It really changed my playing because it helped me to see that its not all about fitting a million notes into every measure. It almost goes hand in hand with alot of the subjects Victor Wooten touches in his book, "The Music Lesson".
I also feel that's one of the main reasons that the best in the world like Fleck and Pikelny are melodic masters: They know how to make a melodic phrase rythmic. I think that's where melodics start to get a bad rap. It is a fine break, but it is not as rythmic as i believe one of these two guys would have done it. because they have just taken it to another level altogether), it would be easy to see how this is not really a prime example of melodics. I'm just saying that if you were to compare to someone like Munde, or Thompson (I'm leaving out all the players like Fleck, Pikelny, Brown, Krueger etc. I'm not saying that its horrible or anything. Yeah it does sound like melodics for the time. Wow really? I always thought that dude was farmer. Sounded about right for an improvised melodic FMB. He was playing what was actually fairly popular at the time for that particular style. Nope, it's Rick Riman and I'd guess he'd pretty much qualify as a hippy. I bet that if he's still playing he's alot better. im guessing that he doesn't know about strong tones and passive tones. His style of melodics in that vid isn't really the greatest. Jim's reply was simple and to the point : " I play my tunes using my style of playing and he plays his tunes his way.īTW I'm pretty sure the guys name is John Farmer, not hippie. The guy asked another question: " Why not?". I wouldn't use alot of downstroke stuff either". Jim politely answered :"Thats a good tune, but I have never played it. "how would you play ,say, 'Jeruslem's Ridge' and would you use alot of downstroke stuff like Bill did?" One guy in the audience raised his hand and asked Jim a question. This reminds me of a time I was playing a festival years ago, and I sat in on Jessie McReynolds giving a mandolin workshop, which was great btw. He devoted his life to developing his own ideas and there was really no need to change it. Earl's playing isnt built upon melodic style, so spending time learning melodic scales and phrases would have taken time away from him ontinuing to evolve his style. I think Earl's response in that quote sums up his feeling on this subject very well. I think chromatic picking is strictly for a tune like that." It sounds good - like Bobby Thompson on the Hee Haw show that theme is out of sight the way he does it.
I'm a full believer in carrying the rhythm section along, and it just seems to me that when you get into that, you separate from the rhythm part. When asked, "Do you feel it's not as important to your music?" he answered, "Not as important as what I'm doing. "I don't know whether it's the lack of talent or the lack of interest I just haven't got interested far enough in that style of playing to want to work it out." In reference to the melodic style Earl says: