Hello, introduction here, first time poster, first time bassist

[Matt Willard]

Hey fellas, my name is Matt Willard, I am 40 years old, and I live in Buffalo NY. I just bought my first bass guitar. My brother is a guitar prodigy and has been playing guitar since he was 6 years old. He’s the only true professional musician I know. He plays in multiple bands, and teaches lessons, and a couple of his songs have had some mild commercial success. He does not have another job. My dad also plays guitar, and has for 50 years, but he’s nowhere near as good as my brother. My mom died recently, and it got me thinking, I’m not close enough with my family, so I thought learning the bass could be a cool fun experience to share with them.

I do not, and have not ever played an instrument. I played alto sax in 5th and 6th grade, but I wasn’t much good, and it never stuck. I didn’t know what bass to buy, and I didnt want to spend a lot, because this hobby may not stick, and if it ended up in the closet after 2 weeks
I didnt want to have a huge investment in it. So, I asked my good buddy Tom who has been a bass player for 40 years what to buy. I wanted new, not used. We looked on ebay and amazon, mostly at Squire basses, but they were still kind of pricey. We found a knockoff brand that looked pretty similar. Its called Sawtooth. There’s a sticker on the back that says made in China, engineered in the USA…lol. Anyways, this is it.


310×742 18.4 KB
I wanted to post the amazon link, but wasnt sure if it was against the rules. Anyways, I got it for $142 shipped to my door. It had like 200 reviews with 4.4 out of 5 stars. I showed it to my dad, and my bass player buddy, and both proclaimed it to be a pretty decent playable bass for a beginner for the price. 2 of the frets sit a LITTLE high, but not bad. I plan on filing them down. My dad also convinced me to get a clip on tuner for it, so I did. It works, but not great. He also gave me a real little 10 watt guitar amp he garbage picked that works fine. It has a tiny speaker in it though that over drives easily at more than half volume…but it makes noise and works good enough for me to practice with. I am going over there tomorrow to pick up a couple bigger amps that are busted. I am good at fixing electronics.


I had a couple introductory lessons from my buddy, and he introduced me to the G-major scale, which I’ve been practicing forward and backwards. I feel like I have lead fingers. I also have trouble remembering and understanding the notes, so I downloaded these fret labels.


299×672 40 KB
Hopefully it makes it easier.


I learned how to play the most basic beginner song I could find by looking at tabs and watching videos, albeit slow and clunky like. 7 Nation Army by The White Stripes…lol Can anyone recommend some other really easy songs with a cool bass line for a total noob with lead fingers?
I’m leaning toward learning Pink Floyds Money, or Queens Another One Bites the Dust, next.

Any advice, or good learning tools I need to be aware of? As a member of many forums online, I hope this thread is in the correct category, though I suspect that its not. I looked for an introduction thread and either missed it because I'm a bonehead, or there isn't one.

 

[A9X]

Hi and welcome to TB and the low end.

If you had an experienced buddy help you pick your bass, it's most likely fine. These days many inexpensive instruments are quite good, especially compared to the cheap junk many of us here learned to play on in the dark ages.

As for learning material, there is a ton of good stuff on youtube. Just be aware that some will try to get you to sign up for courses. Resist until you find something you really like and have your brother look at it and see what he thinks before signing up. Below are a few I subscribe to, and they are all free for a lot of it. If they offer transcripts, download them, print them and put them in a folder along with a notebook to make comments or questions for later.
- Scott's Bass Lessons
- Luke's Become a Bassist
- No Treble especially Ariane Cap. They also have a website under the same name. I also bought her theory book.
- Rick Beato. He is a degreed bassist and great musical theory teacher and his videos cover a wide range of topics. Generally they are all worth watching as you'll get tidbits even from the one's you don't understand that may give lightbulb moments later. I like his book and ear training course and have paid for both.
- Bass Buzz
- Talking Bass
These are in the order I remembered them, nothing else.

For general music theory, guitar based videos are fine as are keyboard based ones and both may help your understanding.

Get an instructor. In person is by far the best if you can do it and afford it. The online material can then help you to realise what you don't know and maybe give you and your instructor some ideas on where to go next.

