Are Original Music Bands Just Lazy?

[LOSTVENTURE]

Didn't the Beatles do a lot of original stuff?
I have never heard anybody accuse them of being lazy

 

[teletail]

What do they know?

"They" are on the internet so "they" must know everything!

 

[Tricone]

No. You go through the process of learning and playing cover songs etc. Originals are like the pay off from this. Most bands usually mix covers with originals on gig night.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

No. You go through the process of learning and playing cover songs etc. Originals are like the pay off from this. Most bands usually mix covers with originals on gig night.

You're right. Learning other people's songs is key to writing songs, just like reading others people's books is key to writing books.

As for mixing covers and originals: This isn't a big enough random sampling to prove anythings, but most of the bands I've been in (for a short time) or auditioned for have played only covers. They didn't mix.

 

[Skyhook]

there are terrible cover bands and terrible originals bands.

for me, unless it's playing standards, being in a cover band would be the lazy option. i'm no guitar god, but learning some rock and pop songs note for note is much less challenging than trying to come up with something interesting and realizing it.



yeah, but writing crappy material is an essential step to writing good material. someone who hones their craft in a cover band is not just going to write a masterpiece out of the gate. it's a different skill set. i think of when classical musicians who play at an advanced level are asked to improvise for the first time - they fall on their asses.

Absolutely!
I had to write a mountain of crappy songs before I even realized they were crappy.
Still aim to record them though as a tongue in cheek album since those lyrics are hilariously bad
and it would be a comedic waste not to.

 

[teletail]

Absolutely!
I had to write a mountain of crappy songs before I even realized they were crappy.
Still aim to record them though as a tongue in cheek album since those lyrics are hilariously bad
and it would be a comedic waste not to.

Worse than this?

Now it's up to you, can we make a secret rendezvous?
Oh, before we do, you'll have to get away from you know who

 

[Skyhook]

Worse than this?

Now it's up to you, can we make a secret rendezvous?
Oh, before we do, you'll have to get away from you know who

You be the judge:

Love scanner
Red alert
Attracted to heartbeats
As flies are to dirt

 

[teletail]

You be the judge:

Love scanner
Red alert
Attracted to heartbeats
As flies are to dirt

You win!

 

[rarebreed]

The few musicians I know that want to play only their originals and refuse to no longer do covers are prima donna's in my opinion. One in particular wrote some good material and had a shot at making it to the national level. He did some tours and then it started sputtering out, when the money did. He is a great guitar player with a good voice, but to me his biggest enemy was his age. If he would've been maybe 20 years younger it might've went farther. He would be a real asset to a country music band but all he does is whine on Facebook about how he should've been a major star and nobody wants to hear his music. He is the most miserable, poor S.O.B. I know. Instead of getting out and playing with some local band he just stays in and feels sorry for himself.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

Absolutely!
I had to write a mountain of crappy songs before I even realized they were crappy.
Still aim to record them though as a tongue in cheek album since those lyrics are hilariously bad
and it would be a comedic waste not to.

I knew mine were crap right from the start. Didn't care. Just wrote 'em. I'm no music critic. Thank God!

In writing 'em for over fifty years, I've managed to get my hit rate up from 10% good to 20% good.

I just think of the throw-aways as the dues I pay to get to the keepers. And anyway, they're just as much fun to write as the good ones.

 

[Skyhook]

I just think of the throw-aways as the dues I pay to get to the keepers. And anyway, they're just as much fun to write as the good ones.

One of my math professors said that for every scrap of paper with a glorious new formula there is
a waste basket overflowing with crumpled up papers.

 

[JustABluesGuy]

One of my math professors said that for every scrap of paper with a glorious new formula there is
a waste basket overflowing with crumpled up papers.

“Great songs aren’t written, they’re rewritten.”

Much like a professional photographer shooting several rolls of film for one photograph.

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

“Great songs aren’t written, they’re rewritten.”

'Zackly. I spend minutes writing 'em and months rewriting 'em. Always have a goodly batch in the works.

When they're good, I know they're done.

Much like a professional photographer shooting several rolls of film for one photograph.

Which is just what my photography teacher taught us not to do.

His mantra: Wait for the shot. Wait for the shot. Wait for the shot . . . .

 

[cousinpaul]

I think too much originality can work against a song sometimes. Those throw-away lines and easy rhymes can be used to set up a hook and make it stand out. Musical cliches can often be twisted into something interesting. Some of the worst co-writing experiences I've had were with writers who insisted every line be "strong", every rhyme be perfect, every hint of ambiguity explained, etc. IMO, you can only cram so much content into a 3 or 4 minute song before it gets cumbersome. Bear in mind this is coming from Nashville where we tend to parse our originality out sparingly, lol.

 

[tiktok]

I find people, in general to be lazy, and musicians are no different. People are lazy at their day jobs, where there's something on the line, so the fact that they don't take their hobby super seriously doesn't surprise me.

There are "committed" musicians out there, who actually play their instrument away from gigs and rehearsals/practice, and who are actively working on upgrading other musical skills on their own time, but they are pretty rare.

 

[fjblair]

Yeah, they're bums.