How do I get “it”?

[squeally dan]

Played guitar in a wedding band for over 20 years and also in some original projects. Over the years I seem to end up on bass for more and more gigs. Either gigs that pay less and we don’t need guitar or the bass player can’t play. This has been going on for many years but over the past few months I’ve actually gotten more serious about bass and practicing it. I’m really loving it.

Our band leader who is also the drummer has told me he actually prefers me to the actual bassist because I’m tight and keep things simple. However, I hear other bassists who just seem to have “it”. The just make it feel really good and that’s what I’m striving for.

Once we played with a very awesome Prince tribute act (The Purple Experience”. We were in the middle of Fire by the Ohio Players and I noticed the bassist from the Prince band was watching. I quickly handed him my bass mid-song and he sounded so great. It wasn’t that he was playing something real technical but it grooved so hard.

So, what’s the best way to develop that? How do I get that feel? I can play on time but I want to get “it”.

 

[rickster4003]

It's like mojo, you either have it or you don't!

 

[RyanOh]

Shot in the dark, is it note length? I find some players let notes ring until the next note, and a lot of times I am leaving space between notes. Then timing, playing ahead, on, or behind the beat. Ability to swing the beat.

Coincidentally, Ohio Players' Fire is an excellent example and great tune!!

If you play legato and on the beat, to me, that's the opposite of "it".

(Also, this will turn in a "pocket" thread but I find that means 100 different things to 100 different people.)

 

[bholder]

I don't got "it". At least, not that "it". But there are plenty of other "its", some of which I do have a bit of. So there.

 

[Stewie]

Watch the drummers face, if he smiles, you’ve found “it”, or he has gas

 

[220_Hz]

Played guitar in a wedding band for over 20 years and also in some original projects. Over the years I seem to end up on bass for more and more gigs. Either gigs that pay less and we don’t need guitar or the bass player can’t play. This has been going on for many years but over the past few months I’ve actually gotten more serious about bass and practicing it. I’m really loving it.

Our band leader who is also the drummer has told me he actually prefers me to the actual bassist because I’m tight and keep things simple. However, I hear other bassists who just seem to have “it”. The just make it feel really good and that’s what I’m striving for.

Once we played with a very awesome Prince tribute act (The Purple Experience”. We were in the middle of Fire by the Ohio Players and I noticed the bassist from the Prince band was watching. I quickly handed him my bass mid-song and he sounded so great. It wasn’t that he was playing something real technical but it grooved so hard.

So, what’s the best way to develop that? How do I get that feel? I can play on time but I want to get “it”.

Subdivisions. Get a good feel for the lengths of notes (quarter, eighth, sixteenth, etc). The feel will come naturally when you start to consider your location within the subdivisions

 

[bikeplate]

Your emphasis should be on your plucking hand. Thats where the magic is

 

[gtirard]

I think if you play each note as if your life was at stake, people can heart the difference.

make an experiment with a super simple groove. recorded it twice: first time straight, then concentrate to play each single note as if it was the last one on earth. Then listen and compare to see if you hear any difference.

 

[gidbass]

 

[MisterFabulous]

Shot in the dark, is it note length? I find many players let notes ring until the next note, and a lot of times I am leaving space between notes. Then timing, playing ahead, on, or behind the beat. Ability to swing the beat.

Coincidentally, Ohio Players' Fire is excellent example and great tune!!

If you play legato and on the beat, to me, that's the opposite of "it".

(Also, this will turn in a "pocket" thread but I find that means 100 different things to 100 different people.)

This. Practice timing, hearing time in the performance. As a seasoned musician, you are already better equipped than most.

 

[Danny C]

I'm kind of a dummy as not being schooled, can't read but I've been told I got it by many. I don't know what I'm doin but I guess it's all about my feel. And because of that I have a gig with Bernard Purdie next week. And George Naha on guit, Rob Paparozzi on harp. I guess I have something if these cats asked me to play. I just don't know how to explain what the it is. But when IT does happen with a drummer you will know.

 

[mike buzzetti]

Learn MOTOWN when you FEEL the GROOVE thats IT ( IT tends to be behind the beat )

 

[Freekmagnet]

It sounds to me that you're describing "feel". Feel is an incredibly vague yet expansive topic that all musicians strive (or should strive) for. My best advice is to listen to as much music as you can - especially the music that sounds like it grooves to you. Once you do that, keep going back in time and listen to the music that spawned that music and try to understand where "it" comes from and what makes "it" what "it" is. Only when you understand your place within the universe of "it" will you understand "it".

