Is Slap Essential?

[Matt Till]

A lot of drummers don't like slapping.

I've never met a drummer that didn't like slapping.

Unfortunatly, everyone I play original music/jam with loves slapping more than I do. My guitarist almost insists that I slap. Aren't they suppose to hate slap?

 

[fallon]

If you feel the riddim man,you wont need to ask! Slap is my fav.Listen to 'Temper' on my website www.7dd.co.uk/~fallon An example of slapping the bass over a given tempo,but adding frustration with the help of two handed slapping,with the theme of the tune in mind..."Some times I loose my temper" Endeavour to stay cool.Scotland's slap bassist.Fallon.

 

[Scot]

Is slap essential? I guess it all depends on what type of player you're stiving to be. If you want to be well-rounded then yes, it's essential. Slap is part of the vocabulary and another tool for our groove arsenal. Look at Will Lee on Late Night with David Letterman. That's probably one of the most desirable bass playing gigs out there for working musicians playing cover tunes. Will slaps, plays with his fingers, a pick, frets notes with his right hand fingers, and grooves his butt off doing all of it. If you just want to do your own thing and play with an original band that is in to your thing then no, slap is not essential. If you just want to play in a cover band that doesn't cover any songs with slap then no, it's not essential as long as they don't change their minds and decide to add some songs with slap bass to the set list. There ain't nothin' wrong with having some well polished slap licks to pull out at the music store or while tuning up for an audition, etc. People are easily impressed with it, even though we all know it sounds harder than it actually is. People treat you differently if they think you can play so if we need to pull off some showy-offy licks to demonstrate that we can play, so be it. But when the downbeat hits on the gig we just lay it down simple and make everyone else shine. Other musicians really dig you when they know you can do all the fancy stuff but yet choose to lay it down simple and groove.

-Scot

 

[ConU]

Depends on where you put slapping n the "pecking order" of essential.
Let`s use Will Lee as an example.He`s played on 1000`s of sessions,how many times was "slap" a pre-requisite?And even if it was,he has done the "homework"necesarry to make it a cakewalk.I.E. HE CAN READ LIKE A MUTHA,HE CAN TRANSPOSE ON THE SPOT LIKE A MUTHA,HE CAN SING WHAT HE PLAYS LIKE A MUTHA,HE CAN SING!!!!!!HE HAS A COMPLETE UNDERSTANDING OF HARMONY,HE KNOWS A ZILLION TUNES...ON AND ON AND ON....Point is,do your homework,learn your instrument in a musical fashion...be aware of the popular trends around you.
The mystery of styles and technique disappear,when you know the music behind it,either aurally or on the page.
Be a musician who happens to play bass,not a bassist who can't happen to be musical.
Anybody who really knows this instrument,as a muscal instrument,does'nt ask this question.
"Is Slap Essential?"

 

[quallabone]

If you feel the riddim man,you wont need to ask! Slap is my fav.Listen to 'Temper' on my website www.7dd.co.uk/~fallon An example of slapping the bass over a given tempo,but adding frustration with the help of two handed slapping,with the theme of the tune in mind..."Some times I loose my temper" Endeavour to stay cool.Scotland's slap bassist.Fallon.

Welcome to 80's Zelda!!!

WOW!

Reminds me of the Strongbad Techno song.

 

[geoffkhan]

It's not like in order to slap, you have to hit the strings THAT hard. Just hit them hard enough to make the strings hit the frets, you know?

 

[Rutgers Bassist]

I didnt read all of the posts, but did someone mention Jaco?

 

[Scot]

I didnt read all of the posts, but did someone mention Jaco?

Yes, you did.

-Scot

 

[Jacob Bartfield]

Is slap essential if you want to be a well rounded bass player? No.

Is slap essential if you play in a funk band? No.

Is slap ever essential? No.

The fact is, fingerstyle is always going to work, (and in my opinion it almost always works better). Even if you're an on call or session musician and the band leader insists that you slap, it's good to be able to do basic slap on the bass just to please the person in charge.

 

[Scot]

The fact is, fingerstyle is always going to work, (and in my opinion it almost always works better). Even if you're an on call or session musician and the band leader insists that you slap, it's good to be able to do basic slap on the bass just to please the person in charge.

Your second sentence contradicts your first sentence, doesn't it? What exactly do you mean by "basic slap" and how is that going to please the person in charge if the chart you've been handed is a notated challenging slap bass part written by the arranger who happens to play bass? I believe if that happens you're going to be happy that you've learned to read and worked on your slapping.

