Just left the guitarist world

[MortEnVacances]

Hell-o!

My first post here!

I just started to sell my guitars and guitars amp and i got myself a beautiful 75 fenderd jazz MIU. I must say that this bass is just the best instrument i ever owned she sing growl and everything. im really happy with it.

I have played guitar for about 15 years and i guess i was a pretty decent guitarist, plying guitar is just a part of me just like riding a bike or brushing my theeths. Here is the thing i have played bass guitar in the past whit a pick and now i dont want to touch my jazz bass whit a pick i want to kind of learn from zero to play with my fingers. I just dont know where to really start you know my left hand is pretty comfortable on the neck but my right hand is developping but string swapping is still difficult for me to do it fast. I dont really have the patience to do the slow 1234 exercise i feel that im on the next step from that. Last night i worked on a exercise of Jaco (teen town live version). Now my wrist is hurt maybe from my positionning on the bass but the string skipping is where i have difficulty for now. Could someone suggest me some exercise to develop my right hand to awaken it she cant answer what i have in my head for now. On one string its all good but when going fast between 2 strings mmmm. Maybe attacking a jaco song was too much. It was ok with music theory. Its a new beginning on bass but i dont feel like a beginner id like some tips on what to put my practice on and not get injured.

(sorry for the bad english)

[basmartin]

Just take it slow and sooner or later it will feel more natural for your right hand. It takes some time to get used to the instrument and it´s a common problem if you already know how to play music on an instrument, that you want to go fast forward when you learn a new instrument.

Play some simple songs, like old soul and funk grooves just to have something to play. When you find something thats hard to execute, brake it down and make that part an exercise. And start slowly. Playing too fast will make you tense and in the long run you might hurt your hands. So, no Teen Town yet!

And avoid using 1 2 3 4 exercises at the lower frets on the neck, if you don´t have big hands. The ring finger and the pinky is on the same tendon, so alternating between those fingers too much can damage the tendon. Use 1 2 4 insteed, atleast up to 7th fret, if you have normal size hands.

Don´t use too much force, playing electric bass doesn´t require a lot of muscles. Get a good setup with a comfortable string height. That will make it easier for your right hand too.

Good luck!

[MortEnVacances]

Thank you for the tip. Ill try to be patient. BTW i just cheked your myspace ... your'e a beast brotha nice songs i love the groove and variety of genre you play in. What is the black bass your'e playing on in the youtube video ?

[JimmyM]

you need to find a teacher to straighten out your technique and get you on a program not based on the insanity of trying to tackle a tune like teen town right off the bat. you're trying to run before you can crawl. learn the basics first. if you can't be patient, then bass is not the instrument for you.

[guitardefector]

Originally Posted by MortEnVacances

Hell-o!

My first post here!

I just started to sell my guitars and guitars amp and i got myself a beautiful 75 fenderd jazz MIU. I must say that this bass is just the best instrument i ever owned she sing growl and everything. im really happy with it.

I have played guitar for about 15 years and i guess i was a pretty decent guitarist, plying guitar is just a part of me just like riding a bike or brushing my theeths. Here is the thing i have played bass guitar in the past whit a pick and now i dont want to touch my jazz bass whit a pick i want to kind of learn from zero to play with my fingers. I just dont know where to really start you know my left hand is pretty comfortable on the neck but my right hand is developping but string swapping is still difficult for me to do it fast. I dont really have the patience to do the slow 1234 exercise i feel that im on the next step from that. Last night i worked on a exercise of Jaco (teen town live version). Now my wrist is hurt maybe from my positionning on the bass but the string skipping is where i have difficulty for now. Could someone suggest me some exercise to develop my right hand to awaken it she cant answer what i have in my head for now. On one string its all good but when going fast between 2 strings mmmm. Maybe attacking a jaco song was too much. It was ok with music theory. Its a new beginning on bass but i dont feel like a beginner id like some tips on what to put my practice on and not get injured.

(sorry for the bad english)

Congratulations, Dead on vacation!!! I left the guitar world in 2008 and haven't been back since. One piece of advice: stop thinking in guitar mode. The bass may look similar but it's NOT a guitar in the same way an accordion is NOT a piano. Start slow, be patient and don't develop bad habits early on. We ex-guitarists have an advantage in that we already have the concept of the fretboard to unite us to the bass.

Your english is great! I only wish my french was as good?? Bon chance, mon ami!!

[Yerf Dog]

Link to guitar sale?

[dwm74]

The bass may look similar but it's NOT a guitar in the same way an accordion is NOT a piano.

