Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
Bill Wyman
- Thread starter Coolhandjjl
- Start date
Who "almost" named it the horizontal bass?
The bass in the picture looks rather big.....but maybe that's because he isn't that big a person. His right arm angle and plucking position doesn't seem bad at all....
And his left hand is actually at the best angle ergonomically for least wrist/hand fatigue and smoothness of fret travel.
I don't see anything wrong......it's working for him.......
The bass in the picture looks rather big.....but maybe that's because he isn't that big a person. His right arm angle and plucking position doesn't seem bad at all....
And his left hand is actually at the best angle ergonomically for least wrist/hand fatigue and smoothness of fret travel.
I don't see anything wrong......it's working for him.......
Last edited:
In one of those articles about when Leo developed his electric bass, it was apparently the first horizontally played bass, and that descriptive term was in the running for the product name.
I don't have the headstock pointing as much toward the sky as ol' Bill... but, I actually wear my bass in a similar fashion...
What I can never get over is how narrow the necks are on those basses! Was is that... a Framus?
I have to say... of all the bassists of the era, Wyman played my least favorite basses. Seems like he always chose some weird ones... but, hey! To each his own!!!
What I can never get over is how narrow the necks are on those basses! Was is that... a Framus?
I have to say... of all the bassists of the era, Wyman played my least favorite basses. Seems like he always chose some weird ones... but, hey! To each his own!!!
Some people can do just about anything, and it's going to be cool. Bill Wyman (Really.... he was one of the original ROLLING STONES) is one of those people. This still does look weird, looking back something like 50 years.
I wonder if that's a full scale (34") bass, and if he ever played other than short scale basses. There is 2001 documentary film, Blues Oddyssey, on him[edit: it's more aBlues documentary, but he narrates and talks about the early Stones. Good film] in which he talks about his small hands and exclusive use of short scale instruments.
Here is a wiki pic of The Stones from 1965 with him playing what appears to be the same bass. Brian on silly teardrop guitar. Even Mick looks kind'a dorky.
I wonder if that's a full scale (34") bass, and if he ever played other than short scale basses. There is 2001 documentary film, Blues Oddyssey, on him[edit: it's more aBlues documentary, but he narrates and talks about the early Stones. Good film] in which he talks about his small hands and exclusive use of short scale instruments.
Here is a wiki pic of The Stones from 1965 with him playing what appears to be the same bass. Brian on silly teardrop guitar. Even Mick looks kind'a dorky.
Last edited:
I'm getting some elbow pain in my fretting arm,so I try and hold it upright so the neck isn't so far out.
Bill always looks like he just wishes they'd let him play a Hofner in those early pics. I'm surprised he didn't go for the Fender Performer when it came out.
Early Stones is sacred stuff IMO.
Early Stones is sacred stuff IMO.
I wonder how much holding the bass that way was for ergonomic reasons and how much for sound. He got a great upright like tone in the '60s, you could really hear the shape of the notes. I think he gets a bad rap, in fact a huge part of their sound was up to him.
I just watched the a compilation of the entire Ed Sullivan show clips on YT, some great stuff. Never noticed before how sloppy they could be, while sounding great at the same time. At times Keith seemed to miss transitions pretty often, funny to watch.
I just watched the a compilation of the entire Ed Sullivan show clips on YT, some great stuff. Never noticed before how sloppy they could be, while sounding great at the same time. At times Keith seemed to miss transitions pretty often, funny to watch.
I believe he built his first bass (not that one). In Keith Richards' book, it was mentioned that Bill got hired because he was the only bass player they knew who had his own amp.
Remember how high up John & George wore their guitars at first? John probably because That's how Django Reinhart held his, and George was probably following John's style.
Remember how high up John & George wore their guitars at first? John probably because That's how Django Reinhart held his, and George was probably following John's style.
His Wiki page says, "... He created a fretless electric bass guitar by removing the frets from a cheap Japanese bass guitar he was reworking and played this in a south London band, the Cliftons, in 1961...", so that may well be true. They (=whoever created that page) reckon his 'upright' way of holding the bass was his trademark.
Maybe he was just really near sighted and needed to hold the bass that way to see what fret he was on. I'm sure that's not the case, but it's fun to imagine when looking at the pictures. Kenny Rogers held the bass that way when he first switched from upright to electric.
IIRC, Bill said in his book that holding the bass that way enabled him to get a better view of the birds in the front rows so he could pull them!
And I like Brian's teardrop Vox.
And I like Brian's teardrop Vox.
Bob Ross:- try it......hold your bass out horizontal and run your fretting hand up and down the neck.....your wrist has to flex and change position because it is arcing.
Now hold the bass like Wyman and run your fretting hand up and down the neck...almost zero wrist flex.....but your shoulder joint is going to work more.....however the shoulder joint is working in it's natural mode......so no undue tension on it.
Now hold the bass like Wyman and run your fretting hand up and down the neck...almost zero wrist flex.....but your shoulder joint is going to work more.....however the shoulder joint is working in it's natural mode......so no undue tension on it.
My incredulity wasn't with the angle of the instrument's neck relative to the player's body; rather, it was with his left hand position, and your assertion that "his left hand is actually at the best angle ergonomically for least wrist/hand fatigue and smoothness of fret travel."
Presuming we're talking about the 2nd photo in the OP:
Notice how his wrist is at maximum flexion, bent backwards? This is probably the worst angle ergonomically as far as comfort goes, because all the nerves running from the arm to the hand are under compression.
Also, notice how the lower edge of the fingerboard is being cradled by his hand below the metacarpal/phalange joint? (i.e., the 3rd knuckle) This pretty much guarantees that all four fingers will have restricted extension, and his index finger will have an especially difficult time reaching the lowest string; likewise, his pinky -- if he even uses it -- will have difficulty reaching the highest string.
In short, there's nothing about that left hand position that contributes to facility nor comfort on the instrument, and one could probably find a good number of medical (if not musical) authorities who would contend that it's detrimental to long term health. The neck angle is fine.
I remember reading an article where he stated that Keith was always trying together him to use a Fender but Bill didn't like them. He said he had a Mustang for a while that he was ok with though.
I love Bill Wyman! He's been asked about his style several times. He always said this position worked best for him due to his small hands. Also, he mostly played with his thumb in the early days. He claimed that he would have loved to play a Fender but found even the Mustang to be a stretch for him. All his basses were short scales. My favorites were the Travis Bean basses he used in the late 70's - early '80's. Like I said, I love me some Bill Wyman!
