Jam advice?

[birv2]

I'm going to a local blues jam tonight. This will be my 4th time, and I have to admit that it is getting a bit easier -- not quite so nervous.

Just to set the scene... it's a pretty cool crowd, good supportive vibe, musicians are friendly, etc. I'm a middling guitarist -- know my minor pentatonics up and down the scale and pretty fluid with them. Riff vocabulary is still kind of limited, as I'm always learning. I've been playing on and off for 40 years (Yikes), and about 3 years ago got an electric and started to learn blues. That's my main goal.

So last time, I took my guitar and my new Behr OD100 and went to plug in and found I was short one cord. Thus, no pedal. I've gotten pretty good crowd response on my solos when I dirty it up and just go a bit crazy, not overthinking each note. Last time, I couldn't dirty it up and it sounded awful to me. The more I played, the worse it sounded. Anybody had that experience? Afterwards, a couple of people said I sounded fine but I should just look up, smile, etc. I was obviously showing my distress!

So tonight, I'm taking my Peavey SS amp, TWO cords, my OD pedal, and my guitar. Hoping for the best, but I'd love any suggestions/advice you more experienced players might have.

I have also found that a couple of thirst-quenchers helps with the nerves.

TIA,
Bob

[aeolian]

Good on you to get up there and show your stuff.

I'm curious as to why you think not dirtying the sound up does not sound good? What is it you thought is lacking: sustain, heaviness, what? I wonder whether you actually sounded better to the listeners than you thought.

I've also been playing off and on for the last 40 years too. I'm way too chicken and insecure to do what you did. I do jam with a couple of guys almost every week for the last year or so and find that my 'vocabulary' is really wanting, although I'm working on it.

[birv2]

Thanks for the reply, Aeolian.

I think what I found missing without the pedal was both the things you mentioned: sustain and heaviness (maybe nastiness would be a better word). I was playing through a Fender Twin. Great amp, but uber-clean. I love the sound of overdriven sustain. And I was definitely not getting it. So it sounded like the notes were dying way too quickly, if you know what I mean.

Perhaps I sounded better than I thought I did. Hard to say! I think one of the problems was me fixating on how I was doing. Nothing like some good old self-centredness to get you off track.

I'm not really that brave. I'm just getting less terrified. I honestly thought I would die or have a heart attack the first couple of times. At least I know I'll survive it now.

I'll post more afterwards.

Bob

[R_of_G]

Bob, you're definitely braver than I, that's for sure. I admire the hell out of you being able to get up there and play, anxious or not. I've played with friends, but have only watched open jam nights, never participated. It's not that I don't think I have the skills as I used to go home from open jam night and play a lot of what I heard. It's the confidence thing. I have none. It's a hurdle I hope to overcome someday, but all of you guys here who play out at whatever level you do it, you have my utmost respect for having the self-confidence to get up there and bring it.:

[sunvalleylaw]

That is great Bob! I am sure you sound great. I get wanting to dirty it up a bit. I wonder if you have your amp turned up enough so that if you back off the guitar it cleans up, but if you turn it up, it dirties right up and gives you some more sustain. I like using my pedals (my Bad Monkey fills the role you describe, sometimes in combination with my DS-1), but with guidance from some here, am experimenting with using just my Peavey on the dirty channel that way. Nothing wrong with using the pedal at all either. Just different.

As for bravery, and playing, I think sometimes ignorance is bliss. I have been playing regularly only a year and a half, and I know I am not that good, but people are polite and act like they enjoy it when we play, so what the heck! I do think that making myself get prepared for and getting out to play with others makes me improve faster than just playing at home. R_of_G, you should just do it sometime. If Ka wills it, it will sound great!

[just strum]

Bob,

: for having the b's to get up there. I can't offer you any performing advice except

- Go easy on the thirst-quenchers because what you think is helping your nerves may only be making you sound good through your ears and not the audiences.

Have confidence in your ability - if you have b's to get up there, you are sure to sound good.

Good luck.

[birv2]

First, thanks for all the encouragement and advice!

Things went pretty well -- Peavey Envoy 112 amp was loud enough (just barely, totally cranked on clean channel), Behringer OD100 worked well for solos (dirt and sustain). I played in a group of 8: drums, harp, bass, other guitar, trumpet, sax, and congas. Other guitarist is accomplished singer and player, so I just had to do rhythm and a few leads when nodded to (which is fine with me -- I feel much more comfortable at this point in a supporting role). We did 4 blues numbers, including Mustang Sally in Am.

