New Bassist Looking for Recommendations

IsThisIt · #1 01-21-2009, 02:08 AM

Heyyy,

As the title suggests .. I am a new bass player (picked up my bass back in October) who enjoys playing a little too much. I'm currently 20 years old, and as such, I am much more keyed into the modern alternative/indie/rock scene, but I really want to get familiar with some stuff I wasn't exposed to as a kid.

If you're at all interested in seeing what I like, please give it a read, I'd love to hear what you think I may also enjoy based on my interests. If not, feel free to skip to the last paragraph, I won't take offense

Just to give you an idea of what I like, in terms of a more kind of "poppy" rock, I'm a huge Strokes fan, yes, I've listened to the Velvet Underground (I don't buy the whole "big influence" thing), New Pornographers, Kings of Leon (before their "Coldplay" album), Pavement, Wolf Parade, Arctic Monkeys etc.

In terms of more somber stuff, I absolutely love The National, Radiohead, The Arcade Fire, Flaming Lips, etc. etc.

Oh and I'm a HUGE Chili Peppers fan. They, along with The Strokes, were my first loves. I really love the funk in Mother's Milk and Blood Sugar Sex Magik, and also can't get enough of the more somber/melodic/poppy stuff in By the Way & Californication.

Oh and the Pixies. Love the Pixies.

Ok this could go on forever I am going to stop here..

I have a really cool guy giving me lessons and teaching me a lot of funky riffs, which I really like ... He's taught me some stuff by Chic (Good Times), Sly & the Family Stone (If You Want me to Stay), and a bunch of other stuff, a lot of it created by himself. I've just started slapping, so my ability to create funk explosions is exponentially increasing!

Oh, and I suppose this may be relevant... To give you an idea of the stage I'm at right now as a bass player, some of the "harder" (well for me) riffs I can play nearly flawlessly are Good Times by Chic , Chili Peppers stuff like Californication & Scar Tissue, Moby Dick by Led Zepplin, and some basic slapping riffs. I'm not afraid of a challenge (in fact, its what I want), and I am learning quickly. So don't hold back, but I'm definitely still an amateur!

Whether or not you read my background essay (sorry!), I'd love to get some recommendations from you guys of bands/riffs/songs from the 80's and earlier that sound great on bass! I'd love to hear some more funky stuff, or anything else that's fun to play. If you can link me to some tabs too, well, that would be awesome

Hope I didn't write too much here, I appreciate whatever you guys got for me.

baalroo · #2 01-21-2009, 03:23 AM

I've been through my phases of enjoying all that, check out these indie/alternative bands from their respective times:

Fugazi - helped inspire pretty much all the bands that inspired the current scene of indie/alt rock. The basic blueprint for modern "indie" bass playing.

The Smiths - great and WAY understated. Shows you can use really simple tones and styles and still be "underground" as long as your honest. Great dry and traditional bass playing in a non-traditional setting.

Sonic Youth - Just massive numbing noise, definitely a different use of the "standard" rock band instrumentation

MC5 - proto-punk. These guys pretty much wrote the book on how to write the manual for punk rock.

Television - Um, just listen to it.

Talking Heads - funk, r&b, rock, punk, or new wave? yes please!

Jesus Lizard - Slithery, hot, gritty, meaty rock and roll with an insane homeless man shouting at you.

Deacon_Blues · #3 01-21-2009, 03:26 AM

Study the late great Mr. James Jamerson, who played on songs like Stevie Wonder's "For Once In My Life" and Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On". He needs no further presentation, IMO.

Also check out Francis "Rocco" Prestia from Tower Of Power. Songs like "What is hip?", "Squib Cakes" and "Only So Much Oil In The Ground" feature some epic basslines. There's a lot more than that, but you could start by listening to these.

Jaco of course needs to be mentioned in a thread like this. Start with listening to "Come On, Come Over", for instance.

Paul McCartney is worth being mentioned too. Check out the song "Something", there's a nice bassline that is very original but suits the song very well.

Steely Dan has made some great songs with great basslines by bass aces like Chuck Rainey. Check out "Green Earrings", "Kid Charlemagne", "The Fez", "Aja", "Peg", "Rikki Don't Loose That Number" etc etc etc.

For slapping, listen to "Forget Me Nots" by Patrice Rushen. That, my friend, is a great slap bass line.

There's something to start with, based on what I like myself.

Phalex · #4 01-21-2009, 06:39 AM

Check out YES Pre-1980's. They were a big influence on me.

To see how a bass player and a drummer really should get along together, look into some Kings-X. dUg and Jerry are arguably the best rhythm section going.

ruralhipster · #5 01-24-2009, 12:33 PM

I am just starting learning the bass so I'll give you my list of artists and songs I am working towards having the skill to play some day (Obviously some are easier than others but they all tend to sound like they would be fun to play).

from "pop-rock" (some are technically power-pop) bands you might like include:

Blur: Boys and Girls (a very funky riff in a moderately gay song) , Song 2 (overplayed and stupid distorted but still cool)

Cheap Trick: Dream Police (allthough their earlier stuff is awsome)

Cure,the: Lovecats (just a catchy little bassline)

Coral,the: Dreaming of You (is that a polka in disguise)

Dandy Warhols: Not if you Were the Last Junkie on Earth (any band that writes a song about Kim Deal is allright by me)

Duran Duran: Rio, Hungry Like The Wolf (highly underated bass in slightly overated songs)

ELO: Mr Blue Sky (because I need to learn rest timing somewhere)

Franz Ferdinand: Take Me Out (the wonky slowdown bit should prepare me to play in time with some of the drummers I know)

Kinks,the: Dedicated Follower of Fashion (my favorite song from a great band with a lot of great fairly simple tunes)

Modest Mouse: Float On (one day I'll go to a parade and the coolest marching band in the world will be playing this)

OK GO: Here it Goes Again (great single, allthough their first album was more solid imho)

Spacehog: In the Meantime ('cos I am afraid to say I prefer Mungo City)

Supergrass: You Can See Me (I hope no-one tells the bassline is played on a keyboard istead of an effects ladden bass)

On the Heavier Side

Billy Talent: Fallen Leaves (A great Canadian band you might not of heard of; unlike the dreadfull ones you probably know all too well: Nickelback and Avril Lavigne)

Muse: Knights of Cydonia (Solid rythm section work that rocks under operatic vocals and mind-blowing if at times slightly wanker-noodilish guitar)

On the Funkier Side

Rick James: Superfreak (just because)

Curtis Mayfield: Pusherman (the best soundtrack to come from the Blaxploitation films with apologies to Shaft fans)

Hope that gives you a few ideas.

Stumbo · #6 01-25-2009, 01:30 AM