Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

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Re: Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

Post by BillB »

I have been holding off on this one, mostly because I am not a competent enough keys player or composer to have a style in which anyone could recognise an influence. But MarkOne has just pushed me close to the edge (see what I did there) with his comment. Rick Wakeman’s work on Fragile, the musical and compositional interplay between all the band members, is just so good and, Yes (see what i did there), Roundabout is an absolute stand-out track. The gentle Hammond arpeggios in the quiet central section, before the explosive solos, driven along by the best rhythm section ever...

I referred to this song in a previous post (“In and around the lake, mountains come out of the sky and they stand there....”) This is one of my life-long happy tunes. If there is any discernible keyboard influence, I guess it was just part of an awakening sense of how fabulous electronic keyboards could be. Unfortunately it also showed me how fabulous bass and electric guitar can be too, so I have spent my musical life as more of a magpie seeking shiny musical things and less of a musician dedicated to honing his craft on one instrument.

I guess, in a peculiar way, that has influenced my style, or lack of it!
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Re: Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

Post by tea for two »

MarkOne wrote: Sun Jul 25, 2021 5:26 pm All three for me massively influenced the keyboard player I am today, but if I had to choose just one, it would probably have to be Rick because he was the 1st guy who showed me that playing keys could actually be cool!

As a spotty teen, one of musical dreams was to wear a Cape as Rick, play at Stonehenge, surrounded by Synths.
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Re: Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

Post by tea for two »

BillB wrote: Mon Jul 26, 2021 12:13 am I have been holding off on this one, mostly because I am not a competent enough keys player or composer to have a style in which anyone could recognise an influence.

.

In my mind, something I did sounds influenced by....
Anyone listening would laugh facepalm pull a face :headbang:

That's because my bucket hands playing is no where near those that influenced me.
Also because as with most musicians, something personal goes into it, that makes it a mashup of us and our influences.

BillB wrote: Mon Jul 26, 2021 12:13 am I referred to this song in a previous post (“In and around the lake, mountains come out of the sky and they stand there....”) This is one of my life-long happy tunes.

.

I get this.
For this reason I like a bit of

Chas N Dave
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=BliAPzEsao0

BillB wrote: Mon Jul 26, 2021 12:13 am If there is any discernible keyboard influence, I guess it was just part of an awakening sense of how fabulous electronic keyboards could be. Unfortunately it also showed me how fabulous bass and electric guitar can be too, so I have spent my musical life as more of a magpie seeking shiny musical things and less of a musician dedicated to honing his craft on one instrument.

I guess, in a peculiar way, that has influenced my style, or lack of it!

I would say various guitarists have also influenced the way I sometimes try to play when writing a guitar track on Keyboards.
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Re: Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

Post by tea for two »

MarkOne wrote: Sun Jul 25, 2021 5:26 pm Rick Wakeman's work on Fragile was a huge influence on me in my early teens.
The standout track and moment is of course Roundabout, and the hammond solo.

But while Keith, and Rick's work was liberally sprinkled with a large dose of showmanship, Tony B as others have said plays in a beautiful and often understated way. (No gratuitous widdley-widdleyness!) - He's also an incredibly deep and accomplished songwriter.


BillB wrote: Mon Jul 26, 2021 12:13 am Rick Wakeman’s work on Fragile, the musical and compositional interplay between all the band members, is just so good and, Yes (see what i did there), Roundabout is an absolute stand-out track. The gentle Hammond arpeggios in the quiet central section, before the explosive solos, driven along by the best rhythm section ever...

For me Yes is Fusion. English Fusion.
Alongside early Genesis, Mike Oldfield.
Fusion as Mahavishnu Orchestra, Shakti, Weather Report.
I actually don't think Yes, early Genesis, Mike  is ProgRock.
There are some elements of Rock strewn about.

Amon Duul, Camel (except Rain Dances), Cansas, Gentle Giant, Pink Floyd, Queen, Rush, Zappa and The Mothers, are Progressive Rock for me.

(I'm sure this been debated discussed plenty and I'm wrong).
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Re: Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

Post by Drew Stephenson »

This may seem snide or mocking but I promise you it's not.
As a non-keyboard player who occasionally tried to add keys to songs I was always over-doing things. So in terms of what's actually influenced my style, listening to the piano part in Johnny Cash's version of Hurt showed me how I could simplify things immensely but still have impact.
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Re: Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

Post by BillB »

That makes complete sense, Drew. I have sometimes heard guitar solos or fills to great songs and thought ‘I could play that!’. No Steve Morse ‘Tumeni Notes’ (which I love but couldn’t play in a lifetime)... No, just the right notes, well chosen and simply played. Very inspiring.
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Re: Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

Post by IAA »

Johnny Cash's version of Hurt

Yes, that’s a wonderful version indeed, that piano has real depth and drive when it needs it. Great stuff.
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Re: Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

Post by RichardT »

The Elf wrote: Thu Jul 22, 2021 10:57 pm Cinema Show. Quite simply perfection. It pulls me in every emotional direction from start to finish. If I can ever create those emotional extremes in my own music I will die a happy man.

For me, Cinema Show too, especially the live version on ‘Seconds Out’. Apart from the amazing beauty of the main instrumental theme, it has a fantastic sense of ‘architecture’ so that all the sections fit together beautifully and lead somewhere.
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Re: Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

Post by tea for two »

blinddrew wrote: Mon Jul 26, 2021 9:14 pm This may seem snide or mocking but I promise you it's not.
As a non-keyboard player who occasionally tried to add keys to songs I was always over-doing things. So in terms of what's actually influenced my style, listening to the piano part in Johnny Cash's version of Hurt showed me how I could simplify things immensely but still have impact.

I'd go along with this. It's not snide nor mocking at all.

Johnny Cash version of Hurt, I first heard in 2003, became one of the soundtracks for my life for a while.

I've only ever made two Piano pieces that hurt me. They were done around 2009. I don't do more because I can't handle it. One of those Piano pieces I can't listen to it.
Most of my keys stuff since then is airy summery Max Middleton influenced.

A fair amount of my recent stuff can be easily played one handed and with one finger.
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Re: Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

Post by tea for two »

RichardT wrote: Tue Jul 27, 2021 9:35 am
The Elf wrote: Thu Jul 22, 2021 10:57 pm Cinema Show. Quite simply perfection. It pulls me in every emotional direction from start to finish. If I can ever create those emotional extremes in my own music I will die a happy man.

For me, Cinema Show too, especially the live version on ‘Seconds Out’. Apart from the amazing beauty of the main instrumental theme, it has a fantastic sense of ‘architecture’ so that all the sections fit together beautifully and lead somewhere.

Dawned on me, and I don't know why it didnt before. Every now and then require others to nudge open a realisation as on this thread.
I hear Tony Banks composing playing as lightness of touch, jaunty, uplifting, because I hear it as Fairground music.
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Re: Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

Post by wdsteele »

Can't be be sure how many times I pressed rewind on Jon Lords intro to Speed King , many many hundreds of passes I'm sure - I'm a lousy KB player but if I have any influencers at all I'd pick that.
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Re: Name one Keyboard track that influenced your Keys composition style the most

Post by tea for two »

wdsteele wrote: Thu Jul 29, 2021 3:05 pm Can't be be sure how many times I pressed rewind on Jon Lords intro to Speed King , many many hundreds of passes I'm sure - I'm a lousy KB player but if I have any influencers at all I'd pick that.

I listened to this four times with your views WD in my mind.
There is an out there ness to it in my mind.
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