# Who would you be afraid to play with?



## Grab n Go (May 1, 2013)

This is just a silly, hypothetical thought experiment, but who do you think would be the most terrifying musician or artist to play with?

Maybe it's someone who demands a lot musically or is really next-level in terms of ability. Or maybe someone who comes across as kind of intense. It could be someone famous, living or dead, or just someone you happen to know.

It's a bit different from someone who's just an asshole. More along the lines of someone you respect and would be afraid of not being able to deliver.

I think my list would be pretty huge. Even if I had the ability, I think Oscar Peterson and Frank Zappa would be top of the list for me. I would definitely be shitting bricks.


----------



## FatStrat2 (Apr 7, 2021)

I think for me it would be Frank Zappa.


----------



## isoneedacoffee (Oct 31, 2014)

James Brown


----------



## Shawn B. (Aug 10, 2012)

Miles Davis would have been terrifying. But I get star-struck sometimes in front of other local guys I respect as players, so I also would have a long list!


----------



## JBFairthorne (Oct 11, 2014)

Another vote for James Brown.


----------



## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

Frank Zappa was first to mind. Ronnie Hawkins was the first living person I thought of - maybe because I just revisited The Last Waltz the other night.


----------



## BlueRocker (Jan 5, 2020)

Meatloaf


----------



## sulphur (Jun 2, 2011)

GG Allin


----------



## Brian Johnston (Feb 24, 2019)

Anyone with a year of playing background, lol


----------



## laristotle (Aug 29, 2019)

Chuck Berry


----------



## wraub (May 21, 2021)

On Bass- Some.
On Guitar- Many.


----------



## SWLABR (Nov 7, 2017)

Glenn Danzig. I think he could still punch you into next week!


----------



## laristotle (Aug 29, 2019)




----------



## teleboli (Aug 19, 2009)

Keith Partridge.


----------



## polyslax (May 15, 2020)

Not that I could really play with anyone, but I can think of a couple that fit into that ornery genius category that could be nerve-wracking to hang with:

Miles Davis
Buddy Rich


----------



## Grab n Go (May 1, 2013)

laristotle said:


> Chuck Berry


😂 Just play it like the man says, Keef!


----------



## RBlakeney (Mar 12, 2017)

Fogdart


----------



## miloski99 (Dec 27, 2020)

Fred Penner


----------



## Mooh (Mar 7, 2007)

I’d let anyone sit in with me. No idea who would let me sit in with them.


----------



## Doug Gifford (Jun 8, 2019)

Lead Belly.


----------



## player99 (Sep 5, 2019)

SRV.


----------



## YaReMi (Mar 9, 2006)

Donald Fagen.


----------



## Paul M (Mar 27, 2015)

Back in the mid 80's the Saturday matinee at Mingles in London was essentially an open stage, hosted by the band playing that night. One weekend it was Matt "Guitar" Murphy. Anyone who went up with him got cut off the stage. Matt just played circles around anyone stupid enough to think they belonged on the same stage.

I am stupid enough. He had a horn section with him, so when he asked what I wanted to play, I called Shotgun, by Jr. Walker and the Allstars. 1 chord...... there was no way he was gonna get me lost. By any measure my playing sucked, but I held on for a full song.


----------



## Kerry Brown (Mar 31, 2014)

I wouldn’t be afraid to play with anybody. It’s about the music. If there is a better player than me I’m quite happy to take a back seat in the mix and support them.


----------



## Grab n Go (May 1, 2013)

Kerry Brown said:


> I wouldn’t be afraid to play with anybody. It’s about the music. If there is a better player than me I’m quite happy to take a back seat in the mix and support them.


That's fair. I feel the same way. Happy to just comp if someone wants to go nuts.

For me, in this hypothetical scenario, it wouldn't be about feeling insecure if someone is better. It would be about not being able to keep up because the music demands much more than I can deliver. In other words, the musical equivalent of the "naked in front of the whole class" dream.


----------



## Grab n Go (May 1, 2013)

Doug Gifford said:


> Lead Belly.


That's a really interesting choice. May I ask: what aspect would you find terrifying?


