That just sounds like any other dinosaur screaming at clouds. Hopefully the young folks of today won't care much what an out of touch septuagenarian thinks and keep making music they enjoy. I know I don't give two craps or a fart what anyone thinks about what I like
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People who whine about slapping
- Thread starter SpankBazz
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Im inspired to slap with distortion now.
Well, since bluegrass jam guitar is 100.000000000000% without amplifiers or electronics, I'd guess guitar distortion is kind of limited to fret buzz.
OK, so what's the complaint?
is it that guys who post videos purporting to be comprehensive reviews of an electric bass, sometimes only show slap technique, thus posting an incomplete review?
or is it that there are some folks who don't like the sound?
Or what?
I mean, if you show up at the Buddy Holly tribute band and try to play bass parts a la Commodores or Stevie Wonder circa 1979, yeah, that'd suck. But on the other hand if you DO want to play those kinds of R&B tunes, seems to me you'd better have your slap and pop technique together.
Whole "controversy" seems to have been manufactured by OP to get attention.
No one freaks out when orchestra players use the bow or jazz players play pizz.
is it that guys who post videos purporting to be comprehensive reviews of an electric bass, sometimes only show slap technique, thus posting an incomplete review?
or is it that there are some folks who don't like the sound?
Or what?
I mean, if you show up at the Buddy Holly tribute band and try to play bass parts a la Commodores or Stevie Wonder circa 1979, yeah, that'd suck. But on the other hand if you DO want to play those kinds of R&B tunes, seems to me you'd better have your slap and pop technique together.
Whole "controversy" seems to have been manufactured by OP to get attention.
No one freaks out when orchestra players use the bow or jazz players play pizz.
Just don't watch bass demos on YouTube. You can assume that it sounds like a bass. Catch up on Masterpiece Theatre.
This reminds me of something that happened a few years ago. I cant slap to save my life, but I put down a rock solid line. I went to see a friends band, and his bass player was the polar opposite of me ALL he did was slap. They had me get up and jam with them, and the singer wanted fire him and hire me immediately. Slap is cool, but you better know where to use it.
My comment was intended to call attention to the absurd, pointless, vaguely combative, self-aggrandizing nature of the original premise. It entirely meets my standards for foolishness, hence my response. I perform fingerstyle, slap and occasionally with a pick. I play drums with mallets and sticks. Sometimes I play my cymbals with my hands. I use both an ebonite and metal mouthpiece with my saxophone and have no personal preference between the two. I also like broccoli. If you don't like broccoli, you might want to get over yourself. If you do, we can be cruciferous brothers. I am hoping today is overcast, as it provides the largest number of clouds at which I might shout.
I don't care if someone doesn't like slapping.
If you think a distorted guitar will get you in trouble, try showing up with a J bass.
But here's the thing, stylistic differences clashing with neo traditionalists are not limited to music , "you can't be a serious fly angler if you target rough fish" is a classic example, but my fave was when I first got into machining for a living. I was hired to run one of the first CNC machines released into the wild and the the pushback from the old guard at the company who took it on was incredible. After constant slagging and endless contortions explaining how higher output with lower scrap rates was somehow bad for the company, I just smiled and watched the inevitable implosion of entrenched dogma in the face of something not safe and familiar, but many orders of magnitude better than, "the way we've always done it".
For a long time, I kind of got it. I was not a slap fan. I never found slap bass players to really be super inspiring... Larry Graham did good. But Flea, Marcus Miller, Stanley Clarke, etc... all these guys just didn't really do it for me. But then I witnessed this live clip from 1979 by Casiopea, featuring Tetsuo Sakurai on slap bass:
I don't know what it is, but just how rock-solid his tone and playing are pretty much everything I would ever want out of slap bass. The fact that he slapped for this entire tune and never once sounded thin or weak in the mix amazes me. And he knows when to hold back and groove, and he knows when to let loose.
I've heard he's not considered anything particularly special in slap bass circles, but for me he's pretty much the slap bass player I would want to sound like. Plus, because this was Japan in the 1970s the entire band sorta looks like they're dressed as my grandpa, but Sakurai still looks so cool.
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All these years later and we've still an old timer in my shop convinced his 60 year old hand lathe and cross slide are more accurate than my CNC. It's hilarious every time he's proven wrong but he just won't come around
It’s all been downhill since Frank…
Where can I get a gig like that?
Where can I get a gig like that?
Bass video reviews that only show slapping are a waste of time and really annoying .
Honestly, seems like OP started this thread with piling “poop” on other people.
I'll elaborate on your point later, but Casiopea is a killer band made up of excellent musicians.
So I totally understand this being your entry point to appreciating slap bass.
Do you actually hear people telling you to stop slapping? I find it hard to believe that other bass players would, and if they did, easy to ignore, no? And if it’s not bass players asking you to stop slapping, you might want to listen to them, unless you’re Chuck Rainey.
Slap bass playing in Guitar Center by players who aren't very skilled is a little grating. But then, it's also awful to listen to your 6 year old practice the violin. It's not the violin's fault and not a problem in any way. It's just a beginning player.
One criticism of slap overall is that it precludes creative note choices and therefore is boring. Plus most guys slap only in the key of E. Boring. But Smoke On the Water is also boring for all the same reasons.
Personally I am less a fan of Louis Johnson as a slap player. Taking nothing away from his level of influence, it comes off to me like he recognized and rode slap as a fashion and a mood tool for his music. Although his playing was aggressive, it wasn't always very musical. I'd say the same about Bootsy. Both of those guys are legendary and for good reason, but their stuff sounds like it was a lot about hormones. That's rock & roll.
Stanley Clarke has always gone out of his way to use slap as a way to engage the bass, but to do it without limiting his key or note choice options. I appreciate his approach more and more the older I get. Also true for guys who were obviously influenced by Clarke, such as Mark King. And Marcus Miller slaps melodies - that's not for everyone but he has made a brand of it and it sounds great to me.
Lastly - yes, whenever I pull out a slap solo on a gig, people in the crowd love it. The anti-slap sentiment is over-represented on this board.
One criticism of slap overall is that it precludes creative note choices and therefore is boring. Plus most guys slap only in the key of E. Boring. But Smoke On the Water is also boring for all the same reasons.
Personally I am less a fan of Louis Johnson as a slap player. Taking nothing away from his level of influence, it comes off to me like he recognized and rode slap as a fashion and a mood tool for his music. Although his playing was aggressive, it wasn't always very musical. I'd say the same about Bootsy. Both of those guys are legendary and for good reason, but their stuff sounds like it was a lot about hormones. That's rock & roll.
Stanley Clarke has always gone out of his way to use slap as a way to engage the bass, but to do it without limiting his key or note choice options. I appreciate his approach more and more the older I get. Also true for guys who were obviously influenced by Clarke, such as Mark King. And Marcus Miller slaps melodies - that's not for everyone but he has made a brand of it and it sounds great to me.
Lastly - yes, whenever I pull out a slap solo on a gig, people in the crowd love it. The anti-slap sentiment is over-represented on this board.
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