Playing your bass and singing

[comatosedragon]

This is why I hate playing Journey or Slayer songs. Don't get me wrong, I really love playing them, but when a Journey or Slayer song comes on, I have to sing along. It's mandatory. So I start tripping all over myself.

I guess it's just practice. I have been playing "Don't Stop Believing" about 10-15 times a day for the past few weeks, trying to be able to sing along. I can do one or the other, not both. (yet)

 

[Keger Jupit]

Geddy Lee said he first learned the bass line inside out for his new songs and then worked on singing.

This is how I've done it for 30 years. I can play guitar & sing, easily. Trying to lock with a drummer & sing, not nearly as easy for me.

The only technique that works for me? Do what Geddy does, & then practice, practice, practice...the good news is that once I have it down, I have to work just as hard to undo it!

 

[chupacerveza]

Most music teachers will tell you to sing whatever you play on your instrument. Of course this isn’t the same as singing the song while playing your instrument, but it does hint at a connection between the two. They’ll also tell you that practicing voice is separate from practicing your instrument. So the answer becomes: 1) practice voice separately, 2) practice your instrument separately, and 3) practice them together.

Or, as others have said, practice, practice, practice.

And you shouldn’t need alcohol for any of that....

 

[nilorius]

No secret, you have to sing before somewhere, somewhat and play the bass good. All is needed is training.

 

[GreyBeard]

I've been doing it for so long that I don't really know how I do it. All I can remember is that at 1st it takes a lot of practice. There are times when I have to simplify the bass part while singing. I've never gotten any complaints for doing that.

 

[zubrycky]

I practice. Most of the time, I study each part separately until they're both automatic and then I study how each part relates with one another. After that, it's just a matter of more practice.

 

[iriegnome]

Practice drunk! Now, I am going to the bar to play a show while drinking gin and tonic, while on stage wearing shorts and no shoes! Practice!! it is the only way to actually get better

 

[EatS1stBassist]

I have no problems singing alone. It’s the singing combined with playing that is the problem.

I learned to sing with my bass by anchoring a certain word to a certain beat. In other words memorize the word on count 2 of the beat. Find out where you have to draw in your breath!
Pay attention what’s happening vocal wise on the 16ths. This will help to map it out! Just my experience. Practice it over and over!

 

[MYLOWFREQ]

I by no means consider my self a singer but when I do background vocals, it's challenging. In my mind I 'link' certain syllables I sing to certain notes I'm playing the same time, and I slow the song way down, like half the bpm to nail it. Practice it until it is muscle memory.

 

[Groove Doctor]

It was easier to start with a pick & play 8th notes.

PS. Everyone’s a good singer after 5 drinks.

 

[braud357]

Singing and playing bass is like many other things in life - some can, and some cannot ! I have always struggled with this; I have been playing bass for 50 years and have been contributing backing and lead vocals during this entire time. I have never been what I consider to be a "competent" singing bassist !! The struggle continues !!!

 

[40Hz]

Relaxes the vocal cords dramatically

Five drinks (and counting?) is gonna relax a lot more than just your vocal chords.

And yeah, sipping brandy or cognac etc. can relax vocal chords. It’s an old singer’s trick. But that’s tiny sips as needed, and spread out through the course of the entire performance. Not taken neat in a shot.

But FWIW, proper vocal technique works far better.

 

[B-Mac]

Yoi
The five drinks has nothing to do with singing

I was just chilling at my fav outdoor bar a block an a half from my house having an awesome order of wings

Don’t Fear the Reaper came on the radio and as I was listening I thought that was something I could sing and play bass to. I pretty much know the words by heart and the bass line doesn’t sound that difficult. So I figured I’d ask what is the best way to do both. I can sing fine, but my bass playing is not all that great.

Amazing how things get twisted further down the thread

I certainly would never drink 5 myers dark rum and tonics and attempt to perform...no way.

 

[The Mogpipe]

I started as a lead singer. Did that for a number of years. Then was singing in band and occasionally playing a third guitar on some songs. Then our bass player quit. Same old tale you hear so often, now someone has to play bass!
Luckily, I was also the band leader as well as singer. The song list was picked by me primarily. Songs I've loved and admired for years. Ingrained in my pysche! I knew the words to them verbatim, I'm sure that helped too. But I took right to it pretty naturally. Was always a Macca guy even before playing bass. So bass/vocals seemed like a no brainier to me.
Some more complicated songs, and songs where the rhythm and vocal melody are totally working against each other lol, those require woodshedding!

 

[B-Mac]

It was easier to start with a pick & play 8th notes.

PS. Everyone’s a good singer after 5 drinks.

Not really

 

[NoSlapForYou]

A lot of bass player singers do a couple things:

1) They play with a pick. It's easier to play and sing if your right hand is doing a consistent back and forth pattern.

2) They do their complex stuff in the beats where they're not singing. Or if they do complex stuff while singing, it often slightly follows the rhythm of the singing melody.

These were tricks I used when I sang and played at the same time in a band. If there was something complex that I really wanted to play with my fingers, I'd just work at it a lot. But for the most part, those two tricks got me where I wanted to go.

 

[dkelley]

I sing lead and play bass. It's incredibly, effing hard. The songs I like to play on bass do NOT make separation of playing bass and singing easy. Some I still can't do, and my band puts those songs on back burner until I may eventually, one year, have it down.

But some are fine... have to choose songs carefully.

 

[jamro217]

The only time I feel blessed to possess one of the most obnoxious singing voices in history is when I think of attempting to unleash it simultaneously with playing the bass. In popular music the bass lines often run contrapuntal to the vocal lines. This means you have to play against what you're singing. Rhythm guitar, by contrast, usually is in step with the vocal lines and is much easier to connect. This is similar to a drummer's independence of limbs necessary for a straight high hat beat and snare/tom fills simultaneously. My advice mirrors other posters here. Get the bass line down cold so you can play it in your sleep, then sing over it.

 

[Diamond_Dave]

It's not the singing and playing--on guitar, I can do that all day long. It's not even the singing and playing simple bass lines--like Folsom Prison Blues, which is a root-V country tune. No worries. It's NOT EVEN singing and playing syncopated bass lines, because as others have mentioned, they can be rote memorized. It's trying to be expressive with either or both. At that moment, you're improvising on two instruments at once.

Recently I was in a band where our guitarist would play bass and harp on a certain tune. He'd basically play the bass line and just blow the snot out of the harp. Meh.

 

[hbarcat]

1) Learn the bass parts so thoroughly that you can play them without thinking about it.

2) Do the same for the vocals. Know them by heart.

3) Learn to do both at the same time. Many people believe that once you know the music and the lyrics, it's a simple matter to put them together. The reality is learning to sing and play at the same time is as much work as learning each by itself.