----------



## bw66 (Dec 17, 2009)

Kerry Brown said:


> I wouldn’t be afraid to play with anybody. It’s about the music. If there is a better player than me I’m quite happy to take a back seat in the mix and support them.


It's not the fact that they are better players, it's the getting reamed because I can't keep up. I cry easily.


----------



## Always12AM (Sep 2, 2018)

Charles Manson


----------



## jimmythegeek (Apr 17, 2012)

Always12AM said:


> Charles Manson


Agreed. I woyld add his fellow family member Bobby Beausoleil for both musical AND murder-y reasons.


----------



## jimmythegeek (Apr 17, 2012)

Mingus for me.


----------



## polyslax (May 15, 2020)

YaReMi said:


> Donald Fagen.


----------



## Tarbender (Apr 7, 2006)

Steve Cropper, one of my guitar heroes. I was playing in a Queen Street bar one evening when Steve Cropper walked in. We were all in awe wondering what was he doing in this hole in the wall and there was no way I could play, my hands were literally shaking with excitement. Nice guy he took the stage and signed autographs, took selfies with people and chatted with everyone who wanted to talk to him.


----------



## SWLABR (Nov 7, 2017)

I'm pretty "in the box", but there are plenty of players who are "better" than me, or more versed, but I would feel OK to play with. I think a true professional (regardless of their cultural stature) would, or _should_, be a gracious host. If they are dicks, it's not that I would be fearful of playing with them, I just wouldn't want to.

I was jamming on bass (I am not a bassist) at the local L&M a few years ago, and a guy strikes up a conversation. He's a drummer, knows a guitar player, who might know an actual bass player, would I want to come out. Sure. Via text we decided a couple tunes to jam to, and where we'd all get together. When I get to the (other guitar players) house, we set up and ran through a couple easy jams. But they were not easy. Three guys who had never ever played together (in my opinion) just needed to feel each other out, but we couldn't. It was tight. In a bad way. I could sense the other guitar player was expecting way more out of the gate, and we were not meeting it. We dry run a couple of the agreed upon tunes, and they do not go well either. Instead of going back and focusing on the bumpy parts (which I am used to doing with previous bands) and then trying again, *he*... not _we_, abandons them, and moves on to the next. I was also having issues with my LP. It just would not stay in tune. The G was out, out, out, out!!! It was driving me nuts, but this guys huffing & puffing was something else. I switch to the Tele, and carry on. After the agreed upon tunes were done, we start talking about other tunes we may all know. He starts in and I try to join, but it is a disaster. He stops abruptly. Moves on. Asks if I know any. I pick an easy one. _Should I Stay or Should I Go_ (irony not lost on me) which I open, and start to sing. He stops. "I've always hated that tune". Then starts playing songs from a well known band, but like deep album cuts I have never heard. Song after song he was pulling out I had never heard of. Songs I am 100% confident the average bar patron would not know either. I felt he put it all on me as I was the weak link for being unprepared. Then he starts to try teach us his "original". The drummer finally said, _"Is that something you'd like to do?? Originals? Cause I thought this was cover band stuff. No one wants to hear a bunch of 40yr old no bodies play originals"_. Well, that was the last straw. "_I don't want to play other peoples sh*tty stuff every f*cking Friday & Saturday night_". I think it was maybe 2hrs total, but this dudes attitude was too much. I couldn't wait to get out of there.

It finally (thankfully) fizzled to a (semi) natural end, and we parted. I have no idea if the drummer & him ever got together again or not, they never reached out to me, and I would not have gone back. It was truly awful!

A buddy I was in a previous band with asked how it went. _"My desire to play with others guys is not worth putting up with that"_


----------



## Milkman (Feb 2, 2006)

These days I'm afraid to play with ANYone. I grow increasingly averse to crowds and particularly to crowds of people where alcohol is served so gigging is a non-starter.


----------



## Grab n Go (May 1, 2013)

SWLABR said:


> Three guys who had never ever played together (in my opinion) just needed to feel each other out, but we couldn't.