-Scot

 

[Jacob Bartfield]

What I'm saying is that the situations where you're going to need to play complicated slap parts are few and far between. I didn't mean that they never occur, but to me it doesn't seem essential to spend hours of time learning something that you'll almost never be asked to do. In fact, if anyone hear can name a time when a band leader called for a slap part, and it was absolutely essential to play something really complicated, I'd like to hear about it. (I know this sounds like some sort of challenge, but I actually would like to hear about it).

I'm young, and I've only been playing bass for eight years, but I have experience playing with much older musicians. The staements I've made are mostly based on my observations, and what I've been told by several experienced musicians.

 

[Jacob Bartfield]

I just looked at my first post again, and you're right. It does sound like I contradict myself. I think I meant to stick a "However" in front of my second sentance. I was trying to say that while slap isn't essential, it's nice to be able to do it a bit.

 

[CJK84]

I would hesistate to say that slap is "essential" (as in absolutely necessary) - but I think it's a worthwhile technique to study and work upon.

You don't know when it will come in useful for you - popular music is constantly changing and evolving.

As an example, I recently purchased country singer Gretchen Wilson's new CD (Redneck Woman's her big hit).

The album is country - and yet she eagerly raps on a tune named Chariot (and does a great job!).

Who would have guessed 10 years ago that mainstream country singers would be incorporating hip hop vocals?

Same probably goes for slapping.

 

[guru0z]

If you want to be true to your craft then I say you should learn to slap. Ive practiced slapping for years and I use it on gigs all the time. However, dont learn it at the expense of developing groove and pocket. Slapping is all fine and great but it will never get any gigs if you cant play in the pocket.

 

[Scot]

What I'm saying is that the situations where you're going to need to play complicated slap parts are few and far between.

I can't disagree with you there. I guess it's a difficult question to answer becasue what is "essential" for one may not be for the next. I can say from personal experience that I have been asked to slap at times (although not too often) and I'm sure that the ability to slap has helped me get gigs and be competetive with other bass players. I know for certain that a drummer recommended me for a gig that I got becasue I could slap, even though the gig didn't require slapping. He told me so later. There was a time when slapping was more important but it has dropped out of fashion recently. It will come back in to style again and when it does it'll be nice to have that bag. Once again, if being a well-rounded player is "essential" to you then you should learn how to slap since it's part of the vocabulary. Hey man, if it don't come natural to you and it ain't your thing then don't waste your time. But if you like it and have a knack for it then develop it. It's not going to hurt your playing as long as you use it responsibly on the gig. You may never know if it's essential because it's hard to tell what it was about your playing that made you attactive enough to get hired for the gig.

-Scot

 

[Scot]

I didn't mean that they never occur, but to me it doesn't seem essential to spend hours of time learning something that you'll almost never be asked to do.

Two last things and then I'll shut up. Just becase you're not "asked" to do something doesn't mean that it won't be the perfect thing that makes the producer jump out of his chair and yell: "Yeah, that's it. Keep that take". Might as well fill up your tackle box with as many different things as you can 'cuz you might be fishin' with worms when they're bitin' on corn.

Miles Davis specifically asked Marcus Miller to slap some parts that Marcus figured were fingerstyle parts. Marcus has stated that his time with Miles really helped him get his thing together and he's practically built his career on his slapping, although he plays fingerstyle and muted thumb great too. He somehow manged to find the time to get all that together as well as playing the bass clarinet, singing and playing upright.

-Scot

 

[motorhall]

Fun to know so you can go to Guitar Center and make the pop corn popping noises with everyone else in the bass room, but between the three bands I'm currently in, I have not had the need for it. That would probably not be the case if I was in some kind of funk/disco band though.

The proverbial nail on the head.

 

[Jacob Bartfield]

Just becase you're not "asked" to do something doesn't mean that it won't be the perfect thing that makes the producer jump out of his chair and yell: "Yeah, that's it. Keep that take".


-Scot

True, but all of our tastes differ. I've played lots of different kinds of music in many different contexts, and I have never once wanted nor needed to slap. I've even tried it a couple times, and it just never works for me. Maybe it's because I can't do it very well, but even so, I've never been like: "Oh man, a slap part would sound great here. Too bad I don't have the chops to pull it off." I'm always perfectly content to play fingerstyle.

So in my case, the only way I'm going to slap is if I'm absolutely required to because someone feels like being a control freak.