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New bassist Rickenbacker 4003

S

skinzz

Aug 7, 2008
23
0
London uk
#1
Hi i first bought a bass guitar 3 years ago, since i love the beatles i bought a hofner violin bass and restrung it with pyramid gold flatwound strings to get the mcartney sound (as he supposedly uses them) anyway i started having lessons but i dont think my teacher was teaching me what i needed to learn more like what i wanted to learn i.e tabs etc, he did teach me some useful things such as picking up and down and some technique, although ive never played with my fingers always a pick. i played the bass for about a year i learnt a lot of beatles tabs etc then left it alone, i havent played for about a year, ive always loved the rickenbacker 4003 fireglo so i put a deposit on 1 when i was playing at £1800 it was a £900 deposit, well after waiting 2 and half years!!! i finally managed to get my hands on one and its being delivered tomorrow, these basses are so hard to get in the uk in fireglo, and i shall be looking for a new teacher to teach me from scratch to play with my fingers what i should of learnt when i first picked a bass up, and help tips or advice would be greatly appreciated

regards chris
 
#3
Hi Chris. Congrats. My story is nearly the same as yours. I had a Hofner and took lessons and stopped earlier this year. My teacher only taught me what I wanted to learn and no technique at all. He dind't have me running scales or looking at my finger postions for accuracy very often so I stopped. I am 36 and knew I needed to be paying for a reach lesson.

Anyway congrats on the Ric!!! Post pics. I had a fireglo and sold it with alot of regret and got another Ric a week ago.

My name is Chris too! Haha. Enjo and post some pics!
 
#4
It sounds "cliche", but just do it. Everything you learned with a pick, use your 1st and 2nd fingers instead. You already know the frethand positions, now you have to work on getting your picking fingers synced with your fretting fingers.

One thing that helped me was starting on the F(1st fret of the E) and walk up one 1/2 step at a time alternating fingers ie, F 1st finger, F sharp 2nd finger, G 1st finger, A flat second finger....then reverse it back down to F. After that go to the A string and repeat. Start slow and gradually build up speed.

I hope this isn't too confusing, it is harder to explain than do! I am not a teacher, this is something that was taught to me YEARS ago...I still do it to this day as part of my warmup routine.
 
#6
+1 on the FG Ric. Dunno if yours is the same as the vintage Ric (I have not even touched one of the newer Rics), but they are gorgeous. Mine is scratched up pretty good on the back, and has some minor water damage on the front, and I have still had so many people tell me it's a very pretty bass. For a 38-year-old it is looking pretty good.

As far as fingerstyle, find some video to watch. Make sure to keep your wrist as straight as you can, don't sling your bass too low or too high. If you have to bend the wrist, bend it down not up, and if you start to feel pain stop what you're doing and figure out what is causing it.

Something I have to tell my kids (both my son and stepson are apparently following in my footsteps and playing the bass) a lot is to actually use an amplifier when they play. And use some volume Your bass will sound different when it is amplified and still more different when it is turned up louder. And if you amplify it you won't beat your fingers and tendons to hamburger trying to get that sound.

I use two fingers. I'm left-handed but play righty. I lead with my middle finger (no, that's not a joke). There's no way to learn how to do it but to do it. Play quarter notes. Play eighth notes. Learn how to alternate. Learn how to skip strings, because as you hop across them one of your fingers has to be the first to strike. If your middle finger was the last one to strike the D string and your next note is on the A string, you have to get used to letting your first finger fall down to the A and pluck. You also have to learn how to mute the strings you aren't playing with either your left hand or your thumb . . . somehow.

It does all make sense eventually. The trick is to get your stamina up so you can make progress. Hand strength does matter to a bass player. If you need to, get a tennis ball or some other squeeze toy and work on it when you can't work on your bass.
 
#8
+1 on the Ric 4003, my second bass in 1986, got it used for $400 and still have it.
Don't force anything, I played with my fingers for most of my years but have been enjoying the pick on my Fender P's lately.
Do what feels right, you can move to another style of playing after you build up your chops. (Your more than likely a better player than my self right now!)
 
#9
look was waiting for me when i got home today

13092011357.jpg
 

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