I'm with you, kat - I get the notes first, and the timing comes later. (And it does.)

It drives the man who shares my house absolutely CRAZY. He's also a "timing guy". His explanation is that you can usually tell what song it is if the timing is right, and with practice you'll get the right notes. (Mistakes are mistakes, and he'd prefer the notes to be the mistakes.)

Maybe it's a male/female thing? His daughter is taking piano and violin, and she's with us - she'll hesitate and find the right note. He'll be keeping the tempo on the table or whatever, and is "corrects" her when she hesitates, but not if she hits a "clinker" IF SHE KEEPS GOING.

The only other difference I can think of is that I usually play alone, and he quite often plays with others. In a "jam", he can join in and play "in time" and skip the notes he doesn't know, but "keep up"; I can't play along until I "know" it. My hesitations would throw others off, and that's his "complaint".

Any other opinions?

campfire