Great analogy. I played guitar for 30 years, and thought picking up the bass would be SOOOO easy. Boy, was I wrong. So many different nuances, and different techniques for both hands. Even the mental aspect of being a good bass player is totally different from a guitar player. It truly is a whole 'nother instrument! (And I'm darned glad I switched to the low end!)

[GreggBummer]

Originally Posted by JimmyM

you need to find a teacher to straighten out your technique and get you on a program not based on the insanity of trying to tackle a tune like teen town right off the bat. you're trying to run before you can crawl. learn the basics first. if you can't be patient, then bass is not the instrument for you.

+1

Find a good bass teacher, take six or eight lessons and get your technique cleaned up. You will get a huge return on your investment in the lessons.

[basmartin]

Originally Posted by MortEnVacances

Thank you for the tip. Ill try to be patient. BTW i just cheked your myspace ... your'e a beast brotha nice songs i love the groove and variety of genre you play in. What is the black bass your'e playing on in the youtube video ?

Thanks! That bass is from a company called Unicorn located here in Sweden, http://www.unicornbass.se/eng/home.html

Good luck!

[MortEnVacances]

Originally Posted by Yerf Dog

Link to guitar sale?

I just sold an ESP Eclipse-2 that was in Perfect condition i still have a std strato fender 2008 + 4 other guitar that a lower quality. I have 2 guitars amp remaining my jewel vox ac15 cc1x and a cheapo line6 15 watts that i used to bring to tha job.

[MortEnVacances]

Originally Posted by JimmyM

you need to find a teacher to straighten out your technique and get you on a program not based on the insanity of trying to tackle a tune like teen town right off the bat. you're trying to run before you can crawl. learn the basics first. if you can't be patient, then bass is not the instrument for you.

Ya real bass teacher arent easy to find here, the teachers are all guitar player that try to to teach bass in a bad way. I need a true bass player, im looking for the good technique. I have let go teen toown or i just try to get every note to sound crystal clear at 60 bpm. i swapped to bass coz i heading more to a rythmic guitar style and had a kind of passion for reggae and funk. I want to be able to handle every kind of music like reggae slow steady and feeling while hitting you to the chest with tha bass.

If you guys can look to my other post (only have two here). id need some help with the amplification. id like toi get a gig set up . i want to buy just one rig and be set up for band situation. i describe it more in my post. My knowledge of bass amplification stop at reading reviews and watching youtube vidz. Thanks all for the tips!

[MortEnVacances]

Originally Posted by guitardefector

Congratulations, Dead on vacation!!! I left the guitar world in 2008 and haven't been back since. One piece of advice: stop thinking in guitar mode. The bass may look similar but it's NOT a guitar in the same way an accordion is NOT a piano. Start slow, be patient and don't develop bad habits early on. We ex-guitarists have an advantage in that we already have the concept of the fretboard to unite us to the bass.

Your english is great! I only wish my french was as good?? Bon chance, mon ami!!

Merci beaucoup, votre aide est appréciée!

[JimmyM]

amp...play a few, get one you like and can afford, then you're all set. i'd recommend a used solid state head with 300w or more and a 410 for a budget priced rig that will do most any gig. stay away from behringer and the bottom of the line speaker cabs from other companies, but everything else is more a matter of taste.

for a teacher, contact your local college's music dept.

[dragon6]

I borrowed the drummer's basic rudiment's. There's like a ton of them. Using the single the double and triple stroke rolls. Throw in the paradiddles later.
Perform these with the right hand on one string at a time.(using fingers 1 and 2). Then start switching strings. Work that switching strings until you die!
Then combine that RH with LH arpeggios and scales and your a smokin bassist.
The main point is that you can only move a fast as one finger will go. There are a ton of combinations with this. Good luck.

As said before get a good teacher to help you.

PS This is just one technique I used to help me switch from pick to fingers. And I still kept my picks.ha ha!

[BigTuna]

Hey there, your english is great. I started playing bass 3 years ago and this is what I've done to become steady with my right hand. Ive taken lessons but not from day one at all. I don't know what music youre into but here are some groups that I used and covered that developed consistency.

easy - AC DC

medium - Rage Against the Machine

hard - Black sabbath

I think these groups because of there diversity of simple to pretty impressive bass lines are a good place to start. I've found that these bass lines have made me become consistent but also have made me mobile with my right hand. If you can't stand this music then I would suggest listening to it and using it to find similar songs you like that and learn those lines.

Good luck and welcome to the bass world