The worst video I've ever seen

[Pacman]

Instructional video, I'm talking here.

I just got studiobassplayer.com's "soloing 2" video which claims to extensively cover soloing over changes. The selling point that got me was that it appeared (note: appeared!) to be put out by the University of Miami School of Music (says "university of miami school of music" right on the box). You can check the specs at www.studiobassplayer.com if ya want.

IT SUCKS!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

What it is: A guy who can only marginally play and CAN'T teach trying to show the viewer how to take 'licks' from bebop heads (Donna lee, Ornithology, Groovin High) and transpose them. No word about the harmony, transposing the licks to fit on other chords (that would require talking about pesky things like roots, 3rds, 5ths, 7ths, blah blah blah). He doesn't even correctly identify the key of each lick. Several times he transposes a lick over a ii - V and calls the new key by the root of the ii chord.

Add to this the fact that the bass neck in the close ups has no position markers. Great if you don't like to play a bass with dots, but you need them if you're showing somebody something - duh! Especially if the headstock is not visible.

The best (worst?) part about the video is the "money shot" tune, for lack of a better phrase. The tune he plays after it's over is "Anthropology", only he screws the pooooch on it! Misses notes everywhere, plays rhythms incorrectly, slows down to play the hard stuff, speeds up on the easy stuff....a total hack job. Any of the guys at the Atlanta bass get together could have put together a better package in a few days.

Please don't buy this video. I'm trying to get my money back for it, and if I don't I'm going to send it to Bass Player for them to put in the Barbecue Pit.

[bassmonkeee]

I don't suppose the guy claimed to be a Berklee student, did he?

[Pacman]

Originally posted by bassmonkeee
I don't suppose the guy claimed to be a Berklee student, did he?

Nope, but he does say that he's a graduate of the Univ of Miami's School of Music (I just can't belive he did, at least not as a bass player), and Studied with Jaco, Bill Dickens and Wally Voss. My bullsh*t meter is pegged

[gruffpuppy]

TB got a little forum spam a while back about the great videos at the site you mention PM.

Glad to hear the videos are up to the same par as the advertising.

Kind of reminds me af a bluse grass bass video i had picked up years back were the bass player played with one finger on each hand, plucking hand and neck hand.

[Boplicity]

Yup, we went round and round with this guy here a month or so back. He posted a lot of pseudo posts cum advertisements and we finally deleted his stuff because he wouldn't respond to our e-mails.

Sorry you were cheated, Pacman. I like your idea of sending the copy to Bass Player for one of their scorching BBQ Pit reviews.

jo

[rickbass]

Originally posted by JasonOldsted
Yup, we went round and round with this guy here a month or so back. He posted a lot of pseudo posts cum advertisements and we finally deleted his stuff because he wouldn't respond to our e-mails....jo

Pac - Maybe you could track this guy down and roast him. I remember the threads where we jumped this guy. He runs around the web using the screen name "johnnybravo" to push this stuff. I looked at his website and remarked in a TB post he looked kind of hinky.

Another typical case of someone saying they're hot snot but they're only cold buggers.

[alx564]

Originally posted by rickbass1

Another typical case of someone saying they're hot snot but they're only cold buggers.

You always put things so....poetically.

[Josh Ryan]

studiobassplayer.com spammed this other forum I look at sometimes, www.basslessons.com. They got a very negative reaction there too.

[Boplicity]

He hit Bass101.com, too. I think he got them first, if I recall correctly.

jo

[bootyquake]

Probably the worst music instructional video was Michael Fath's Modern Classical Metal video (or something to that effect-it was 1989 when I bought it).

It featured 60 minutes of Michael Fath playing completely obvious metalized arpeggios, with 30 minutes dedicated to his whining about how he really invented neo-baroque metal guitar, not that Yin-Yang Malmsteen guy. Complete lack of any real content, but then again, that's what you get for trying to learn neo-classical metal.

More recently, I bought the Star Licks video "Bass As a Solo Instrument." The tape was obviously put together at the last minute--most of the bassists, from Nathan East to Larry Graham, were just explaining their approaches in sort of an off-the-cuff manner. Moreover, the host of the tape has this California-circa-1988 moussed blond haircut, and he seems to have no serious knowledge of the bass. However, hearing Larry Graham play solos with heavy feedback fuzz and the Mu-Tron is worth the $20.

[Josh Ryan]

anybody see the Bill Dickens tapes?

[yawnsie]

Like Bootyquake, the worst instructional video I've ever seen wasn't a bass one - it was a terrible beginner's drum tape from the mid eighties that my band's drummer showed me a while back. The more I think about it, the more convinced I am it was an elaborate joke.

The video was filmed in, as far as I can see, someone's garage. It began with a drum kit being "set up" - each part appeared, with a suitably ridiculous "Boing!" noise. Eventually, we see how big this kit is - double bass drum, at least five snares, a few dozen toms, and row after row of cymbals - hardly something a beginner would have. (The whole point of the video seems to be to show off the guy's gear - he seems to be a drummer equivalent of John Turner! )

When the "instructor" turns up, he's a suitably be-poodled 80's heavy metaller (why do about 90% of all instructional videos seem to be made by people like this???) whose main tutoral technique seems to be saying "This... dun-dun-dun ...is the bass or kick drum. dun-dun-dun. Let's see how we use this in a beat..." and then playing the most elaborate and self-indulgent drum solo you've ever seen.

The crowning glory of the tape is when he actually stops showing off for a moment and talks seriously about paradiddles. Halfway through a sentence, he vanishes off the screen! (Another boing! noise) About 30 seconds later, he walks back behind the drum kit with a drink, and says "Phew! It's getting pretty hot in here - just had to go and get a drink!"

At the end of the tape, we're showed how to use what we've learned (?) in a band context. Cue a good half an hour of the presenter of the tape playing in an awful hair band - basically, the only point of the tape as far as I can assertain is a feeble excuse to promote the band this fella's in!

It could only be a drummer...

[theJello]

Dude doesnt look old enough to have studied with jaco.

[camerondye]

The absolute worst Bass Instructional Video I have seen is Andy West, I love the Dregs and the way he plays....but his video is ASS. A not-even-close second is a Chuck Rainey video, he keeps doin' this same lick over and over and over in it...and it isn't even remotely close to the playing that made him famous. I have about 28 bass videos so far, so I have a pretty good collection of bass videos. I haven't seen the www.studiobassplayer.com videos, and now I'm glad I decided not to get them.
cam

[theJello]

It seems most videos arent that great. I mean there are a few like the rocco one but most just seem to show licks.
Anthony Vitti from berklee is releasing some videos very soon. I think one is already out. He is an incredible player and teacher so Im sure his videos will reflect that. I have talked with him and it sounds like they will have lots of content.

[Dave Castelo]

studiobassplayer.com is so lame... i don´t know if you saw a thread started by studiopro who misteriously has only two posts and advertised the videos saying they were great... just for that that company should broke and burn in hell

the thread got bashed and finally removed... some of the responses were pretty funny, too bad we can´t see it...

[Pacman]

bump

[bassmonkeee]

Why bump? Studiobassplayer makin' the rounds, again?


I guess consider this "Bump--2 times...."

[Pacman]

Just want to save everybody 20 bucks.

Had dinner with Turner last night and came up with a good idea. If everyone would be willing to pay postage, once, we could just mail this turd around to TalkBassers just for the laughs...

might be a hoot.

[john turner]

yeah, i think this would be a great idea. me first.

in fact, if we get another blow-hard, "i rule and you suck" newbie around here, maybe we can send it to him.