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Happy being a "Pocket or Groove"player?
- Thread starter pedulla-2007
- Start date
If you play music with great bass lines that keep you smiling and playing at your peak there isn't much of a reason to solo. Rocco Prestia once said in an interview that he felt like he was soloing all the time with TOP. If you're bored with adagio root fifths until you need a gallon of java between sets, a solo may be more along the lines of self preservation rather than egotism. For those who feel as if they never strove to reach their musical summit onstage, it goes back to the music, money or hang equation. Pick any two and it's okay.
It's so comical, when they said "take it", it is usually by surprise and I just usually play the same baseline a little louder, or with just a little moire intensity, shame on me. That's when I am lying in bed gathering my thoughts that my regrets come in. Could I have done better?
forget bass lines, I think dinner's on you! And playing what people want to pay for is part of the equation.
Dude I’m on talkbass. That cash would’ve been on fire and gone on some gear. That ain’t my pocket.
The best bassist is the one that doesn't stand out in the mix....because he's deep in the pocket and playing freaking perfect... A damn good pocket player will always have work... Clapton stuff, might not even notice Willie....until you start listening specifically for him in the mix. He's perfect.
Nawt. Nothing wrong with being a pocket player at all...
Nawt. Nothing wrong with being a pocket player at all...
Don't need to solo all the time, but being a "busy" player is more than okay (and very cool). Think Jaco on Kuru, or Stanley Clarke's ability to quickly transition between playing a melody run and playing his own groove, or pretty much anything by Sharay Reed (his talent is crazy).
Someone said this is a false dichotomy, and it is. If at the end of your career you're happy with what you did, savor that! Hope you keep playing in the bedroom.
You can enjoy playing pocket
Someone said this is a false dichotomy, and it is. If at the end of your career you're happy with what you did, savor that! Hope you keep playing in the bedroom.
You can enjoy playing pocket
I am most definitely a groove player. I’m not interested in taking solos and never have been. If you have something to say up front then go for it but me, I’m in the groove where I like to be.
Sitting with a good drummer is what I’m about and the response I get from other players is that they love the solid foundation I provide that gives them confidence to can breathe and soar over top without worrying about holding it together.
Sitting with a good drummer is what I’m about and the response I get from other players is that they love the solid foundation I provide that gives them confidence to can breathe and soar over top without worrying about holding it together.
im not disagreeing with you, merely using an exception to this as an excuse to post probably my favorite opera scene...
I am completely happy playing in the pocket all night long. That is why I love playing reggae. It is all about that unwavering bass line and playing it hard and strong over and over and over. I rarely solo because I really don't have the desire and am not that good at it.
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This bio was written by his family. A very good friend of mine is Bipolar I; he's great when he's medicated, but he lands in jail when he is not.
"The mid-1980s were difficult for Jaco and those who loved him. He was evicted from his New York City apartment and crashed with friends for as long as he could. After a tumultuous visit to his father’s home in Pennsylvania, Jaco briefly entered a psychiatric facility. The bassist didn’t like the effects of the lithium given to him as treatment. Jaco returned to New York and continued to play, but with his reputation for performances that could be inspiring one night but dispiriting the next work was hard to find. Friends were saddened by his severe decline. In July 1986, Jaco was encouraged to check into the psychiatric ward of Bellevue Hospital. The diagnosis: Jaco was bipolar (manic-depressive). He stayed at Bellevue for eight weeks and was released into the custody of a musician friend, who took Jaco back to the San Francisco area with him, where the two worked on a record."
Official Jaco Pastorius Website
A person with type II will not experience the extreme kind of delusional mania associated with type I. I'm truly sorry that you're dealing with this issue, and happy that you have a good diagnosis, but I am not armchair diagnosing anyone. This is common knowledge about Jaco. My purpose here is to correct the uninformed assumptions posted in this thread that he was 1) an egomaniac, 2) an alcoholic, and 3) a garden variety ***hole.
He was none of those things, nor does he deserve to have those slurs levelled against him when it's well established that his actual problem was mental illness. His family's website does not contradict anything that's been said here or elsewhere about the terrible symptoms of Bipolar I mania.
This bio was written by his family. A very good friend of mine is Bipolar I; he's great when he's medicated, but he lands in jail when he is not.
"The mid-1980s were difficult for Jaco and those who loved him. He was evicted from his New York City apartment and crashed with friends for as long as he could. After a tumultuous visit to his father’s home in Pennsylvania, Jaco briefly entered a psychiatric facility. The bassist didn’t like the effects of the lithium given to him as treatment. Jaco returned to New York and continued to play, but with his reputation for performances that could be inspiring one night but dispiriting the next work was hard to find. Friends were saddened by his severe decline. In July 1986, Jaco was encouraged to check into the psychiatric ward of Bellevue Hospital. The diagnosis: Jaco was bipolar (manic-depressive). He stayed at Bellevue for eight weeks and was released into the custody of a musician friend, who took Jaco back to the San Francisco area with him, where the two worked on a record."
Official Jaco Pastorius Website
A person with type II will not experience the extreme kind of delusional mania associated with type I. I'm truly sorry that you're dealing with this issue, and happy that you have a good diagnosis, but I am not armchair diagnosing anyone. This is common knowledge about Jaco. My purpose here is to correct the uninformed assumptions posted in this thread that he was 1) an egomaniac, 2) an alcoholic, and 3) a garden variety ***hole.
He was none of those things, nor does he deserve to have those slurs levelled against him when it's well established that his actual problem was mental illness. His family's website does not contradict anything that's been said here or elsewhere about the terrible symptoms of Bipolar I mania.
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One of my favorite "bass records" is the first Jazz Mandolin Project record. Stacey Starkweather solos on most of the tunes. I can't imagine listening to, say, "Ballad for Trio" without his insanely gorgeous solo.
Muzz Skillings' solo on "Broken Hearts" on the first Living Colour record is another gorgeous solo of the type that I wish I knew how to compose and play. N
And I could listen to Dane solo for an hour. Groove? It's there. I get that folks like to keep it simple when that's what's expected, but there's nothing wrong with being able to burn the place down when the finger is pointed your way.
I only wish that I could.
Muzz Skillings' solo on "Broken Hearts" on the first Living Colour record is another gorgeous solo of the type that I wish I knew how to compose and play. N
And I could listen to Dane solo for an hour. Groove? It's there. I get that folks like to keep it simple when that's what's expected, but there's nothing wrong with being able to burn the place down when the finger is pointed your way.
I only wish that I could.
What? You violated the "Take it" law of music??? For shame!!!
After I "take it" once, they usually want it back
I'm just not confident enough to play solos. There's one tune in our set (Brown Eyed Girl) which has a short bass solo, and I practice it at least a dozen times before each gig. I still tend to get flustered and screw it up.
My idea of a creative moment is adding a couple of passing notes between measures. To me, it's a big deal if I get them right.
