Conflicting arrangements, chord problem

[jangoux]

So guys,

I am recording this band...They're all fairly good musicians when playing by themselves but they need some guidance to make it all work together. OK, so..yesterday I was tracking guitars for them and when the pre-chorus came in, I noticed a problem. THe song harmony on this part is D, D7 but:

1) The bassist is playing the notes D, F#, G, A, which basically consists of a D.
2) One of the guitarists plays some wacky D shape with a hammer on to some other note that works OK with the harmony, and then a regular D7.
3) The other guitarist plays a D with that classic rock pattern that turns it briefly to a D6 (D, F#,A, B).

The thing is, the 6th note on the D6 , the B, is played at the same time as the 'A' on the bass and it sounds...tense in a bad way. I removed the bass and it def sounds smoother.

So, basically, when everything collides, if played on a more organized way, it would turn to a D13 (D,F#,A,B,C). Some brazilian music / jazz musician sometimes leave the full chord to just a single instrument. For example: The keyboard would play the whole crap while other stuff would just play some of the extensions or just the root of the chord. So, I was thinking...what if I recorded a VERY subtle pad or strings sound with the D13 chords to sound underneath it all. Do you think it would sound good at all or would just create more mess into the arrangement, and I'd be better trying something on the bass track with Melodyne?

Btw, re-tracking, as always is not an option. The bassist just went away to the UK, and since it is HIS music, we can't just pick up another guy to the job. And he tracked with an incredible instrument (a Fender Marcus Miller sig. model) and we won't have anything near to our disposal.

 

[ahjteam]

well,

a) who is the composer and what does the note sheet say the chord should be?
b) who is the producer, and is he/she allowed to modify the composition?
c) if making it into a four chord instead of five chord might work better:

D F# A C would be D7
D F# A B would be D6

d) melodyne?

 

[jangoux]

a) The bassist who went away. No chord sheet, but they say it should be a D7.
I might add that, although it is his song, thr other band members complained he plays 'too many notes', and are OK with the fact of changing one of his parts.
b) no producer, but i kinda got the green light to change stuff. I just dont want to get away from the ideas. I think we can come up with something...
c) the problem isnt really the chord itself, but the notes A and B being played together. If I REMOVE the bass it sounds nice, but oh well..
d) maybe. or paste another part that plays the same chord but with a straight pattern on the bass

 

[MondoLikeMetal]

Can't u pitch shift the one bass note?

 

[midget donkeys]

I vote melodyne the one note and see what it sounds like. Save it both ways so you can go back to the original just in case.

 

[colton]

I think your best bet would be to eliminate or change one of the chord tones. The 5th is usually omitted in a sub 6 chord for this very reason. If they want to include the 5th (A), in the D7 chord, then they need to eliminate the 6th (B) because it will clash with the 5th and the 7th. If they want a D dominant with a sub 6, then they need to omit the 5th (A). That's the key element regarding a dominant chord in root position with a sub6. The 6th above the root of the chord is substituted for the 5th, hence the name, sub6, not just "six". There is another way to reinterpret this, but more information and a clip would be needed. All of this advice depends greatly on what else is occurring in the music.

If you're going to pitch shift the bass, then I suggest you use a chord tone that will create a consonance between the outer voices. So, if the chord they want is D7, then your options are D, F#, and C. D to B will create a major 6th between the bass and guitar (assuming this B is being played in the upper register of the guitar), F# to B will create a perfect 4rth and C to B will create a major 7th (personal favorite of mine, but this should probably be avoided out of the three because it isn't a consonant interval, and that's what is creating the undesired tension you already have with A to B, which is a major 2nd). If no other band members are playing the note D, you have no other option but to pitch shift the bass to D, otherwise it won't be heard as a D7 chord.

Personally, I'd like to hear a clip. Creating tension during a dominant chord is usually preferably, especially amongst jazz musicians, because they (the dominant chord) want to resolve.