Gimme Five
Ahh.
Memories. It seems like only yesterday when I was your average bulbous
headed 15 year old kid with a guitar. I remember one day in particular,
my eyes were crossing over a particular piece of music because it had
a series of 16th notes with a little 5 underneath. It took me a while
to figure out what the lil' 5 meant and an even longer time trying to
make practical use of it. In a nutshell, the 5 represents an irregular
grouping of notes. Basically it is your job to cram '5' notes in a spot
that normally allows '4' notes. I don't care what your physics professor
tells you, this is possible- it's all in the 'count'. Normally when you
practice 16th notes, you're suppose to say/think '1-e-&-uh, 2-e-&-uh,...',
it works well with a four count- but we need five. Try playing/listening
to the examples while thinking/saying: 'Geo-physical' "GEE-OH-FIZZ-IH-CULL".
Voila'. A five count. The point of irregular groupings is to add a little
spice to your phrasing. Some people spend years learning every mode under
the sun, only to play them in stale rhythms and sequences. Some of the
examples can be heard in the styles of guitar players from Pat Martino
to Shawn Lane. Keep an ear open for the five and eat your vegetables.
-J