Who is the most important member of the band?

#45
A bandleader who fronts, sings lead, and has a great business head. Without our BL, we're a bunch of talented guys who don't have a clue how to get work. PS: I am the least talented member, and that's the way I like it!
 
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#46
The drummer is the most important. I say that with the thought that I am both a drummer and a bassist. Every member of the band is important, otherwise it wouldn't be a band, but the drummer has to hold it together, otherwise it all turns to kitty-mush.

Oh, by the way, the singer can be awful, but if the band is knocking it out of the park, the crowd will just say, "Man, that singer sucked, but her/his backing band was awesome!" :)
 
#47
Wow. That's a tougher question that I initially thought. Was going to say the singer, cuz they could sing accapella and not need anyone else - but so could the guitarist. Or keyboard player. Or Victor Wooten.

As a band member I have to go with drummer.

Nothing can fix a really horrible drummer in a band. They will make the band horrible. Period.
 
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#49
In every band I've ever been in it's always different. Since we are all in this "Great Pause" as I like to call it, I've been thinking about how some of the bands I've been in kind of revolved around one person and some of the bands I've been in were greater than the some of their parts. I'm not sure if it matters or not, but it is wise to pay attention to the dynamics of the band you're in.
 
#51
tb-player said:
Besides the bass (obviously!), who’s the most important member of the band for you?
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Not sure I agree with the premise. I don't think there is a most important member. All parts have to work to sound good.

But from my days as a sound guy ... there is a most important part of the band to be heard ... vocals! Number one mistake bar bands make is you can't hear the vocals. Usually its because the rest of the band is too loud and the vox can't be turned up loud enough without feedback.
 
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#52
tb-player said:
Recently, a sax player I was jamming with asked me to join up with him for an R&B thing he’s putting together. My first question was, “Who’s on drums?” He told me it was the drummer who had just been a part of our jam. I replied, “Good! I only like playing with drummers I can trust.”

Turns out, the drummer was standing around the corner and heard the whole exchange. He walked toward us and said, “Man! I’ll take that as a compliment!” And he should, because he’s a solid, skilled drummer with good time, a tasteful approach and a locked in foot.

I only want to be a part of a project with good musicians who I can trust to have the right chops, be prepared, and not waste time. And for me, as a bassist, the drummer is the most important ingredient in that formula.

Besides the bass (obviously!), who’s the most important member of the band for you?
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Drummer. Then the singer. Nobody else really matters.
 
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#55
tb-player said:
Recently, a sax player I was jamming with asked me to join up with him for an R&B thing he’s putting together. My first question was, “Who’s on drums?” He told me it was the drummer who had just been a part of our jam. I replied, “Good! I only like playing with drummers I can trust.”

Turns out, the drummer was standing around the corner and heard the whole exchange. He walked toward us and said, “Man! I’ll take that as a compliment!” And he should, because he’s a solid, skilled drummer with good time, a tasteful approach and a locked in foot.

I only want to be a part of a project with good musicians who I can trust to have the right chops, be prepared, and not waste time. And for me, as a bassist, the drummer is the most important ingredient in that formula.

Besides the bass (obviously!), who’s the most important member of the band for you?
Click to expand...
The singer. No group can succeed without a charismatic front man/woman. They don’t have to be particularly good or even good looking. But they must be interesting.
 
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#57
Zak TMD said:
Unpopular opinion - aside from obvious stuff like vocals (which yea, clearly most visible) and the whole rhythm section thing (I mean, I can't even count the number of bands I've seen where I heard the drums and was like, nah no thanks) - After years of doing this, the singular most important member of the band is whoever is acting as the "band parent", that is the person who keeps everyone on task and makes sure the things happen, whether that's booking, collecting money, following up re new songs/practice, or organizing everything. Lots of great musicians / bands fall to pieces because they don't have that person keeping stuff together like gorilla glue. I know this isn't the most idealistic, artistic, or romantic answer, but in my experience it's super true.

People might think this falls to like a manager or whatever, but I think needing a manager for the cohesive aspects a successful band requires is a sure sign that the band is dysfunctional in the first place. Sure, a manager or booking agent can handle SOME aspects of the biz end and make lives easier, but that's not what I'm getting at. I hate to use the term "band leader" because I typically don't think about it that way and different people have different strengths, but without the "leadership" to tie together some kind of joint vision and diffuse dramatic situations, no band is going to last long.
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Eh. You can just say band leader. It’s almost too obvious though. Like every organization needs a leader. I say the singer. It is the person the audience identifies with the most and pays the most attention to. Where would INXS be without Hutchence or U2 without Bono? Almost all other members are replaceable from the public standpoint unless you are talking about the principal songwriter.
 
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#58
WestyBassBob said:
Eh. You can just say band leader. It’s almost too obvious though. Like every organization needs a leader. I say the singer. It is the person the audience identifies with the most and pays the most attention to. Where would INXS be without Hutchence or U2 without Bono? Almost all other members are replaceable from the public standpoint unless you are talking about the principal songwriter.
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Here's the thing though about a singer - different strokes... some folks with not great voices have killer presence, and that works. Some people LOVE cookie monster, others don't. There's just so many variables.
 
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#60
tb-player said:
Recently, a sax player I was jamming with asked me to join up with him for an R&B thing he’s putting together. My first question was, “Who’s on drums?” He told me it was the drummer who had just been a part of our jam. I replied, “Good! I only like playing with drummers I can trust.”

Turns out, the drummer was standing around the corner and heard the whole exchange. He walked toward us and said, “Man! I’ll take that as a compliment!” And he should, because he’s a solid, skilled drummer with good time, a tasteful approach and a locked in foot.

I only want to be a part of a project with good musicians who I can trust to have the right chops, be prepared, and not waste time. And for me, as a bassist, the drummer is the most important ingredient in that formula.

Besides the bass (obviously!), who’s the most important member of the band for you?
Click to expand...
I think about it this way who can the band afford to be the weakest with the minimal damage. My experience tells me those who can lay back and listen. I come from a no rehearsal situation most of the time. Bassists and Drummers are always playing and if the bassist dosent know the tune it's a nightmare.
 
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