4 starters - What made you pick bass? - Page 8

SeanE · #**141** 10-06-2005, 09:03 AM

Sting from the Police and John Taylor from Duran Duran. My really hot babysiter was obsessed with them both, and I figured really hot chicks liked the bass. I still smile when I hear "Walking on the Moon" or "Hungry Like the Wolf."

I didn't discover Geddy until AFTER I started playing.

The Owl · #**142** 10-06-2005, 09:57 AM

3 folks got me to try bass, John Patitucci, Jimmy Johnson and Steuart Liebig. The musicianship of all three was at once frightening and VERY inspiring.

Scourge441 · #**143** 10-10-2005, 05:57 PM

Once, when I was 13, my friend said he starte dplaying guitar, and he was braggin about how he could almost play an Audioslave song. He said he was going to form a band, and said I should start playing bass, and then commented about Tim Commerford being a really good bassist.

I started giving bass some serious thought (picking up Audioslave's self-titled album along the way), and I started turning the bass up on my CD player. I really liked the sound. At the time, though, I thought Tim Commerford, Krist Novoselic, and Mike Mills were the best bassists ever (keep in mind, this was BEFORE I started playing).

Then. my grandpa bought me a bass on my fourteenth birthday- a black Washburn XB100, which is still the only bass I own. My bass teacher at the time told me to go to OLGA, the crappiest tab archive on the net. I couldn't find the tabs I wanted, so I Googled for them. Google brought me to Ultimate Guitar, where I learned about Les Claypool, Cliff Burton, Victor Wooten, John Myung, and the other greats (they have a respectable community or bassists there, y'know, for a guitar site).

As of January 3rd next year, I will have been playing for two years. Picking up bass has been the best decision I've ever made.

bearcubs9497 · #**144** 10-11-2005, 09:54 PM

I wanted to play bass for the longest time, and I constantly begged my dad for one. So what did he do? He bought me a guitar!

So, for a few years, I noodled around with a guitar, and became an okay player, but was never really enthused by it. Also, my brothers started playing, and both quickly surpassed me.

When I was 18, I got a job, saved up a few paychecks, and bought a Phoenix bass and a small amp; it was freakin' great!

I've always wanted to play bass. I love the sound, I love the size, and the feel of those thick strings resonating beneath my fingers.

westland · #**145** 10-11-2005, 10:29 PM

As a long time pianist, I spent time thinking about bass lines ... I think the sound of a bass is exceptionally cool (... how come there is no 'cool' smiley?) and when my son picked up drums, I bought a bass guitar as well

Alvaro Martín Gómez A. · #**146** 10-12-2005, 09:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by westland

(... how come there is no 'cool' smiley?)

This is >>

NewAndImprov · #**147** 10-26-2005, 12:06 AM

I grew up in a fairly musical family, started taking piano lessons at age 6, studied classical stuff pretty seriously through high school. Got into the jazz band playing keys and hooked up with some cool guys who turned me on to stuff like Miles Davis, Weather Report, Yes, ELP, Genesis (this was the late 70's when such stuff was still considered cool). Always wanted to play bass, but my parents were pushing me into the classical pianist realm. Played keys in various cover bands, etc.

When I went away to college, I was looking around to get into a band, but, while nobody was looking for keyboard players, there were lots of adds up looking for bassists. A roommate of mine left his bass at my place while he went overseas on an exchange program. Some guys I was jamming with saw it at my place, and talked me into playing bass on a gig they had coming up. I shedded for a few weeks on the first few Police records, I really wanted to be playing Stanley Clarke or Jaco, but I could actually play "Walking on the Moon" and it sounded cool. I think this gave me an apreciation for playing grooves, and if I wanted to play flashy solo stuff, I could do that on keys. Played the gig, and that group started to turn into a band. When my roommate returned, I had to buy a bass so I turned part of my financial aid check into a japanese Jazz copy. Next term I did the same to get a Peavey TNT 100 bass amp.

That was about 20 years ago. I eventually got a degree in jazz piano, but still mainly play bass on gigs. Still would rather play a groove than solo...

T-Jam · #**148** 11-04-2005, 02:32 AM

**Sting from the Police and John Taylor from Duran Duran. My really hot babysiter was obsessed with them both, and I figured really hot chicks liked the bass. **- Sean

+1 !

Err.. Sean, what was your babysitter's name? When I was sixteen I was dating this girl who really liked basslines. The police and Duran Duran were the only two groups that we both agreed on.

Actually, she was the one who first got me into listening to the bottom end. I went back through my (and my older sister's) LP (am I dating myself) collection, with a new ear. That's when I discovered John Entwistle, Geddy Lee, and Chris Squire... I've never been quite right since.

Marcus · #**149** 11-06-2005, 10:31 AM

I got into NOFX when I was in high school many, many years ago.

From there, I got into ska. From there, everything else.

Since then, I've started listening to jazz standards.

Also, I find that the ladies are far more interested in bass than high-pitched wanking on the guitar. Nothing quite like slappin' on a Rickenbacker to make the ladies swoon.

pdeon99 · #**150** 11-06-2005, 06:54 PM

2 events led to me playing bass - One was a group of friends all playing guitar. I commented "you need some variety" to which they replied, so learn bass! The second was my brother playing a familiar-sounding tune I didn't quite recognize - turns out it was Moondance by Van Morrison, to which I said "that sounds like crap without the bass!" So it was that I decided to learn bass, and Moondance was the first tune I learned!