Get the bass set up properly and add some decent strings. On low cost basses these are usually rubbish. Both of these will make it easier for you to play physically and possibly increase the speed of your progress as you are not fighting the poor set up of the instrument.

Buy a decent small combo with an aux input and headphone out to practice with. Practice without an amp can lead to bad technique as you play harder to try to hear yourself. There are plenty of decent rigs available for low cost 2nd hand.

Avoid focusing on the GEAR. Don't worry where the gear is made as the factory and staff and the QC procedures are far more important than the country of origin. Two of my finest basses are from Indonesia and a couple of decades back I would have scoffed at that, but not today.

Accept that it will be a steep learning curve and have fun. Try not to get frustrated.
I'm sure I'll think of more and will add them as I think of them.

Enjoy.

PS: ask questions. The only stupid question is the one you didn't ask, and when you do and get an answer, many others may read and benefit from it too. And learn to use the search function.

 

[Matt Willard]

Cool, man, thanks for responding. Yeah I had my buddy the bass player, and my dad noodle around on it some, and my buddy said "it has good action" whatever that means. My dad said it plays well too (but both immediately identified the same 2 frets they said were a little high) I know it's low end though. Would you honestly recommend someone in my position buy something expensive? I'll get my brothers opinion before I do anything else for sure. My buddy also said replace the strings (as did everyone else), so that seems like solid advice. Thanks. Basically I got the nod from 2 players that it ain't a piece of crap, so I'm happy about that. I was scared it would be. Now I just need to not be crap myself....haha.

 

[jd56hawk]

Hey fellas, my name is Matt Willard, I am 40 years old, and I live in Buffalo NY. I just bought my first bass guitar. My brother is a guitar prodigy and has been playing guitar since he was 6 years old. He’s the only true professional musician I know. He plays in multiple bands, and teaches lessons, and a couple of his songs have had some mild commercial success. He does not have another job. My dad also plays guitar, and has for 50 years, but he’s nowhere near as good as my brother. My mom died recently, and it got me thinking, I’m not close enough with my family, so I thought learning the bass could be a cool fun experience to share with them.

I do not, and have not ever played an instrument. I played alto sax in 5th and 6th grade, but I wasn’t much good, and it never stuck. I didn’t know what bass to buy, and I didnt want to spend a lot, because this hobby may not stick, and if it ended up in the closet after 2 weeks
I didnt want to have a huge investment in it. So, I asked my good buddy Tom who has been a bass player for 40 years what to buy. I wanted new, not used. We looked on ebay and amazon, mostly at Squire basses, but they were still kind of pricey. We found a knockoff brand that looked pretty similar. Its called Sawtooth. There’s a sticker on the back that says made in China, engineered in the USA…lol. Anyways, this is it.

View attachment 4193968
310×742 18.4 KB
I wanted to post the amazon link, but wasnt sure if it was against the rules. Anyways, I got it for $142 shipped to my door. It had like 200 reviews with 4.4 out of 5 stars. I showed it to my dad, and my bass player buddy, and both proclaimed it to be a pretty decent playable bass for a beginner for the price. 2 of the frets sit a LITTLE high, but not bad. I plan on filing them down. My dad also convinced me to get a clip on tuner for it, so I did. It works, but not great. He also gave me a real little 10 watt guitar amp he garbage picked that works fine. It has a tiny speaker in it though that over drives easily at more than half volume…but it makes noise and works good enough for me to practice with. I am going over there tomorrow to pick up a couple bigger amps that are busted. I am good at fixing electronics.


I had a couple introductory lessons from my buddy, and he introduced me to the G-major scale, which I’ve been practicing forward and backwards. I feel like I have lead fingers. I also have trouble remembering and understanding the notes, so I downloaded these fret labels.

View attachment 4193969
299×672 40 KB
Hopefully it makes it easier.


I learned how to play the most basic beginner song I could find by looking at tabs and watching videos, albeit slow and clunky like. 7 Nation Army by The White Stripes…lol Can anyone recommend some other really easy songs with a cool bass line for a total noob with lead fingers?
I’m leaning toward learning Pink Floyds Money, or Queens Another One Bites the Dust, next.

Any advice, or good learning tools I need to be aware of? As a member of many forums online, I hope this thread is in the correct category, though I suspect that its not. I looked for an introduction thread and either missed it because I'm a bonehead, or there isn't one.

