Band members.

[brianxtr]

i dont like band members for music, better rent a good player, let him do his job do things you want to do better than you can do yourself. Like steely dan/george clinton/david lee roth or other good bands.they collect great people who can play, rent them for one thing a time.no hassle about time/money ideas or what ever.highes quality and just what you want and maybe better than expected.

[AlaskaBat]

Originally Posted by brianxtr

i dont like band members for music, better rent a good player, let him do his job do things you want to do better than you can do yourself. Like steely dan/george clinton/david lee roth or other good bands.they collect great people who can play, rent them for one thing a time.no hassle about time/money ideas or what ever.highes quality and just what you want and maybe better than expected.

I may be going out on a limb here, but I'd bet that most of the members here (OP included) don't have the deep pockets that DLR, Clinton or Steely Dan have.

Plus--what's the fun of having hired guns???
A band should communicate, have similar interests and goals, be on the same playing level and just enjoy everything about playing. That's what a GOOD band is.

Everyone likes to get paid to play, but the decent bacon doesn't start coming in until the band is established and they play well enough for the good gigs. It's called paying your dues. Most bands play for free at first just to get out there. Local events, fairs, block parties, school functions, etc.
If the members don't get along--tell them to shape up, or ship out!

[Tommy Deluciano]

Originally Posted by AlaskaBat

I may be going out on a limb here, but I'd bet that most of the members here (OP included) don't have the deep pockets that DLR, Clinton or Steely Dan have.

Plus--what's the fun of having hired guns???
A band should communicate, have similar interests and goals, be on the same playing level and just enjoy everything about playing. That's what a GOOD band is.

Everyone likes to get paid to play, but the decent bacon doesn't start coming in until the band is established and they play well enough for the good gigs. It's called paying your dues. Most bands play for free at first just to get out there. Local events, fairs, block parties, school functions, etc.
If the members don't get along--tell them to shape up, or ship out!

I agree with both posts, I would like the cash for a decent amp let alone to hire good musos,though if I could I would to keep things original and the way I want them,that would be great then imagine the cash to do a tour with an awesome stage show,and to build a nice studio with all the trick gear and then imagine that you had the cash to do massive promotion in mags mtv ,TV ,awesome videos on the net with the coolest video software to make them, yes with enough money ,one could put a band out there and succeed .
There is also great satisfaction to create a band with a bunch of other people and rock out at any gig paid or not ,just for the love of playing,I myself havnt been in a band of any kind for a good 11 years now ,so I jam with my sonar software on my PC because I love playing.
Im toying with the idea of getting out there again and if I do it will be hopefully with a working band ,although it wouldnt really matter to me if it was a party band that plays mostly in the shed,.thats fun too.
Cheers guys ,... T

[RGTFanatic]

For me, a killer bass player and monster drummer are absolute necessities. Without them.....I quit.

Keyboards are nice, I play them myself. In an ideal situation I'll share ALL rhythm, lead, and keyboard duties with another guitar player that's as good as, or better than, me. This keeps either of the guitar players from feeling like the STAR of the show.........the whole band, the crowd, and the venue owner always benefit from that.

[SonicProvocateur]

I agree with RGT and the others, you have to have an excellent bassist and a killer drummer. You have to be able to follow each other note for note and know each others looks, be ready to change up just by glancing - like conducting an orchestra. Some musicians don't get that. Without that tightness that you can feel it's hard to even jam with people because you can't follow each other, noone knows who's following who, the music is just floating around, there is no tightness or groove. Once it's there though things like another guitarist or keys is just icing on the cake.

[Guitarchaeology]

It depends on the sound you are trying to achieve. Jazz trios can get work just fine with drums, bass, and keys or guitar.

For rock, I think you need a bass. Yeah, some groups have a keyboardist that takes the bass lines, but generally speaking.. for rock you need a bass in the mix.