Beginner Bassist at 47...

[Blue57]

Hey.
I'm 62 and bought a short scale Ibanez TMB30 as my first bass at Christmas.As well as trying to learn the correct techniques for left and right hand, muting etc I just try to play along with easy songs that even I can manage. My first attempt was "Papa Was A Rolling Stone", which believe me, even I could manage within five minutes (four notes!). Since then I've bough a Hofner Club Ignition (short scale again) and recently a long scale PJ type bass for £100 just to see if my smallish hands can manage. They can,barely, but life's easier with the two short scales. I just love playing along with the tracks I can manage at present. This is my current list of manageable songs that give me pleasure to play:
Good Times - Chic
Radar Love - Golden Earring
Damn Right I've Got The Blues - Buddy Guy
Too Hot - Kool & The Gang
Transmission - Joy Division
Gimme Some Lovin' - Spencer David Group
Feel It Still - Portugal. The Man
Green Onions - Booker T & The MGs
Low Rider - War
Rough Boy - ZZ Top
Run - Snow Patrol
Sunshine Of Your Love - Cream (RIP Ginger)
Seven Nation Army - White Stripes
Nothing really challenging but I get a real buzz when I learn to play a song all the way through. I'm sure TB-ers will notice how easy (mostly!) these are, but for someone without any identifiable musical ability it's my first step.
I'm sure you've noticed how friendly folk are on here and I learn a lot from regular visits.
Good luck!

 

[Lytepipe]

Also 47, but have been playing since I was 14. Could read music thanks to piano as a kid and clarinet in middle school. Have played out on a regular basis since 2007? Anyway, always ready to learn and be blown away by other players.

I saw a young bassist play a few years ago. She played a Jazz bass in a rock trio and I was really blown away at how fearless she was. The music was rough, the drummer was not great, but she was so unaffected and just went for it. Did she overplay? Yes. Did it serve the song? Not so much. But did she own it? Absolutely.

When I talked to her after the gig, she said she'd only played bass for a year or so? I don't remember. These days, she's in a few up and coming bands in Seattle and she is still fearless. Really enjoy watching her from afar.

My .02? Develop a good ear. Listen to your bandmates when they play. Play for the song, but find your moments to have a moment.

The muting thing will come. I can't remember how I learned it, but now, like you said about driving a stick, it's second nature; I don't even think about it.

Playing bass is what defines me. It is who I am. Outside of family, it's what brings me the greatest joy. I hope you get much joy from it as well.

Also 47, but have been playing since I was 14. Could read music thanks to piano as a kid and clarinet in middle school. Have played out on a regular basis since 2007? Anyway, always ready to learn and be blown away by other players.

I saw a young bassist play a few years ago. She played a Jazz bass in a rock trio and I was really blown away at how fearless she was. The music was rough, the drummer was not great, but she was so unaffected and just went for it. Did she overplay? Yes. Did it serve the song? Not so much. But did she own it? Absolutely.

When I talked to her after the gig, she said she'd only played bass for a year or so? I don't remember. These days, she's in a few up and coming bands in Seattle and she is still fearless. Really enjoy watching her from afar.

My .02? Develop a good ear. Listen to your bandmates when they play. Play for the song, but find your moments to have a moment.

The muting thing will come. I can't remember how I learned it, but now, like you said about driving a stick, it's second nature; I don't even think about it.

Playing bass is what defines me. It is who I am. Outside of family, it's what brings me the greatest joy. I hope you get much joy from it as well.

I live in Seattle, just curious who the player is you mentioned is or the bands she is in?

 

[Captain Comet]

It sounds like you are getting a little frustrated .... GOOD!!!

That usually means you are about to make a leap in skill level! You can see the goal, now you just have to stretch for it.

