SPECTOR® Club - Part 53 (A tribute to our Spector Brother and Friend Chris Loe)

[delucajohn2000]

Originally Posted by ebradfordrich

I've attended that school too. I tried like hell to be a fingerstyle-only player but eventually I just gave up and reached for a pick. The real culprit besides my mediocre bass chops? Those stupid octaves in My Sharona by the Knack. They're waaaay easier with a pick.

Funny that you mention My Sharona since I heard it recently and then had to figure out the bass line since I like it so much.

I am awful at playing with a pick but I have been messing with it more and more to try and get better. This guy has some really good videos to help with octaves and string skipping like in that song:

http://scottsbasslessons.com/techniq...-exercise.html

Originally Posted by cjmodulus

Have fun working through those BTBAM books! I wish I had more time to- I got through most of prequel to the sequel when I first got the colors book, but haven't had much time to look at either one since. Each track is a great work out and an interesting lesson in crafting bass lines that work well in such a chaotic setting.

Yeah, I really like both of these CD's so I wanted to get the books for them to see how the bass lines go. My music ear isn't like it was when I played years ago since I stopped for a while and some of these tracks are just insane so I picked up the books to help me out a bit

Originally Posted by bunkaroo

Quick someone send diechris a copy of these right now!

Haha, I think he either might have them or figured out some of the songs on his own. When he uploaded a track to Soundcloud of his NS-6XL, he was playing along to "Foam Born (A) Back Track" from the Colors CD.

The cool thing about buying these books is I bought them from Lulu.com. I was a bit put off by the "usually ships in 3-5 days" but it turns out that they actually print them out for you which is really neat. Even so, a day after I ordered them, I got the shipping e-mail so it doesn't take as long as they say if anyone is thinking about ordering them.

[Christian Waiau]

i need to catch up... but hopefully off to pick up Ra Diaz and head over to Dave Fowler's Clinic here in vegas... Ive been sick with whatever is going around ...the states? heh so im trying to get this all out of my system before thursday NAMM

[TK4261]

Hi all,
NBD!
Today I received my first Spector and my first fretless. I am really really impressed with the build quality of this Legend and the sound/feel right out of the box.. I've been wanting a fretless for a while and found this one for a good deal. Plus I wanted a new project Bass. Since I am not fond of the color I will be taking the body to Pat Wilkens next week after NAMM and he is going to strip the finish off for me and then I will stain it and finish with Tung-Oil. I have a brand new TonePump w/trim and a set of EMG 35 P/J pickups that will be going into it.





I sent a PM to TraceBassPlayer for a #

[Worldeeeter]

Originally Posted by delucajohn2000

I really need to listen to Dream Theater more. I think the only song I know by them is "Pull me Under" since that was kind of their popular song back in the early 90's but I was never too much of a fan of James Labrie as a vocalist so I couldn't really sit and listen to them as much as I should have since they are all just amazing musicians. Watching them audition the drummers was a cool video to watch and got me to buy Black Clouds and Silver Linings but I haven't listened to it much yet.

I am really strange with vocalists for some strange reason, LOL. Probably one of of my favorite bands of all time is a band from the 80's called Marillion. Their first 4 CD's are just amazing to me and I still listen to them all regularly but once the original singer (Fish) left, I could never get into anything they put out afterwards. I am just odd I guess

I just received these today so this should be very interesting.

DAAAAAAYYYYYUUUUMMMM - look at YOU go!
That should be a great brain workout, as well as for da fingas. Trying to follow Dan Briggs' basslines will keep ya busy.

[catcauphonic]

Originally Posted by TK4261

Hi all,
NBD!
Today I received my first Spector and my first fretless. I am really really impressed with the build quality of this Legend and the sound/feel right out of the box.. I've been wanting a fretless for a while and found this one for a good deal. Plus I wanted a new project Bass. Since I am not fond of the color I will be taking the body to Pat Wilkens next week after NAMM and he is going to strip the finish off for me and then I will stain it and finish with Tung-Oil. I have a brand new TonePump w/trim and a set of EMG 35 P/J pickups that will be going into it.