Welcome to Talkbass, where every new bass is the "Best bass I've ever played"!

Seriously though, here's a song for you to learn.
I always recommend this as any new bassist's first song...only one note, but it's all about feeling that note. Great song to work on your timing, too.
By the way, that's one good-looking P bass.

Now, this is only a recommendation, but you might want to consider a set of flatwound or tapewound bass strings...we're talking $30 or so...but there are two things to consider:
One, the strings you have on your bass might only last a few months, but flatwounds and tapewounds will last for years.
Two, believe me, your fingers will thank you, too.
I'm sure you have someone who can help you put them on...plenty of videos about it.
Just remember, with flats and tapes, always bend the sttings before cutting them.



Two more easy ones for you.

 

[Matt Willard]

Good suggestions. Thanks. The first 2 songs are nothing I would normally listen to, but I recognize them. They do sound like they have an easy bass line though (now that I am actually listening for that) I know the better than Ezra song too, very well. I'm not a huge fan of them but I can dig the general sound, and know the song rhythm very well....I could probably learn to play that really easy. I find I am listening to music a lot differently than I used to as a non player already. I don't know if I like that....hah, my brother is a guitar snob, and cant listen to anything that doesn't take amazing skills to play.

 

[jd56hawk]

Good suggestions. Thanks. The first 2 songs are nothing I would normally listen to, but I recognize them. They do sound like they have an easy bass line though. I know the better than Ezra song too, very well. I'm not a huge fan of them but I can dig the general sound, and know the song rhythm very well....I could probably learn to play that really easy.

You're welcome.
This one's easy, too.
I play it all on the E string...more fun that way.

Yes, by listening differently you'll be surprised what you can learn.
I usually discover bass lines I never really heard before.
This one's a lot of fun, too.
Nice and mellow, then it gets really in your face.

 

[filmtex]

I can relate. My first bass was a $75 Harmony semi-acoustic. Not a very good bass, but it got me through to my first band and first few gigs.
I met a very experienced (country) player in El Lay back in the late 70's, just as I was getting going, and he recommended getting a "good ole used Precision bass". I dod and still play it once in a while, it's a 1959/60 P and has carried me through well over 3000 gigs since I bought it in 1978. Your bass seems very much like a 2020's version of that. I think you're going to find that with a little set-up and a new set of strings you'll have a real player. Good for you.
As far as learning goes. I picked up a "basic bass" book by Carol Kaye and the epifany that occurred in the first few pages has served me incredibly well in the last 40 or so years. I'm talking basic scales, blues progressions and rhythm- see if your brother can help you with the Nashville Number System, it really simplified things for me.
Here's a link to what looks like the current version of Carol's book- "How To Play the Electric Bass" . If the name Carol Kaye doesn't ring a bell, watch "The Wrecking Crew", she's incredible and stands tall among those LA players that defined rock and pop music from California during the 50's, 60's & 70's playing on literally everything that was recorded in that era.
Good luck and welcome to Talk Bass. There's a bunch of really cool folks here and a ton of info.
But don't forget to have fun. Play along with as wide a variety of music as you can (I used Ted Nugent, Lynard Skynard, The B-52's, Marshall Tucker and the Talking Heads to name a few) and see if you can find some beginner guitarists, drummers and vocalists to jam with. That's where the action is.

 

[franklindayala]

Hey fellas, my name is Matt Willard, I am 40 years old, and I live in Buffalo NY. I just bought my first bass guitar. My brother is a guitar prodigy and has been playing guitar since he was 6 years old. He’s the only true professional musician I know. He plays in multiple bands, and teaches lessons, and a couple of his songs have had some mild commercial success. He does not have another job. My dad also plays guitar, and has for 50 years, but he’s nowhere near as good as my brother. My mom died recently, and it got me thinking, I’m not close enough with my family, so I thought learning the bass could be a cool fun experience to share with them.

