"Bells and whistles" vs. "one trick pony"

[bassbenj]

Whoa buddy! Calm down. (Referring to other parts of your post.) In my experience, one good trick really is all people are looking for... non-bassists that is. Hence, to get work and be paid to play, you really only need to be really good at that thing, not marginally good at a variety of things. But you don't agree? That's fine. Cheers!

So you are saying that "all you need" is to get work and be paid to play? That's it? I presume this means you don't need any trick at all so long as non-bassists are impressed enough with what you are doing that you get hired. I know quite a few bassists like this. They own one bass and some old rig from 20 years ago, they work all over town, and make plenty of money.

I'm not going to say that doing that is "wrong". It works for them. But I'd call it "in a rut". My gripe is with this phrase "All you need" that everybody likes to use. To me they are implying that this is all THEY need and therefore it's all ANYBODY needs!

My musical needs go beyond simply getting a gig and collecting a few bucks. To me music is art and art is all about creativity. If I had to play the same old bass and same old rig with the same old music over and over just the same way until I could barf, I'd die. One of the most wonderful things about music is it's always different. Even gigs at the same old places tend to different each time. Music isn't static, it's constantly changing with people constantly coming up with new ideas and sounds.

So to me, one of my needs is for creativity. I NEED to be creative! Just one simple trick would not allow me to be creative the way I'd like. I want a whole BAG of tricks to pick and choose from! So if you say about yourself: "All I need is one good trick!", I can say sure, that's you and you get to do what you want. But when someone tells me "All YOU need is one good trick!", they are saying it's all *I* need and I'm saying that's simply wrong because my needs are not that limited. And if you start to imply "it's all anybody needs" then that is wrong too because I'm somebody and I need more.

My main axes are fretted and fretless G&L L2500s with actually MORE buttons and switches than they had originally! Scary, no? (But I also own a P-bass, a 'Ray, an 8 string (doubled), a jazz, etc. where is it written you are only allowed to own one bass? I may be "marginal" at all of them but hey, it's MY marginality and that's enough for me!)

 

[mongo2]

If I had to play the same old bass and same old rig with the same old music over and over just the same way until I could barf, I'd die.

It's a real "art" to be able to make that "same old music" sound fresh each and every time no matter how you feel about it at the time.

 

[Batmensch]

I prefer the simplicity of the P-bass. It works, period.
I remember someone (Scotty on Star Trek???) once saying, the more complicated the system, the more likely it is to break down. With a P-bass, I don't need to worry about fiddling with a half dozen knobs and switches, I can just concentrate on playing and not obsess on getting just "the right tone". I can dial in a great tone that works in any genre of modern music you can think of on a P-bass with a minimum of effort. I guess that's why recording engineers as well as us bassists love them so much.

 

[elavate7]

Depends on what that 1 trick is.... I like playing finger style with a nice low tone. So if that's all a bass can do, then ill take it

 

[Munjibunga]

Bells and whistles for me. I adjust my tone to fit the song at gigs. Yes, I play a lot of them with the same tone, but there are some, for example "Mystery Achievement," that need a certain bass tone for authenticity. That's when the bridge pickup and mid boost come in handy. Sure, I could do it just in the hands, but I'm lazy. "You Oughta Know" is another.

 

[soulman969]

Of what particular use is a bass that has 9 different basic sounds if eight out of nine are worthless and I've played some like that. I wouldn't call a JBass a "one trick" pony but 80%-90% of what I can get out of it is usable tone and that's all I care about.

 

[chadds]

No bass is a one-trick pony that I've encountered, not even the Ashbory bass. It's really the player. But I do like a bass that is easier to dial in, and that usually means simpler.

+1 the player playah
The Ashbory is a multi toned instrument that can be used in any genre. Well....., it might look weird in Metal but the fundamental would exceed what most Metal bands & audiences expect to hear from their bassist.

 

[jumbodbassman]

depends on the gig situation. If the band is a one trick pony is a small gender? of music that works fine. other bands i play with are l over the place so i go bells and whistles or multiple basses, mostly both