3-chord Country" or Blues. Especially, Jazz, R&B/Soul and some Pop have more complex progressions, but nevertheless they are usually combinations chord SEQUENCES (V->I, or ii, V -> I, or I (or iii), vi, ii, V->I etc). Understanding a tune not in "ALL numerals", which can be quite a salad and thus memory challenge, but in chunks of common sequences of intervals between their chords (typically movements in 4ths), not only makes most songs much more "similar" but the musician less "exposed" to key change issues (due to a singer sit-in).
There are a lot of "Analysis"-videos on Jazz standards like All Of Me, Autumn Leaves or Blue Bossa... to learn how to do it.
Here is a GOOD example of such a video: https://youtu.be/Do2XqBKXeEo on All Of Me.
Once one get the hang of it, it becomes second nature to "see" these sequences and simplify the memorization of a song to a succession of sequences.

Again, I force my 14 year old son who's born into the tablet and laptop age, to write down the chords ON paper, seek the key or in some cases various key centers (as an example I DON't treat Autumn Leaves as a minor key, but the first movement as a ii, V, I (I becoming the Major Key)... everything else is totally diatonic and from the B-part on up it just cycles much more clearly thru the circle of 4ths the longest one can go: 7,3,6,2,5,1,4) and do his chord sequences analysis ON paper.

I suggest learning each song from the get go in 2 keys about a 4th or 5th apart of each other, it makes for someone prepared to play in ALL keys any tune without much thinking, and also much more versatile in licks, runs, phrases... "language".


Finally, since most of us want to claim to be "EAR"-players (instead of by some sort of "reading").... LISTEN, LISTEN and LISTEN.
You KNOW a song only if you can at least HUM it. If can't, you're NOT an ear-player!
Know the progression, if you can, a basic I-V Bass line (very easy to play on C6th).


... J-D

[Pat Dixon]

I just had to do this as well with a (Stevie Nicks) tribute band. Many songs I'd never heard so the challenge for me was to memorize the starts/stops/repeats and not so much the nuances of soloing, etc. Sure, if you're playing say the Teach Your Children intro (I know, CSN as well as Y) then you want to nail it, but mostly song structure, not technique is what'll trip you up.

One thing that helps me immensely is to record a CD of all of the songs then listen to it in my car. You don't even realize that you're burning it in but it pays off at the next rehearsal.

Good luck & congrats on the new band!

[Thornton Lewis]

It seems counterintuitive, but learning the words to one verse and the chorus really helps me remember the changes. Seems like more to learn, but if you fake a few lyrics no one's going to know and you have the melody down.
Lester Young recommended it and he played ok (though he did have a few favorites.)

[J D Sauser]

It seems counterintuitive, but learning the words to one verse and the chorus really helps me remember the changes. Seems like more to learn, but if you fake a few lyrics no one's going to know and you have the melody down.
Lester Young recommended it and he played ok (though he did have a few favorites.)

Not counterintuitive at all, Thornton. I see that taught in many "Improvisation" courses too. It helps ID chord-change-"points" better than just "sounds", specially for those who play "thru" the changes.
I think that "knowing" a tune has many angles.
Yet, there are those which will over time acquire the art of playing thru a tune without "knowing" much anymore... they follow their hearing and the typical patterns of "Western"-music (mainly moving in 4ths) intuitively... it takes disciplined practice to gain that ability. But it seems a desirable outcome to keep in the horizon like a Donkey's carrot during practice and method selection.
Maurice Anderson said: "you get good at what you practice... so, BEWARE what you practice!"
Can't make it to Miami leaving NYC going North, even if you walk fast and hard and don't rest much.
... J-D.

[Bob Hoffnar]

Along with the other good ideas I have found that passive listening helps. Play the tunes in the background while you drive or go for a walk. If I get the tunes in my head I stand a good chance on the bandstand.

There is no substitute for fully charting the tunes along with notes on when to play, when not to play and what to play. It takes time but that;s how it is. Some people are better at memorization and go that route. It's best to do both.

[J D Sauser]

Along with the other good ideas I have found that passive listening helps. Play the tunes in the background while you drive or go for a walk. If I get the tunes in my head I stand a good chance on the bandstand.

There is no substitute for fully charting the tunes along with notes on when to play, when not to play and what to play. It takes time but that;s how it is. Some people are better at memorization and go that route. It's best to do both.