I do not, and have not ever played an instrument. I played alto sax in 5th and 6th grade, but I wasn’t much good, and it never stuck. I didn’t know what bass to buy, and I didnt want to spend a lot, because this hobby may not stick, and if it ended up in the closet after 2 weeks
I didnt want to have a huge investment in it. So, I asked my good buddy Tom who has been a bass player for 40 years what to buy. I wanted new, not used. We looked on ebay and amazon, mostly at Squire basses, but they were still kind of pricey. We found a knockoff brand that looked pretty similar. Its called Sawtooth. There’s a sticker on the back that says made in China, engineered in the USA…lol. Anyways, this is it.

View attachment 4193968
310×742 18.4 KB
I wanted to post the amazon link, but wasnt sure if it was against the rules. Anyways, I got it for $142 shipped to my door. It had like 200 reviews with 4.4 out of 5 stars. I showed it to my dad, and my bass player buddy, and both proclaimed it to be a pretty decent playable bass for a beginner for the price. 2 of the frets sit a LITTLE high, but not bad. I plan on filing them down. My dad also convinced me to get a clip on tuner for it, so I did. It works, but not great. He also gave me a real little 10 watt guitar amp he garbage picked that works fine. It has a tiny speaker in it though that over drives easily at more than half volume…but it makes noise and works good enough for me to practice with. I am going over there tomorrow to pick up a couple bigger amps that are busted. I am good at fixing electronics.


I had a couple introductory lessons from my buddy, and he introduced me to the G-major scale, which I’ve been practicing forward and backwards. I feel like I have lead fingers. I also have trouble remembering and understanding the notes, so I downloaded these fret labels.

View attachment 4193969
299×672 40 KB
Hopefully it makes it easier.


I learned how to play the most basic beginner song I could find by looking at tabs and watching videos, albeit slow and clunky like. 7 Nation Army by The White Stripes…lol Can anyone recommend some other really easy songs with a cool bass line for a total noob with lead fingers?
I’m leaning toward learning Pink Floyds Money, or Queens Another One Bites the Dust, next.

Any advice, or good learning tools I need to be aware of? As a member of many forums online, I hope this thread is in the correct category, though I suspect that its not. I looked for an introduction thread and either missed it because I'm a bonehead, or there isn't one.

Welcome to talkbass.
Hope this book helps. It did it for me.
https://www.amazon.com/-/es/Gary-Willis/dp/0793560438

 

[Rob1957]

Welcome to Talkbass and you have started a journey.
Every one will give you advice onwhat to play and do next.
I will only say I started with a high school bass and the Mel Bay bass books in 1973 .
Your journey begins

 

[Johnny Fingers]

Welcome to the world of the F clef!
The first song I learned was Peter Gunn, a long while ago.
You have come to the right place so get a gripper and give it a go!

 

[Killing Floor]

Welcome. Enjoy the journey. Playing an instrument is good for you. Especially when the volume is dimed. Congrats, that’s a cool green. Have fun, learn at whatever pace suits you. Don’t get discouraged. I’d say bass guitar is as easy or as difficult as you make it. Sounds like you’re on a good path. Welcome to TB.

 

[BassmanM]

Great introduction! Welcome to bass and to TalkBass!

 

[Eddie LeBlanc]

Hope you have a great time learning. Remember don't be overly critical of your playing. And also style is developed over time, along with a good ear.

Just be blessed that now instructional vids, and things like tabs, and even Chordify are around these days. Back in the 60s there were Mel Bay books and 45s to constantly replay (there was no repeat back then on the turntable). Never mind 8 tracks and LPs.

Just remember to have fun and enjoy. And BTW welcome to TB.

 

[db59]

Right off the bat you have your brother and friend Tom to help, guide you....good luck my friend!!

 

[ejaggers]

Welcome to TalkBass!!!
There are a lot of good people here with loads of knowledge,
and many with a razor sharp sense of humor.

All basses can, or at least should be able to play the blues.
There are Bazillions of songs based on 1, 4, 5 changes,
plus simple changes will help you concentrate on timing
and hitting notes dead center.

Start playing the blues in G major and g minor,
then switch to F, B flat, etc. What you're trying to
accomplish is learning the shapes so you can play in any key......057912

 

[kmon]

I started late in life too. The bass is probably fine, I always recommend a pro setup...it'll make everything easier.

Unlike when we were kids, the learning opportunities are insane. You can find covers and tabs all over the place, all sorts of online lessons. My current favorite is studybass.com.

