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Topic: Some new live video and some thoughts on performance |
Mike Neer
From:
NJ
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Posted 19 Apr 2018 6:59 am |
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I recently played a gig with my own band, leading the band through two instrumental sets. It is incredibly enjoyable and unpredictable for me, as the vibe really gets created right on the spot. It's very open, and depending on the personnel, I like to try and exploit the uniqueness of the players.
For anyone who leads this type of group, it is not easy work! Hyper focusing on lap steel can get a little fatiguing sometimes. Mistakes are made--for me, it's a regular thing. The challenge is not to crash and burn after blowing it. I can think of one or two tunes that I play regularly that still trip me up.
My advice would first be to not make any mistakes, but that is impossible, so I will say that mistakes should not derail your performance. Things go by quickly and sometimes folks have not even caught on that it was a flub, so keep your head and your place and play through it. I have blown so many tunes live that when I do nail something, an inner celebration ensues which inevitably leads me to blow a part of my solo. 
Here are couple of tunes from a gig on a Tuesday night in Brooklyn. I really enjoy playing with guitarist Nate Radley.
https://youtu.be/1HAoMw5idjc
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http://www.steelinstruction.com/
http://mikeneer.com |
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Mark Roeder
From:
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
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Posted 19 Apr 2018 8:34 am
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Great advice Mike
I agree with all of it. I would add that if you can get to where you can respond to the flub in a positive way, you are at a truly high level of playing!!!!
At least that is what I aspire too.....not there yet!
_________________
www.deluxe34.com lap steel stands, Clinesmith, Gibson Console Grande, Northwesterns, The Best Westerns
https://www.facebook.com/TheBestWesterns |
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Rich Gardner
From:
Columbus, Ohio, USA
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Posted 19 Apr 2018 9:22 am
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| A concert violinist friend once told me,"It's not the mistake, it's how you handle it". |
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Jim Cohen
From:
Philadelphia, PA
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Posted 19 Apr 2018 10:12 am
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Yes, I often say that one of the key skills of a musician is learning multiple ways to make lemonade out of lemon... (or is it clams casino out of clams?) 
I also share your experience of having that little internal celebration derail the next part of the performance. Hence, an important discipline I work on constantly is to remain in the moment and not allow myself to split my attention into two people, the one who's playing, and the one who's sitting on my shoulder, observing, judging, commenting ("Watch out! Here comes the tricky part...", "Hoo-boy, you squeaked through that part", "Yay! You did it!" etc.) As soon as I allow my attention to be divided like that, the wheels start to fall off and nothing good can come of it. I'm getting better at it, but I still have a ways to go. I'm considering getting back into meditation as a way to strengthen the capacity for detachment and a quiet mind with less chatter.
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www.JimCohen.com
www.RonstadtRevue.com
www.BeatsWalkin.com
Last edited by Jim Cohen on 19 Apr 2018 10:25 am; edited 2 times in total |
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Mark Roeder
From:
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, USA
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Posted 19 Apr 2018 10:22 am
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I too....rate some of my performances by how much I stayed in the moment and enjoyed playing that night.
Mike is right on the money as he observed a lot of stuff goes right past the listener if we don't focus on it and keep playing
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www.deluxe34.com lap steel stands, Clinesmith, Gibson Console Grande, Northwesterns, The Best Westerns
https://www.facebook.com/TheBestWesterns |
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Charlie McDonald
From:
out of the blue
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Posted 19 Apr 2018 12:01 pm
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| Can't keep from saying, mighty fine group. Fine sound. |
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Mark Helm
From:
Tennessee, USA
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Posted 21 Apr 2018 9:04 am Mikiya Matsuda's Alcatraz Islanders Set
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Mike: Sounds like great advice!
It might help to watch the set Mikita Matsuda led his Alcatraz Islanders through recently at Bird & Beckett Books in SF this past Feb. Mikiya runs his band through 15 Hawaiian steel guitar classics with grace and rigor.
The arrangements are clean and spare, but there's almost always room for some improvisation--and if Matsuda is making mistakes, I sure as hell can't hear 'em.
Please post one of your full live sets soon! We need more well-recorded live steel on line. Best of luck with your continued efforts, Mike. Guys like you and Mikiya are inspirations to us all.
_________________
Remington Steelmaster S8 w/ custom Steeltronics pickup. Vox MV-50 amplifier + an 1940's Oahu cab w/ 8" American Vintage speaker. J. Mascis Fender Squire Jazzmaster, Hofner Club bass, Ibanez AVN4-VMS Artwood Vintage Series Concert Size Acoustic Guitar. 1920s/30s Supertone Hawaiian-themed parlor guitar. Silvertone parlor guitar.
Last edited by Mark Helm on 21 Apr 2018 10:17 pm; edited 1 time in total |
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Mike Neer
From:
NJ
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Posted 21 Apr 2018 11:06 am Re: Mikiya Matsuda's Alcatraz Islanders Set
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| Mark Helm wrote: |
Please post one of your live sets soon! We need more well-recorded live steel on line. Best of luck with your continued efforts, Mike. Guys like you and Mikiya are inspirations to us all. |
Mark, there was a live set posted in the first post. It is flawed, for sure, but some good energy.
