Advice on becoming a "real" bassist

[chrose1201]

I have been playing guitar and bass for more years than I can remember. However as much as I enjoy bass I spent more time learning guitar. Now I am playing in a band as a bassist and I want to focus on being a better bassist.
I am trying my hardest to play like a bass player, not like a guitarist playing bass. I want to earn the respect of real bassists. I realize that they are not the same instruments even if they share some physical similarities.

So what would the real bassists tell me to help me learn and understand how to become a bassist. I am self taught on guitar and bass so the theory end of it is lacking.

Please help me to become a bassist not a guitarist playing bass.

Thank you.

[Myke Myke]

well I'm still learning myself
but what I can say is maybe learn your theory which can always help give you an understanding of why you play what you play...

make sure u keep the groove, and just listen to a lot of bass players who you admire
and try to do what they do.. but then branch off from what they to and try to establish your own sound...

[DudeistMonk]

You sorta answered your own question...

Take some lessons with a bass player, since you know the mechanics you should be able to jump right into theory and such, there is a lot to understand they can help you more than anyone here.

However I tend to think of it like this.

Bass: Lock in the with drummer (feel his groove and accent the parts he accents, go your own way for the rest..try playing along with garageband drum loops of different musical styles), play the chord root on the first beat of every measure, make people wanna dance.

Guitar: More melodic like singing, playing whatever scale tone they please whenever they please, make people want to close their eyes and get lost in your "widdly, widdly, wahahhahahahah weeee wahhhhhhooooom"

[Joel S.]

Originally Posted by DudeistMonk

Bass: Lock in the with drummer (feel his groove and accent the parts he accents, go your own way for the rest..try playing along with garageband drum loops of different musical styles), play the chord root on the first beat of every measure, make people wanna dance.

Bolded what I agree with, there are some cool basslines where they don't play the chord root on beat 1 though ("I Shot the Sheriff" for example, starts on the 2nd). I'd say if you're gonna play a note on a strong beat, it should be a chord tone.

The two points bolded are by far the most important tho. Guitarists tend to play on their own in time with the drummer, you should play with the drummer. I saw a kid at a local open mic who was part of a 3 piece instrumental thing. He played with the guitarist with total disregard to what the drummer was playing. They had "Funk" in their name. I wanted to throw my beer bottle at him.

[chrose1201]

Originally Posted by DudeistMonk

Lock in the with drummer (feel his groove and accent the parts he accents, go your own way for the rest..

See that's the thing. I was told that a long time ago, but it's hard to mimic what the drummer is doing if you don't understand the why he's doing what he's doing. Playing guitar is all pretty straightforward, 4:4 da da da da da etc. Noodle in here and there, throw in some accent chords etc. Simple as pie. I don't have a real problem learning the notes. My finger picking is coming along. I refuse to use a pick, and I know plucking hand has a lot to do with it.

I'll give a good example of what I mean. One song I have to learn is a killer song; September by EWF. I can do most of it (I just started it) But the fills and things off the beat that Verdeen does is hard to anticipate so I miss a lot. I am so ingrained with a 4:4 mentality it's hard to get it.

Playing by rote is mostly easy enough, but that's not enough. Without knowing the why, and the mechanics it's hard to improvise some parts that I may be called upon to do.

I have the book Music Theory for Complete Idiots (not Dummies mind you, Idiots!) I will crack that soon and hopefully it will help the whys and wherefores.

Keep them coming. I need to be whipped into shape!

[mambo4]

I've played both bass and lead guitar in my life, and greatly prefer bass. Some random thoughts:

In bass, rhythm rules. Learn the notation, develop your awareness of quarters, eights, sixteenths.

Always know where the one is. Follow the roots.

Listen to the drummer, esp if hes good/consistent. Find the beats he plays that match your notes and lock in with them.

A guitarist floats on top of the band, a bassist supports from underneath.

Leave space for the other instruments, leave space for silence.

Explore how few notes you can get away with.

Try to think about the bass as a pitched drumset rather than a melodic instrument (tho it can certainly be both)

Don't think in riffs.

Stylistic considerations can matter much more on the bass: most often the bass + drums can define the style of music. Be sure to study bass heroes of the styles of music you want to play.

Make everybody else sound good.

[Cacklingjackyl]

Saw a bass player last week here in Memphis that reminded me how bass playing should really be done. I play with a rhythm and lead guitarist and a solid drummer. I tend to play alot of fills because the rhythm guitarist (who is also a drummer) allows me to wander a bit more than I should. That being said, saw this young guy play last week and he didn't play alot of notes but he grooved his "keister" off. It immediately made me rethink my role in the band. The biggest part is to learn to groove with the drummer and help move the music along.

Think more along the lines of placement of a few notes peppered with strategically placed fills rather than playing every note you can on the fretboard all the time. When you do this right, it will make your fills stand out even more.

As mambo4 said, leaving space and silence are good concepts to explore. Many bass players don't do this starting out. Less can say more.

[locolobo85]

I'm also still in the learning process but love playing bass after a couple of decades of guitar.

My 2 cents....
Know that your role is to bridge the gap between the drums and the lead instruments.

Key off the drummer and don't get drawn into listening too closely to the lead.

Realize that a bass note takes longer to form than a guitar note. Avoid flurries of poorly formed notes. Err to the simple side and allow the bass notes to fully form.

[SmoothCountry]

I had started with a new band about 20 years ago and played a few gigs with them. I thought they went well. Then the steel player called a band meeting. They all told me I was playing way too busy. The next gig I thought to show them how wrong they were. I would not take a lick all night. boring. Well, it turned out to be the best gig of my life. Every tune was clean and concert quality. I listened to every part and the band truly jelled and grooved. By the way - it isn't easy playing perfectly clean. It can be nerve wracking. NO Mistakes allowed.
so - listen to everything going on and play to support it, and realize that the bass is only a part of a greater whole. Oh - I'm still with that steel player.

