Are YOU Underrated? Overrated?

[Matt Till]

It seems every day a "overrated" or "underrated" thread is started, and it got me thinking... are you underrated or overrated as a bassist?

I'll go first (makes sense):

I am overrated. Well, I use to be. I use to be flashy and do a lot of slick tricks (slap mostly) and people (ie non musicians) were often awestruck. I've lost a lot of the flash, but I still see myself as overrated. You?

[Bushfire]

Sorry to say Matt, you are in fact, clinically insane. The men with the straight-jackets should be busting down your door any minute now...

Seriously though, I picked the 4th option 'cause I haven't played out enough (five gigs tops) and never really been 'rated' as such.

-Bernard.

[ras1983]

I picked the fourth option. i have ony been playing for about 18 months so i haven't played any gigs yet (other than a weekly church 'gig').

At the end of the day, i don't care how i'm rated because i only have a point to prove to 3 people :

Jesus - He gave me my talent and i owe him for that
My Teacher - He literally is teaching me everything i know, so his opinion is the only one that matters to me at the moment
Me - i play music because i enjoy it. if i don't enjoy what i am playing i simply can't put the emotions into it.

I don't owe anything to anyone else when it comes to my music and my playing. no one has helped me except my teacher, and no one has taught me except my teacher. thus, their opinion doesn't count.

[Mudfuzz]

I just do my best, most people seem to like what it is I do most of the time. But to me I almost always think I can do better.

[Sippy]

I am WAY overrated lol. You should hear my fellow musicians in my college jazz ensemble "Man you should hear our bassist! he's nuts!" lol

[bigfatbass]

I actually picked under, but not because I think I'm all that. I picked it because no one ever makes a big deal about the REAL reason I get and keep a gig:

I actually enjoy, and excell at, being a supporting player.

[phxlbrmpf]

Overrated. My badmates were often like "damn, he's good" only because I showed them some fast licks and some cheap slapping that sounds faster than it really is (left hand hammer ons, I'm looking at ya) and tapping. If they'd actually heard some truly hard stuff by real bass virtuosos, I doubt I'd have been able to impress them.

[Suckbird]

I'm probably the most overrated bassist in this world....

[DJ1]

Amazed at how overated I am.

Punters and other bandmates are constantly telling me and others what an awesome bass player I am.

I overplay often, underplay often and take huge musical risks rythmically, tonally and as a result many mistakes.

People just don't seem to understand how much I really suck.

I think that maybe they just don't really know what a truly great bass player is.

[Baryonyx]

I think I'm rated just right, I get compliments for a job well don't but I don't get mobbed by screaming fan boys all the time. If I do a solo I get cheers from the crowd, if I'm just locking in with the drums and sitting in the background, I'd expect them to at least understand the contribution I'm making to the music.

[Sagaris]

Oh I'm soooooo underrated.

[Hambone]

No, I think folks have just about got me pegged when they say I suck.

Can't argue with that.

[Edwcdc]

I pleaded the 4th option but I do think I am just a little over rated. I recently left a band that I was in for 5 years and I have been going out on auditions lately. As it turns out, every time I audition I get hired. I could be in 5 bands now if I had the time. Am I all that great? No. Am I well prepared? Yes.
Don't get me wrong I do lay it down but I'm not very flashy and I think I give bands that sense of security that I could just step in and they won't have to cancel gigs. I think maybe I'm still a bit over rated though.

[Sev.Moe]

I'm overrated i guess.. just cuz I slap very often.

[Aj*]

I'm overrated, people hear me play Country Music or do some tapping/slapping and think I'm some kind of god. It's lies, I'm a bassist who's played hard for a few years, I'm not an incredible player by any stretch of the imagination.

[rashbeep]

overrated.. i just have to waggle my fingers around and everyone thinks im insane

[skewh]

I'm rated just right. After gigs I get all sorts of comments from musicians and non-musicians alike, saying how well I drive this song or how my fretless added a lot to that song and so on and so forth. When I play, I don't take anything into account besides, "Does this sound good;" therefore I think that I don't do anything too flashy or overly attention-grabbing, but I still maintain musicality and appropriateness.

[PinkTelephone]

i'm overrated, all my friends think i'm like so good, when in reality i think i could be much better.

[Thunder_Fingers]

I Put overrated, but i am at times underrated to... Im currently at a school, where i feel im underrated, becouse they act like they think im a one trick poney (i like prog rock, as about the only one at the school, and therefore im a bass wanker if i add 1 extra note, so apparently everybody else choose the other bassist at the school, becouse he plays just the root note, they never give me more than one chance to try something... as one of the drummers said(wich i use to jam quite abit with) "Well, with him they know what they get, with you they can never realy be sure")

I used to be overrated, becouse everybody thought i was good when i played with my ex-band...

But i guess im the only one that know what im REALY good for, and in my opinion, it aint that much...

[anonymous278347457]

Im overated by my bandmates by the fact that they think i can slap well. Im not sure if im actually good or not, since i cant really judge because they dont really know much about slap bass.


and im underated at school because i suck at walking bass.