The drum solo: where do you stand?

PaulieBoy

So jazz is the one place where you will be guaranteed of a good old fashioned drum solo. But is it all that welcome? Personally I don't have much time for them. I like the way Art Pepper deals with them on his tunes: a couple of measures of a solo, back to the music followed by another couple of measures and so on. It's quite listenable!
I start to drift off when you have what seems like the drummer thinks we are interested in his banging! It's a backing instrument not a lead instrument, it's place is to drive the song along. Much like you do not take a car engine out and run it on it's own and marvel at how it works!
So there you go, what do you think of the drum solo in jazz?

Rigsby

I am not a fan of extended drum solos in any type of music. However, I think one short (i.e. a minute or so) solo on one or two songs of a set, is no harm and when done tastefully, can actually add to a song. Moderation is the key here.

As far as the role of an instrument is concerned, who has the right to dictate ? Instruments and how they are used evolve ( or should do) with time. The bass guitar was generally accepted as a backing/accompanying instrument, until Jaco Pastorius and his like, brought it more to the fore. If everything stays the same, and no one experiments with other potential possibilities, then that's a recipe for stagnancy IMO.

PaulieBoy

Rigsby wrote: »

As far as the role of an instrument is concerned, who has the right to dictate ? Instruments and how they are used evolve ( or should do) with time. The bass guitar was generally accepted as a backing/accompanying instrument, until Jaco Pastorius and his like, brought it more to the fore. If everything stays the same, and no one experiments with other potential possibilities, then that's a recipe for stagnancy IMO.

Well actually! I could add bass solos to my pet hate in jazz. It is a backing instrument. OK once in a while someone comes along and pushes out the boundaries of an instrument and brings it to the fore. But it still-largly-remains what it always was. The bass is not a lead instrument, sure there are some famous bass players and some bands that feature it, but 99% of music has the bass where it always was and always will be, a backing instrument. Same for drums.
As for who has the right to say what is and what is not a backing instrument I would say the paying punter has that right. Not many bass players sell out a show, same for drummers. There are a few, not many.
Oh, and I might add that I played drums and have three bass guitars.

Just my two cents!

Rigsby

PaulieBoy wrote: »

Well actually! I could add bass solos to my pet hate in jazz. It is a backing instrument. OK once in a while someone comes along and pushes out the boundaries of an instrument and brings it to the fore. But it still-largly-remains what it always was. The bass is not a lead instrument, sure there are some famous bass players and some bands that feature it, but 99% of music has the bass where it always was and always will be, a backing instrument. Same for drums.
As for who has the right to say what is and what is not a backing instrument I would say the paying punter has that right. Not many bass players sell out a show, same for drummers. There are a few, not many.
Oh, and I might add that I played drums and have three bass guitars.

Just my two cents!

Well, the late Mr. Pastorius was/is very popular with both punters and musicians alike, as was Ginger Baker's solos, back in his Cream days.

I basically agree with you about extended solos on either bass or drums being boring, but IMO that does not deem it "wrong" or out of place. Instruments are merely tools for creating music. How a master craftsman uses them, will depend on his approach to the music, the music itself, and to the instrument. I still maintain that no one has the right to deem an instrument's place in the band. Granted, bass and drums traditionally have occupied the places you suggest, though they have not and will not always do so. There is always someone who wants to buck the trend, and I say good luck to them.

Granted, some people may prefer to see/hear an instrument being played in the traditional way. In that case, they have the choice to boycott the "offender".

PaulieBoy

Rigsby wrote: »

I basically agree with you about extended solos on either bass or drums being boring,

Yeah, short solos work really well on virtually any instrument and add to a tune no end, it's the long drawn out ones that test the will to live :-)

flaccidmember

There should be no solos in jazz. It's an insult to Rihanna

Meehanmeehan

flaccidmember wrote: »

There should be no solos in jazz. It's an insult to Rihanna

Someone should translate that into latin and make it a popular mantra.



Drum solos should be within the rythmn of the song and be as crazy as they like, or have a solid pulse to build on.
But solo drums with no beat make me SO MAD>:(

18AD

It depends on my mood. Sometimes I enjoy a rhythmic challenge from someone who is an expert at rhythm. Other times I'd just like a short tasteful rhythmic figure(s). Other times I want no drum solo interupting tasty harmonies and melodies.

a_ominous

The very first live gig I remember seeing was Stan Getz in the Olypmia in 1982, I think it was, as an impressionable teenager. Didn't particularly enjoy it and I think it turned me off jazz for a very long time. Could not understand long drum solos - lasting minutes in my little world.
Now I'm older I can appreciate a good drum solo but don't think it's appropriate in every piece. Yes you can get different sounds and rhythms, but that's not enough for most people.
I saw Jools Holland in NCH 18 months ago and his drummer, Gilson Lavis, had stage to himself for one big solo in one piece. A brilliant drummer and very versatile. But even then he used a light show to enhance the experience.
With bass, I think the frequency range of instrument is so low, that it makes it difficult for it to sing out like a trumpet, sax, piano or guitar.

Bootsy.

Sometimes can be boring but this is special:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GrKShqNkcnI