Root notes=Real world

[AcidShred]

After a months making up sweet bass solos and riffs in my room. I've just entered the real world..............
Okay it was band practice as you do. Guitar player plays a song he made up. When I play a separate bass part it dosn't fit with the tune, when I play root notes it fits but it's boring. Their wasn't even space for bass fills. So we changed the riff slightly to acomadate a few guitar and bass fills. Any body else have trouble trying to keep songs interesting melody and basswise.?

[Bubba Love]

Not really, but then I'm in a pretty funky band, so there's a lot of room for me to do my thing anyway. It all depends what kind of music you play!

[Sandman1278]

yea it definatly depends on the style of music, but all genres will have there eceptions, for instance punk is genrally roots nots of the simple power chords the guitar players play, however if you listen to Rancid this is not the case, ie Maxwell Murder
Keep it simple, play with the drums, and do little fills in "empty" areas. Or play them your riffs and have them play over them.

[Phalex]

Nope. If root notes are the appropriate thing to play to make the band sound good, that's what I play.

I try to lay down a good solid foundation and set a stage big enough for the rest of the boys to play Hamlet on.

I think playing bass is analogous to directing a movie: If you actually notice that there is a director behind the scenes directing the action of a motion picture, he isn't doing a very good job. Same thing with my playing. If I wanted to be up front and flashy, I'd sing karaoke.

[BrandonBass]

in some instances rootnotes is the best solution, but if you're creative enough you'll find ways around a song that doesnt consist of just rootnotes and still add flavour to it....

you know, like l'arc en ciel's bassist hes rarely plays roots but hes got a good melodic groove goin in most of their songs...

but if you really cant come up with anything better other than root notes though, its better to not overplay

[chaosMK]

I try to get involved in the writing and push things in a more prog/tech/math/tapping/technical bass line direction. It's sometimes easier that way than trying to twist something around.

When I joined my band, they had a lot of songs written. I added in the right bass parts, which werent too fancy and generally spiced it up where I could. In one song, the right part (to my judgement) was whole notes in the verse. Some of my favorite parts are where I added some spice and the right character to something relatively simple.

Anyway, if you have to play kind of simplified stuff for a while, you can work on other aspects of it like the "feel" and finding ways to be expressive within that constraint. Be patient!

[Phalex]

Whole notes are cool! Nobody seems to be comfortable with them for some reason. One of my own favorite original bass lines utilized whole rests to very good effect.

Sometimes, it's not what you play, it's what you don't play.

[Joe P]

Originally Posted by AcidShred

...when I play root notes it fits but it's boring. ...

...Any body else have trouble trying to keep songs interesting melody and basswise.?

Sigh...

Something's wrong, Shred. If you're playing music that calls for roots in the bassline, and you're bored, then - at BEST - you're either playing the wrong music, or the wrong instrument, or the band isn't grooving. Am I missing something? I guess regardless of the rest of the band: if you're bored, then YOU most-likely are not grooving.

You should never be bored with grooving.

You should play every note like you mean it. I mean - you can hardly have heart and soul in your playing, if you're bored. You can hardly play with AUTHORITY.

Is authority important in the music your band does? I say that it is in any, ANY kind of real music.

Something's wrong.

You need to play those quarter-note roots with authority - perfect authority.

Originally Posted by Phalex

Whole notes are cool! Nobody seems to be comfortable with them for some reason. One of my own favorite original bass lines utilized whole rests to very good effect.

Sometimes, it's not what you play, it's what you don't play.

There! That's more-like-it, Phalex! NOW I'm hearin' a BASSIST talkin'.

Joe

[Orco87]

Originally Posted by Joe P

Sigh...

Something's wrong, Shred. If you're playing music that calls for roots in the bassline, and you're bored, then - at BEST - you're either playing the wrong music, or the wrong instrument, or the band isn't grooving. Am I missing something? I guess regardless of the rest of the band: if you're bored, then YOU most-likely are not grooving.

You should never be bored with grooving.

You should play every note like you mean it. I mean - you can hardly have heart and soul in your playing, if you're bored. You can hardly play with AUTHORITY.

Is authority important in the music your band does? I say that it is in any, ANY kind of real music.

Something's wrong.

You need to play those quarter-note roots with authority - perfect authority.

There! That's more-like-it, Phalex! NOW I'm hearin' a BASSIST talkin'.

Joe

x 462

Whenever we're playin and making up stuff on the fly, my bassline will be very simple (usually due to lack of skill+still tryin to figure out what the guitarist is doing...), but it goes w/ the rest of the band. The groove is there, and I think that's what matters... when we're all involuntarily noddin' our heads to the music that is being made.

[AcidShred]

Originally Posted by Joe P

Sigh...

Something's wrong, Shred. If you're playing music that calls for roots in the bassline, and you're bored, then - at BEST - you're either playing the wrong music, or the wrong instrument, or the band isn't grooving. Am I missing something? I guess regardless of the rest of the band: if you're bored, then YOU most-likely are not grooving.

You should never be bored with grooving.

You should play every note like you mean it. I mean - you can hardly have heart and soul in your playing, if you're bored. You can hardly play with AUTHORITY.

Is authority important in the music your band does? I say that it is in any, ANY kind of real music.

Something's wrong.

You need to play those quarter-note roots with authority - perfect authority.

There! That's more-like-it, Phalex! NOW I'm hearin' a BASSIST talkin'.

