Do you ever feel like you are at a disadvantage?

Kramsey · #1 01-05-2010, 08:45 PM

As I continue to play bass more with more people and at more places I have come to realize that being a bass player is very lonely. All of the guitar players I know are constantly bouncing ideas and gear recommendations off of each other and talking guitar and scoring gigs because in most of the places I play there is more that one guitar player.

Sometimes I feel like guitar platers have an advantage of constantly being around other guitar players no matter where they play and it allows them to get much better and increase their guitar playing network. However, being a bass player, you are the only one in a band playing bass and I feel like that puts us at a disadvantage. I don't think i know too many bass players, but I definitely know more guitar players and drummers.

Does anyone else see this or is it just me?

greekorican · #2 01-05-2010, 08:51 PM

Here's an advantage: less competition.

When there are two guitarists in a band, they get caught up with who's playing lead and who's playing rhythm. Its very annoying. Less competition and less drama.

Zombbg4 · #3 01-05-2010, 08:52 PM

Think of everyone as "musicians", except for drummers that is

Rudreax · #4 01-05-2010, 09:20 PM

Meh, just pick your friends. The majority of my musical friends are drummers, followed by singers. It doesn't make me lonely; I just think of it as a better opportunity to meet people coming from different musical perspectives.

Bass friends are pretty cool though. I've yet to met another bass player (upright or electric) that wasn't extremely knowledgeable in music in general, theory, gear, playing gigs and other situations, or a combination of those ideas.

MRDOOM · #5 01-05-2010, 09:28 PM

It can be lonely since it seems like alot of people dont understand or want to play bass. but, as has been previously stated, there is less competition and higher demand. take the bad with the good.

phatbass · #6 01-05-2010, 09:31 PM

Yeah; but most of the ideas and gear recommendations Guitar players bounce around is b*** sh**...

Sammy_L_D · #7 01-05-2010, 09:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by phatbass

Yeah; but most of the ideas and gear recommendations Guitar players bounce around is b*** sh**...

Bassists too.

In all seriousness, we're all musicians, it's all good! Or you can always diversify if you'd like to get their end of the spectrum too! Again, it's all good.

not_jason · #8 01-05-2010, 09:40 PM

Diversify. If you want something to talk to guitarists about, take up guitar. And it'll make you a better bassist. I think a good musician should be listening to the entirety of a band, and not just the instrument he or she plays. If you think of everyone as equal contributors, then you can talk to everyone as equals.

brianrost · #9 01-06-2010, 05:13 AM

I don't get to hang with bassists on gigs but I know a lot of them.

Bassists are actually at an advantage for scoring gigs from my experience.

champbassist · #10 01-06-2010, 05:28 AM

I used to feel lonely.
Then I joined TB.

Sane · #11 01-06-2010, 05:39 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by champbassist

I used to feel lonely.
Then I joined TB.

Was gonna say that

I have more information and contacts here then any guitar player I have ever met in the wild. When I found this place my ability jumped 200%. I couldn't begin to put an amount what I have learned, and saved, on gear at this site.

robthegaff · #12 01-06-2010, 05:42 AM

Im such a gearhead now.. Guitarists in my band cant think past combos :P Nevermind trying to modify an instrument themselves (not that im any good at it, but im learning)

MarkTAW · #13 01-07-2010, 01:14 AM

I play guitar about 60% as well as I play bass.

Fewer people are real, dedicated bass players, so they're more in demand.

Why do you care about the gearhead talk?

Learn to play enough guitar to talk to the guitar players (about theory, not about gear).

Most bass players blow away most guitar players when it comes to hard theory, so a good bass player who knows enough to arrange & reharmonize will simply make their bands sound better.

DrSmaggs · #14 01-07-2010, 01:14 AM

Not at all. I like where I am

ksandvik · #15 01-07-2010, 01:24 AM

You could pick up all kinds of musical ideas from non-bassists....

El Bajo · #16 01-07-2010, 03:48 AM

At school I felt like a spare part when socialising with other musicians in the music dept because I was the only bassist in the school. I was also very inexperienced and didnt like playing without the band. People would say play us something and I would go duh duh duh duh then duh duh duh duh then duhduhduh and they wouldnt recognze it, why would they? Unless its a riff its pretty hard to represent a song, while the guitar player in my band would just play really simple Oasis songs and they all would love it. One girl even said she didnt know what the point of the bass was, which I couldnt give an answer because a) I didnt have the musical vocabulary to explain evene though I understood it in my head and b) loads of people where waiting for my explanation and i just crumbled! Hate that girl for that.

Nowadays its different, I still dont know any other bass players but becasue of knowledge in music theory and understanding of what drummers and guitarists actually do I can engage them in conversation

Baker69 · #17 01-07-2010, 04:03 AM

In my experience bass players tend to make close associations with drummers, not because they are part of the rhythm section but it is something to do with characters and the two types generally tend to gel together. Guitarists are usually out there on their own due to their ego's and Keyboard players are a different matter again and are very insular!

I don't know whether anyone else has experienced this, but I used to be able to look at a band photo of the muso's without their instruments and more often than not I could pick out what each person played.

Bass players tend to be very reserved sort of people anyway, so 'loneliness' in a band isn't too much of a surprise.

Bass-desires · #18 01-08-2010, 08:20 AM

I don't want to sound negative, but competition pushes us to new levels. Most people thrive and push themselves in competition, I mean track stars wouldn't be as fast as they are today if they were not all competing against one another. If you play with someone better, it will teach you and push you to be better.

I too feel misunderstood a lot, overlooked, under heard (I gotta talk to the sound man about that

), and not appreciated most the time. But maybe that's something to talk to my mother about.

To be honest, I think not having many of us around does put us at a disadvantage simply because community builds talent. The lone wolf doesn't get as much done as the wolf pack. (Howl!)

Zabidenu// · #19 01-08-2010, 09:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sane

Was gonna say that

I have more information and contacts here then any guitar player I have ever met in the wild. When I found this place my ability jumped 200%. I couldn't begin to put an amount what I have learned, and saved, on gear at this site.

So I'm not the only one? ;D

I don't feel lonely but I kind of envy guitarists as they get to play all the cool licks and solos. However a bass solo done right might be even better than its guitar counterpart