Roscoe Heads! What style of music...

Fishheadjoe · #1 03-30-2009, 02:37 PM

do you play? I have been invited to join a Blues band, completely different from the prog rock I have historically played.
Anyone else play blues with their Roscoe? Better yet, what style do you play?
Fishheadjoe

Gard · #2 03-30-2009, 02:58 PM

A great bass works in any style of music. Just think of all the P's and J's you've seen in every single style!

I know guys playing Roscoes in everything you can imagine...

VroomVroom · #3 03-30-2009, 03:10 PM

I play a little bit of everything, but I can tell you that my Roscoe is my absolute go-to for blues. Borrowing (and bending a bit) Gard's reference...it's the best marriage of P & J sounds that my ears have heard. Plenty of Precision low-mids, Jazz upper mids, and that sweet, compressed growl that I've only ever heard from a Roscoe.

RocketMusic · #4 03-30-2009, 03:39 PM

I'll be using mine to play Allman Bros, Little Feat, straight ahead blues & old school R&B in my band The Electric Woodshed, and I'll also use it to play Gratfeul Dead & misc classic rock stuff in my other band The Kind. I can't speak to how well it works for that material yet since the bass is still in the rough at the Roscoe shop, but I expect it to kill. If it sounds half as good as Gard's basses, I'll be loving it.

Basso Gruvitas · #5 03-30-2009, 08:54 PM

I've got a fretless 5 which I use for Latin, classical, praise & worship, and jazz. Gard is more comfortable playing other styles on fretless than I am. I see it in a more "specialized" light.

HOpe that helps.

ubone · #6 03-30-2009, 09:00 PM

I use my Roscoe's for everything. Pop, Rock, Blues, C&W, Jazz, World Beat, even Heavy Metal. The basses just do it all.

Baird6869 · #7 03-30-2009, 09:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VroomVroom

my Roscoe is my absolute go-to for blues.

+1. I now use my Roscoes for almost everything. I still use an old P with flats for recording , but rarely. I crank the bass and turn down the treble... and voila! Great blues tone!

I am in 3 bands and use my SKB 3005 and 3006 for.... Metal, classic rock, funk, blues, old school country and reggae.

The ONLY drawback with Roscoes IMO is the slap tone. It is growing on me, but my SRs and Jazz basses do sounds a bit better. As for versatility, Roscoes are fantastic IMO/IME.

I have 14 basses (most of them high end) and my 2 Roscoes are getting all the work.

JOME77 · #8 03-31-2009, 06:14 AM

I've played just about every style of music there is on my Roscoe's.
I grew up in the shadow of Macon Georgia so the southern rock ABB style is definitely in my blood (Berry Oakly was one of my earliest influences). But through the years I really got into Chris Squire, Andy West (Dregs) and then Abe Laboriel (with Ron Kennolly).
I play primarily at church now and between the work I do with the Youth, praise and orchestra, I'd say I'm asked to cover virtually every style out there. IMO, Roscoe's work with any style of music.

For the blues I favor panning a bit toward the bridge p/u, add a touch of low mid's, treble/bass flat and just kick back and groove!

VroomVroom · #9 03-31-2009, 10:02 AM

Brief follow up on my end...

I'm a bit of a contradiction, in that I expect versatility from any bass I own, yet I know that there are sweet spots and not-so-sweet spots for any instrument. I mentioned that my Roscoe (fretted) is my absolute go-to for blues. I need to amend that: it's my abolute go-to, period. It's very versatile, and I can almost always get the tone I need with my hands. My gigs run the gamut (which I love), and I've gotten compliments about the sound of my Roscoe on most every genre we can imagine. The only time I fiddle with knobs is to adjust to the room. That said, the one thing it doesn't do well, as mentioned above, is in offering a slap tone. I can get it to cut, but I don't like what I lose in doing so.

Honestly, I'm totally at peace with this (or, as Stephen King has said, I can't say I was much at war with it in the first place

). I generally know in advance what I'll be called to play on a gig, and when slap is involved, I bring the Sad or MTD. But - just as those instruments offer something the Roscoe doesn't, the Roscoe offers MUCH that they can't provide. To that end, it's just a matter of experimentation to find the right voice for you on a given gig. But blues? Roscoe? Awwww, yeah.

Realistically, this is no different than any other instrument v. instrument case - whether it's a P w/ flats or a 70's J w/ Rotosounds. If there was one be-all end-all instrument, none of us would own more than a single bass.

From that perspective, though, the Roscoe sound, while unique, really is amazingly versatile.

CrashClint · #10 03-31-2009, 10:10 AM

Hmmm, all of my basses are Roscoe and I have never had a complaint about the tone. My playing on the other hand...

I do get a lot of compliments on the tone and when I let people play it they always end up with a big smile on their face. First they will say how awesome it sounds, then next how low the action is and how light it is in weight. My bass is the lightest of any SKB I have played.

My band does 70s and up and cover a wide variety of styles and on Sunday morning we do contemporary worship, which can be driving 1/8 notes or mixing finger style and slap.

