From Guitar To Bass

[BassAdder27]

How many have gone from playing guitar to Bass ?

Since my younger years of band playing i started on bass

Then after a gap tried so hard to get good on the guitar and i made a few covers bands but struggled with good lead work

Now ive returned to the Bass at the age of 60 and feel its more in my comfort zone
1: I can play the bass better than lead guitar
2: I enjoy the feel and sound of bass lines
3: Always felt bass was something you only played if in a band ?
4: Taken me too many years of wasted effort and expensive on guitar with numerous amps etc etc
5: Playing Bass just seems to fit me and look right

Have you guys gone through similar experiences ?

 

[jamro217]

Yes.

 

[Picton]

I went from guitar to bass. There was zero angst.

It's clear to me I'm a very poor guitarist. I can play "Misirlou" quite well, and among civilians that camouflages how bad I am. But I'm bad.

On bass? I'm pretty okay. That's a step up. I know I'm better because it takes me three days to learn a guitar part and I'm never confident that I've got it down 100%. On bass, it's more like three hours and I'm very confident I can get through it well.

 

[mongo2]

I've played music since starting on accordion when I was 9 years old in 1961 and later included piano, guitar and bass. Somewhere in the late '60s I put the accordion away and transitioned to mostly bass but kept up with piano and guitar. A little over two years ago I had a mild stroke a few days before my 66th birthday that messed with my right side. While in the hospital I found that I could still control my right index and middle fingers enough to pluck a bass which was good since I had a gig in a few days. I spent most of my time in the hospital moving my right hand to get it going again.

When I got home I took stock and found that I could play bass but the coordination between my right and left hands was not that good and I would pluck the wrong string when using my then favorite Hofner Ignition Club bass. I switched to a my lightweight Mustang with its wider string spacing which helped quite a bit with the missing strings issue and a lot of practice and simplification of my parts during the two days before the gig allowed me to play it and I haven't missed one yet. Things have improved playing-wise over the last two years but I'm not 100% and finding a bass I can play with less pain is now a primary goal.

Unfortunately, I also found that I can no longer play guitar or piano effectively. I do miss that.

 

[delta7fred]

How many have gone from playing guitar to Bass ?

Much like yourself I went from bass to guitar and back to bass.

In 1966/7 I started out on bass but learned to play guitar at the same time. Before I got married I probably put in as much wood shed time on guitar as I did on bass.

Apart from a brief period where I moved to a different area I have played bass in bands from starting until the present day but never got the chance to play guitar until around 1989 when a friend asked me to play guitar in his band.

I played lead for about 12 years until one night when I had to "stand in" on bass as our bassist failed to turn up* for a gig. I never went back to guitar and think I have it out of my system now!

* He says we pushed him out, we say he quit. The reality was that his wife didn't like him gigging because it interfered with her social life. (Long story that isn't relevant here.)

 

[Frank Tuesday]

How many have gone from playing guitar to Bass ?

Since my younger years of band playing i started on bass

Then after a gap tried so hard to get good on the guitar and i made a few covers bands but struggled with good lead work

Now ive returned to the Bass at the age of 60 and feel its more in my comfort zone
1: I can play the bass better than lead guitar
2: I enjoy the feel and sound of bass lines
3: Always felt bass was something you only played if in a band ?
4: Taken me too many years of wasted effort and expensive on guitar with numerous amps etc etc
5: Playing Bass just seems to fit me and look right

Have you guys gone through similar experiences ?

Bass was first. Never had any interest in playing/learning guitar. I can play 2 chords on guitar (Em and Asus2) and have no desire to learn anything more about the guitar.

 

[thabassmon]

Yes. I started on guitar, bass wasn't long after.

I actually wanted to play bass first (and really only), but because I didn't have an instrument, I asked my friend if he had a spare instrument for me to learn on. It was a lefty classical. I learnt to play on that, lefty, then upside righty, then I strung up my dad's guitar (righty) and played righty then I got a bass (righty) as a gift.

I spent the last couple of decades playing them both, I prefer bass because to me it's more fun. I like that it (electric bass) has a relatively short history, which means there's more to explore.

