# What standards should you know for a jam?



## JHarasym (Mar 27, 2007)

Suttree posted a link in another post to a great site for theory and other insights into guitar : http://www.chrisjuergensen.com.hosting.domaindirect.com/lessons.htm
I found the site to be rich with useful stuff, and highly recommend checking it out. One of Chris' suggestions is for aspiring players to develop a repertoire of standards. This was aimed at pros looking for gigs and/or studio work, but it hit me that it would be a useful thing for any player to work on, ie. for jams or open mike nights where you're put together with other players and want to be able to play along and improvise over most of what will be played. I'd appreciate everyones input into a list of standards, which I would intend to use as a practise list. So starting with the broad categories of blues and classic rock, what songs would you consider standards that one should have under ones belt?
Here's my first suggestion: Johnny B. Goode


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## suttree (Aug 17, 2007)

hey! I TOTALLY FORGOT ABOUT THAT SITE! hahaha. i'm glad you posted it, i remember now why i liked it... lost in a windows re-install folder somewhere i suppose...

songs: brown eyed girl, mustang sally, come together, fulsom prison blues (especially the "lost verse" from pinball wizard)..

hmmm.. gimme one reason (tracey chapman's), dreams (fleetwood mac) is two chords... what's going on (4 non blondes), maybe even wonderwall? 

those are all pretty straight ahead and fun for everyone to play (so everyone can play comfortably) is what i'd recommend.


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## Greg Ellis (Oct 1, 2007)

Black Magic Woman

Into the Mystic or And It Stoned Me or Moondance, or something off that album, anyway

Jumpin' Jack Flash, Satisfaction, Brown Sugar, maybe Wild Horses, other HUGE Stones songs like those

A Whiter Shade of Pale

All Right Now

Gimme Gimme Good Lovin' (or whatever it's called)

In the Midnight Hour (or whatever that's called)

There are loads more, obviously...


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## suttree (Aug 17, 2007)

Paul said:


> What???? No "Mustang Sally???" <sarcasm off>
> 
> These lists are why I hate rock/blues jams. Nobody ever show up wanting to jam on Little Feat's "Let it Roll", or "Takin' it to the Streets", by The Doobie Brothers, or most songs that are both musically interesting and challenging, and for the most part, not overplayed.
> 
> I'm not trying to throw a wet blanket on jamming, but let's all try and take it up a notch.


actually you'll see mustang sally as the second song i listed. jamming isn't about showing off your flashy chops, it's about inclusion of all players, and it's about letting everyone have a chance to shine. if you want to tackle the heavier duty songs then a) at least show up with the chord changes written down clearly on paper for the "house band", or b) show up with some people you've rehearsed the change with and have at it. 

there is nothing simple about knocking on heaven's door, if you're really trying to carry the song. sure it's not much of a challenge to bang the chords out, but if that's what you're doing (so that you're getting bored), then you're playing by talking, instead of playing by listening. i'm not trying to say i'm the king of this stuff, but i enjoy playing any song, as long as the drummer isn't a total trainwreck.


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## Greg Ellis (Oct 1, 2007)

I think it's all a matter of time and practise. Obviously you're going to work up to more complicated stuff, and a much wider range, over time.

But if you're starting from scratch, and your strongest desire is to walk into a jam with strangers and start playing something everybody knows, then you've got to learn songs that everybody knows (even if they happen to be the songs that everybody hates).

I did a jam a couple of months ago, with some old high school friends from 20 years ago. We didn't play ANY of this schlock. But what we did do is build up a list of songs well in advance, sent it around for comments, etc, so people could do their own prep ahead of time.

It would have been a very different scenario if we'd tried to do it with out preparation; just walking in with whatever everybody happened to know and trying to make music. I can almost guarantee we'd be into the Jumpin' Jack Flash and similar overplayed stuff if we'd tried it that way.