If I had just figured that out while I was getting very frustrated with golf, I would probably be great at it by now.
That was 35 years ago ... lol

 

[Toneguy66]

Hello! I finally made the leap and bought my first bass about 5 months ago. I started taking lessons shortly after I got it. I'm 47 years old and I've never played an instrument in my life but I've always wanted to play bass. I love a good groove. The pluses are that I'm in love with the sound and the instrument and I have great timing. The minuses are a longer list. My fingers just don't want to stretch, my fingers don't always want to behave the way that I want them to and learning to mute unused strings has me frustrated beyond belief. I had a great jam session with my instructor and another student last week but the more I progress, the more I realize how much I still have to learn and work on. I'm trying to stay positive but I'm like a dog chasing my tail at this point. I'm questioning everything that I do and my biggest fear is that my fingers just won't ever stay down or spread out. It's laughable but it's also far from funny currently. I'm hoping to hear that this is normal because the negative voices in my head are really filling me with a doubt that I'm too old and I'll never improve. Help...

I’ve been teaching a long time and it sounds to me like you’ve identified some areas to concentrate on, and one that I tell my students to avoid as much as possible. Don’t ‘spread your fingers’. Your hand is stronger when fingers are together. You’ll ‘start to reach’ for notes, more than ‘spread’. Send me an email address and I’ll send you a video of what I mean. An upright player and I were jamming one day 30 years ago and I realized why my hands were hurting was because I had my fingers spread out like a spider trying to cover 4 frets ALL the time. I teach a LOT of mechanical skills to my students to make their life easier. Peace, Tony
[email protected]

 

[jazzykitty]

Yay for 47! Thanks for the welcome. I looked at the short scale basses and I'm like "that's not a bass". I know that it would probably would be easier but I reallllllly love my bass.

Hi Kimberly - Congratulations on picking up the bass! It's wonderful that you are learning a musical instrument, no matter what age. Kudos to you!

I am wondering - have you considered a left hand fingering method called the "Simandl" technique? Classical bassists use it, and on electric, this technique enables you to play without the massive one-finger-per-fret stretches in the lower part of the neck. It helps you to play with a more comfortable and relaxed left hand. For muting strings on the right hand, consider using the E and A strings as thumb rests. (Without seeing you play, I don't know if you are already doing these things, but I thought I would offer these ideas, just in case.)

May you have years of joy and fulfillment in your musical journey.

 

[lildrgn]

I live in Seattle, just curious who the player is you mentioned is or the bands she is in?

She plays bass in a band called Razor Clam; they'll be on Band in Seattle this weekend!

 

[pht2356]

Very normal. Try closing your eyes while playing. Will you hit wrong notes occassionally, of course but everybody does. Don't worry about it and relax- it will come.

 

[Kimberly Munn]

You are working muscles in a way you never have before... both in your arms and hands and in your brain. Its like everything else you do well, it comes with practice and time.

I am 48 and have been playing bass/guitar since I was preteen. I sometimes look at my hands and am amazed I have the coordination or that my hands know what to do automatically.

For me, it is a pattern.... if I want to do this... certain muscles do this or that. And after you do it for some time, your brain will call on those muscles and patterns automatically and you wont have to think about it. You are creating new neural pathways and practice sets them.

Keep it up and all the rest will happen naturally.

Thank you for the encouragement!

 

[Kimberly Munn]

Very normal. Try closing your eyes while playing. Will you hit wrong notes occassionally, of course but everybody does. Don't worry about it and relax- it will come.

I do this! I really enjoy seeing how long I can go before really messing it up.

 

[Auspuff]

I do this! I really enjoy seeing how long I can go before really messing it up.

As painter, Bob Ross, used to say - "There are no mistakes. Only happy accidents."

 

[Johnny Em]

Yay for 47! Thanks for the welcome. I looked at the short scale basses and I'm like "that's not a bass". I know that it would probably would be easier but I reallllllly love my bass.

