Jamie, thank you SO much for giving me something I've been begging all the leading online trainers for for ages. That is, detailed advice on playing ballads, and this - working with a singer. It's all I want to do, so thanks for responding to a student's need. And I suspect I'm not alone.
Thank you Jamie! Great lesson for everyone playing behind a singer. And also listen to the old great masters of this like Lester Young, Ben Webster and many more.
Great video, Jamie! One more tip: Stay away from the singer's pitches, especially on long notes! Also, when we notice that the singer's intonation is not spot on, refrain from "helpin'" playing the melody notes. Unless it is a very inexperienced singer who is completely lost, this would make the dissonance even more noticeable or possibly ruin a nice portamento. One more: do not only listen to the singer and the whole music but also watch the singer's face! You will istantly recognize if she/he is delighted or irritated by your playing!
My advice to any musician : when playing with a singer,don’t play your instrument,just play the song. There is no need to play between the gaps ; the singer is delivering a message,telling a story. Don’t get in the way of the message. When it’s your turn for a solo (or a song riff/horn section pattern) that’s the time for you to deliver your own message. The less you play when a song is sung,the better the lyric gets across. Thank you,Jamie for all the work you do to help so many people make progress.
Thanks Jamie. Another brilliant video. BTW, I didn’t know your a pro saxophonist 🤣 Thanks for educating me on Blossum Dearie. I can use her on Spotify to come up with my own sax lines. You always inspire me. Cheers.
Love this Jamie. Priceless practical advice. I get 'Can you just play some sax over............' Me 'Ok what are we playing?' 'We're going to do Itchycoo Park' Me 'Excellent M People did a great version with a top sax player Snake Davis on it'. 'No we want to do the original, just play some stuff that fits'. Repeat with numerous other songs mostly without a sax part! A particular goody was 'No More Heroes'!
As usual, you’ve provided a concise description of the essentials with examples. Many thanks! Like most things in life, I’ve had to learn the hard way to back singers, but it is one of my most favorite things when I play. If I do all the things you say and really, really listen to the singer, it’s like dancing or skating with a partner where you anticipate each others moves. And, if you know the tune, it doesn’t matter what key it’s in - you can bet it won’t be the one in which it was written.
Top lesson at the right moment. I just supported a singer in a pub on my tenor playing Amy Winehouse ''Rehab'' and ''You Know I'm No Good''. I copied the original lines in the song and that fits exactly with your advice. Being an uneducated amateur, I have to figure out what harmonising in 3rd's is as well as guide tones in 3rds and 7ths. Must be tiring to you, transferring information to dumbo's.🙂
The first practice I attended playing sax was an eye opener. We have an instrument with quite a dynamic range. I have learned to practice the dynamics with as much care as the music line. Pulling it back to support the vocalist pays off.
One thing you didn't mention about playing in the gaps, but did demonstrate, is echoing part of the phrase the singer just sang. In "Manhattan" you did this after she sang "in July" around 6:39, and loosely again after "made for a girl and boy" around 7:21. This seems especially effective in ballads - as long as it isn't overdone, which I guess you could say about anything that works.
Excellent program! Similar principles whether you're solo background, small group or big band with a vocalist, and it's amazing how many people don't follow these concepts. Thanks!
Great advice. Often we don't get to have the limelight. The singer or the person who booked the gig (perhaps took a financial risk by paying for the venue) is the centre of attention. You are doing a wonderful job of complementing the vocalist.
I play alto and this is very helpful. Really hard to play guide tones and harmonize below the singer though. Any alto advice tomboy stand out when not soloing.
Thanks for a wonderful lesson. May you also explain what to play in gaps? Do you decide before or on the spot? What are the best notes that blend with a song? is there any method/theory to know?
Can you tell me what from what scale or the key you were playing from for both songs, particularly the first, “Manhattan.” Great lesson one way or another, Sir. Thank you.
All good advice. With rock and pop it's important to listen to the recording and try to learn any important riffs, and learn them in a way that you can transpose if the singer wants to do in a different key. I.e. riff starts on 1 and goes to minor 3.
Great lesson Jamie. Love that backing sax on Little Jazz Bird, in fact the original REALLY misses the sax 😂. A contender for ‘should have had a sax solo!’
Perhaps you could break down your playing on this track for us Inner circle Members? It would be great to see how you approached it, see it transcribed etc. so we can really see your scale choices and harmonies?? 🙏🙏
Beautiful! Nice examples & great tips! I love playing behind a vocalist. My first experience, when I was in college, was playing flute fills & harmonies behind a folk singer.
@@GetYourSaxTogether Right after viewing your video on playing behind a vocalist I got an offer from a vocalist to record sax with (i.e. behind) him! Recording starts next week!
How do you coordinate w other lead instruments? I feel like often times I stomp on the guitar's fill when I play a fill. It seems like a lot to coordinate to look over EVERY time I'm going to play a little riff.
Aposite and nicely done. Possibly you could do more on this subject. Its one thing to demonstrate with a recording which you have heard before, its another live on an unrehearsed gig when you don't always know what's happening next. Your point about being clear is well taken. There's the thing if the singer like Blossom (BTW Blossom love seconded!) is playing piano too. They might like to do a solo, so keep eye contact. Also there's the issue of keys. The chances are 11 to 1 that the singer isn't going to sing in the key you're most familiar with the tune in. In some cases the odds are infinite! Some strategies in dealing with this would be good. And if you're in a bigger band with the singer out in front, remember you're still on stage and your opinion on the singer is NOT welcome! If you've nothing to do, make with the groove and smile! And when you're playing, as a band remember unless its the shout chorus, STF up! Play at least two dynamic notches down. Sure they've got a mic but they've got words too. The audience might like to hear them.
@@GetYourSaxTogether its a particular beef of mine. I hate it when a singer is battling the band. I dunno if its because on modern pop the voice is pretty low in the mix and the words are rarely discernable (who cares anyway) and then on a live gig with a big band and maybe a standard, they play and mix as if it were Oasis. I'm sure you could do a few great videos on this. How to cope with nervous or 'not so good' singers too. BTW loving those tenor fills behind Blossom!
Jamie! this was so awesome for me! My wife and I do a singer saxophone duo with light back up tracks! We are called JUSTUS! I was pretty much doing everything you said in this instructional video, but it helped fine tune me! Also, I might add, I download the music for urgent off of your site and totally crushed it on the alto! View us right here on U tube under Justus singer/sax duo and tell me what you think! Thanks for all you do !
Nope. But it’s way too involved to tell you everything I do here I’m afraid. That’s the territory of my Improvisation Mastery course. You’re basically asking, how do I improvise? 🤣
@@BIGGBAY90 sorry if there was any misunderstanding - I definitely know what key I’m in when I improvise, yes! I’m just scrolling and answering comments right now - without rewatching this video I can’t remember what key each song is in. 😊
Hi Jamie!! An argentinean fan writing here, THANK YOU so much for everything your videos, you are amazing. Sorry to ask you an offtopic question, is there a computer program that you recommend to use to learn/record/play a little the sax??
If one looks at a singer's face whilst some dope is noodling on sax cluttering it all up, you've got your answer. She or he is trying to sing in tune.. The best Sax cat I ever heard who could do this correctly was Stan Getz. Listen to the harmonic brilliance and non- offensive way he accompanies Astrud Gilberto on, "It Might as Well be Spring" from their Live LP.
I see you have some little "squirks", I call them, in your horn. I think it's a Mark VI-ism!?.. seems to happen most on that horn. Yeah, it's peculiar .. an indearment!