Joe

You probabely mean't well. But you just don't get it. I'm just wondering himanyone else has trouble applying their skills to song with dominant guitar riffs.
P.s It's not quarter notes it's was just doubling the fast guitar riff on bass.

[chaosMK]

What style of music are you playing? Thrash?

[AcidShred]

Hard rock. We've not very metallic though think early Guns and Ac/Dc.

[Joe P]

Originally Posted by AcidShred

You probabely mean't well. But you just don't get it. I'm just wondering himanyone else has trouble applying their skills to song with dominant guitar riffs.
P.s It's not quarter notes it's was just doubling the fast guitar riff on bass.

Yes, I mean well.

I still say that it's somehow ...ah - shameful or something.. for a Bassist to say he's 'bored' grooving (and it's definately shameful to NOT groove).

Besides: grooving IS my most important skill!

Joe

[K2000]

Try not to write your bass parts during rehearsal, that's my suggestion. Or just play an easy "temporary" part that you develop later, when you're on your own. It can be really chaotic during practice, with everyone making a racket. It's easier to find your musical voice when you have a calm and maybe even quiet environment. I recommend taping your practices, then listen to the tapes at home. Try to make up a cool bassline while listening to your tapes, by singing or humming. Don't worry about trying to play them on the bass, just sing a bass line that sounds cool (like BA DAH DAH type sounds). Don't just follow the guitar (unless you want to) this is your chance to express yourself, I prefer to let the guitar and bass do different things so that together they make up a "third part" or unique voice if you catch my drift. Anyway when you have a cool riff you can sing, THEN pick up your bass and try to play it.

Another thing... I read that Def Leppard used to sit around with little practice amps in someone's living room, and they would play at a level they could talk over, and that's how they used to write their music. I'm not a fan of their music but they did have good arrangements and it sounds like a good approach.

Everything can get so freaking loud during rehearsal sometimes, that you can't even hear yourself think. Maybe that's what is hindering your creativity.

[user101]

playing root notes and ONLY root notes was the hardest thing i ever had to do on the bass. But i learned alot through it. I learned to concentrate on my accuracy, precision, timing, dexterity, consistency....the list goes on. And after that i had to start working on all these "skills" that i thought i had because they were in fact very sloppy and i'm happy now that i didn't apply them back then.

I am not judging your capabilities here, i am just saying that the more styles you learn to play/groove to/enjoy the broader and more interesting your playing will become regardless of any genre. After i had practiced playing roots to a pretty ok level, i started getting into melodic harmonic pastorius/pattitucci stuff. And it just came automatically as fills in my playing be it funk or rock or whatever.

And to end my long rant here:
If you're thinking about putting in fills and riffs, you're thinking too much and not playing enough. Fills come naturally...for me anyway...

[NickyBass]

Well, if you're doubling a fast guitar riff, then you're really not playing the roots. What I would recommend is actually playing the roots, then maybe hitting the tail end of his phrase. Break off from what he is doing, and look to other instruments and vocals. Listen to the bass drum, and if there is room, you can hint at the vocal melody quickly.

[*smb]

Originally Posted by AcidShred

Guitar player plays a song he made up. When I play a separate bass part it dosn't fit with the tune, when I play root notes it fits but it's boring. Their wasn't even space for bass fills.

Maybe some time you'll write a bassline that doesn't seem to fit much but powerchords and he probably won't get too excited about it - it's give and take pal!

[mambo4]

+1 for nicky bass's suggestion.

If you are doubling a guitar riff, then you're not playing under chords and you have to approach it differently.

guitar riffs tend to imply a chord, or chord changes. You need to identify what teh chord(s) are first. chords may change every measure or two, rarely does a riff changeschords at each note. What scale is it? that will give you a clue as to the chord -thus the root note to use.

also consider couterpoint: if one instrument( guitar) is doing something fast and complicated, try something simple and/or slow.

The Real world often involves just playing 4/4 quarter note roots. Feel the simple groove first. Only then opportunities for art will reveal themselves

[Kasper007]

Originally Posted by K2000

Try not to write your bass parts during rehearsal, that's my suggestion. Or just play an easy "temporary" part that you develop later, when you're on your own. It can be really chaotic during practice, with everyone making a racket. It's easier to find your musical voice when you have a calm and maybe even quiet environment. I recommend taping your practices, then listen to the tapes at home. Try to make up a cool bassline while listening to your tapes, by singing or humming. Don't worry about trying to play them on the bass, just sing a bass line that sounds cool (like BA DAH DAH type sounds). Don't just follow the guitar (unless you want to) this is your chance to express yourself, I prefer to let the guitar and bass do different things so that together they make up a "third part" or unique voice if you catch my drift. Anyway when you have a cool riff you can sing, THEN pick up your bass and try to play it.

Everything can get so freaking loud during rehearsal sometimes, that you can't even hear yourself think. Maybe that's what is hindering your creativity.

+1
IMO this is the best advice you can get. If a guitarist plays a chord progression, I automatically hear a bassline in my head, that needs some adjusting, but it's how I got my best basslines. Of course it helps that I'm not in a band that's very riff-oriented, I can imagine that's a bit harder, but still, you could suggest a few cool riffs that you came up with yourself.

[markjazzbassist]

root notes are definately the real world. i play for a pop singer and thats all i do. occasionally ill get a space for a little lick, which will be the highlight of the whole gig.