I sent a PM to TraceBassPlayer for a #

Nice! Congrats Personally, I really dig that color rimmed w/the black. But I guess that's why they make chocolate AND vanilla

[worshiprocker]

Every time I see a legend, I just want to buy one. They look soo awesome

Quite in here tonight

[bassboy01]

Here is a photo of some new Spector's we just got in today at GuitarHouse.net. From left to right: Euro 4LX Spector SE-5 #2 of 30, Rebop 4MM, Legend 5 in new Trans. Purple, Legend 4 in new Trans. Purple.

[bassboy01]

Originally Posted by TK4261

Hi all,
NBD!
Today I received my first Spector and my first fretless. I am really really impressed with the build quality of this Legend and the sound/feel right out of the box.. I've been wanting a fretless for a while and found this one for a good deal. Plus I wanted a new project Bass. Since I am not fond of the color I will be taking the body to Pat Wilkens next week after NAMM and he is going to strip the finish off for me and then I will stain it and finish with Tung-Oil. I have a brand new TonePump w/trim and a set of EMG 35 P/J pickups that will be going into it.





I sent a PM to TraceBassPlayer for a #

Very nice!!

[TK4261]

Originally Posted by catcauphonic

Nice! Congrats Personally, I really dig that color rimmed w/the black. But I guess that's why they make chocolate AND vanilla

Thank you! I just want to personalize it a bit since all the Legend fretless models are only in this Black Cherry

[TK4261]

Originally Posted by bassboy01

Very nice!!

Thank you Todd,
If my Legend came in that trans Purple I wouldn't be changing the finish.

I like those new Basses you got in

[sifi76]

Originally Posted by bunkaroo

I've been playing 25 years now, and for some reason I just started with a pick when I was 13. I was trying to learn Metallica, Megadeth and Slayer right away to play with some guys who had already been playing a few years and at the time the pick just seemed to be the best way to get up to speed quickly, no pun intended! It just always felt so natural to me so I've stayed with it over the years. I started mixing some fingerstyle about 15 years and have gradually added more as the years go by. But using the pick will always be easier for me. I'm so used to it I don't even really have to think about how I'm string hopping or alternating - it just happens. I also used a lot of staccato to try and emulate some fingerstyle stuff.

It's funny because since I do play a lot of guitar, people make the connection about me using a pick on bass, but I was playing bass for probably two years with a pick before I even started trying to play guitar seriously (for writing purposes).

I expect if I had spent as much time practicing with my fingers in my first 5 years of playing as I did with the pick I'd probably be very proficient at it, but the realities of trying to keep up with my bands made the choice for me.

At times it used to get to me that I wasn't considered a "real" bass player by some fingerstyle purists. I remember the band I moved to NYC to join in 1996, I replaced a very traditional fingerstyle player, and he played fretless. He also knew very little English even though he had moved to NYC years before from Japan. So he came out the band's first show without him, and he comes to me before the show when we were soundchecking and says in broken English "So pick, no fingers huh?" and I was like "Yep!". Then I proceeded to nail every song he had recorded as well as some new stuff. No comments after the show.

I come from the school of "if it sounds good, it is good". I might not have the prettiest technique, but I think I get the job done.

I can understand where your coming from, I damaged my right hand a while back and ever since then my finger style has been different, in terms of follow through. I switched to pick to accomodate this, but recently in the last few years I've developed a kind of percussive method with the index being primarily the dominant string puller, but also used for a percussive effect in between middle finger pulls. It's unorthodox and many people think I'm playing with a pick because of my hand position as I play over the strings without anchoring my thumb on anything. But like you said, it gets the job done.. and some of the percussive 'ghost notes' that come from that index movement help to create a signature sound on my bands originals. Technique is important, but sometimes you can't help these things and have to adapt. Play however you feel is natural and sod the critics

[pineapplerobot]

Originally Posted by bassboy01

This. This is my next bass.

