Your Musical Influences

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: GUEST,Pete J
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 03:09 PM

The last post was from me, don't know why I appeared as "GUEST"!

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: GUEST
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 02:56 PM

What a great thread, Jerry.

Bert Jansch and John Renbourn's guitar playing and folk/blues songs repetoires, along with Bert's own songs and his wonderful arrangements of traditional material, were big infuences on me in my late teens. A mate of mine named John Norton taught me fingerstyle (clawhammer) and I went on to develop both that and my own style, as I guess we all do.

At first I tried to imitate Bert's vocals, but soon learned that it's best to be yourself. Same with the playing style and arrangements - I base them on what I've heard, but generally don't aim to play parrot-style.

Didn't really have any other players (I nearly wrote musicians, but that's different!) in the family, but big borthers and sister always had records (remember them?) on. Clearly remember Freight Train, I Never Felt More Like Singing The Blues, and just about everything by Elvis, Lonnie Donnegan and Cliff as a youngster. And Billy Fury on Radio Luxemburg (Don't Leave Me Halfway To Paradise) one holiday in Devon.

Then my sister and her boyfriend Chas took me to a folk club and I never looked back. Early "stars" I remember are Derek Brimstone, Alex Campbell and Cliff Aungier, as well as every Pentangle concert I could get to.

Current influences are Martin Simpson (long ignored by me because of his leaning towards instrumentals), Lee Collinson and (and this may sound strange to some people, but think about it) myself.

As for phrasing, I just try to get into whatever I'm singing and let the emotion handle it, although it can depend a lot on the audience. I just try not to rush things.

Met some great people, had some great times. Still doing it and still loving it.

Pete

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: kendall
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 02:51 PM

Well, if I had to drop names, I'd probably say that my earliest influences were, Buryl Ives, Pete Seeger, Wilf Carter, Roy Acuff.

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: Skipper Jack
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 02:34 PM

My influences came from, Young Tradition and The Watersons This probably accounts for my interest in group performance rather than solo (But I sing solo occasionally).

My group is traditionally based featuring mainly sea songs and shanties plus songs of booze and industrial ballads.

I'll leave you to guess who we are?

Here is a clue:

We performed at The Lancaster Maritime Festival with a Welsh flag as a back drop!!

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: Peter Kasin
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 02:09 PM

Though there's nobody I imitate (though I try), if I could sound like one fiddler, it would be Mairead Ni Mhaonaigh. My biggest musical inspirations for fiddle playing are Alasdair Fraser, Mhaonaigh, and Tommy Peoples. For chantey singing, Louis Killen, Lloyd and MacColl. The first album of chanteys I ever heard was A.L. Lloyd and Ewan MacColl's Whaling Ballads. It remains my favorite sea music recording, and got me interested in it in the first place. Louis Killen is for me the epitome of a chantey singer. Absolutely at the top of the heap.

chanteyranger

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: Giac
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 02:07 PM

My dad, who was a band sergeant in WWI, and who played lullabys on his cornet; my mom's sister's husband, who played in a local country dance band for awhile in the 1930s, and who kept a contraband guitar hidden in the rafters in the attic so he could play when my aunt was gone to town; an African American woman who tended to me when I was very small and who played barrelhouse and blues on my deceased grandmother's Chickering concert grand piano (when no one else was there); Frank Crumit records (Billy Boy, Grandfather's Clock); my first guitar teacher (when I was 9) who played old-time tunes and is still the best rhythm player I know; Roy Rogers; Carolina Cotton; Dylan and Baez; Dave Prine; Harry Belefonte; Andy Griffith; and countless friends pickin' on countless porches and in countless kitchens.

I think we're all comprised of bits of everyone we've heard, selecting little actions or phrasing to emulate. It's just so much FUN, isn't it? I've never made a dime, or wanted to, playing music, but I sure do like it.

Mary ~:o)

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: Catherine Jayne
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 01:29 PM

My influences are;

Mahler Beethoven Mozart Jools Holland Joshua Bell Shostakovich Buddy Holly The Rolling Stones Queen Evilin Glenney and so on......Not bad for a 21 year old!!!!

Cat

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: GUEST,Hamshank
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 12:14 PM

Musical "disciplines" for lack of a better term, that influenced me most early-on were Choral, Swing/Big Band, Rock & Roll, Doowop, Jazz, Hard Rock & Heavy Metal, R&B, especially Motown, and Folk (Dylan, Baez, etc). Having come to truly appreciate my Gaelic/Celtic roots, Scottish and Irish folk music and old standards are my main influence now.