My father in Law who is an in Europe well known piano player, cousin or uncle of (Biréli Lagrene) called my attention upon the fact that he felt I did not let music play everywhere at all times (car, home, where ever). "You MUST have music going on ALL the time!" he said. I since installed a sound-system which plays music off the internet throughout the my entire home and found a way to convince my cars' radios to play the music style I like.

However, I tried to just have what I was working on playing in the background, even thru the night, but found little to no impact. I at least, NEED conscious listening. I've had one solo play 24/7 for a week with little results to brag about. I often have to split solos I stydy up in segments and LEARN to sing/hum it to really absorb it and learn to place it over the changes. As most of you will know, in Jazz/Bebop, most lines are played "thru" or "over the changes (vs. over the chord and then a different line over the next chord). Timing is crucial and understanding WHERE that one first note of the new chord is (the "pivot-point" as I call it) is important because it ALL depends on THAT note to SIT securely not just in pitch but time and expression, especially in a musical idiom where most tends to start on an up-beat (the "and"-off...) anywhere within the bar.

But yes, I think that LISTENING, even passively leaves impressions, ideas and widens the minds musical horizon. After all, we can't each re-invent the wheel from scratch.

... J-D.

[Fred Treece]

Learning a large set list in the shortest amount of time, there are no charts, it’s an “amateur” Neil Young tribute band. Those are the Bill M’s 3 big qualifiers in the OP.

I already responded once, but that has never stopped me from blabbering on again. Even though the “shortest time” phase is long past and most of the advice here is for some future short period of time, hopefully it provides something useful.

Gather up all the songs in the show in a Playback device list of some sort and alphabetize it. If there is a recording of the band playing the tunes, listen to that too. There may be differences in arrangement, feel, and actual chord progression compared to the original artist recording. People hear stuff differently and play accordingly.

Before grueling it out charting every last nuance and memorizing the lyrics and melody of every song, jot down the ones that have prominent steel parts in them next to the title. Learn those tunes first. That way you can start rehearsing with the group in a week, or even a few days. Chances are the band will only get around to roughing out 8 or 10 songs in a typical 2 or 3 hour rehearsal anyway. You can continue charting and immersion of the next batch of material the leader has planned at home between rehearsals.

If the bandleader expects you to invent parts for tunes that have no steel on Neil’s originals, then it might be useful to ask yourself, “What would Ben Kieth do here?”.

Sort of repeating myself, but doing a tribute show is a great way to really get inside how a particular artist’s music works. When you think about it, that’s what pro touring bands do with the music of the artist they’re backing. It can be very rewarding, even at the lower levels of the business.

[Bill McCloskey]

I want to thank people for all the suggestions. To update you all, I left the band. The leader was just too disorganized and it became frustrating and not fun.

[Bob Shilling]

Sorry it didn't work out Bill, but one good thing came out of it: this thread.
There's been a lot of useful advice here.

[Bill McCloskey]

I agree. And by all means, keep the suggestions coming.

[Lee Baucum]

Back in the 1970s I was playing acoustic guitar and singing high harmonies in a band that did a mix of songs by Seals & Crofts, Loggins & Messina, Crosby Stills & Nash, America, Eagles, Dan Fogelberg, James Taylor, Elton John, Doobie Brothers, Bread, Bee Bees, etc. Lots of harmonies, lots of fun, lots of work. I ended up picking up my first pedal steel and we started adding some country-ish songs to the mix. It was quite easy for me to learn how to play Fire On The Mountain out of tune, like the recording. I didn't know any better!

A local group of musicians that had a country band found out that I "played steel guitar" (air quotes) and asked me to join them. It was a 5-piece band: singer/acoustic guitar, lead guitar, fiddle, bass, drums. Holy cow...they had a 4-hour set list of nothing but 4/4 country shuffles, waltzes, a schottische or two, Cotton Eyed Joe, etc. I had never heard, or heard of, any of the songs. The more I practiced with them, the more each song sounded like the previous song. There really weren't any difficult songs to learn. The hard part was recognizing what song was coming up by the song title. They all sounded the same to me! Maybe it was all that long hair blocking my ears. They expected me to learn the "kick-offs" to some of the songs. Panic time. Does this have a I V I I intro? Or is this the one with a V V I I intro? IV V I I ? Oh crap. This is the one with a II V I I kick-off. "Wait a minute! Didn't we just play that song a few minutes ago?? It sure sounds familiar!" The singer finally started quietly singing the last line of a song, just before kick-off. "Ah. That one!"

No You-Tube to listen to back in those days. I feel your pain and panic, Bill!