That guy must have had some weird expectations. Everyone knows it takes time to gel. But if the guy has an attitude problem, then I'm sure he won't gel with anyone.


----------



## Rollin Hand (Jul 12, 2012)

From a sheer fear perspective, it would likely be Zappa. Just reading how exacting he was.....I am not someone who could play like that.

From a personal perspective, it would be EVH. Because no matter what I did, it would sound weak and derivative by comparison. And no matter what he did, it would be EVH. I would rather just sit and watch.

A side note note: I have had a dream recur over the years where I was "the new guy" playing guitar in a major band, and somehow I had got the gig despite not knowing the material. The band is, for some reason, Megadeth. that would mean Dave Mustaine would be angry at me in front of 20,000 screaming fans in Montreal. So that would be a fear-inducing situation.


----------



## 1SweetRide (Oct 25, 2016)

Grab n Go said:


> This is just a silly, hypothetical thought experiment, but who do you think would be the most terrifying musician or artist to play with?
> 
> Maybe it's someone who demands a lot musically or is really next-level in terms of ability. Or maybe someone who comes across as kind of intense. It could be someone famous, living or dead, or just someone you happen to know.
> 
> ...


Does Hannibal Lecter play an instrument?


----------



## SWLABR (Nov 7, 2017)

Rollin Hand said:


> A side note note: I have had a dream recur over the years where I was "the new guy" playing guitar in a major band, and somehow I had got the gig despite not knowing the material. The band is, for some reason, Megadeth. that would mean Dave Mustaine would be angry at me in front of 20,000 screaming fans in Montreal. So that would be a fear-inducing situation.


WOW. That is a very specific fear-based dream. Reoccurring you say?? 

How angry would Dave get for playing Angry Again incorrectly??


----------



## Doug Gifford (Jun 8, 2019)

Grab n Go said:


> That's a really interesting choice. May I ask: what aspect would you find terrifying?


God knows what he'd do in a fight over the right chords in "Goodnight Irene."


----------



## guitarman2 (Aug 25, 2006)

I would not be afraid to play with anyone. If they agreed to play with me they'll likely be aware of my limitations. And all that can happen is I will learn something.


----------



## Okay Player (May 24, 2020)

SWLABR said:


> I'm pretty "in the box", but there are plenty of players who are "better" than me, or more versed, but I would feel OK to play with. I think a true professional (regardless of their cultural stature) would, or _should_, be a gracious host. If they are dicks, it's not that I would be fearful of playing with them, I just wouldn't want to.
> 
> I was jamming on bass (I am not a bassist) at the local L&M a few years ago, and a guy strikes up a conversation. He's a drummer, knows a guitar player, who might know an actual bass player, would I want to come out. Sure. Via text we decided a couple tunes to jam to, and where we'd all get together. When I get to the (other guitar players) house, we set up and ran through a couple easy jams. But they were not easy. Three guys who had never ever played together (in my opinion) just needed to feel each other out, but we couldn't. It was tight. In a bad way. I could sense the other guitar player was expecting way more out of the gate, and we were not meeting it. We dry run a couple of the agreed upon tunes, and they do not go well either. Instead of going back and focusing on the bumpy parts (which I am used to doing with previous bands) and then trying again, *he*... not _we_, abandons them, and moves on to the next. I was also having issues with my LP. It just would not stay in tune. The G was out, out, out, out!!! It was driving me nuts, but this guys huffing & puffing was something else. I switch to the Tele, and carry on. After the agreed upon tunes were done, we start talking about other tunes we may all know. He starts in and I try to join, but it is a disaster. He stops abruptly. Moves on. Asks if I know any. I pick an easy one. _Should I Stay or Should I Go_ (irony not lost on me) which I open, and start to sing. He stops. "I've always hated that tune". Then starts playing songs from a well known band, but like deep album cuts I have never heard. Song after song he was pulling out I had never heard of. Songs I am 100% confident the average bar patron would not know either. I felt he put it all on me as I was the weak link for being unprepared. Then he starts to try teach us his "original". The drummer finally said, _"Is that something you'd like to do?? Originals? Cause I thought this was cover band stuff. No one wants to hear a bunch of 40yr old no bodies play originals"_. Well, that was the last straw. "_I don't want to play other peoples sh*tty stuff every f*cking Friday & Saturday night_". I think it was maybe 2hrs total, but this dudes attitude was too much. I couldn't wait to get out of there.
> 
> ...


