I guess this is sort of the opposite of the "what's your favorite song to play" thread.  Do you have any songs that for some reason you find particularly hard to play?

I'm not talking about some Frank Zappa song with a time signature that's divided by the square root of Pi. I'm talking about a "normal" song that for some reason gives you fits.

I've got one: I Love You More Today Than Yesterday by Spiral Staircase.

It's a silly little pop song that I've always kind of liked, but I find it murder to play. When we get to the part where the horn section comes in, playing all those off-beat accents, I have the hardest time just plowing through and playing the beat. I keep wanting to somehow emphasize those horn hits, but in the process, I muck things up.

To make matters worse, the band I play it with is using a sequence, so if I fall out of time, it's REALLY noticable. I've been doing the song for a few years now, and every single time I just BARELY get through it without making that section feel weird. This is with a band that plays only sporadically - sometimes we'll go months without playing together. So I've never had a chance to play it night after night and really "own" it. And I don't screw it up anymore, but every single time we play it, it takes all my energy to keep the time solid in that section.

Okay - there's my "true confession." Anybody else have one?

Getting the repeating part on "Time of the Season" (ending with "ahh" or a splash when playing live) right every time.  It's really not difficult, but you can run into a brain cramp when doing it over and over.

oops. i thought stevie wonder sang 'i love you more today.' i like that tune.

i can't play too many tunes beyond what we do, which is embarassing enough. but the one i tried mightily on is 'immigrant song.' i could never get those sextuplety fills he does in that second verse. one day i will.

i was also trying to play along to this old elton john song called 'your starter for.' it's a short, sweet instrumental on that album 'blue moves.' i could basically get through it, but i never sounded as smooth as nigel olson.

on the smogg front, we've got this one new tune that i want to beat up. it goes from 6/8 to 7/8 and i gotta tell ya -- it's a frustrating transition.

There is a ton of stuff I can't play- but stuff I have to play for my bands, well I have a couple.

Red Hot Chili Peppers "Suck My Kiss"  Weird feel at times... I actually played it about the best I have recently, but still, that song is a bitch for me to play in the first set.

Same with Rush's "La Villa Strangiato" I have to learn it and I started it awhile back *tough as hell and I have the music*, got side tracked, now I know I'm going to be hurried to learn it and will probably screw it up for awhile.

There was a really tough tune (for me) from Godsmack that took me a while to really make happen, and even then if it starts out too fast it can sound awkward.  It's called "Keep Away".

Great tunes, and both very challenging! Do you play the two-footed shuffle on Danny's? That took me forever to get smooth.

Good Lovin': Young Rascals

I'm still not convinced its a dance tune, but to get it up to speed with Ride Cymbal ruffs/and 8ths on the toms every 4 &  --  to get loose enough, in the zone enough to have it groove and then stop it all for the guitar breaks with bell/tom accents and back to the groove. I never get it the way I want it.

And I've still never seen anyone dance to it, must be me.

Well, in this band I get no choice picking songs, how they are placed, or how they are played- no biggie.  I just show up, play and get paid.  I'm not complaining.

I'm sure he did even better than that.  There is an auto-censor here at the Café that will substitute other words for words that some find offensive.  In this case, the programmer of the auto-censor interpreted the source word wrongly.

We just finished putting together the new Dierks Bentley song ( called How Am I Doing) and it makes me crazy trying to remember the changes between tom and snare parts.  I can visualize it perfectly in my head, but the execution physically aint been workin well.  
Know one really can tell except I know that my part is just not quite together yet.  I dread it when I see that song on the set list.

BigBill, I feel your pain. I have been spending allot of time working on my halftime shuffle and "Chuck E" is the one thats KILLING me right now. I just get this weird mental block.
I do feel better right now knowing I am not the only one who stumbles on this tune. Havn't moved to Dannys yet, thats next, I figured one headache at a time!  

As for the Two footed shuffle, Does anyone have a chart or some site where I can get info on it so when I start learning this song I am at least in the ballpark?

-RHS

Darn "La Grange" by ZZ Top.

Interesting topic this....possibly relating to a mental block situation.  In my last band, we had one song that put the fear of God into me when it was approaching in the set.  I wouldn't mind, but it was me who put the drum patterns and beats together anyway!!  It had a quick double bass beat in the verses, which if I wasn't on form, would be a bitch of a beat.

I got so anal about this song that I hated playing it, and inevitably started making errors.  Funnily though on the recording of the jamming session during which we wrote the song, I really nailed the drum patterns.....every time thereafter was a different story......

I think it's a mental block.  What the mind believes, the body will enact upon.......

Not a single song, but I always have trouble with tunes using 16th notes on the hihat and 2 & 4 on the snare.  I've just never been able to get comfortable and smooth on that groove.

Dave, I feel your pain! This song is a staple tune in our set. Our guitar player usually sings it, and his timing is spot on, like a metronome.
Anyway, we were doing this tune at a charity gig, with a female "guest vocalist", no rehersal, she swore she knew the tune. Anyway, you know the stop after  the line "One of these early morniiiiiiin's"? Now, being the mainly self taught player I am, I don't count thru the stop, our guitarist's vocal  is as good a count as the rest of the band needs. This girl decides to employ her own original phrasing to the lyric.
TRAIN WRECK!
Everyone's cue is gone, I look at the bass player and see that all-too-familiar look of panic! It's like you first bungee jump,  just leap and hope for the best!
Well, I've had a phobia about that song ever since!
Oh, and fast shuffle and swing tunes, I've always found playing triplet fills at fast tempos awkward. I can play them fine in a 4/4 setting, but they are dodgy at any other time.

Yes, it comes under the heading - famous last words.....

"Rehearsal? Nah, we'll just wing it!"

oh my.......glad I don't have to play that one.

Agree with jesster about "Sober".  That was a toughy for me as well.
Danny Carey always has a lot of fancy hihat work, see also track 2 on Aenima.