Hi
I've been playing bass for nearly 20yrs in variuos bands and what i wanted to know is, how do i get into session playing. I think its the only way forward for me at this particulat time.
Any advice would be great
Cheers
Mark

Mark,

where do you live first of all? that has a lot to do with how much work there might be for working in the studio in the your area.

I hate to break this to you, but there really isn't a session scene anywhere in the world anymore. Of course, albums are still being made with musicians playing on them, but to be breaking into a scene and being hired for this kind of work is almost impossible.

Where I live in NYC for instance... live: Will Lee and anthony jackson. so the chance of being called for a serious record date that might make you enough money to live from is remote. Not only that, but there are cats like Pino Palladino who, although he lives in London, spends more time playing on albums in NYC that most bass players int he world. In Los angeles it's a similar scene. You have Nathan East and Neil Stubenhaus, with Tim Landers, Jimmy Earl, Andrew Gouche, JJ stmith and a bunch of others. It's basically Nathan and Neil that are on all the serious dates. and there are so few dates these days that sessions will end up being held up to wait for one of those guys to do it.

You normally get into playing on records through working with a certain producer who likes the way you play. These days, everyone is their own producer with a small home studio, and very few lives sessions in the studio.

My main advice to you would be to start your own scene. Get into the technology side of the recording industry. Get a home studio: pro tools, Mac G5, some good mics, couple of nice pre amps, a compressor, and really learn how to use the gear. If you have a sense of how a recording should be put together then people will recognize that and want to work with you.

Know your gear, be good at working with people, study as much as you can about recording, and don't get too hung up on being a bass player for hire in the studio. it's not a realistic career path in this day and age of technology. I hate to be a downer on that, but it's the truth. I'm sick of going to cats websites and as the page loads up it reads something like "Fred Smith - Session Bassist". Then you read they have barely stepped foot in a studio in their lives, never mind actually played on some records. It's just a myth from the 80's and early 90's now, and is an era that has passed.

There are so many other great things about the recording industry that exist now, like the power to be able to produce great and innovative music with relatively small amounts of gear. I would focus on this aspect of the "session" scene, and make your own scene.

Let me know if you have any more questions.

Easy,

Janek

Well Mr. Janek, What would you suggest as a good PLAYING the bass ,for a living, alternative to Sessions. Who are playing on the commericals? I guess session musicians, but I guess it's one once in a while and you have to have a name? How do you get on to Late Night shows (in the band) If you are not a session musician, how do they know you? Who you are. Just wondering thank you

i would suggest being a writer, arranger, producer as well as a bass player. Creating your own sessions that you can play bass on. there is just so much more to being a bass player that just playing the bass these days if you want to have any kind of recording career.

You mentioned late night tv shows. In the US there are just a few of those.

David Letterman - NYC. Bassist - Will Lee. Will is a legend and super star of the bass in his own right and there is no other reason for him having the gig other than this fact.

Conan O'Brian - NYC. Bassist - Mike Merrit. Mike Plays in the max weinberg 7. Max got hired to play the gig on Conan and therefor Mike went with him.

Jay Leno - Los Angeles. Bassist - Stanley Sargent. Stanley I'm sure got the gig through a reccomendation to Kevin Eubanks who's the band leader. He's been on the gig since 2002, and I'm sure isn't about to give it up.

Saturday Night Live - NYC. Bassist - James Genus (and sometimes Tim Lefebvre) both these cats are NYC staples. They've played on tons of records and with dozens of major artists over the past 20 years.

Getting a gig on a TV show isn't the easiest thing to go out and achieve. You have to know everyone involved with the band already and then be around when someone is leaving and a spot is opening up. It's not like session work back in the day when there were lots of studio dates to go round. There are very few shows.

Jingles/commercials are being played on by the writers and producers these days. Everyone has a home studio and can program or play most of the stuff themselves for a tv commercial. I've done a few recently with my production company and between me and my partner we've played it all. I play bass and keys, he plays guitar and we are both programmers when it comes to drums and sounds.

Like I've said before, if you want to play on sessions you have to get to a point these days where you can create your own to play on. This means becoming a producer, writer or arranger as well as a bass player.

Easy,

Janek

i would suggest being a writer, arranger, producer as well as a bass player. Creating your own sessions that you can play bass on. there is just so much more to being a bass player that just playing the bass these days if you want to have any kind of recording career.

You mentioned late night tv shows. In the US there are just a few of those.

David Letterman - NYC. Bassist - Will Lee. Will is a legend and super star of the bass in his own right and there is no other reason for him having the gig other than this fact.That reminds me of an old interview (late 80's) I read with Will Lee and he said something to the effect of, "The first thing that they ask me when I show up for a session is, 'Can you sing?'.

Didn't Robert Hurst recommend Stanley for the tonight Show gig?

could well be. I'm not an LA guy so I'm not in that scene as much.

That reminds me of an old interview (late 80's) I read with Will Lee and he said something to the effect of, "The first thing that they ask me when I show up for a session is, 'Can you sing?'.

That's because he actually does more recording sessions for voice than bass.