I asked my friend afterwards for some tips. He fronts a local blues band and is a very good harp player and singer. He told me I just need to boost my confidence, since I'm a better player than I think I am. When I told him I was basically intimidated by the other guitarists there, he said I didn't need to feel intimidated, since I can play!

So that's the report from Lake Woebegon. One of the main reasons I am jamming is to increase my confidence. I also just like learning from others, improving my skills, hanging out with other music-lovers, and of course, there's the pure joy of just playing.

And I hear ya about the thirst-quenchers, Strum. I had the fleeting thought, "I bet this is how Steven Tyler got started on his addictions". You think it's a way to handle your own nervousness, and then eventually you think you can't perform without your stimulants.

Play on!

Bobude:

[.overdrive_rewind]

As far as confidence goes: Sometimes I like to get all my gear set up just right, set up a backtrack sort-of thing if I've got one (or just play along with a regular CD), and record it somehow. I know I won't like how it sounds right after, but a week or two down the line, I'll give it another listen. Generally, I actually impress myself with what I've laid down - while at the same time noting what needs improvement. It's much easier to gauge yourself when you can stop playing with yourself, and actually judge your own playing.

(Also, no pun intended above. c

[birv2]

Good idea!

I don't have a way to record myself at the moment, but I'm hoping that Santa will bring me a Toneport GX.

Bob

[birv2]

The continuing saga....

Played last night at a local blues jam. I was determined to really let it rip. However, the end result was that I was more loud than inspired. I actually didn't realize I was that loud till one of the people running the jam told me after our set. :

I took my Vampire to try it out. As mentioned, no problems with the volume!

One of the people in the jam band gave me the "you can't use that Behringer crap here" talk while I was setting up. Half in jest, of course. I was hoping to demonstrate how good the amp could sound, but I'm doubtful that I did that. However, between sets I had a chat with another guitarist (a good one, with some serious vintage guitars), and he's a big Behr fan and uses the V-amp. As he said, "They make good stuff cheap".

I played in another set later and used a Vibrolux, which sounded very awesome! Great amp.

I also sang two songs (Hi Heel Sneakers, and Key to the Highway), which was a major leap of faith, since I have even less confidence in my singing than in my guitaring. I didn't get thrown off stage, so that's a measure of success.

While I enjoyed playing with others, I didn't feel terrific about my own contribution. However, I know there is no other way to improve than to get out there and just keep doing it. I'm sure a lot of it is just a matter of building my confidence, so every time I try it, I'm getting better at that. I'm also working on trying not to feel intimidated by better guitarists. It's all a work in progress....

Bob

[Robert****]

You're doing the right thing. Believe in yourself, don't worry about sound and effects, just play with attitude. That's what I do, and it works at jams. I may not always have a good tone, but I'm up there for a very limited time, might as well try and play my *** off if I get the chance! Let it rip!
If you believe in yourself, you'll sound 10 times better.

[Radioboy950]

You're doing the right thing. Believe in yourself, don't worry about sound and effects, just play with attitude. That's what I do, and it works at jams. I may not always have a good tone, but I'm up there for a very limited time, might as well try and play my *** off if I get the chance! Let it rip!
If you believe in yourself, you'll sound 10 times better.

You nailed it Robert.
AND I have always found that those stage “jitters” most definitely work to your advantage. My playing goes to the next level when I’m “on”, channeling that adrenaline to the fretboard.

[just strum]

While I enjoyed playing with others, I didn't feel terrific about my own contribution. However, I know there is no other way to improve than to get out there and just keep doing it. I'm sure a lot of it is just a matter of building my confidence, so every time I try it, I'm getting better at that. I'm also working on trying not to feel intimidated by better guitarists. It's all a work in progress....

Bob

Hey, what's the worse that can happen, your CD sales drop and you spend a year doing small venues before you work up to the stadium venues.

Bob, I think what you are doing is really great and I hope someday I can post about my first experience and you are giving me advice on how to approach it.

[birv2]

Thanks, Robert, Radioboy, and Strum for all the encouragement. That's one of the great things about this forum. I can't imagine what I might have gotten if I'd posted this in another popular music forum which shall remain nameless. :

I'd like to take lessons, but it's not really a possibility at this point. So I visit YouTube and Robert's site, watch other guitarists, and try to improve my skills. I think that will go a long way to helping boost my confidence!

Stay tuned for further developments!

Bob