Yes, Billy has a very POWERFUL right hand.
"La Incredible" Billy
Billy Sheehan - Bass Solo
Here is his Intro lesson.
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How fast can you go ?
- Thread starter bassbrother666
- Start date
Yes, Billy has a very POWERFUL right hand.
"La Incredible" Billy
Billy Sheehan - Bass Solo
Here is his Intro lesson.
Yeah I've seen those. He's great. I think his tone is also really cool. Distorted high end and thick low end. I wish I could find his advanced bass lesson online without having to download anything.
This morning, I've tried the 16th notes at 200BPM.
It's way beyond my technical capabilities. I was able to keep up with that 200BPM tempo for a very few milliseconds, but here is my question.
I could not use ANY EFFECTS, ANY EQ, any compressor, etc... with my bass.
Nothing, just plain, "naked" Jazz Bass sound on the D string; otherwise, it was getting too "muddy"/"blurred".
I'm just wondering.
How can the Metal Bass players play those very fast notes ON STAGE/LIVE (not only on the D string) and use quite a few effects?
http://cdn1.talkbass.com/data/attachment-files/2015/08/2573910_488771c921020f4243ec3a2ac251a363.mp3
It has a lot to do with their attack. The harder you attack (fingerstyle or pick) the clearer the note will ring. Playing soft is generall a good idea, unless you want really clear and defined notes. Also, if you play different notes at that speed (as in not tremolo), then you'll hear the botes a bit better as well.
When I took over the bass position in my current band, I changed several of the parts in originals from 1/8 notes to 1/4 notes. Sometimes the repeated 1/8 notes sound like a wall of mud. The band was amazed how much cleaner everything sounded.
I have nothing against fast playing, you just need to be careful where and how much it is used.
Also, I have my doubts about how 'ready for stage' some of these super quick claims are. There is a huge difference between sitting alone in a room by yourself with a metronome and playing on stage with a band.
Evan Brewer and Adam Getgood both talked about this in a Bass Player Magazine article and how they have to do this in their bands.
I think some music works great with quarter notes and stuff. I think other music, especially in genres where speed is important, sounds great with bass playing up to speed with the guitars. Now, I think it's good to know when the music calls for you to sit back and just groove, but I think it's just as good to know how and when to play fast.
I can play faster than a free bird, but just slower than a Mustang, Sally. 
Faster than ants marching, but not quite as fast as a pink Cadillac.
Faster than wild horses but can't keep up with a low rider.
Faster than ants marching, but not quite as fast as a pink Cadillac.
Faster than wild horses but can't keep up with a low rider.
Usually, I break a lot of bass strings on a regular basis, but at that tempo - 200BPM - the finger movement amplitude shrinks and, of course, the right hand "torque" also diminishes, unless you have Billy Sheehan's fingers.
Next morning/s, I'll try to incorporate some left hand movement, but it will require more synchronized left/right hand technique skills than just the right hand movement.
Here is the same clip but with added my regular effects:
http://cdn1.talkbass.com/data/attachment-files/2015/08/2574024_0d310dfc54f044ff487cc7d292735559.mp3
That sounds fun. What music school?
Some friends were doing a music program at a college but I didn't think the quality of the education was too good.
I would love to get faster. The only way I have had any luck is by having something in my vocabulary in an ironclad way.
I think being able to play a fast lick, in a burst of speed, is very valuable to any bass player.
I’ve heard that practicing very slowly leads to great speed- i.e. you don’t have to practice fast to be fast. I would love to hear if any advanced players have an opinion on that.
I think being able to play a fast lick, in a burst of speed, is very valuable to any bass player.
I’ve heard that practicing very slowly leads to great speed- i.e. you don’t have to practice fast to be fast. I would love to hear if any advanced players have an opinion on that.
What? 196 bpm with 2 fingers? That’s a dream!
My target is 140 bpm with 2 fingers, constantly for 4 minutes (a song duration), good tone, even dynamics, different strings (but not crazy jumps like 1st-4th strings nor fret hand crazy work). And I am still far from there…
Oh ok, I read your correction in another post. Well, 169 bpm for 20 seconds is still a very high speed and will cover you most crazy speedy parts you may come onto!
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I'm just a lowly drummer learning to play bass, but I'm having a hard time believing we're talking about 16th notes.
Go to this metronome. It's got simple subdivisions (quarter note, eighth note, eighth note triplet, and sixteenth note). I dialed it up to 180 BPM with 16th note subdivisions (I can't even count 1+e+&+ah, etc out loud at that tempo, it's so dense). If you're able to play that with alternating index and middle fingers, I'm mind-blown. That's freakishly athletic stuff. I can't even tap my fingers that fast, let alone pluck.
I'm gonna stick my neck out and say 8th notes is the measurement here. (Fire me if you must.)
Go to this metronome. It's got simple subdivisions (quarter note, eighth note, eighth note triplet, and sixteenth note). I dialed it up to 180 BPM with 16th note subdivisions (I can't even count 1+e+&+ah, etc out loud at that tempo, it's so dense). If you're able to play that with alternating index and middle fingers, I'm mind-blown. That's freakishly athletic stuff. I can't even tap my fingers that fast, let alone pluck.
I'm gonna stick my neck out and say 8th notes is the measurement here. (Fire me if you must.)
No you’re not wrong. 180 bpm 16th, even if for a bar only, is an insane speed and of course doesn’t make who dedicates to get there any better musician than others (indeed, usually who concentrates a lot on speed, doesn’t sound good. Great professionals apart, but these are not speed only machines, they know how to play the bass AND they can even do it fast).
It’s easy to feel far from good when you watch youtube’s phenomens. But the reality is made by normal people like me and you that don’t live of music and so can’t spend their entire day every day on their instrument (and even in such case, there are plenty of skills which get the priority on such gimnick. At least, if I had the time, I know how I could spend next 1,000 playing hours and these don’t include getting 16th at 180 bpm).
Of course, more experienced bassists won’t fear 120, 130 (or even 150 bpm 16th for very short phrasings). Personally, I am playing a song right now with prolonged 16th at 138 bpm, and I am almost there but still struggling… the only reason for me doing this is a NICE SONG I have to play that has that rhythmics and speed, so requires the bassist to groove accordingly. Otherwise, I would have never done that. With 120 bpm 16th I can play 99% of the music I like to play, don’t care for the remaining 1% (in Economics theory words, the marginal benefit doesn’t equal the marginal sacrifice. At all!)
Ps: I can’t tap my fingers on a table at 130 neither, but can do it on a string. When you hit strings is different because they oblige you to have a controlled movement that you are not gonna have when tapping on a table. Fast 16th with 2 fingers require you to be relaxed, and keep the wideness of the fingers movement at the bare minimum. If you hit the strings like Flea, you will never play 16th at 150. It’s just about practicing (no music genius stuff).
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I don’t consider myself an advanced player. But, IMHO, playing slowly helps in 2 ways, at the same time: 1) makes you precise, even, and lets you control the tone, so that when you then play fast your 16th are not “dirty” but nice to hear, powerful, and sound good; 2) trains your fingers muscles, so by playing for long time you make them stronger (if you want to play for long time, then you have to do it slowly or you won’t last. Think about running).
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I have never timed it, but I can play pretty fast. I’ve been playing about 50 years, and I use standard two finger alternating.
The passage ofTime is what helps you get better. Decades even. I don’t believe that specific practicing to increase speed will overcome the constraints of Time spent, but I suppose it can’t hurt either.
The passage ofTime is what helps you get better. Decades even. I don’t believe that specific practicing to increase speed will overcome the constraints of Time spent, but I suppose it can’t hurt either.
