weekendwarriors

Hello everyone (with one being the operative term these days).

I'm old. I'm 57. But I remember 'the old days' when jamming meant something a bit different from what it seems to mean today. Back in the sixties we would go to a jam and what would happen was this: there would be drums, guitar and bass amps and (sometimes) a PA with a mic or two. Add say 15 to 25 people who could play - not all brilliant or all crap - and off we went. Aha! You say, you played songs, right? Not where we went. Let me tell you of ancient times...

We would all be sitting around chatting, smoking (you could do it indoors then) and someone, often Gus, would grab a guitar and play something. A riff; not 'Smoke On The Water' but just something... maybe he made it up, maybe he heard it on the bus, maybe both, but he played something. Then, as often as not, I would grab my bass and join in. That's because Gus and I like playing together, but it could be someone else. Join in means add to as well. If Gus were playing something in Am I might let it go for a lot of bars but then play an F; not too strange musically and a suggestion for development. Gus, being Gus, would hear the change and incorporate it into what he was playing. Suddenly we realise there is a drummer backing our music. OK, time to get funkier, so we do. No conversation, no plan, you just do it because that's what has to happen now. So we play for a while, maybe adding chords here and there but jamming on Am - F. Then the drummer decides triplets are the go... we stay with him for a while until someone (I think it was me) realises that triplets can be halved to make lazy triplets. We do that and the music starts to swing - I have no idea whose idea that was but we like it. By now there are several guitarists and one harp player who only has about three notes but moves well. So we are in this fast shuffle that grew from a medium straight theme and Gus decides minors are too sad so he majors it up and brightens it at the same time. I smile. I trump his major with the beginning of a 12 bar. He looks over and shakes his head... not today buddy, we're jamming. He does a progression from A to D to C to some ghord I can't figure and back to the A... It sounds like the music is lost as if in a strange city... Ah! B minor. OK let's see what we've got: kind of a run down here. I play a run to fit and the music finds itself (that's why I'm a bass player). The drummer shouts "Yeah!" but by now we are loud and no-one can hear, but everyone gets the vibe - there are smiles around the room. The harp player gives up (he'll get a slow blues in A later). The Gus hits a note and sustains it... for ever. He's tremoloing the note with his left hand and it somehow climbs above the rest of the music without getting louder. We all quieten down to let this note breathe, and soon there is just one note, crying into the room...

...It stops and Gus says: "I need a beer".

That's a jam... 4 hours of that.

Hi, yes I remember those type of jam sessions, plenty of ab-libbing and learning curves, oh and plenty of beer too. Cheers Gary

Hi Alan,

I think you have described the right context of jamming. It's different in what Ellaways runs on the first Thursday of the month though as it is really 'song practise' nights for those that may not be in a band, or have time to commit to a band, or are looking to develop the skills necessary to play in a band. The Ellaways jams came about for those that had been through our WW program and needed opportunities to play. Most of the 'Open Mic' nights or 'Walk Ups' really cater for the singing guitarist and not for bas players as an example.

Now and then I have allowed a group of musos to get up and jam in 'E' or similar and after 5 minutes, the group are grooving away but the audience are looking for stronger drinks and tissues to stuff in their ears. I ralise you were not being critical or anything but thought it was an opportune time to give some background to or 'version' of the jam. Speaking of such, hell it was a great night last Thursday

Cheers,
Bob

Absolutely Bob, I was reminiscing...

And you are so right about last Thursday!

Aaahhhhh The good old days "You try and tell the kids of today that and they wont believe ya they wont" Wonderful memorizes Big Al

Keep on Rockin
BlackMaster