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Precision Basses and Reggae Music...Good, Bad, Why?

Mike Sorr

Mike Sorr

Oct 24, 2012
3,010
3,168
Manchester, NJ
www.graceandpeace.org
#1
So, I'm trying to make a decision on a new 5 string bass and am thinking about either a Fender P5 or a Carvin PB5. I've been playing reggae music for the past few years and have been using Jazz Bass style instruments because, that's just what you do when you're playing roots reggae. I have always been told and have seen first hand the use of Jazz Bass style four and five strings by numerous players in the reggae genre. What I haven't seen much of is the trusty Fender P Bass being used. Every so often, but not nearly as much as you'd think. Can anyone shed any light on why this is? I would think the Precision Bass would make a great bass for reggae music, but you just don't see that many being used for it. Interesting.
 
#2
I've successfully used all these for reggae music...
059.jpg

but surprisingly the Jazz 5 is my least favorite for that type of music and even more surprising, the butterscotch blond Telecaster Modern Player is my favorite. The Tele just has a ton more deep dark fundamental dub tone in it. And when you lock in with the kick drum, OMG there's some serious thumping. The Jazz sounds nasally by comparison. The cream colored precision is my second favorite followed by the grey PJ on the end then the Flower Tele on the other end.
I will say the first time I showed up with the Tele instead of the jazz it raised a few eyebrows in the band, but after the first song they all agreed, leave the jazz at home.
It's also very well suited to dub and club music.
 
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#3
GBassNorth said:
I've successfully used all these for reggae music...
059.jpg

but surprisingly the Jazz 5 is my least favorite for that type of music and even more surprising, the butterscotch blond Telecaster Modern Player is my favorite. The Tele just has a ton more deep dark fundamental dub tone in it. And when you lock in with the kick drum, OMG there's some serious thumping. The Jazz sounds nasally by comparison. The cream colored precision is my second favorite followed by the grey PJ on the end then the Flower Tele on the other end.
I will say the first time I showed up with the Tele instead of the jazz it raised a few eyebrows in the band, but after the first song they all agreed, leave the jazz at home.
It's also very well suited to dub and club music.
Click to expand...
Nice Fender collection, but I'm more impressed with your liquor collection.
 
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#4
I had heard, and i have no way of verifying this, that you see a lot of jazz basses because thats what people associate with reggae big shots like robbie shakespeare and familyman, being what they used to use (although fam still uses one i think) as it was all that was readily available in jamaica at the time. so others wanting to cop there style and/or image got them too and they just sort of stuck....

this may all be speculation but its speculation that i got here on TB...
 
#5
For a while reggae artists seemed to favor Steinberger and other headless basses. I have heard it speculated that composite Steinbergers were more stable in the hot and humid climates of the tropics. You still see some of that, but mostly it's the Jazz bass and similar two single coil Jazz style basses. Even Fams used a Hohner for a while, but that had two jazz pickups too. I have always thought a pickup in the neck position made sense for roots reggae, even on a five string. If you're going for low, wouldn't that make sense too? Especially since reggae players pluck close to the neck.
 
#6
Here's an example of a Precision at work in a reggae context:

The Gladiators:

I honestly think the Steinberger trend of the 80s had more to do with the "cool" factor of the instruments than anything else. Otherwise I would expect people across the Caribbean to have switched almost exclusively to graphite basses (not saying the stability of graphite wasn't a factor in their popularity but I don't think it was necessarily the fist point of consideration). A lot of guys in North America seem to get stuck in this "roots rut" when it comes to reggae. But things in Jamaica have long moved on. Check out some reggae videos from the last twenty years and you will probably see a lot fewer Fenders than you might expect. Modern reggae players use all kinds of basses, from Tobias to Ibanez to you name it (plenty of soapbars out there). TBs own Burning Skies (who probably knows more about reggae than anyone else on TB) plays a Dingwall. And you guessed it - most of them are not using flats! The whole scenario really is akin to people on a foreign continent thinking that, to play "R&B", you need a Precision with flats. It's nonsense.

Also, LOTS of reggae players do not pluck up by the neck. Sure, playing up by the neck will help you get a more "flubby" sound which can work great for some stuff, but it is certainly not necessary for getting a "reggae-appropriate" tone.
 