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## Guest (May 22, 2008)

I don't know who you folks have been jamming with but I can already tell you guys were purchasing Beatles 45s when they were originally released.:zzz:


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## suttree (Aug 17, 2007)

been thinking of this a lot lately, so i'm gonna get back on the soapbox.

public jams shouldn't be about showing off, like i said. simple songs allow everyone on the stage to have a good time, and THAT is what music is about. when you're playing for an audience, they just want to hear stuff they recognize. yah i can get into a crazy, heavy jam, go off on a 10 minute wankfest solo and i'll have a great time. but you know who doesn't? EVERYONE ELSE IN THE ROOM. 

god musicians are so intensely self centered sometimes. and this is the voice of bitter experience talking. for so many years i went to jams and sat around bitching about how everyone sucks, and the songs all suck.. then i'd get up on stage and unleash my barrage of riffs on an unsuspecting world. and you know what? i didn't get much of a chance to play. now, i go with no preconceptions, with the intent of playing music as well as i can, and with the intent of including every musician who is at least good enough not to get in the way of the song (you should be at least able to play in key and on beat). and you know what? i have WAY more fun, and i get to play a lot more... people want me to stick around on stage, because i'm not just standing around waiting fro everyone else to shut up so i can get on with my business of playing hott lixx. 

bands that are great, regardless of genre (or age kona), are great because they _listen_ very intensely to everything going on around them.. instead of thinking about the chord change they're being held back by, they focus on how to make the change flow, and groove and be stronger. 

not that i expect to change any minds with this rant, but i'll tell you.. if you don't have fun playing - even old dinosaur tunes - it's your fault, not the songs'.


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## Warren (Mar 2, 2007)

*My experience* with Blues Jams; this is if nobody cares if you play the tune like the album.

Learn 12 bar in a bunch of keys (most common, A, E, C, G). Now try them in different grooves, funky, slow, shuffle etc., I use a drum machine to practice.

Learn an 8 bar (Key to the Highway). Try it in different keys, & different grooves.

Now learn some variations on the above, Stormy Monday, St. James Infirmary, It Hurts Me Too.

You've covered 90% of Blues Jams if you learn the above and can apply it to the situation (again my experience).

Mixing it up playing rhythm (basic):

Now try learning a bunch of inversions for the 7th chord. In other words try finding all the AC#EG combinations of 4 note chords you can all over the neck.
Try substituting these for the I chord in an ascending or descending series in time with the bass player or the drummer. In the opposite direction of the bass.

Now try the diminished chord as a substitution, so instead of playing AC#EG, play C#EGB (key of A). This sounds good in a shuffle. and you can use the same substitution for the IV & V chords.

You don't have to get all theoretical and maggoty about chord subs. In fact, if you stick to inversions and the diminished substitution with taste and sparsity it will add nice colour without being obnoxious.

And, sorry but my blues jam solo *is* about me, but I don't approach it as a way to show off how fast I can go, use it to explore complex musical structures in my soloing so in a 12 - 24 bar solo (keep it short) try some Robbin Ford 1/2 whole riffs. Try Lydian over the IV chord. try playing chord notes on the down beat and any other notes on the upbeat or reverse that. Intermix these ideas with the pentatonic wankage that the audience actually likes & expects.

Hope this helps, I've never bothered to learn a standard.

Can you tell I Love Blues Jams, finally out of the closet


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## bagpipe (Sep 19, 2006)

konasexone said:


> I don't know who you folks have been jamming with but I can already tell you guys were purchasing Beatles 45s when they were originally released.:zzz:


You're probably correct in that. Maybe you can share with us some songs that younger folks are jamming on these days? 

My neighbours kid plays guitar and they recently had a garage band/jamming session. I only recognized Nirvanas "Smells Like Teen Spirit".


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## Guest (May 22, 2008)

A jam, eh? I like to jam on:

Wilson
First Tube
Character Zero
Truckin'
Touch of Grey
Drive In, Drive Out
Ants Marching
Seek Up
Cortez, The Killer
I Wish
Peace Frog
A Little Help From My Friends
Alive
Garden

Anything Phish or Dead really. Those can go round and round and round for a long time with everyone flowing and ebbing in and out.