As for why bass, I have always loved the tone and foundation that bass provides. I play nothing but bass, and I intend to focus on playing it well (lotta room for progress towards that objective!) I now have a fretted, a fretless, and on Monday I have my FIRST UPRIGHT ACOUSTIC BASS lesson - woohoo!

IotaNet · #**151** 11-06-2005, 10:08 PM

I'm always tickled when I hear stories about people thinking bass is insignificant or they really never thought about it.

I grew up listening to mid-70's R&B/Soul/Funk and bass was what was happening! (Think "Papa was a Rolling Stone") Bass was ALWAYS cool and it seemed like the coolest musicians -- even in my high school band -- played bass.

The Brothers Johnson, Slave, Parliament/Bootsy/Funkadelic ... I grew up with those tunes and the groove -- the FUNK --was king. And I always wanted to make that kind of music. 30 years later, I'm finally making it happen!

quallabone · #**152** 11-06-2005, 10:26 PM

"Guitar was too hard"
-Nathan East

"Bass Looked easier"
-Me

mgood · #**153** 11-22-2005, 08:34 PM

I thought I wanted to be a guitar player.

I even bought a cheapy Arbor guitar.
My best friend was a drummer. He was encouraging this, mostly just so he'd have someone to jam with. (There were like NO musicians in my high school besides the marching band. I played trombone.) My friend the drummer was heavily into Rush. So I was already checking out some cool bass music. I borrowed the high school jazz band's bass thinking I could play bass with them and get some experience on a stringed instrument. (I never was allowed to try out for jazz band on bass. They needed trombone players. They had piano players who could cover the bass parts on keys

The director would tell me, "You want to be in stage band? Go get your trombone out. Otherwise, take a hike

)

Around that time (1985?), I saw KISS in concert. I was really into what Gene was doing. That night I decided that's what I want to do.
Never did play in that damned jazz band. (But I did play in jazz band for a while in college.)
Been a bass player ever since, with very little interest in playing guitar.

mmg · #**154** 11-23-2005, 04:53 PM

i've always messed around with guitar, and im pretty good at rhythm guitar and switching between chords and stuff. but i picked up my friends bass and i was in awe of the vibrations, i could feel the music literally(i was twenty feet away) coming out of his fender 200w amp.

then i traded some videogames for my other firends barely used bass. i basically stopped playing guitar and focused on bass for weeks(meanwhile breaking my guitar amp, but i didn't care since it was ****ty anyway, i was gonna buy a bass amp, and i knew i wouldn't get much use out of it the future.)that was 2 months ago and my carvin pb200-15 amp is coming in the mail next tuesday.

also, the more i think about it bass is just like my personality. im left depressingly unnoticed for the longest time, but once i leave for a while everyone notices.im also under-appreciated.

pj-mike · #**155** 11-24-2005, 08:52 AM

I started out on drums. We couldn't find a bass player to get a band going. Another drumer and I borrowed a bass and amp, brought both drum sets and took turns switching off to bass. I loved it and never looked back

greaseball · #**156** 12-02-2005, 10:45 PM

As a lead guitarist, I showed people bass parts for years. I just had a knack for it. Well, I developed a severe chronic case of tendinitis that even surgery won't help unless I quit the guitar ( playing chords really hurts) so I started doing bass gigs. I found out that I love playing bass, but now I have to get used to the guitar players getting all the attention

Alex · #**157** 12-03-2005, 09:36 AM

I was in fourth grade and I wanted to play an instrument. The school didn't let me play sax becqause I did bad on some musical aptitude test.

I was going out one day to a music store to buy an instrument. I was watching music videos, and the video playing at that moment was "crawling in the dark". Just before we left I saw their bassist going lights out, jumping around and stuff. I was like "sweet, get me one of those!" So when we got to the store I just picked one up, thought it looked cool, and my mom bought me the cheapest one they had. The rest is history.

sasred · #**158** 12-05-2005, 04:35 AM

I've always loved the sound of a bass, and the thought of being able to lay down some really good lines excites me. Plus, I played trombone for 9 years (go ahead, laugh!!

), so bass clef is quite familiar to me. Though I do sort of have to relearn it as I haven't picked up ANY instrument in over a decade...too much other nonsense I have to push back out of my brain now.

Plus I found out that my old man played back in the day. So maybe it's genetic. *laughs*

Doug Parent · #**159** 12-06-2005, 03:25 AM

My original postulate to be a musician was when I saw the Beatles live on Ed Sullivan. Years later, when I was 13, a friend urged me to play bass in a neighborhood start-up band.

The drummer used the lid of my moms cake cover plate-thing as a cymbal, while I played bass lines on an acoustic guitar. Our first gig was at the guitar players parents house (they were heavy social drinkers) down in the basement for one of thier many cocktail parties. We played Louie Louie and Sunshine of your love, both "top 10" hits at the time.

The cake pan cover cracks me up still to this day.