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Let's face it: bass guitar isn't that hard

#421
Montana Matt said:
I think a good number of the people on this forum regard themselves as part artist and part craftsperson. I do. If you were to go to a woodworking forum and say let's face it: woodworking isn't that hard, you would probably ruffle some feathers. I am amazed that this discussion has remained mostly civil for 21 pages. There is always more to learn about one's craft/art. In my opinion an opening statement like yours is disrespectful to those who have spent their years playing the bass.
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I disagree. In fact, i dont know why it would upset you at all.
 
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#422
Montana Matt said:
I am amazed that this discussion has remained mostly civil for 21 pages.
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I dunno. This forum has its moments I guess, but in the relatively short time I've been on it things generally stay pretty civil. And I've found this thread to be interesting enough so far. IOW, not everything I disagree with is a troll attempt.
 
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#425
How bout This
 

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#427
10cc said:
Once you figure out what words in the lyrics drop on what hits on the bass it becomes pretty simple. Then you got to make sure you can actually sing.
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Absolutely Agree - initially it took hours of patience to break down where those hits were in any particular song.

But my attitude has always been, if they can do it, I can too. In my case that meant respecting the original bass line/player enough to learn the bass line of a particular song note for note - no matter the genre. And after that, if I want to mess with I will.

And then you tackle the singing - be it back ups or lead. That's where finding where you sing on a downbeat and play on an upbeat comes in.

I was in a relatively successful touring band that wanted to do Detroit Rock City by Kiss. In that song (studio version) 1/2 way through the first chorus is a lick the band plays together over "You gonna lose your mind in Detroit Rock City" I think the lyric went. It took a while but I was able to do both at the same time.

Then, the song that broke the wall down for me was Time the Avenger by the Pretenders. I'm a tenor so she is in my range for the most part. That song took me hours to learn to sing lead on and play bass at the same time - talk about syncopation!

But after that everything else seemed to get easier to sing and play. Bottom line is you have to learn the material absolutely cold so you're not thinking anymore - just playing and singing.

And that takes hours of practice, practice, practice - but it's worth it!
 
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#428
Mantis Tobaggan said:
I have been playing bass guitar for 22 years. I have played in a folk rock band, a jam band, a cover band, a punk band and now I am playing in a metal band.

Does anyone else feel kind of modest when discussing being a bass player? I feel like I am good at bass but also like this isn't that big of a deal. I also feel like it is probably the easiest instrument to learn and get decent at. I tend to offer suggestions and discuss things with my band, but I also keep myself in check by reminding myself that I am just the bass player. I guess I have a slight inferiority complex about being a bassist. The other guys in my band think I'm great and it is strictly me doing this to myself btw. Am I the only one who feels this way?

It's bad. When someone compliments my bass playing I smile and say thanks but I think to myself "it only has four strings and we dont play chords but thanks..." Maybe I am being too hard on myself ...
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Hey Mantis. Here is a video of my favourite Metal bassist. He plays with more style and uses more genre influances then any bass player I know in metal. Here he is playing with a 4 string, he usually plays a six string.

If you feel that what you are playing is too easy maybe trying to learn some of Jarons stuff will set you on a new path. It did for me.

 
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#430
i like playing bass - i know i am not very good. but that's okay. besides, while Ryan Martinie still walks the earth no matter how good we get, you and i will never write anything as good as he did on Ld.50 and we wont even get close. not even close, not ever.

Minirehak 212 said:
Well you got two kinds of bass players, a nice simplistic one laying down the groove and well you got this guy
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god i hate this so much. His bass tone makes me want to hurt myself and the people close to me.
 
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#435
I've though about this a while.
Some things come easy to some people.
We've probably all known someone who could pick musical things up quicker than seemed normal.

And then people like Robert Fripp who admitted he had to work awfully hard to feel adequate.

And then there are those who have a gift and also work hard at it.
Franz Liszt/Anton Rubenstein had that quote
"If I miss one day's practice, I notice it. If I miss two days' practice, the critics notice it. If I miss three days' practice, the public notices it."

I think Rubenstein modified it for miss two days and his wife noticed.

Anyway if something comes easy, good for you, but then there's drive.
And drive keeps one working on more and more difficult passages or exercises or ?? even though maybe that's not what gets played on stage, but just for personal development. If bass is easy, it's just not up against the bounds of your abilities.
 
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#436
Mantis Tobaggan said:
Some people get where i am coming from but most seemed a bit indignant. So i guess.
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I wonder why they got indignant. You only mistakenly called our instrument simple, and said we aren't as important as the other band members.

It's actually hard to be the bass player. You're listening to the drummer, matching his groove, wrapping your lines around the cool thing he's doing with his high hat. You're listening to the rhythm guitar, matching your fills to his gaps, and you're listening to the lead, not making your fills jar with his lead. And at the end of the song, when you ask the guys? Nobody but you noticed that the drummer even has a high hat, the rhythm guitar had no idea he was out of time, the lead had no idea his guitar was out of tune, and the drummer didn't realize that he did a fill every bar stepping on everyone's toes. They all know exactly what they did or wanted to do. No idea what the hell anyone else did. Just fretting the notes or bashing a snare is the easy part. Any trained monkey can figure out where a C note is on a neck if you have enough treats and a day to kill. Bass players have to see the whole musical picture, in order to know how to tie it together. Root note or complicated bass line. Only other players I've ever noticed that see that picture are keyboard players or talented multi instrumental players.
 
#437
blue4 said:
I wonder why they got indignant. You only mistakenly called our instrument simple, and said we aren't as important as the other band members.

It's actually hard to be the bass player. You're listening to the drummer, matching his groove, wrapping your lines around the cool thing he's doing with his high hat. You're listening to the rhythm guitar, matching your fills to his gaps, and you're listening to the lead, not making your fills jar with his lead. And at the end of the song, when you ask the guys? Nobody but you noticed that the drummer even has a high hat, the rhythm guitar had no idea he was out of time, the lead had no idea his guitar was out of tune, and the drummer didn't realize that he did a fill every bar stepping on everyone's toes. They all know exactly what they did or wanted to do. No idea what the hell anyone else did. Just fretting the notes or bashing a snare is the easy part. Any trained monkey can figure out where a C note is on a neck if you have enough treats and a day to kill. Bass players have to see the whole musical picture, in order to know how to tie it together. Root note or complicated bass line. Only other players I've ever noticed that see that picture are keyboard players or talented multi instrumental players.
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In my band im not the only one to notice that my drummer has a high hat and all that other stuff. I play with a couple shredders and probably the best drummer i have ever met. Maybe our perspectives are kinda different.
 
#438
Mantis Tobaggan said:
In my band im not the only one to notice that my drummer has a high hat and all that other stuff. I play with a couple shredders and probably the best drummer i have ever met. Maybe our perspectives are kinda different.
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Then it sounds like the problem isn't the instrument if you feel like the guy who should just be in the corner. I admit I resent the implications that a bassist is a less important member of a group simply by being the bassist. The whole mistaken "no chords, only four strings" thing is annoying. We do play chords, and there's a hell of a lot more instruments with 4 strings or courses than otherwise. It's the same way with my nephew in HS band. People think just because he studies percussion that he's "just hitting things."
 

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