Guitar Comping in an Organ Group

If you're playing with a piano or an organ you have to understand that both the guitar and the piano or organ have two things in common.
  • Both are chordal instruments.
  • Both are rhythmic instruments as well.
For this reason, in the case of guitarists without sufficient training and experience, the chances of some pretty ugly clashes are very likely. 

  • Learn to comp using your shell voicings. (These are two note chords consisting of nothing other than the thirds and sevenths.) Sometimes they're all you need to comp, othertimes you can build upon them. If you find yourself playing chords and clashing with other instruments, of course you can drop ANY note from the chord you're playing, as long as the essential tones (shell voicings) are intact.
  • Drop your roots (*most of the time.) Of course if its a down home grindy blues, low root chords may very well be popular, but usually when you're swinging you want to avoid the roots (otherwise you're going to be augmenting the bass player's walks in ways that ruin the way he's swinging.)
  • Comp in the pocket.  There are two basic types of pockets... pockets that fall on the 1 and 3, and pockets on the 2 and 4. Of course, within this range there are millions of variations (accents, off beat approaches, passing tone hooks, etc.) but you need to be aware of where the pocket is (the groove) and stay with it it by simply comping on those two basic beats. - - If you have no sense of this your best bet is to listen, listen, listen and play along with classic organ combo sessions. Consider the dynamic duos for starters : Kenny Burell and Jimmy Smith, Wes Montgomery and Jimmy Smith, Mel Rhyne and Wes Montgomery, George Benson w/ Jack McDuff, George Benson w/ Lonnie Smith, Grant Green with John Patton and Larry Young, Peter Bernstein w/ Mel Rhyne... and not to brag, I think Royce Campbell's comping on my THEM THAT SWINGETH CD borders on brilliant. (For the CD I wanted to focus more on the energy of the arangements and not the solos, and Royce really delivered well by his improvisational looseness as a listener, but tightness as a player.) - - Whoever you decide to listen to, put down your guitar, tap your feet, follow the cymbal or bass with one ear, and in your hands, try to feel the rhythm of the guitarists.

Play-a-Long Challenge

BONUS:

Free play-a-long track...  This is my original composition "Set Up and Go" featuring Bill Concello on drums.

It's a 12 bar blues but with an interlude that consists of a C# whole tone chord...

The melody, played in unison with the organ is a simple blues lick with a G minor scale. 

The tune ends with a Killer Joe like vamp.  Your challenge... Record yourself playing along and send it back to me for critique!  Below you can find a raw mix of the tune with the guitar...

Both the raw mix of the tune, and the raw mix with the guitar removed can be found below. 


When you're finished send it to me at eddielandsberg@mac.com.

You have permission to...
  • Share and/or post the track so long as credit is given to Eddie Landsberg (composer, Hammond Organ) and Bill Concello, drums and there is a link on this site.

You do not have permission to...
  • Reproduce it, or post it without making clear that it is from a back-up track by Eddie Landsberg and Bill Concello and including a link to this site.
setupandgoplayalong.mp3
File Size: 7074 kb
File Type: mp3
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