I have some more commentary I want to add when I have some time.
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http://www.steelinstruction.com/
http://mikeneer.com |
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Mark Helm
From:
Tennessee, USA
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Posted 21 Apr 2018 10:22 pm Thanks!
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Oh, OK--Cool! I thought it was just a couple songs. Nice job--but I couldn't make out what steel you're playing?
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Remington Steelmaster S8 w/ custom Steeltronics pickup. Vox MV-50 amplifier + an 1940's Oahu cab w/ 8" American Vintage speaker. J. Mascis Fender Squire Jazzmaster, Hofner Club bass, Ibanez AVN4-VMS Artwood Vintage Series Concert Size Acoustic Guitar. 1920s/30s Supertone Hawaiian-themed parlor guitar. Silvertone parlor guitar. |
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Eric Gross
From:
Perkasie PA, USA
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Posted 22 Apr 2018 9:12 am
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Mike, awesome performance, great group effort. I liked your comping that is hard to do on steel and make it work. I thought it was cool that the guitarist was doing similar comping with volume swells, makes it a little more seamless when you switch off leads.
One trick I use when jamming and playing a note pattern, if a 'wrong' note creeps in, I repeat it a few times in the pattern to make it more 'right'. As a famous man once said, "there are no wrong notes". |
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Doug Beaumier
From:
Northampton, MA
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Posted 22 Apr 2018 9:45 am
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| Quote: |
| if a 'wrong' note creeps in, I repeat it a few times in the pattern to make it more 'right'. |
I've done that too!
Another useful, unwritten rule... You're never more than one fret away from note that will work. If you hit a bad note, just slide up or down one fret and you'll likely land on an interval that will work... the 9th, 6th, root, 3rd, 5th, b7, etc.
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My Site / My YouTube Channel
25 Songs C6 Lap Steel / 25 MORE Songs C6 Lap Steel / 16 Songs, C6, A6, B11 / 60 Popular Melodies E9 Pedal Steel |
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Mike Neer
From:
NJ
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Posted 22 Apr 2018 10:15 am
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No doubt, a well prepared steel player can get away with murder. I've been doing it forever. Sometimes, though, you get caught.
I've never been a perfectionist, but really more of an in-the-moment player on any instrument I've played. There are times when ideas flow freely and then times when I can get bogged down with minutiae. But steel guitar is kind of a different animal, especially since I don't have many, many years under my belt. Sometimes I really need to work things out, which is where I can get into trouble because that's not how my brain works.
I'm just a part-time musician but my mind is on my music all the time. My goal has been to transition to playing music full-time, but alas, the realities of raising a family, etc. have complicated things and there are not a lot of lucrative opportunities. I have shied away from being a sideman, which makes it nearly impossible. Still, some good things going on. On June 2, my band is playing a Jazz festival with the Arturo O'Farrill Afro Latin Jazz Orchestra, which should be great exposure for us.
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http://www.steelinstruction.com/
http://mikeneer.com |
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Joe Snow
From:
Argyle,Texas, USA
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Posted 22 Apr 2018 11:00 am
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| very nice set. I rely on the "if it's wrong it's likely only 1/2 step from right" quite often on stage. My grandson when he was 11 or 12 was playing guitar at a recital and made a flub but recovered quickly. He was a little bummed about it after the show and I told him "you recovered quickly and seamlessly". That is as important a performing skill as most other aspects. |
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Stefan Robertson
From:
Hertfordshire, UK
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Posted 23 Apr 2018 3:23 am
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Really nice vibe and group.
I get what you mean about being hard to make a living. Jazz Steel in a small island - UK. population size 60million - Jazz listeners less than 1 million.
As I always remember seeing a Jazz poster somewhere it said
"Those who can play Jazz"
Ie. Jazz is about freedom of expression and financial gain is the last thing on the mind of a jazz cat.
Keep going for it Mike. Hope for us to Jam one day soon when I get state side.
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Stefan
Bill Hatcher custom 12 string Lap Steel Guitar
E13#9/F secrets: https://thelapsteelguitarist.wordpress.com
"Give it up for The Lap Steel Guitarist" |
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Glenn Demichele
From:
(20mi N of) Chicago Illinois, USA
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Posted 23 Apr 2018 6:56 am
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Very cool Mike!
I especially love your "organ comping" vibe on jitterbug waltz.
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Franklin D10 8&5, Excel D10 8&5, homemade buffer/overdrive, Moyo pedal, GT-001 effects, 2x BAM200 for stereo. 2x GW8003 8" driver in homemade closed-box. Also NV400 etc. etc... |
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Mikiya Matsuda
From:
San Francisco, California, USA
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Posted 23 Apr 2018 7:07 am
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Mike, I'm so bummed. I've been in Brooklyn for the week and could have caught your show if only I had remembered to check your calendar. I'll have to settle for the clip you posted. Love the band's verve, the way you guys interact, and of course your playing. I always hear a melody in your improvisations. You set a high bar.
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www.mikiyamatsuda.com
www.alcatrazislanders.com |
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