Over the last year or so I have been tuning my guitars to match the tuning of my six string bass, my guitars are tuned to all fourths E2, A2, D3, G3, C4, F4
with the exception of one flat-top acoustic guitar that is tuned E3, A3, D4, G4, C4, F4 like nashville tuning but to match my all fourths tuning.

 

[BassAdder27]

I find it more relaxing playing bass which I think is a confidence thing.

Whist playing guitar live I was always concentrating hard on not playing a solo wrong etc

Plus I believe as a tall big guy the bass looks correct slung around me where as I always made guitars look small !!

 

[Joe Nerve]

1: I can play the bass better than lead guitar
2: I enjoy the feel and sound of bass lines
3: Always felt bass was something you only played if in a band ?
4: Taken me too many years of wasted effort and expensive on guitar with numerous amps etc etc
5: Playing Bass just seems to fit me and look right

Felt exactly the same.

Back around 1988 I was considering getting into covers (always played in original bands). I was learning Sweet Child of Mine and the bass kept jumping out at me. I figured out the opening riff just for fun, and then it was like a gong went off in my head.

It's a LOT easier to play bass .

I knew I could be a really good bass player, or an average guitar player. I knew too I could cover MUCH more ground on bass, a lot more quickly, than on guitar. I knew too that I could find and play in much better bands if I were playing bass than if I were playing guitar.

32 years later I know I was right about all of that .

 

[BassAdder27]

Felt exactly the same.

Back around 1988 I was considering getting into covers (always played in original bands). I was learning Sweet Child of Mine and the bass kept jumping out at me. I figured out the opening riff just for fun, and then it was like a gong went off in my head.

It's a LOT easier to play bass .

I knew I could be a really good bass player, or an average guitar player. I knew too I could cover MUCH more ground on bass, a lot more quickly, than on guitar. I knew too that I could find and play in much better bands if I were playing bass than if I were playing guitar.

32 years later I know I was right about all of that .

I think the same .. funny thing is I’m just reminding myself of the bass intro on Sweet Child of Mine .. I too learnt it as an iconic bass line
Wish I had stuck with bass but better to find out at some point than never go back and regret it

 

[Joe Nerve]

I think the same .. funny thing is I’m just reminding myself of the bass intro on Sweet Child of Mine .. I too learnt it as an iconic bass line
Wish I had stuck with bass but better to find out at some point than never go back and regret it

I think you might be surprised at how quickly you can move up that bass ladder. Especially if bass IS your instrument. Bass just came a whole lot more naturally for me. And despite how people will scream it ain't, its FAR easier than guitar. Or more accurately stated, its far easier to get good enough to be in a great situation playing bass than it is guitar. Yeah, we can argue Jaco playing better than Joey Ramone, but we all know deal. Someone starting out on bass will learn a cover set of songs a whole lot faster and more easily than someone learning a cover set on guitar. Especially if Sweet Child and some Van Halen are thrown in .

 

[BassAdder27]

I think you might be surprised at how quickly you can move up that bass ladder. Especially if bass IS your instrument. Bass just came a whole lot more naturally for me. And despite how people will scream it ain't, its FAR easier than guitar. Or more accurately stated, its far easier to get good enough to be in a great situation playing bass than it is guitar. Yeah, we can argue Jaco playing better than Joey Ramone, but we all know deal. Someone starting out on bass will learn a cover set of songs a whole lot faster and more easily than someone learning a cover set on guitar. Especially if Sweet Child and some Van Halen are thrown in .

Very true .. I know bass players are also tone searching but OMG as a rock guitarist I must of had every version of tube amp and effects you could imagine hoping I would at least sound better.

I know I could already play my old bands set on bass straight away albeit mostly root note based and that simplicity is very appealing when learning sets etc

 

[Bassic Needs]

Started out on guitar and decided to try bass last year. I enjoy them both and am having a hard time deciding which one I like more...it really depends on they day of the week. I will continue to play both but I think bass will win out in the end. It just feels a little more like home.

 

[S-Bigbottom]

WELCOME FAILED GUITARIST!

Just do not tell a guitar player that is why you are playing bass.

 

[BassAdder27]

WELCOME FAILED GUITARIST!

