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View Full Version : Back-to-back solo with different feels?



Andrew Lewis
Jul-28-2008, 10:23pm
Hey folks,

I'm interested in some quick opinions tonight if you can. I'm laying down a mandolin break tomorrow in the studio, but I'm sitting here working it out and am not sure which direction to take it. The song was written (by me) as a very bluegrassy song - think Dreadful Snakes, Kentucky Colonels, Ricky Skaggs, etc. Med. to fast tempo. Pretty basic changes in G. However, the band is more in the vein of Texas Country, so there are also some drums (simple train beat), and a clean electric guitar. Even with all of that, it still retains a lot of its bluegrass feel (with a hint at a cajun sound as well! Hehe!).

So here's my dilemma: the solo break consists of me taking a turn on the mando followed by the guitar taking his turn. His break (already recorded) is pretty straightforward, uncomplicated, and kind of country-rock sounding. But I can't help but give mine a strong bluesy style with a lot of jazzy phrasings and articulations a la Ricky Skaggs. Played together, the two solos sound quite different. So what does everyone think about two back-to-back solos that each fit the song but don't really share anything between each other?

Thanks for any thoughts or opinions.

MandoSquirrel
Jul-29-2008, 3:42pm
Makes sense to me. You want listeners to tell the difference, don't you? http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/biggrin.gif

Andrew Lewis
Jul-29-2008, 7:37pm
Haha! Fair enough. Got it done today, and it's quite amusing how different our takes were on the same song, especially when back-to-back. The guitar player and I got a good laugh out of it, but it did work quite nicely for the song.

Chip Booth
Jul-30-2008, 12:28pm
Sounds like you might want to reverse the order of the solos if yours is more complex and "out there". I tend to build the complexity of solos, starting simple and getting crazier as it goes.

Chip

MandoSquirrel
Jul-30-2008, 7:15pm
Glad it work out & gave you jolly's. http://www.mandolincafe.net/iB_html/non-cgi/emoticons/mandosmiley.gif