[chrose1201]

Originally Posted by mambo4

Try to think about the bass as a pitched drumset rather than a melodic instrument (tho it can certainly be both)

Don't think in riffs.

.

Exactly! I am old enough that I have learned a lot of things. I have played enough notes inn my life that I don't need to overplay anymore.
I love the sound of a drum and bass in synch so I am doing my best to keep in check. Now bear in mind that I play in a cover band, so that's easy enough, but there are times where there's room for a different note or two while keeping in context with the original.

Keep the thoughts coming!

[shatterd]

Originally Posted by mambo4

Try to think about the bass as a pitched drumset rather than a melodic instrument (tho it can certainly be both)

Don't think in riffs.

Now this is great advice. I was about to say this same thing....imagine that your bass is simply a drumset on strings. Think about rythm...not riffs. Listen to the band Tool and note how their bassist just drives the rythm. His bass lines are so rythmical and powerful.

Rythm...not riffs.

Also...you can come up with a simple yet funcky groove and just repeat it over and over throughout the song....following the roots, and locking in with the drummer. Sometimes less is more, and there is a lot of genius packed into simple yet catchy grooves that really accent the rythm of a song.

Finally, there are some awesome bass lessons online at www.workshoplive.com. Lots of theory based concepts. I've been highly impressed with the way they do their online lessons. The best I've found.

[rakirksey]

Originally Posted by Joel S.

there are some cool basslines where they don't play the chord root on beat 1 though ("I Shot the Sheriff" for example, starts on the 2nd). I'd say if you're gonna play a note on a strong beat, it should be a chord tone.

+1

The one thing to also think about when playing as a bassist in terms of note choice, you don't always have to follow the root if you have strong linear movement. I'm a big fan of the walkdown (with well placed chord tones of course). Sometimes non-chord tone or melodic bass lines add a lot to the music especially if the guitarist is just jamming out on a chord.

All the other points here are good. Stick with the drummer. He's your best friend.

[StyleOverShow]

It's a mindset thing, playing bass. You are part of the platform on which the other players stand, particularly the soloist. You have to create that platform with the drummer and whoever else is playing rhythm (guitar or keyboards). It is often repetitive with slight reprieves at the turnarounds. Keep it simple and expand from there.

I am practicing "in the pocket style" right now and it is hard to loose the embellishments and show off stuff (Pop!), but it really is appropriate for the type of music I'm playing (backing a blues singer). Good luck on the path...

[DudeistMonk]

read the articles on http://studybass.com

they where really helpful

Listen to and play some funk it helped me a lot with understanding groove and the roll of bass/how bass and drums interact...Not a lot of chord movement in funk, just groove. Its easy to focus on the drums cause you can always go back to that same root note and it starts putting anything you play over top of it into context. Play with those garage band loops for awhile and then find a real drummer.

The listen to some Jazz and try to compose walking lines, I'm working on this now and its helping me put chords together much easier.

Bolded what I agree with, there are some cool basslines where they don't play the chord root on beat 1 though ("I Shot the Sheriff" for example, starts on the 2nd). I'd say if you're gonna play a note on a strong beat, it should be a chord tone.

There are always exceptions, and they usually sound awesome because of the exceptions made. I'm just trying to throw down some simple rules that the OP can break later when he sees fit. In most things I come across the root is the first note played in each bar, and usually played on the one, and this was crucial to my understanding of Rock, Blues, Funk, Jazz.... Marking the beginning of a bar, outlining the chord/working your way to the next bar and marking the next bar...

[LP75]

The "Less is More" philosophy of bass has a lot of merit. Well placed, but fewer notes will generally work better than a flurry of notes that don't support the groove.

I fell naturally into bass playing, and the way I found out was from everyone else I played with telling me so. The comment I hear with every group of people I work with is that I "play bass like a bassist".

I feel the thing more than think about it, although as I was growing I paid attention to removing unnecessary notes. I use ghost notes, implied notes that aren't really there, but above all, I play bass in such a way that it makes the rest of the band feel good - I can see and feel their reactions when I hit the right approach.

Do like others have mentioned here - LISTEN to music with great bassists, and pay attention to how they work with the drummers. Get some old Motown records with James Jamerson, and others. Listen to "Papa Was a Rolling Stone" and other Temptations stuff like "Ball of Confusion". These can be great teachers.
Then go apply what you have learned to whoever you play with. Make them feel the groove.

[onlyclave]

Set your guitar on fire and throw it off of a bridge.

[RonChase]

Hi I made the jump to bass in 85 and you need a different mindset,plus get a bass you really lust for any one plays more inspired when they like the look and sound,Go out to open mic nights and jump in with bands or players you feel comfortable with.And keep it simple if your lost

[steve66]

Start playing groove oriented music like Motown and the blues. Learn your chords Major /Minor and 7th and create bass lines using mostly the chord tones. Learn to connect the chords. Add space and dynamics to your lines. Focus on the root and dead notes. Chromatics are your friend. Dont over play. Tell your guitarist to lower his volume because your the one who is in control.

Good Luck

[mutedeity]

The concept of being a "real" bassist versus a "not real or fake" one is relative. Who is to say how a bassplayer should play? There are plenty of bassists whose style came from being guitarists. What it comes down to is that you understand what role you play in different situations and that what you play is appropriate to that situation. The key to that is to listen to and learn as much as you can from what the bass's function is in different situations.

[mattblissett]

Learn to play the rests, I tend to listen to the whole band, rhythmically for the drummer, harmonically for the guitar, and try to find the groove as soon as possible.