Just do not tell a guitar player that is why you are playing bass.

No worries ... I know only too well the relationship between guitarists and bass having done both roles !! But you’re right probably not best to admit I’m a poor guitarist in comparison lol

 

[Koog]

I started on guitar in 1963 and on bass in 1964. I played mostly guitar for many years with only an occasional stint on bass. Although I wanted to be a great guitarist, the guitar never spoke to me like bass did. Into my 50's my biggest musical ambition became to be a solid, foundational bassist in a really good blues band....to really lock up with a great drummer and provide that mystical groove upon which great soloists could dance. I have been able to achieve that ambition with some very talented regional musicians over the past 15 - 20 years.

So, yup, I started on guitar. But, I never felt fulfilled musically until I focused on bass and became reasonably competent. I don't consider myself a failed guitarist. It just wasn't my instrument. Bass is.

Oh....and I still have a few wonderful higher end acoustic guitars for sale. As in Martin, Doolin, Taylor, Lowden, McPherson. If anyone is looking, drop me a private message and we can talk specifics.

Koog

 

[KohanMike]

I started playing guitar in 1965 when I was 15 because of the British Invasion. I preferred rhythm guitar and played for almost of 50 years. I was often told I should play bass because I had good time and feel, but didn't want to be encumbered by a large electric bass, forget a standup bass. Then in July of 2013, I started playing ukulele, I became so enamored with it, I now have 8 and never touched my guitars again and gave all 4 to my nephew, a very accomplished guitarist and now composing scores.

I found that my guitar experience made it very easy to transition to ukulele. I immediately joined a seniors ukulele group of about 50 people. A year later, the leader asked if anyone would like to take up the bass to fill in our sound. In my daily surfing the web, I noticed the new bass ukes, so I did a little research and found a number of very small bass ukes and mini basses. I decided to try it and found that a small bass was perfect for me. I took a few lessons from Denny Croy at McCabe's and bass has become my primary instrument.

What's interesting to me is the bass got me into some music theory, which I ignored completely when I played guitar. With my gadget-freak mentality, I now have 30 bass ukes/mini bass guitars.

 

[Yellow Bang66]

Felt exactly the same.

Back around 1988 I was considering getting into covers (always played in original bands). I was learning Sweet Child of Mine and the bass kept jumping out at me. I figured out the opening riff just for fun, and then it was like a gong went off in my head.

It's a LOT easier to play bass .

I knew I could be a really good bass player, or an average guitar player. I knew too I could cover MUCH more ground on bass, a lot more quickly, than on guitar. I knew too that I could find and play in much better bands if I were playing bass than if I were playing guitar.

32 years later I know I was right about all of that .

In honor of the great EVH(RIP) I wanted to play guitar After hearing VHII when I started out, but later found out I was severely behind everyone else (a late starter),I switched to bass at the suggestion of the best guitarist in school & my older brother, as there was only 2 known bassist in the area.I embraced the instrument & its role, I really liked being the link between the guitar & drums , I always flirted with going back to guitar,but liked the bass too much to fully let go, Although it took me awhile to to really delve into it, Now I really get it & love tocreate/carve out unique bass parts to strengthen the song structure! I like to think creating walking bass lines are almost like mini solos. making cool sounding melodies under the chord progressions. one of my favorite things to do! Started out in an originals band then to many cover bands. Now studying rH techniques! GL

 

[AceOfBassFace]

Started off playing guitar when I was a lad, but was always pulled towards the sound and feeling of the bass on records. Really helped that my dad had a glorious Yamaha hi-fi system at the time and I'd crank that thing until the walls shook.

You don't choose the bass, the bass chooses you.

 

[BurnOut]

About 5 years ago I switched to bass after decades of playing guitar, I played mainly rhythm guitar. Never got in a band as a guitarist as they were a dime a dozen, and the giant egos was something I never liked at all. It took me about a year to shift gears and get a full blown bass player mindset. After decades of listening to mainly the guitar parts in music, listening to the bass parts was probably the hardest part for me. Once I switched I was in a band almost immediately, wish I switched a long time ago. I still play guitar, but mostly just around the house nowadays.