In Simplicity Lies Ellagance

Steve Kritz · Post by **Steve Kritz** » 6 Apr 2003 5:11 pm

In a LLoyd Green article several years ago,while talking about style vs.his approach to playing,he said that"In Simplicity Lies Ellagance".Realizing there's nothing simple about his delivery and his style,however I'm curious to know how much does"keeping it simple"become part of your approach to playing on the bandstand?Thanks.

Eric West · Post by **Eric West** » 6 Apr 2003 7:09 pm

OK. In "combat" situations, you'll find yourself developing simplicity. IOW, being able to play something faster than a dragging drummer, or slower than a rushing drummer. (harder) Also against an out of tune guitar or vocal.

The guitar player can come up with the latest Brent Mason lick, and you know it's out of tune. OR a complicated lead line that has NOTHING to do with the melody. You have two choices. Only the battlefield situation dictates which is right. You can either play a simple melody, doubled with ocatves is my favorite, and act dignified, OR you can cobble together a similar line of crap to play back to him(/her/it). (Then look at him and pick your nose.) I pick either response on any given night unless they're "taping". Even then, I try to figure out who the potential "audience" is and make my choice.

( Seldom am I asked to "listen to what I did" on these evidentiary 'tapes'.)

Also playing double octave lines that stick to the melody against a vocalist that to save their life, wouldn't sing a single note of the melody to ANY song. Sometimes it gives them a "clue".

It's always good to go back to say, Pete Drake, Lloyd Green, ET's stuff with *either* Buddy or Lynn that you've learned, and feel good about playing the best, cleanest, well phrased thing you can.

What happens when you go about it *that way* is that when by some stroke of luck you ARE able to play without having to fight every single bloody measure, you'll HAVE the basics firmly in your head, and CAN embellish.

"You gotta hava the Spaghet' before you adda the sauce." -Unknown Italian-

It's nice to remember some lick you got off the "rebel site" to try against a live band at least once a night.

The more stuff you can play under "adverse" situations, the more stuff you can add to it on better gigs.

Here's to "Better gigs".

EJL

(Following my advice is a dubious pastime. I've been fired from a few gigs. Lots more of them would have fired me had they had more collective self respect.)

C Dixon · Post by **C Dixon** » 6 Apr 2003 7:14 pm

It ties in precisely to what Lloyd said Jerry Byrd said in a Peavey magazine some years ago,

"There are three ways to play the steel guitar. Melody, melody and melody!".

If one ponders that, it ties right into your quote about elegance and simplicity. IE, melody sounds sooooo simple. But melody can be very difficult to maintain across a player's repetoire'.

It is one thing to stay within the chord structure or play notes (ad-libbing) that are complimentary. It is quite another thing to play strictly the melody. Or worse, follow the written page when playing in an orchestra where one must play ONLY that which the arranger/composer wrote.

And yet the end result can sound soooo simple that it is often quite elegant indeed. But it is rarely simple to do. If one doubts this, try to duplicate what Lloyd does or Jerry Bryd does. You will find it ain't simple.

Ant that is the elegant part of it. IMO.

God bless Lloyd Green , Jerry Byrd, and all of you,

carl

CrowBear Schmitt · Post by **CrowBear Schmitt** » 6 Apr 2003 11:24 pm

Simplicity is an Art

Don McClellan · Post by **Don McClellan** » 7 Apr 2003 2:16 am

Check out Bud Tutmarc if you haven't already. Elegant simplicity is his middle name.

Ooops, thank you.[This message was edited by Don McClellan on 08 April 2003 at 01:26 AM.][This message was edited by Don McClellan on 08 April 2003 at 01:28 AM.]

ebb · Post by **ebb** » 7 Apr 2003 3:37 pm

lloyd being a mensa member and somewhat obsessive retentive never stated the excerpt above but maybe something with a similar word

Suggestions for Ellagant:
1. elegant
2. elegance
3. Allegheny
4. elegantly
5. inelegant
6. elegancy
7. elegances
8. Alleghenian
9. allegation
10. allegretto

[This message was edited by ebb on 07 April 2003 at 04:39 PM.]

Chris Forbes · Post by **Chris Forbes** » 9 Apr 2003 4:46 am

I find it a little misleading for Lloyd Green to use the word simplicity. It certainly doesn't apply to his playing. I found some of his stuff is just about the hardest to duplicate and it rarely transfers from one song to another. Yes, there are simple licks that can be used just about everywhere and will fit quite nicely, thank you. But not Mr. Green's licks. Maybe his playing seems simple to him, but phooey, not to me!!

Erv Niehaus · Post by **Erv Niehaus** » 9 Apr 2003 6:57 am

"Easy for you, difficult for me"!

Uff'Da!

Chris Forbes · Post by **Chris Forbes** » 11 Apr 2003 2:27 am

Erv, VEEEEEERY difficult for me!!!!!!

HowardR · Post by **HowardR** » 11 Apr 2003 2:15 pm

Ellagance...is what Ella Fitzgerald had.

Sought by many, obtained by few.

Mike Delaney · Post by **Mike Delaney** » 14 Apr 2003 6:22 am

"Sought by many, obatined by few"

Ain't that the truth! When Ella passed away I saw a cartoon in the paper, where you saw God's hand on Ella's shoulder, and He was saying to the choir of angles "Listen up, she's the one I've been telling you about."

Ray Montee · Post by **Ray Montee** » 24 Apr 2003 10:19 am

I feel the advice about WHEN to play and WHEN to NOT PLAY is very close to simplicity.

In Hawaiian music, with sooooooo many great chord changes, one can often hit a note or chord and let it ring while the rhythm section makes 2,3 or 4 chord changes that tend to enhance the note(s) you just played on the steel guitar.

Using the band to make you sound good takes patience and an appreciation of what MUSIC is all about. Some I've seen, don't seem to possess this quality/skill?

Chris Forbes · Post by **Chris Forbes** » 24 Apr 2003 10:25 am

Ray, I would argue that very few have this quality/skill you speak of. Too many players don't know when to shut up. And I'm sure I'm just as guilty at times as others, but I do make a conscious effort at least to shut up when I'm supposed to (so it's only partially my fault!!).