CrashClint · #11 03-31-2009, 10:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VroomVroom

That said, the one thing it doesn't do well, as mentioned above, is in offering a slap tone. I can get it to cut, but I don't like what I lose in doing so.

To me, this is where the Demeter shines. It is a modern sounding slap machine (I do have the Nord DCs, but the Demeter will rock the Bart Classics as well). The Demeter doesn't have the mids to really cut through at all venues, but I can fix that by boosting the mids on my preamp.

I think Roscoe basses hook up well with Genz Benz amps and Epifani cabinets. I will have to see if I can poach the poacher out of his GB12.0 a little later down the road. I absolutely love the Mid Scoop switch on these amps and they work great with a Roscoe with a Demeter preamp.

VroomVroom · #12 03-31-2009, 10:33 AM

Right on, Clint! My non-Bart experience with Roscoes is limited. What I have heard/played...various combos of Aggie, Nords, & Barts...hasn't done much for me. I'd love to hear more variations, certainly involving Demeter & Audere, but I just really love the "classic" Roscoe sound with Bartolini electronics.

Genz Benz + Epifani? Oh ya, youbetcha. You've hit my go-to combination for most of my recent gigs. Except for the small ensembles/rooms, where I just use the Shuttle combo (single 12"), I've been mating the Shuttle 6.0 head with either the Epi 310 or 410. The tone just brings a smile.

DrMWP · #13 03-31-2009, 10:38 AM

I play straight ahead jazz, funk, fusion and the occasional blues gig. My Roscoe is great for all, just a tweak here and there, good to go.

Darkstrike · #14 03-31-2009, 10:57 AM

I'm hoping mine will suit me from Rock/Hard/Metal to Blues, Ballads, and even some soloish/lead stuff, you know, chords, slap, tap etc.

davecheng · #15 03-31-2009, 06:39 PM

My LG does everything, and well at that: r&b/funk, Motown, alt/rock, acoustic singer/songwriter, and the last little while, in the orchestra pit for a musical.

I don't think I've ever played a bass that's as versatile--it sits so well in the mix amongst the strings, reeds, woodwinds, and keys. I used to love the Lakland for this kind of work, but no longer!

Snarf · #16 03-31-2009, 10:05 PM

I play a wide variety of music. In a given session it could range from RnB to country to a straight ahead ballad to pop-rock. The Roscoe does all those very well, and it's the best all-arounder if you don't know exactly what you'll be playing walking in. It's also my absolute favorite when playing instrumental music (jazz, fusion).

That said, I usually bring the Roscoe and a P bass into the studio. The P often gets the nod from the producer. If it's blues that you're playing, the P will have a slight edge in the attack, in my experience. But that depends on what kind of blues, too.

Shiveringbass · #17 04-02-2009, 03:13 PM

Hey Roscoeheads,

To me, my LG fits absolutly in any style I could play. Since my primary band is what you could call rock fusion, a song can go from metal to jazz with some funky bass line in between.

My only concern was its slap tone but since I've installed Delano pickups and a glockenklang pre, it is much much better imho. I will be confident in bringing only a Roscoe in a studio.

You can judge by yourself my roscoe in action at

www.myspace.com/shiveringmusic

Regards

Ludo

Darkstrike · #18 04-02-2009, 03:26 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shiveringbass

Hey Roscoeheads,

To me, my LG fits absolutly in any style I could play. Since my primary band is what you could call rock fusion, a song can go from metal to jazz with some funky bass line in between.

My only concern was its slap tone but since I've installed Delano pickups and a glockenklang pre, it is much much better imho. I will be confident in bringing only a Roscoe in a studio.

You can judge by yourself my roscoe in action at

www.myspace.com/shiveringmusic

Regards

Ludo

Can we have pic's of that with the Delano installed?

VroomVroom · #19 04-02-2009, 03:28 PM

Ludo, I love it! The bass sounds great. And I really dig how the tunes go in directions I wouldn't have expected.

dataBASS5 · #20 04-02-2009, 03:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by VroomVroom

Borrowing (and bending a bit) Gard's reference...it's the best marriage of P & J sounds that my ears have heard. Plenty of Precision low-mids, Jazz upper mids, and that sweet, compressed growl that I've only ever heard from a Roscoe.

I just love Gard's description here. Probably taken from something Keith said, but Gard is on the forums so I'll let him take the credit. Say something 3x and you own it!

Quote:

Originally Posted by CrashClint

I will have to see if I can poach the poacher out of his GB12.0 a little later down the road.

You sure can! If they ever come out with a Shuttle Max 12.2 or Max 24.0, this one will be up for grabs.

My rhythm guitard says upon seeing my Max 12.0 "hey, why'd ya bring the 'Gender Bender' (

) amp this time?" I said because it only weighs like 7 lbs. He says "I only like the bass sounds of heavy amps. Bring your other rig next time."

After the gig he's all like "How'd they get all that tone in a box that small? I wish they made a 7 lb guitar amp!"