 

[micguy]

"It" as you're describing it, is about timing - you groove hard by being "on time" but not "robotic". A bassist and drummer who groove hard (it takes 2 to tango) understand, without having to discuss it, where to push and pull the beat - if the drummer is doing syncopated stuff, you put down a parade of dead on the beat quarter notes, so the syncopation stands out, and the rest of the band knows where the beat is. If you're pushing and pulling on the beat to deepen the groove, he's holding down the precise timing for you - it's a give and take thing (a rhythmic dance, really) that happens more or less automatically between two really good players.

Last weekend, I was playing with a less experienced drummer - she was decent, but when I pushed or pulled on the beat, she didn't dance - she followed me - I realized I had to play much straighter, or we'd wander off tempo. We (regardless of my experience) didn't have "it". Over time, maybe, but as of this point, not there. This weekend, the drummer I'm playing with - we're good. We'll have "it".

How do you get here? First off, you have to be able to play right on the beat - practicing with something with good timing helps here, whether it's tunes, a metronome, or whatever. The more precise you can be, the better - if you want to push and pull on the beat, you have to know where (actually when) the beat is. The rest is experience - it isn't going to happen the first time you play out somewhere, but if you play out enough (hundreds of gigs), and are paying attention, it's a skill that organically gets built.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

Played guitar in a wedding band for over 20 years and also in some original projects. Over the years I seem to end up on bass for more and more gigs. Either gigs that pay less and we don’t need guitar or the bass player can’t play. This has been going on for many years but over the past few months I’ve actually gotten more serious about bass and practicing it. I’m really loving it.

Our band leader who is also the drummer has told me he actually prefers me to the actual bassist because I’m tight and keep things simple. However, I hear other bassists who just seem to have “it”. The just make it feel really good and that’s what I’m striving for.

Once we played with a very awesome Prince tribute act (The Purple Experience”. We were in the middle of Fire by the Ohio Players and I noticed the bassist from the Prince band was watching. I quickly handed him my bass mid-song and he sounded so great. It wasn’t that he was playing something real technical but it grooved so hard.

So, what’s the best way to develop that? How do I get that feel? I can play on time but I want to get “it”.

Listen to recordings of yourself. You may be better than you think.

Besides, it's likely you are not going to remember every note you played or it's impact on the the ensemble as a whole.We record each gig and rehearsal for just such purposes, and review religiously.

I assure you this will change how you play. I was once a wild off the cuff counter punch type of player. 11 years ago when I resumed playing in our band, My wife was sitting out in the audience recording gigs on her Ipad, and we would listen to the gigs on the way home. Primarily for the reason, the bands original drummer also resumed playing at the same time and he had a much different approach that the drummer that was working with them at the time.

In the process, I heard a lot of things I was doing that were not at all useful and gradually weeded out excess parts, lines of poor logic, and problems with my technique (Brother did I ever got an earful of that). I'm a much better bassist because of it.

Still miles to go on the technique that may never resolve, the product of 60 years of playing without proper supervision (IE a good instructor). LOL!! But the band sound great, better than ever.

 

[REV]

The "it" that can be defined is not the "it". I feel like I had a little bit of "it" when I started playing and I feel like I have more "it" now than I did then. I hope this continues.

 

[brianrost]

Playing guitar for 20 years, now playing bass and looking for "it"...what the heck were you playing for 20 years.

Grooving on bass is no different than grooving on rhythm guitar. Biggest aid to grooving....relaaaaaaaax.

 

[mike buzzetti]

I like my IT better than YOUR IT

 

[Bunk McNulty]

Shot in the dark, is it note length? I find some players let notes ring until the next note, and a lot of times I am leaving space between notes. Then timing, playing ahead, on, or behind the beat. Ability to swing the beat.

Coincidentally, Ohio Players' Fire is an excellent example and great tune!!

If you play legato and on the beat, to me, that's the opposite of "it".

(Also, this will turn in a "pocket" thread but I find that means 100 different things to 100 different people.)

Placement and duration may not give you the “It” you speak of, but they’re an important part of getting there. I can’t say I have “it,” and nobody has ever accused me of virtuosity, but the people I play with seem to like having me around. Whatevah…

 

[MVE]

We all have different tastes and opinions about whatever “it” is.

But try singing or humming what you think you want to hear first. If it sounds really good to you, then figure it out on the bass.
You can’t make good noises with your fingers if you can’t hear them in your mind first.