[keeperofthelows]

Originally Posted by TK4261

Hi all,
NBD!
Today I received my first Spector and my first fretless. I am really really impressed with the build quality of this Legend and the sound/feel right out of the box.. I've been wanting a fretless for a while and found this one for a good deal. Plus I wanted a new project Bass. Since I am not fond of the color I will be taking the body to Pat Wilkens next week after NAMM and he is going to strip the finish off for me and then I will stain it and finish with Tung-Oil. I have a brand new TonePump w/trim and a set of EMG 35 P/J pickups that will be going into it.





I sent a PM to TraceBassPlayer for a #

CONGRATS ON THE NBD!!!

quick question about legends...
do they have the full curved body?

[seventhframe]

This demo beat the snot out of me all day....
NS-2 Spalt. EADG.

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/72521656/ST...ice%20over.mp3


I'm experiencing some mixing issues...the volume drops at some points. Not sure why.

[j.kernodle]

good looking legend. looking forward to seeing the refinish, please keep us posted on the progress.

Originally Posted by TK4261

Hi all,
NBD!
Today I received my first Spector and my first fretless. I am really really impressed with the build quality of this Legend and the sound/feel right out of the box.. I've been wanting a fretless for a while and found this one for a good deal. Plus I wanted a new project Bass. Since I am not fond of the color I will be taking the body to Pat Wilkens next week after NAMM and he is going to strip the finish off for me and then I will stain it and finish with Tung-Oil. I have a brand new TonePump w/trim and a set of EMG 35 P/J pickups that will be going into it.





I sent a PM to TraceBassPlayer for a #

[ebradfordrich]

Originally Posted by seventhframe

This demo beat the snot out of me all day....
NS-2 Spalt. EADG.

https://dl.dropbox.com/u/72521656/ST...ice%20over.mp3


I'm experiencing some mixing issues...the volume drops at some points. Not sure why.

Nice. I like the staccato matching up with the kick drum.

[ebradfordrich]

Originally Posted by delucajohn2000

Funny that you mention My Sharona since I heard it recently and then had to figure out the bass line since I like it so much.

I am awful at playing with a pick but I have been messing with it more and more to try and get better. This guy has some really good videos to help with octaves and string skipping like in that song:

http://scottsbasslessons.com/techniq...-exercise.html

Funny, I've been checking out Scott's lessons as of late myself! Sharona is a great tune, and a surprisingly good workout for both hands. I just have to make sure that my hands are stretched out first.

[TK4261]

Originally Posted by keeperofthelows

CONGRATS ON THE NBD!!!

quick question about legends...
do they have the full curved body?

Thanks! they have a slight curved body (between flat and fully curved)

Originally Posted by j.kernodle

good looking legend. looking forward to seeing the refinish, please keep us posted on the progress.

I will definitely post progress pics along the way.

[iceboxbass]

Originally Posted by delucajohn2000

It's so funny. I have bought so many tracks from Jammit that now I don't even know which ones to start with, LOL. I should just do what you do and just pick a few for each week and start moving on them.

I haven't even attempted any Dream Theater tracks since I know my skill level isn't there yet. I am occasionally playing through YYZ or Tom Sawyer by Rush but still can't play them up to speed yet but I am slowly getting there



ALex's book is called "Extreme Metal Bass" but don't let the title scare you away. He really has some great exercises for both left and right hand techniques that are very helpful and would be good for all types of music.

He is all fingers too so he does have a section that explains his 3 finger technique which is just insane. There are 2 different types of 3 finger techniques that he explains and I am getting the first one down but the second one is just going to take time. He shows it in this video so you only need to see the first minute:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K3tTp7tgAbI

Adding all of this stuff to my practice routine has made me see a very big improvement in my playing though so I am definitely glad these kinds of resources are available now

Thank you John! I watched the complete video...really informative I think. Alex writes his bands songs I take it by the way he's explaining the cords part. ? Cool stuff!

[iceboxbass]

Originally Posted by bunkaroo

Well if you're making headway on YYZ I think you'll be fine to try some of the DT stuff. I think "Innocence Faded" is a very fun song to play. I learned "Pull Me Under", "Take the Time", "6:00" and "Caught in a Web" when they first came out since I worshipped the band. I of course need to use the pick on those, but the fingerings give quite the work out. More recently I've been trying to get through "Beyond This Life" and "Never Enough" cleanly.

