Backing Track with a loop tempo bar

[Patrick Azzarello]

I'm putting together a bunch of backing tracks, and I have just about all that I need (25 years of Cakewalk experience helps here), but I'm trying to make it easier to use with the rest of the band - specifically letting the drummer "get" the tempo, then move into the countoff of the tune. 

Here's what I'd like to do

Bar 1 - a click (audio, not the project or MIDI metronome) loops continuously until the drummer triggers moving on to bar 2 so we can get the tempo 

Bar 2 and 3 - Countoff (1, 2, 1,2,3,4)  

Bar 4 on - The rest of the tune. 

This allows us to have the tempo known to the drummer (and whoever wants to listen in), but the countoff won't 

Why? Because there's nothing like:

- Htting start and the backing track jumping halfway into the countoff

-  The drummer missing beat 1 of the countoff

- Coming from another very different tempo and feel, and not having enough time to "lock in" to the new tempo

- Someone introducing the song and prattling on, only to have the tune start while they're still talking and miss their cue

Has anyone ever encountered this? And/or found a solution that works? 

[msmcleod]

Get the person who's introducing the song to nod to the drummer, and get the drummer to start the performance.

Instead of having bar 1 as you describe, have the drummer get an extra 1, 2... 1,2,3,4.  If the drummer is in charge of starting it - or at least prompting you, then he shouldn't miss the 1st beat.   Even if he does,  when it doubles in the 2nd bar, he'll know where he is.

The way I used to do it was a bar of 1/4 notes then a bar of 1/8 notes (with the 1/4 notes accented)... so 1,2,3,4... 1 and 2 and 3 and 4 and.

The different feel/tempo thing is really just down to practice.   If the drummer really has issues with changing tempo between songs,  he could get a digital metronome and set it to the tempo of the song and listen to it for 10-20 seconds before starting the song.