Great Bassists with "BAD" Technique

[BassMan99]

I would say most of these guys, especially slappers, are muting strings with their thumb over the top. I do this sometimes as well. Good muting is essential to the more aggresive techniques.
And louis johnson does some fretting with his thumb. Looks crazy but it allows him to slap hard and mute strings.

 

[BassMan99]

cool and deadly-we posted the same thought at the same time....

 

[pin_head_47]

Put it this way... a famous bassist, whom I can't recall, was once asked about his technique. He had been playing for 30 years and was well recognized, but he had really wierd, messed up technique. Someone asked him about it, and he said, "I've been doing it this way for 30 years, but if I had learned it right the first time, I could have been this good decades ago." So while it may work for them, a beginner is better off not building bad habits in the first place. I know that I would have been soooo much better off if I had gotten some good lessons and built good habits in the first place.

 

[johhn smith]

Put it this way... a famous bassist, whom I can't recall, was once asked about his technique. He had been playing for 30 years and was well recognized, but he had really wierd, messed up technique. Someone asked him about it, and he said, "I've been doing it this way for 30 years, but if I had learned it right the first time, I could have been this good decades ago." So while it may work for them, a beginner is better off not building bad habits in the first place. I know that I would have been soooo much better off if I had gotten some good lessons and built good habits in the first place.

so true, i know that i'm never going to be held back by having good technique

 

[the nasty rumor]

I've recently realized that many of my favorite bassists (John Paul Jones, Paul McCartney, James Jamerson) did not use "proper" technique. Jamerson plucked with a single finger on his right hand, JPJ wrapped his thumb over the neck and used the first 2 fingers on his left hand 80% of the time, etc. I'm sure many other famous bassists do the same types of things. So it makes me wonder...is proper technique really up to the individual? Or would these guys be 10 times better if they shed their "bad habits"?

so we're six pages in and no one has said anything about Paul McCartney's bad technique since the initial post.

Does anyone think he has bad technique? I mean, besides being left handed.

 

[ksandvik]

so we're six pages in and no one has said anything about Paul McCartney's bad technique since the initial post.

Does anyone think he has bad technique? I mean, besides being left handed.

Oh, that explains why Jimi Hendrix was so bad as he was left-handed, mystery solved.

 

[the nasty rumor]

winky wasn't obvious enough huh?

 

[All_¥our_Bass]

Technique is only bad if it hurts you or can hurt you or if it holds you back from playing the things you want to play.

As long as you don't hurt yourself, and it works, I don't see a problem with it.

Oh and the guy who said the stuff about Hendrix was kidding about the left handed part.

 

[ksandvik]

Technique is only bad if it hurts you or can hurt you or if it holds you back from playing the things you want to play.

As long as you don't hurt yourself, and it works, I don't see a problem with it.

Oh and the guy who said the stuff about Hendrix was kidding about the left handed part.

I don't mind, I do consider us left-handed being superior musicians, anyway. There's something cool about neurons misfiring and giving raise to hyper-creativity as well as lots of stupid accidents, too.

 

[COOL AND DEADLY]

I saw Tony Franklin do some wild side-to-side bends on his fretless P.

(For those of you who dont know about fretless bass technique, its very bad to bend side to side, because it tears into the fingerboard. You are supposed to bend up and down, parallel to the strings.)

Jaco did the same thing a few times, but then again, Jaco had an epoxied board to take all the abuse.

I've read (from Gary Willis) not to bend up and down in a tremelo type style, is that what you mean by "side to side?"
.

 

[enemybass]

Lol what is a ''Proper technique then ??
if it sounds good and you enjoy playing it then who cares what technique someones using
its like saying you can only make a baby in the missionary position

 

[SmilinBassPlaya]

...and it goes to prove what Ive told my students all along.....there's a million "technicians" out there...but it's the one's that Create or Write music/parts that you cant stop thinking about.....from BB King to Yngwie, from Jamerson to Pattitucci, it's all in the writing/creating, NOT the technique! The rest is just "commentary" .

 

[bassbully]

I dont know about you guys but i will take all of the great bassists bad techniques you talked about here over perfect technique anytime anyday. Bad techniques or not who cares they rock. Do any of you sit up with both hands on the wheel adjust your mirrors,check the guages,etc,etc when you get ready to drive your car like we were taught in driving school? We were taught proper driving technique? Learn and adapt to your style....that is the way.

 

[PhatBasstard]

I think this thread has got away from us.

I don't think the OP's intent was ever to knock these "Great players with (supposed) bad technique".
It was more to marvel at their accomplishments despite what might be normally looked at as improper or limiting technique.

I don't think this was ever supposed to be a "my player is still better than your player" topic.

 

[-=DanAtkinson=-]

I think this thread has got away from us.

I don't think the OP's intent was ever to knock these "Great players with (supposed) bad technique".
It was more to marvel at their accomplishments despite what might be normally looked at as improper or limiting technique.

I don't think this was ever supposed to be a "my player is still better than your player" topic.

Yes, exactly. My point is this: I took lessons from Adam Nitti for months when he lived here in Atlanta, and I signed up for his technique course on MusicDojo. I have really been focusing hard on establishing "proper technique". But then I noticed that my bass heroes (JPJ in particular) do not use the techniques I have been learning (strict 1-2 alternation of the right hand fingers, one finger per fret on the left hand, anchoring the thumb on the back of the neck, etc).

It just makes me wonder if I should throw out everything I've been doing and figure out what feels right to me.

 

[Fnord Explorer]

its like saying you can only make a baby in the missionary position

Don't let the cat out of the bag, that myth singlehandedly got me through high school.

 

[E2daGGurl]

These guys were good in spite of their unorthodox technique, not because of it.

Technique is just the pathway to art; you can take the well paved way (good technique) or the donkey track. Either way you'll (hopefully) get there but it's a lot quicker on the pavement.

That would be true for you, I suppose, and some others - but I don't think there are any good studies that show it's a majority of people who do well on the pavement.

If it were true that the pavement yielded better musicians so quickly, there would be a lot more good music to listen to.

Good music is part magic, technique is not the Royal Road.

 

[Arpeggiator]

i am a a bit of a stickler for proper technique on my self, i use one finger per fret 99 percent of the time, how geddy plays the tom sawyer lick with 3 fingers i will never know. But as it has already been said, whatever works for the player. if it sounds good thats all that really matters.

 

[ksandvik]

I do think personality counts -- sometimes you need technique to get to something you have envisioned as a musician. Sometimes you need bad playing to get there. Still, it's better than perfected musicianship with no soul and personality.

 

[KPAX]

That would be me.
Now if you'll excuse me, I have to go to a bass lesson.

Now what about bad bassists with great techniques..