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#9
Reggae is a style of music, not a type of bass or EQ setting.

I've played reggae professionally, at times with Jamaicans for what that's worth, on an Ibanez BTB, a Fender P, Stingray and mostly on Fender J variants.

For me the J works best, and that's what you hear on most of the classic albums. Go with what you're comfortable on, be true to the style and have fun.
 
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#11
StayLow said:
Reggae is a style of music, not a type of bass or EQ setting.

I've played reggae professionally, at times with Jamaicans for what that's worth, on an Ibanez BTB, a Fender P, Stingray and mostly on Fender J variants.

For me the J works best, and that's what you hear on most of the classic albums. Go with what you're comfortable on, be true to the style and have fun.
Click to expand...

It always sounds like reggae, whatever I play it on. Whether it's P or J, or PJ, there are great fits and merely good fits, but I've never not been able to get acceptable reggae timbres out of any pro caliber bass. Besides, each individual instrument has its own personality that can almost defy category or type. If I were you I'd be looking for a bass I love the feel of, which IME is a more elusive creature than tone. Tone you can fudge with EQ. Feel can't be faked.
 
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#12
StayLow said:
Reggae is a style of music, not a type of bass or EQ setting.

I've played reggae professionally, at times with Jamaicans for what that's worth, on an Ibanez BTB, a Fender P, Stingray and mostly on Fender J variants.

For me the J works best, and that's what you hear on most of the classic albums. Go with what you're comfortable on, be true to the style and have fun.
Click to expand...

I know what you mean, but I've shown up to a few auditions and it was expected that I have a Jazz Bass, or something that sounds like one. I've been finding that showing up with a 5 string bass is expected more often than not. The band leader for one of the groups was their keyboard player and he considered a 5 string mandatory equipment, preferably a Jazz Bass. I personally don't think a five is absolutely necessary, but since they played a few dancehall tunes I was expected to have one.
 
#13
Mike Sorr said:
I know what you mean, but I've shown up to a few auditions and it was expected that I have a Jazz Bass, or something that sounds like one. I've been finding that showing up with a 5 string bass is expected more often than not. The band leader for one of the groups was their keyboard player and he considered a 5 string mandatory equipment, preferably a Jazz Bass. I personally don't think a five is absolutely necessary, but since they played a few dancehall tunes I was expected to have one.
Click to expand...
None of the reggae artists I've played with have cared that I didn't bring a Jazz to a rehearsal or gig. They cared that the sound was right and that I knew my parts. I have been asked to bring a 5, however, and understand why. Since 5s have become increasingly common they are showing up on a lot more recordings (so, quite aside from synth bass, it is not unlikely that you would need a 5 to cover more modern material). Check out some of the current Jamaican house bands and don't think you're likely to find many where the bassist is playing a 4.
 
#15
Mike Sorr said:
I have always been told and have seen first hand the use of Jazz Bass style four and five strings by numerous players in the reggae genre. What I haven't seen much of is the trusty Fender P Bass being used. Every so often, but not nearly as much as you'd think. Can anyone shed any light on why this is? I would think the Precision Bass would make a great bass for reggae music, but you just don't see that many being used for it. Interesting.
Click to expand...

Choosing between four or five string numbers it´s a personal taste. I think that the key is how developing the bass line through the song. I heard many bassist that commonly plays with four string basses and honestly I didn´t missed the low B. The low B just add a color in your bass sound, but I don´t believe that it could be strictly necessary.

For my experience a PBass works allright in most of musical situations. The thing is that he gives a tone that fits wells in most cases. This is the reason for many bass players use it to play some genres like rock, pop, funk, blues, jazz, soul... so why not reggae?
 
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#17
So, I decided on the Precision Bass 5 and played it at a recent rehearsal. Whoever said the kind of bass is less important than knowing the parts, having the right tone and setting the meditation, was correct. No one cared about the kind of bass I was playing as long as those things were happening. I strung it with GHS Pressurewounds and rolled off the tone a bit for a nice pseudo-flatwound sound, but with a little more bounciness, and I think I've found my riddim machine. Next on my list is a Carvin JB5 or a used SB5000. I find the P5 works really well for reggae, but I'd like to have the versatility available with the Jazz pickup at some point as well.
 

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