A couple of weeks ago I started a thread about an interesting phenomenon, about perceptions between basses and guitars. Well, here's something else of interest I've noticed. Have any of you ever worked in a somewhat noisy environment, with a radio blaring nearby and one speaker either not working or not working right so some of the music you're hearing is muted or inaudible? I work in a machine shop, and I'm just a few feet away from a boom box with only one speaker working right. Here's the phenomenon - the bass lines to any given song just jump out in a very prominent manner! It's absolutely amazing, as I'm working I'm getting a chance to study some of the greatest bass lines ever done! Some observations:
- Less is definitely more. All the great and not-so-great bassists play just enough to support the song. The song comes first!
- All bassists I've heard (you name them!) have first and foremost an impeccable sense of time. You want to get better as a bassist? Always practice with a metronome. It's a must if you want to be a world-class bassist.
- All the great rhythm sections work as a unit. Entwistle/Moon, Jones/Bonham, McCartney/Starr, Lee/Peart, Bruce/Baker, you name them, they know each other better than they know their own wives!
- The style of music you play doesn't matter. Country, rock, jazz, whatever, at the top level - good enough to be on the radio - they're all good, and sometimes great!
- Less is definitely more. All the great and not-so-great bassists play just enough to support the song. The song comes first!
- All bassists I've heard (you name them!) have first and foremost an impeccable sense of time. You want to get better as a bassist? Always practice with a metronome. It's a must if you want to be a world-class bassist.
- All the great rhythm sections work as a unit. Entwistle/Moon, Jones/Bonham, McCartney/Starr, Lee/Peart, Bruce/Baker, you name them, they know each other better than they know their own wives!
- The style of music you play doesn't matter. Country, rock, jazz, whatever, at the top level - good enough to be on the radio - they're all good, and sometimes great!
