Sorry I didn't mean to cause bad feelings. I'm quite new to recording and was just sharing my approach. It seems to be that most people prefer recording with a click track, so when I next record some music I'll give it more of a chance and practice playing along to one more because I'm definitely not used to it.
I don't think you've
caused bad feelings. Over the last couple of years, it's become surprizingly, one of the hot topics here and it generally arouses heated debate and inflamed passions.
My own take on it is that wherever possible, get used to recording with and without. You do yourself no harm whatsoever by being able to play with a metronome. It is so often a really handy thing and because there is always the possibility you'll record with others, there's a more than good chance that you'll run into many musicians who are dedicated click users. You need to take them into account.
Also, bear in mind that many home recorders are one person operations or will lay down tracks with a view to a drummer or percussionist laying down their stuff
after the event so a definite time reference can be crucial there. It's also brilliant for editing, aligning, inserting other bits etc. I often say that you'd expect a drummer to keep solid time. You wouldn't want to play with someone that would say "by the way, my timekeeping is pretty ropey and I wander all over the place......". But there's nothing robotic or stiff about a drummer with solid, unwavering timing. So why should a click be ?
At the same time, by playing to one and playing music with other people, you should learn to be tight and therefore, you should, if you're going to lay down initial tracks with others, also be able to record without one, especially if your approach is a little looser with more space given to improvisation or if you're open to sudden impulses that take a piece in an unforseen direction.
Either way, learning to be solid and tight is the key as is being versatile enough to record with
and {as opposed to
or} without a click.
