Do you pick your songs based on how well you sing them? How well you play them? Or on audience requests? Or do pick a song to play because you have the right styles on your keyboard? Or on all four criteria?

I have to admit that I shy away from some songs because they just don't feel right when I'm playing them. Other songs fit me like a custom tailored suit; the vocal parts, keyboard parts, groove, etc.



[This message has been edited by kbrkr (edited 07-29-2008).]

DANCING! It's basically my only criteria in MY music world.
If you can't dance to it I dont play it.



[This message has been edited by Dnj (edited 07-29-2008).]

Since not all my gigs are 'dancing' gigs, I pick by ALL of the above - BUT - unless it is an absolute request from the client, if it doesn't FEEL right, it doesn't get played ...
t.

I returned to playing after a 30+ year layoff and only play senior citizen gigs - mostly because they like the music I grew up with, the gigs are only 1 - 2 hours long, and the environment is clean and smoke free - plus it is fun to play for them.

Well, after being away from professional playing for over 30 years I thought I needed help in selecting songs most folks would know so I searched all the sites for the "top songs" of certain eras and picked the top 3 from each year. I found I had hundreds of songs to start with and most were very well known tunes recored by well known artists of the period. My main criteria was how well known the tune was in it's time. Can't beat the old standards.

Hammer

In my world, if you can't dance to the song, I usually don't play it--even when I was performing at upscale restaurants and nite clubs.

Gary

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Travlin' Easy

Three considerations for me...

1) Familiarity-Like the others, I cater to an older audience so its usually got to be something "in their wheelhouse."

2) "Danceability" - Not so critical for my Nursing home/Retirement Communities clients but certainly so for my dances, weddings, anniversaries, reunions, retirements, etc...

3) Requests-I solicit requests at most of the shows I do and keep a pad and pen handy so I can write suggestions down and then followup with them afterwards..



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Bill in Dayton

I just read the room. Mostly, I look at the reaction of the ladies to what I'm doing.

Hey, I'm old and tired, but I'm not dead or stupid!

Russ "former Horn Dog" Lay

LOL........yep, that's you

Jim, now, it's kinda like aiming an empty pistol. Still "wave it around", but never intend for it to go off!

Russ

Al, your song selection criteria

* How well you sing & play them
* Audience Requests (popularlity)
* Arranger KB style compatible songs

is similar to mine, but beyond anything else, the song has got to FEEL right 4 ME.

One way to discover new song repetoire possibilites is to keep your eyes and ears open to classic songs brought back in recently released TV Commericals or movies. YouTube is a terrific source for this.

For example:

Areva Commercial: Funky Town, Lipss, Inc

Scott

Russ will verify this. I only play in jazz clubs and/or for jazz audiences and in that environment, HOW you play the tune is more important than WHAT tune you play. Nobody comes to these places to hear something that 'sounds just like the record'. That gives you a lot of freedom and also allows you to rehash the same tunes for 40 years . People that like the sound of a jazz organ trio (plus soloist) come to hear the sound of a jazz organ trio, not a particular song. The only request we will take is Happy Birthday and that is usually only one verse long.

chas

Chas is right. As much as anything, jazz is an ATTITUDE...an approach to free-form, but complex structure. It's trading ideas and playing off of each other extemporaneously.


Sometimes, there will be a unique joint effort(players and listeners) to take a tune in an entirely different direction.

In those rare, magic moments, the high is unbelieveable.

To understand you have to experience it.
And once you do, it's a life-changer...something you never forget.

And those moments are, for me at least, what makes it all worthwhile.


Russ

+1.....After playing in jams with thinking, gifted players, you go back to your arranger keyboard, and just look at it?? A moment for wistful thought..and then , "Oh well I guess it pays the bills..."

And onward you go again.

Where I live now, the opportunity for wonderfully fulfilling musical interaction with others is a very rare one indeed.

I cannot convince my other half and child that we should move back to somewhere even remotely connected with musical civilisation.

Playing gigs here, we have to put up with calls of "play Mustang Sally, play Sweet Home Chicago, play Brown Eyed Girl etc etc, "..and on it goes ad infinitum, ad nauseum, and whilst playing these (because the customer is always right, at least according to the venue owner!) your mind wanders to a happy place and you get through yet again.

Down here they would think Chick Corea is some form of south american legume!!

Back on topic though... Russ you said it perfectly.

Dennis

Dennis, I'd be proud to play "Mustang Sally", "Brown Eyed Girl"...whatever, with you.

It's the interpretation and the collaboration that's important, and I believe we'd TEAR IT UP!

Actually, I like Brown Eyed girl and a bunch of other Morrison stuff.

Plus, We'd OD on Leon Russell.

And that would be GREAT!

All the best...


Russ

PS: There's a group called the Vipers from New Zeland. Tony Monaco (met him at this years summer NAMM) told me that Adrienne and her husband (a fine jazz guitarist) are going to or have relocated to the US.

I'm not quite as traditional as the Vipers, but think they're really good.

By the way...you'd be welcome on my bandstand-anytime!


Russ

Biggest problem me and my mate have, playing to mixed age group audiences, is finding modern dancable pop songs that are playable by a pair of 50+ blokes without said blokes looking like total idiots.

We are a dance band so we play stuff people want to dance to. If that means Mustang Sally or Brown Eyed Girl so be it. We get a buzz from a full dance floor.

We (that is all of us to a greater or lesser degree) just have to accept the fact that our normal audiences have musical tastes that do not match ours. Given that we both like medium to heavy metal this is probably not a bad thing!

Certainly agree with Bill's comments-also your's Scott-It's got to 'feel right'
I was playing 'Sweet Georgia Brown' today -somehow I switched into 'am I blue' (always looking for songs to go together in a medley).Did 'Am I Blue'in a medley about 30 years ago-with a lady singer-and wondered if there were words for a male singer-took your advise Scott & went to Utube-http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6QhuDkX5uw&feature=related
-neat! Thanks for the idea!

Thanks Russ, I feel, from your posts and song selections on another thread as well, that it would be a hoot..I will check out the Vipers, it is a name I have heard but don't know much about.

Yeah I also do Moondance from Morrison as well, Gloria's a bit diff, without a band.. but I do Feelin Alright with just a drums/bass backing (oh and a couple of small horn parts I play in the last chorus) and it ALWAYS goes down plus I throw in some tunes from Moonlight and Lovesongs, imho, some of the best interpretations going.. when the timing is right.

Take care, and thanks again for your kind words.
D

I pick songs according to how well they translate to instrumental arrangements.

It also depends on the age group and the venue.

Ian