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Double Bass How to keep your lines interesting ?

EddiePlaysBass

EddiePlaysBass

Feb 26, 2009
2,226
3,287
Belgium
www.myspace.com
#1
Hey guys,

Bit of a newbie to this forum, so forgive me if I bring up a topic that's been discussed often. Before I do so, however, allow me to introduce myself: name's Dave, I've been playing electric bass for about 7 years (give or take) and electric upright (one of those WAV's) since early 2009. I play in a rockabilly / rock'n'roll band (as in '50s Elvis, Chuck Berry, Johnny Cash and so on) and am saving up for an actual doghouse.

Now my question is: a lot of these old tunes have a similar I-IV-V chord progression, and our guitarist loves to play in A. So I am rapidly becoming an expert in the many different ways of going from the A to the D to the E :D How do you guys keep this kind of situation "interesting" ? Mind you: I'm not the world's smoothest walking bass player, nor can I do the upright slaps very well (I seem to get better results applying that technique to the electric, for some reason).

Obviously, it's the song that matters and I don't mind playing arpeggio's, chromatic walk-ups and the occasional root thumps but I would like to hear from other people in similar situations :) In the meantime I'll just continue doing what I do, and hopefully improve in the process. Thanks, all !
 
#2
So many guitarists are lazy and never seem to want to leave those open chords. You've got to get him to change the keys on some of the songs. It's not interesting for the audience to hear one song after another in the key of A. Try playing in Bflat. That should give you a different perspective on how to move around the bass.
 
#3
A good question. Here's my take: Simplicity and space between the notes. Don't be afraid to put a little rest between your eight notes when playing a simple part - it helps accent the rhythm. I also like to swing those sorts of parts by playing "Swung eighths" or what you might call "triplets without the middle note" - give it more groove. This doesn't work for all tunes, but you'd be shocked how many it DOES work for.

Another thing - Determine the register your guitar/keys are playing in and play the opposite - if everyone is in the same register, it starts sounding muddy. If folks are spread out a bit, it sound bigger.

Hope that helps.
 
#4
Learning how to slap well will go a LONG way towards making simple Rockabilly lines sound more interesting. That and learning about scales and chords, etc. Walking lines are the bread and butter on alot of blues-based music, so get somebody to give you some lessons.

Most slappers I know are very cool about showing other bass players some slap techniques and tips too, even before or after their set. I have gotten a couple lessons from really good Country & Rockabilly slap players and it helped a ton.
 
#5
Slap is pretty crucial to it. It's percussive at the same time as tonal so it adds to the lines. I definitely have to recommend perfecting that as soon as you can. They key is staying loose and not trying to break your fingerboard in half. Lowering the action helped me probably more than anything on my bass, too. Also, backwards scales and arpeggios can be mixed with ascending to add a bit more of an interesting walk. And don't be afraid to stray from walks and play more like a rock bassist. As long as your guitar player is carrying the rock and roll sound most of the time, it will still be cool for billy stuff. Check out some of the less grungy psychobilly bands for inspiration on this.... Rev Horton Heat, especially.
 
#7
barbarbass said:
It's all about inserting the "wrong" notes into those kinds of lines. Instead the usual run-up to D (from A) through B and C#, try other stuff. For instance, run up the E string through F# and G# and jump that tri-tone to D. Maybe that's obvious, too . . .

There are no wrong notes, only nuances.
Click to expand...
You may not last very long in a band if you believe the last statement. There certainly are wrong notes.

I think what barbarbass is suggesting might be better stated as good voice leading makes for interesting bass lines. That is finding tension notes that resolve nicely to the next chord. Careful though, certain genres of music like rock-a-billy probably is not the best place to check out tri tone substitution.
 
#8
Dbassmon said:
I think what barbarbass is suggesting might be better stated as good voice leading makes for interesting bass lines. That is finding tension notes that resolve nicely to the next chord. Careful though, certain genres of music like rock-a-billy probably is not the best place to check out tri tone substitution.
Click to expand...

At this point, with this band, I'll try anything and everything, whether it is genre-fitting or not. Our singer suggested a certain song and the guitarist started playing it immediately. At first all of us were surprised that he knew it, until I realised he was just playing his favourite A - D - E progression. He could probably rework the entire Dream Theater catalogue to fit that progression ...

That said, I was practising Elvis' "Rip It Up" which we will play upon the guitarist's suggestion, and I was pleasantly surprised to notice that I have found yet another way to move between these chords. And I'm sure there's plenty of ways left to discover. If I stick with this band long enough, I'm bound to find all of them :(
 
#10
Ha. I hear you, it suck when it gets boring.

Maybe you could give us an example of some of your favorite basslines in A-D-E. And from there, people could suggest alternatives.

For example, in a typical Root-5 line, I like to use both fifths - in A it would be the open E-string and then the E on the D-string. So the first four notes would go like this:

(Open A)-(Open E)-(Open A)-(E on the D string).

This works well because when you shift out of A into D, the E that you just played provides a nice lead tone.

Another bassline that I like is 1-3-5-3 1-3-5-3 1-3-5-3 5-3-1-7

Also when I get bored I tend to add "octaves" every now and then.
 
#11
Bass, I like your suggestion about using both fifths, it is an avenue I have not yet explored, but will undoubtedly get a chance for soon enough.

Bass said:
Maybe you could give us an example of some of your favorite basslines in A-D-E. And from there, people could suggest alternatives.
Click to expand...

As soon as I have some time, I'll write out all the different movements I've come up with for the songs we play (or at least the ones in A - I believe it's all I-IV-V except Stray Cat Strut). It would be interesting for myself too :)
 

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