I recommend some lessons or at least running through the first section of studybass to get a grounding in the basics of technique. Then learn some songs and start playing with people...sounds like you have some good musicians available. From there you can chart your course.

You made a good move...welcome to TalkBass.

 

[ejaggers]

Oh yeah,
+100 on a pro setup and new strings.
I too would go with flats, they're not as
rough on your frets and fingers....057912

 

[Pdaddy1978]

Welcome brother!
Don't worry about upgrading basses for now. That's a good looking surf green P clone. If you handed it to a accomplished bassist, you'd be shocked at what he could do with it. Its waaay more bass than alot of us started out on.
The speed you learn at will will be determined by your level of interest.
Once you learn what notes are what, start playing with others, whether its your family or some other folks starting out. Don't be afraid of mistakes.
As a bassist, your part of the "rythem " section. Listen for the downbeat ( bass drum) when your listening to music you like.
And play, play PLAY!

 

[EatS1stBassist]

Hey fellas, my name is Matt Willard, I am 40 years old, and I live in Buffalo NY. I just bought my first bass guitar. My brother is a guitar prodigy and has been playing guitar since he was 6 years old. He’s the only true professional musician I know. He plays in multiple bands, and teaches lessons, and a couple of his songs have had some mild commercial success. He does not have another job. My dad also plays guitar, and has for 50 years, but he’s nowhere near as good as my brother. My mom died recently, and it got me thinking, I’m not close enough with my family, so I thought learning the bass could be a cool fun experience to share with them.

I do not, and have not ever played an instrument. I played alto sax in 5th and 6th grade, but I wasn’t much good, and it never stuck. I didn’t know what bass to buy, and I didnt want to spend a lot, because this hobby may not stick, and if it ended up in the closet after 2 weeks
I didnt want to have a huge investment in it. So, I asked my good buddy Tom who has been a bass player for 40 years what to buy. I wanted new, not used. We looked on ebay and amazon, mostly at Squire basses, but they were still kind of pricey. We found a knockoff brand that looked pretty similar. Its called Sawtooth. There’s a sticker on the back that says made in China, engineered in the USA…lol. Anyways, this is it.

View attachment 4193968
310×742 18.4 KB
I wanted to post the amazon link, but wasnt sure if it was against the rules. Anyways, I got it for $142 shipped to my door. It had like 200 reviews with 4.4 out of 5 stars. I showed it to my dad, and my bass player buddy, and both proclaimed it to be a pretty decent playable bass for a beginner for the price. 2 of the frets sit a LITTLE high, but not bad. I plan on filing them down. My dad also convinced me to get a clip on tuner for it, so I did. It works, but not great. He also gave me a real little 10 watt guitar amp he garbage picked that works fine. It has a tiny speaker in it though that over drives easily at more than half volume…but it makes noise and works good enough for me to practice with. I am going over there tomorrow to pick up a couple bigger amps that are busted. I am good at fixing electronics.


I had a couple introductory lessons from my buddy, and he introduced me to the G-major scale, which I’ve been practicing forward and backwards. I feel like I have lead fingers. I also have trouble remembering and understanding the notes, so I downloaded these fret labels.

View attachment 4193969
299×672 40 KB
Hopefully it makes it easier.


I learned how to play the most basic beginner song I could find by looking at tabs and watching videos, albeit slow and clunky like. 7 Nation Army by The White Stripes…lol Can anyone recommend some other really easy songs with a cool bass line for a total noob with lead fingers?
I’m leaning toward learning Pink Floyds Money, or Queens Another One Bites the Dust, next.

Any advice, or good learning tools I need to be aware of? As a member of many forums online, I hope this thread is in the correct category, though I suspect that its not. I looked for an introduction thread and either missed it because I'm a bonehead, or there isn't one.

Welcome to the world of bass. Sorry about your Mom.

 

[Aaron D]

Welcome to the club bro! Bass is the greatest instrument ever invented! If you want a GOOD cheap bass get a Glarry,there's tons of videos on youtube showing how good they are,people actually gig these cheap basses,your sawtooth might actually be a Glarry! Glarry just puts a little extra care into their brand,a 4 string is only 85$ shipped! You can get a 5 string for 120! Their good modding platforms too! I modded my 5 and it's just as good as my American fenders now!