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## Guest (May 22, 2008)

bagpipe said:


> You're probably correct in that. Maybe you can share with us some songs that younger folks are jamming on these days?


Yea, I too would like to hear what konasexone is jamming on. I'm not old, but I'll tend to pull jam tracks from the past versus the present. _Prison Sex_ or _46 and 2_ just don't extend to jam territory very well. 

I'm also thinking "jam band" music when someone says "jam" -- not blues jam music.


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## RIFF WRATH (Jan 22, 2007)

holy derailing thread....interesting topic that has been on my mind a lot lately
as I am having an up-coming local "GC" members jam...........IREC.actually don't know any of the artists you posted....maybe Kona was refering to me ...lol

my take on it is that knowing popular standards would be the way to go......but definetly Genre related.......rock & roll standards, clasic rock standards, metal standards, blues standards, country standards........maybe a couple from each

keep 'em coming
cheers
Gerry


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## Warren (Mar 2, 2007)

Paul said:


> C#EG*B* is a *half* diminished 7 chord, also known as a minor 7 flat 5 chord.
> 
> C#EG*Bb* is a diminished chord.
> 
> ...


Sorry, I meant the VII chord, diatonic sub. not diminished as in 1/2 whole, that's why I spelled it out. I've always heard both referred to as diminished.


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## Greg Ellis (Oct 1, 2007)

konasexone said:


> I don't know who you folks have been jamming with but I can already tell you guys were purchasing Beatles 45s when they were originally released.:zzz:



Well there's a productive and helpful contribution to the thread.


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## Hamm Guitars (Jan 12, 2007)

I Couldn't agree more...



suttree said:


> been thinking of this a lot lately, so i'm gonna get back on the soapbox.
> 
> public jams shouldn't be about showing off, like i said. simple songs allow everyone on the stage to have a good time, and THAT is what music is about. when you're playing for an audience, they just want to hear stuff they recognize. yah i can get into a crazy, heavy jam, go off on a 10 minute wankfest solo and i'll have a great time. but you know who doesn't? EVERYONE ELSE IN THE ROOM.
> 
> ...


 
When I look at Jamming there are two different scenarios. You have a singer, so you will more or less want to play existing songs, or you don't have a singer and you're free to play something less structured.

I'm more for someone playing a riff and then having others jump on board and solidifying something and then spinning it off into different directions. I doesn't have to be complicated, or follow any set of predetermined rules - it just has to gel with the players. I've allways found this to be the most fun as each player contributes and you learn things from each other. You can have a mish-mash of genres going on all at the same time and never run out of stuff to play.


If I had to put together a list of stuff to Jam it would be something like this:

Anything 1-4-5 that can be picked up on the spot and wanged, walked or strummed through.
War Pigs - Black Sabbath
Folsom Prison Blues and at least one other Johnny Cash Tune
Two or three Bob Marley tunes
Sir Duke or Higher Ground - Stevie Wonder
One or two Elton John tunes (Dirty Little Girl is my fav)
Kasmir - Led Zeppelin


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## Hamm Guitars (Jan 12, 2007)

Paul said:


> [/list]The best way to piss off the horns...play it in B natural, as on the record. The high B concert, (written C#), for the tenor sax will always be out of tune.
> 
> Keep the horns happy and play in Bb, and the tune loses some edge. I play it with 5 horns in B natural. On the one runthrough in ten where we all get the soli section right, the tune kicks. The other 9 times are painful to play, and possible painful to hear.


I wouldn't know as I've never jammed with a horn player. When ever I've played it the horn lines were played on guitar or a keyboard.


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## RIFF WRATH (Jan 22, 2007)

had an awesome sax player show up at one of my jams last year, guy named Joe from kitchener.........this guy would take all of 1 second to jump in on any song.....still have the shivers.....don't know how to contact him tho....plays in 3 bands


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