I recently heard someone say "Bands are for kids."


----------



## Merlin (Feb 23, 2009)

Buddy Rich would likely be top of the list for me.


----------



## Grab n Go (May 1, 2013)

1SweetRide said:


> Does Hannibal Lecter play an instrument?


Clavinet. It's the psychopath's instrument of choice.






There are so many instruments that would be inappropriate for villains: tuba, slide whistle, trombone, accordion...


----------



## Rollin Hand (Jul 12, 2012)

SWLABR said:


> WOW. That is a very specific fear-based dream. Reoccurring you say??
> 
> How angry would Dave get for playing Angry Again incorrectly??


It is _really_ specific, and I have no idea where it comes from. I am not a huge Megadeth fan (they're in the "like, not love" category), and I am pretty sure I would never, ever be able to play the "Symphony of Destruction" solo note-for-note, so....I just dunno.

And when I think about the dream, I remember my own fear more than Dave's wrath. Maybe it comes from my belief that, while I can do a lot of stuff, I have very little knowledge or control over what I play, solo-wise.


----------



## Sketchy Jeff (Jan 12, 2019)

My son is just getting to the point where he's a better player than I am. There's sort of that same experience that you have as a parent with chess or basketball or whatever when the day comes when you realize that you don't need to go easy on them any more 'cuz they're just learning. And then the day comes when you realize that you gotta hustle if you're gonna keep up. And then the day comes when you need to ask him to show you how he did that so you can fake your way through it. Some day maybe I will go to one of his shows and be the old guy bragging. 

So it's not fear exactly but there's a bit of something sorta like fear in the mix 
j


----------



## Sub-Arctic Rob (Aug 11, 2021)

Grab n Go said:


> This is just a silly, hypothetical thought experiment, but who do you think would be the most terrifying musician or artist to play with?
> 
> Maybe it's someone who demands a lot musically or is really next-level in terms of ability. Or maybe someone who comes across as kind of intense. It could be someone famous, living or dead, or just someone you happen to know.
> 
> ...


Chuck Berry... when I saw 'hail, hail, r&r' and keith richards describing chuck punching him in the face, or chuck walking on stage with these guys and just starting into a song with no rehearsal or discussion. I think it was Eric Clapton who said, we all looked at the bassist to figure out what key Chuck was playing, then tried to catch up. Chuck had no fcks to give, even in this esteemed group.


----------



## 2manyGuitars (Jul 6, 2009)

Kerry Brown said:


> I wouldn’t be afraid to play with anybody. It’s about the music. If there is a better player than me I’m quite happy to take a back seat in the mix and support them.


There was an interview in Guitar Player many years ago with one of the big jazz fusion guys. I think it was Pat Metheny. The one quote that stuck with me was “You always want to be the worst player in your band”.


----------



## Shawn B. (Aug 10, 2012)

2manyGuitars said:


> There was an interview in Guitar Player many years ago with on of the big jazz fusion guys. I think it was Pat Metheny. The one quote that stuck with me was “You always want to be the worst player in your band”.


Totally agree with that statement. It's how you learn. Playing with good players has taught me to listen more and play *less* (a lesson that a lot of guitarists should take to heart!).


----------



## Alex (Feb 11, 2006)

I've had a recurring dream that I'm playing with Yes and I am not cutting it. It's an awful feeling and glad to awake to realize it's all fantasy!


----------



## knight_yyz (Mar 14, 2015)

Everyone. I play for the dog and the cat. Sometimes the parrot sings along.


----------



## 2manyGuitars (Jul 6, 2009)

Who would I be afraid to play with?

Right now...
My unvaccinated singer.


----------



## Doug Gifford (Jun 8, 2019)

My experience has been: the better the player, the easier they are to play with.


----------

