Quintessential 80's bass player requirements?

[Cadillac_Mike]

Hey Guys, thought this would be fun! I was just just playing along to some 80's stuff with my 1987 Guild Pilot in the studio and sorta feeling like it's 1987 lol. I felt sexy lol. I have the longer hair and beard but I think the quintessential 1987 bassist is:

-Male model or close to it (gotta look good on MTV)

-Gorgeous flowing mullet

-Awesome earring on just left ear

-Studded leather jacket

Anything missing hehe?

 

[JimK]

...sounds like Patrick O'Hearn

 

[Winslow]

Formal gig:
- Suit jacket, broad-shouldered, possibly made of shiny material, sleeves pushed up to elbows
- Pleated slacks, linen
- Thin necktie, or shirt with banded collar

Casual gig:
- Members Only jacket
- Acid-washed denim jeans (possibly jacket as well)
- "FRANKIE SAY RELAX" T-shirt (also acceptable: "PARTY NAKED")
- Deck shoes, no socks

Standard equipment / accessories:
- Ray-Ban Wayfarer sunglasses (all hours, day or night)
- Swatch watch (two or three on one arm is acceptable)
- Hair scrunchie, if your ponytail is long enough; Small hair tie, if you're doing the "rat tail" thing
- Steinberger XL2 with chorus and flange pedals. (Ask @Richland123 if you can borrow his.)
- Cocaine is optional, but if on hand, should be carried in a brushed silver Halliburton briefcase
- Little Black Book, because pocket computers and Palm Pilots are still few years away in the future

Rock on.

 

[2112]

Dan K. Brown would like to discuss further.

 

[Jefenator]

Whatever delivers that cocaine-thin, trebly bass tone that took over.

 

[Richland123]

Formal gig:
- Suit jacket, broad-shouldered, possibly made of shiny material, sleeves pushed up to elbows
- Pleated slacks, linen
- Thin necktie, or shirt with banded collar

Casual gig:
- Members Only jacket
- Acid-washed denim jeans (possibly jacket as well)
- "FRANKIE SAY RELAX" T-shirt (also acceptable: "PARTY NAKED")
- Deck shoes, no socks

Standard equipment / accessories:
- Ray-Ban Wayfarer sunglasses (all hours, day or night)
- Swatch watch (two or three on one arm is acceptable)
- Hair scrunchie, if your ponytail is long enough; Small hair tie, if you're doing the "rat tail" thing
- Steinberger XL2 with chorus and flange pedals. (Ask @Richland123 if you can borrow his.)
- Cocaine is optional, but if on hand, should be carried in a brushed silver Halliburton briefcase
- Little Black Book, because pocket computers and Palm Pilots are still few years away in the future

Rock on.

I don't need no stinking pedals. It's all me.

Don't forget the wristbands. I had a pair of red ones and a pair of black ones like this band.

 

[Michedelic]

Dan K. Brown would like to discuss further.

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80’s? Sorry, no sheeple fad beards back then, unless you were in ZZ Top, or Peter Hook, in which case you had an original look.

 

[Michedelic]

What? No Hartke aluminum cones?

 

[audreycashin]

either of these will work, Drop D on the first one and a whammy bar on the second.....

 

[2112]

View attachment 4386202 View attachment 4386203either of these will work, Drop D on the first one and a whammy bar on the second.....

I used to own one of those Carvins v440s briefly almost 20 years ago. Exact same color. Lol.

 

[Bass4ThePublic]

Late 70’s P with EMG’s, tuned in D standard of course.

 

[Charley Umbria]

Amp rack with power conditioner, pull-out lights, huge tuner, smiley-face EQ, and chorus unit.

GK amp with Hartke cabs, preferably a 410/115 stack.

Any instrument equipped with DiMarzio Model P pickups.

Bonus points if you’re actually a guitar player, but got stuck playing bass.

 

[31HZ]

Capezios, man, CAPEZIOS

 

[Gizmot]

When I think of the 80s, I think of Mark King of Level 42. A big Trace Elliot rig (not the Peavey-owned stuff). I’d also go for a Warwick Thumb (without knowing what Mark actually played). I like his style of play and the driving sound he had, so I have fond memories of it.

 

[TheReceder]

80s? That means at least 2 410s not that you absolutely need them... but...

 

[Richland123]

Kramer Aluminum Neck Bass Guitar

 

[Richland123]

Ampeg Dan Armstrong Lucite Bass Guitar

 

[micguy]

I played bass in the 80's. The Kramer is dead on - great basses assuming you're oK with a hefty amount of neck dive. Mine, like many basses back then, had Dimarzio pickups - from the factory. The sustain of a Stagemaster with a Badass bridge was otherworldly.

The thing that you folks missed was....capes. My band had 'em for a bit there. A holdover from Yes and the late 70's, but in the early 80's, capes were still in.

 

[micguy]

Late 70’s P with EMG’s, tuned in D standard of course.

EMG's may have been around for basses in the 80's, but they didn't really catch on until later - guitarists had 'em for a while before they really hit basses. If you had an aftermarket pickup in your bass in the the 80's, 90 percent of the time it was a Dimarzio. And you had a Badass bridge.

 

[40Hz]

For 80s pop:

• Ibanez or similar non-FSO or Gibson shaped bass
• Bi-amped rack system for amplifier
• 1@2x10 + 1@4x10 custom cab
• pick playing preferred
• stay mostly on root and just look too cool for words - synth player(s) in band will handle the actual baseline

For 80s punk:

• Come as you are
• Play whatever you got (for example: a bass would be good!)
• Be coherent enough to be able to remember and find the gig
• Show up…eventually (drunk)
• Be churlish