Age 'Appropriate' Music?

[6tringer]

In the spirit of the recent threads on 'age appropriate guitars', NO Bowling, Hawaiian, T, shirts, Fedoras, Cowboy or Ball hats, shades, leather vests, goatees, shaved heads, tattoos, Stormy Monday, Mustang Sally, SRV wanking, yada yada yada....


Here's a question for the cognocenti....

What tunes could a trio of 50+, experienced, 'bluesy', cover band, pub musicians add to their set list that are interesting, hip and cool as opposed to cliche', boring, done to death uncool?

[TNJ]

Talking Heads
Death Cab for Cutie
Danzig
Little River Band
And Prince...

S.
j

[loudboy]

Originally Posted by 6tringer

Here's a question for the cognocenti....

What tunes could a trio of 50+, experienced, 'bluesy', cover band, pub musicians add to their set list that are interesting, hip and cool as opposed to cliche', boring, done to death uncool?

The big problem is that "interesting, hip and cool" are not part of the equation for cover bands, in the vast majority of places.

Case in point - we tried out some James Brown - "Get Up Off Of That Thing" and "Sex Machine." We were a very established dance/rock band - played to packed houses everywhere, so it wasn't like we had to win people over.

These songs died. Too hip for the room and they are only barely left of center, on the musical spectrum, as well as being some of the funkiest tunes ever created.

A soon as we kicked back into What I Like About You, Brickhouse, Love Shack, etc. they went nuts again.

The one place you can get away with this is in the jam band scene - they're amazingly open to just about anything you want to play, and actually relish the odd cover tunes.

[CharAznable]

Don't try to be interesting, hip and cool if your audience isn't.

[re-animator]

death cab = hip and cool
night = day

[teleharmonium]

Originally Posted by loudboy

Case in point - we tried out some James Brown - "Get Up Off Of That Thing" and "Sex Machine." We were a very established dance/rock band - played to packed houses everywhere, so it wasn't like we had to win people over.

These songs died. Too hip for the room and they are only barely left of center, on the musical spectrum, as well as being some of the funkiest tunes ever created.

A friend of mine that plays drums in several bands described exactly this type of scenario to me regarding a cover band he was in, except that they tried it with a couple of P-Funk tunes. It was his idea and he really thought it would work.

Bands like to indulge themselves by believing people are primarily there to hear their music, but IME that is rarely the case except for certain venues that appeal to specific styles of music where the clientele is essentially a clique with steady membership.

I have seen the odd cover tune go over very well in indie rock shows, when the cover is not played replica-style. My favorite local band the Wolverton Brothers (who long predate the term indie rock) used to sometimes play a weird version of "Low Rider" which always went over well.

[rob2001]

The band I was with in the late 90's went through this a bit. We always played what is now considered classic rock. With a change at the bass position in 1999, we figured it was a good time to "update" our material with some current music. Long story short, it didn't work and I felt like an aging rocker trying to play young people's music. At the time, I was only 35 or so. The band faded out in 2002.


I say play and choose songs from the heart, stay true to yourself and don't try to figure out what is "hip". We might be able to figure out what hip is, but to be able to play it all convincingly is another story.

[1kidc]

"What is hip today might become passe'"
Tower of Power

[Jazzydave]

You can play just about anything except Mustang Sally. If I hear that song one more time...haha!

I think it all depends on how you represent the song. If you make it your own, then its your song. As mentioned in another thread, Steve Vai can get away with looking the rock star part bc he's a rock star - if you're not, then you're not.

[6tringer]

Originally Posted by nkjanssen

[/SIZE][/FONT]

[FONT=Arial][SIZE=2]

No offense, but I think you may be fighting an uphill battle there. It depends on your audience, though. A college kid who reads "Pitchfork" isn't going to think you're interesting, hip or cool no matter what you do.

None taken. The intention is not to relate to young people and their idea of what is hip and cool.

It's to break away from the past and add a few modern/current tunes that are appropriate for older guys to play. Tunes that have a groove and a good melody, that are strong enough to be given a personal stamp and don't have to be duplicated 'from the cd' to sound right.

[pak1351]

JLH - burnin hell (came back because bonamassa covered it)
Maybe some black keys (thickfreakness)? Shouldn't be hard to put a bass in there and adapt
mule-govt mule if you want to get a little heavier

[Polynitro]

John Mayer Trio .... Do his version of California Dreaming