The thing I struggle with is how much time to spend playing these songs vs. sitting and working on my own stuff. Since they have all of Images and Words, Awake and Octavarium out the completist in me wants to learn them all but that's a huge time commitment.

The Queensryche stuff is great too. Some drop D stuff in there as well. Of course I have to admit once in a while I play along to "Rebel Yell" and just go nuts on the low B."



The one I was already familiar with was the 3-2-1 ring-middle-index pattern. The funny thing like 20 years ago I started just playing along to whatever I was listening to in the car by "plucking" my gearshift with that technique before I even tried it on my bass, and after a while I was actually halfway decent at it. Obviously no substitute for practicing on the bass itself, but it got me fingers conditioned to move like that. I still like the pick better though - I love the precision.

When I started playing bass I was told to start and stay with with fingers . Once I tried pick playing with my band and one of the guitarist told me to stay with fingers, your a bass, sound like a bass, not a guitarist. Talk about a knife in the gut feeling! At the time we had as many as 6 electric acoustic guitars in our band and 16 total band members when everyone showed up. Lol Man, it was like wall to wall guitards! Lol But people have moved on and we're lucky to have 1 guitard show up anymore. This last week Sunday, we didn't have a drummer, which has been more frequent lately it seems. So of course I carry the rhythm, and we have 2 different drummers. Lol I've had people tell our leader that good thing that you have a bass player that can play and carry the bands rhythm.
I was a bit reluctant at first to buy bass lesson books but I can tell how my technique is developing by using these books.

Originally Posted by delucajohn2000

I really need to listen to Dream Theater more. I think the only song I know by them is "Pull me Under" since that was kind of their popular song back in the early 90's but I was never too much of a fan of James Labrie as a vocalist so I couldn't really sit and listen to them as much as I should have since they are all just amazing musicians. Watching them audition the drummers was a cool video to watch and got me to buy Black Clouds and Silver Linings but I haven't listened to it much yet.

I am really strange with vocalists for some strange reason, LOL. Probably one of of my favorite bands of all time is a band from the 80's called Marillion. Their first 4 CD's are just amazing to me and I still listen to them all regularly but once the original singer (Fish) left, I could never get into anything they put out afterwards. I am just odd I guess

I just received these today so this should be very interesting.

I like that album cover artwork.

Originally Posted by bunkaroo

I've been playing 25 years now, and for some reason I just started with a pick when I was 13. I was trying to learn Metallica, Megadeth and Slayer right away to play with some guys who had already been playing a few years and at the time the pick just seemed to be the best way to get up to speed quickly, no pun intended! It just always felt so natural to me so I've stayed with it over the years. I started mixing some fingerstyle about 15 years and have gradually added more as the years go by. But using the pick will always be easier for me. I'm so used to it I don't even really have to think about how I'm string hopping or alternating - it just happens. I also used a lot of staccato to try and emulate some fingerstyle stuff.

It's funny because since I do play a lot of guitar, people make the connection about me using a pick on bass, but I was playing bass for probably two years with a pick before I even started trying to play guitar seriously (for writing purposes).

I expect if I had spent as much time practicing with my fingers in my first 5 years of playing as I did with the pick I'd probably be very proficient at it, but the realities of trying to keep up with my bands made the choice for me.

At times it used to get to me that I wasn't considered a "real" bass player by some fingerstyle purists. I remember the band I moved to NYC to join in 1996, I replaced a very traditional fingerstyle player, and he played fretless. He also knew very little English even though he had moved to NYC years before from Japan. So he came out the band's first show without him, and he comes to me before the show when we were soundchecking and says in broken English "So pick, no fingers huh?" and I was like "Yep!". Then I proceeded to nail every song he had recorded as well as some new stuff. No comments after the show.

I come from the school of "if it sounds good, it is good". I might not have the prettiest technique, but I think I get the job done.

Too funny! Lol