Don't knock the short-scale. Stopped playing for a while because stretches on my P Bass were painful because of old (66 Yrs) small, stiff fingers. Got a Squier VM Jaguar Short (30") Scale a while ago & wish I had done it much sooner because I can play comfortably again. Recently installed a set of DiMarzio P+J pickups. This little bass has a broader tonal palette than my P Bass. Bottom line, if you love your bass play your bass...just have fun playing.

 

[LucidityCrash]

I promise to give it back... I hope the stains come out.



Yeah, I've not played Rocksmith in a long time. Although it was great to get me hooked, the visual nature of the game really takes me away from immersing myself in the song. I was interacting with the screen more than with the music. Also, the fingering that is shown is quite often less than optimal. So, I now find it more rewarding to just listen to the song and find my own way. Initially though, it was a great guide! When talking about Rocksmith to someone that isn't familiar with it, I describe it as gamified practicing.

I got inspired to pull out the bass last night for the first time in ages ... Played along to Pour some sugar on me, and Golden Brown (my wife even joined in on the Piano for this one) and started to learn Joker.

 

[Auspuff]

Well, I gone and done it, again. This time a 2002 Japanese Fender Jazz Bass custom.

It's never too late to start playing, or collecting.

There's darn good road ahead, Kimberly.

 

[madmikebass]

Welcome to talkbass!
I know One thing that I think will really help with your frustration over slow progress. Record your practice session once a month. File it away to listen to later. Every time you feel frustrated, take out those recordings. Briefly listen to the past few months. You will find that, even though you didn’t feel it happen, you improved as you went. It is amazing how much better you will get each month if you stick to regular practice sessions!

 

[QweziRider]

I'm hoping to hear that this is normal because the negative voices in my head are really filling me with a doubt that I'm too old and I'll never improve.

It's normal. Just a matter of teaching the body new tricks. NEVER too old and yes, you'll improve!

 

[Kimberly Munn]

Welcome to talkbass!
I know One thing that I think will really help with your frustration over slow progress. Record your practice session once a month. File it away to listen to later. Every time you feel frustrated, take out those recordings. Briefly listen to the past few months. You will find that, even though you didn’t feel it happen, you improved as you went. It is amazing how much better you will get each month if you stick to regular practice sessions!

Thx for the suggestion! That is a great idea! I had a great jam session today and finally I am really starting to see some improvement!

 

[Sav'nBass]

Also consider this site: Karaoke Version

The tracks are $2 apiece .. Find songs that you like .. get them without bass of course.. and learn them.. Playing will do a lot as well as learning some basic stuff about music and how it works.. Consider some of the links in my sig as well as a supplement to your lessons .. and just have fun..

 

[JamesAG]

I had another lesson last night (I'm booked for 30 minutes per week with my teacher) and we were working on two topics:

1. Fretting technique. I had the neck on my bass adjusted a week ago, so now the action is perfect. I need much less strength to fret the notes, which means that I need to re-train my left hand not to use the "death grip" on the strings and to only use enough pressure to make a clean sound. At the same time, I am still working on keeping my wrist straight - I tend to bend my wrist which limits my ability to reach for the farther notes.
   
2. Timing. I am currently practicing two Pink Floyd songs. The songs themselves are very easy (Another Brick in the Wall and High Hopes), but the timing / note length is what we are focusing on. Last night, we were looking at the "break" in High Hopes, where the rhythm changes from dotted quarter and half notes to a bar of 1/8th note triplets: A-G-F E-F-D E-C-A (starting on G-2 and ending on A-0). Getting the timing and the notes right will be my focus for the next couple of weeks.

The funny thing is that I was listening to some other songs last week on the train ride home and I noticed the bass line in Argent's "Hold Your Head Up." It sounded so familiar, so I looked it up. It's remarkably simple, basically repeating the same 3-notes (D-D-D-A-C). After watching a YouTube video with a cover of the song, I was able to transcribe it and play the cover myself in about 30 minutes. I consider that to be a milestone - hearing a classic rock song and thinking, "yeah, I can play that."