Like some others, I'd prefer to be recognized for my own style, so I honestly don't try to emulate anyone. But I am accused of it every time I sing something like "Are You Lonesome Tonight" or "Love Me Tender", but that ain't often. I love the music of Sinatra, Dean Martin, Perry Como, Luciano Pavarati, Mario Lanza, the Battlefield Band, Runrig, Foster & Allen, the Chieftains, Shamus Kennedy, Eric Bogle, John MacDermott, the Beatles, the Hollies, and the list goes on. I do numbers by most of these great talents, but I don't expect I'll ever be nearly as well known. That's cool with me. Long as I can sing and play music with good friends, that's what counts in my book.

Let the music play. HS

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 11:33 AM

Hi, Kendall:

So, tell me at least a couple of performers you admired.. Like all of us, your repertoire must come from somewhere.. both your songs and your stories. Even though you have made them your own, are they any lingering vestiges of your sources that you hear in your music?

Jerry

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: kendall
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 11:27 AM

Although I have admired many performers over the years, I can honestly say that I dont try to sound like any other singer. I'd like to sing like Paul Robeson, but, there is one major problem; my voice.

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: Rick Fielding
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 11:26 AM

Dean Martin (Memories are made of this)
Classical Music and me Mum
The Weavers
Les Paul (and Mary Ford)
Pete Seeger
LEADBELLY....beginning of totally fanatic period, lasting to present.
Bob Dylan...First two albums. Plumb wore 'em out.
Increasingly more obscure music...most of it old time country, and blues.

Cheers

Rick

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: GUEST,DMcG (must sort that cookie out)
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 11:16 AM

I've already said elsewhere that the Young Tradition, The Corries and the Watersons were the first groups who I was aware of as having an influence and that I later discovered that that sneaky C Sharp and FJ Child made sure many of the songs I learned in primary school were traditional. Soon after, Steeleye, Fairport and the Copper family came in. But all of those are the traditional strand. There are songs and melodies from much further back - The Ride of the Valkyries, Does your Chewing-gum lose it flavour on the bedpost overnight, Grand Coolie Dam, Everyone wants to go to Heaven but nobody wants to die.... many of these came from the BBC programme 'Children's favourites' on Saturday mornings.

I think, if you are at all sensitive to music, it is difficult to hear anything without it being some influence - even if its only something you decide to avoid. I am always slightly disturbed when I hear a song from the late fifties or early sixties and find I know most of the words!

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: Mrrzy
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 11:16 AM

Hard to say, since I can really only sing what I hear. I heard a lot of Joan Baez, Cynthia Gooding, Pete Seeger, Ed McCurdy, The Weavers, Peter Paul & Mary; some Dean Gitter, some Bob Gibson; later on, some Grateful Dead. And a lot of my older sister Susan who wanted to grow up to be Joan Baez, and came pretty close at one point.

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: PeteBoom
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 08:28 AM

Right - here's my list -

Mahler, Holst, Grieg, The Chieftains, Tannahill Weavers, Whistlebinkies, Stockton's Wing, Battlefield Band, The Corries, The Proclaimers, Buddy Holly, Wierd Al Yankvich, Weird Al's Dad (accordion/polka band survivors know this one!) Black Sabbath, Iron Butterfly That pretty much covers it...

Regards-

Pete

Subject: RE: Your Musical Influences
From: harvey andrews
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 08:05 AM

I'm just writing a memoir of how music was central to my life when young. Everything went in from opera to rock and it all stayed, so here are the most important I think! Hymns ancient and modern
English madrigals
Gilbert and Sullivan
Early Sinatra
Rogers and Hart Roy Rogers
Cole Porter
Jazz in general
All the songs on the radio, Children's favourites,Family favourites
BUDDY HOLLY (Huge influence)
Everley Bros
Eddie Cochran
Roy Orbison
Listening to crackly old Radio Luxembourg
. And then I went to college and heard DYLAN and realised you could write songs that weren't just love songs..and the rest is my history!

.

Subject: Your Musical Influences
From: Jerry Rasmussen
Date: 01 Apr 02 - 07:09 AM

None of us are made out of whole cloth. We all started as imitators. Who were your major musical influences? I did a Singing Workshop at a festival years ago and discovered, much to my amusement, that a very well know folk singer you'd never suspect said that Perry Como was one of his influences. And was serious about it. You'd never hear it in his singing now, but if we are good singers or instrumentalists, we've assimilated the styles of others and made them part of our own style.

So, which singers did you admire and want to sound like? Which instrumentalists? Can you still hear them in the way you sing or play? Do you do any of their songs? How have you changed them, or do you try to reproduce the sound? Old-time musicians sometimes slavishly try to reproduce the record. Others run it through their own style and produce something reflecting the original.

Does the music you sing and your style reflect the music you hear in your home growing up, or did you discover it as many of us did, when you were a teenager or older?

So, c'mon.. tell me, huh?

No, I wasn't the one who was influence by Perry Como, but I admired Frank Sinatra's phrasing and could sing along with every nuance of most of his songs. Phrasing is an important part of style, whether you're Dylan, Donnegan or Doc Watson.

Jerry