slap bass on jam sessions

[DiabolusInMusic]

How is a compressor helping you with creativity and ideas on a jam session? That’s not the first thing you have to worry about. Although I like compressors I don’t think it’s a must for slapping on a gig.

Curious if players like Victor Wooten or Marcus Miller use a compressor on gigs. And if so if he uses it as always on.

I mean, I wasn't thinking about them as creative tools but I suppose it would help you think more if you aren't as worried about controlling your volume.

@conttador is right, they help with volume drops and spikes associated with slapping, popping, and double-tapping.

As far if Vic uses one live, I'd be surprised if he didn't on big stages. He most certainly is on record. I have seen some videos where he isn't compressed and you can tell. That being said, nobody is Victor Wooten. That man is one with his instrument. Almost all of us have day jobs. I wouldn't lose sleep over perfecting myself when I could just as easily run a compressor/limiter.

Rack mounted compression is also a thing. Just because you don't see compression on a board doesn't mean he isn't running one.

 

[JonathanPDX]

As far if Vic uses one live, I'd be surprised if he didn't on big stages. He most certainly is on record. I have seen some videos where he isn't compressed and you can tell. That being said, nobody is Victor Wooten. That man is one with his instrument. Almost all of us have day jobs. I wouldn't lose sleep over perfecting myself when I could just as easily run a compressor/limiter.

Rack mounted compression is also a thing. Just because you don't see compression on a board doesn't mean he isn't running one.

Just a couple notes on Vic's setup (as someone who has played with him and seen him live 100+ times)

He has a sound engineer who is handpicked to know Vic's tone, preferences, and adjust the mix around the bass. Even with the Flecktones, they are actively mixing the bass and adjusting to Vic's dynamics. Most of us don't have a sound guy who is going to adjust our EQ or fine tune the mix when we start slapping.

Vic is usually playing in groups that have a natural sonic balance which creates room for his thumb work to cut through. The Flecktones don't have some big dirty Strat through an overdriven set of 12's eating up the entire midrange. His own band is pretty clearly adjusting the mix around Vic and they are very good, in every configuration, to make room when the thumb comes out.

Last I saw, Vic didn't have a dedicated compressor in his rig (though I don't know what the chain to the mains looks like), but he uses a lot of tools to adjust his tone live. I believe his 15-DB boost pedal is by Rodenberg, and has some other boost options as well. If he isn't cutting through the way he wants to, or just needs a boost, he has tools to fix it beyond just playing harder or cranking his bass up.

My point is that it's damn hard to mimic what Vic does because, regardless of your chops, he has a lot of tools at his disposal. Does that mean he can't show up at a blues jam and sound great? Absolutely not! But if you are comparing your blues-jam tone to a $50K set up with dedicated staff in an ensemble designed to feature the bass player then you are bound to come up short.

 

[Les Fret]

Just a couple notes on Vic's setup (as someone who has played with him and seen him live 100+ times)

He has a sound engineer who is handpicked to know Vic's tone, preferences, and adjust the mix around the bass. Even with the Flecktones, they are actively mixing the bass and adjusting to Vic's dynamics. Most of us don't have a sound guy who is going to adjust our EQ or fine tune the mix when we start slapping.

Vic is usually playing in groups that have a natural sonic balance which creates room for his thumb work to cut through. The Flecktones don't have some big dirty Strat through an overdriven set of 12's eating up the entire midrange. His own band is pretty clearly adjusting the mix around Vic and they are very good, in every configuration, to make room when the thumb comes out.

Last I saw, Vic didn't have a dedicated compressor in his rig (though I don't know what the chain to the mains looks like), but he uses a lot of tools to adjust his tone live. I believe his 15-DB boost pedal is by Rodenberg, and has some other boost options as well. If he isn't cutting through the way he wants to, or just needs a boost, he has tools to fix it beyond just playing harder or cranking his bass up.

My point is that it's damn hard to mimic what Vic does because, regardless of your chops, he has a lot of tools at his disposal. Does that mean he can't show up at a blues jam and sound great? Absolutely not! But if you are comparing your blues-jam tone to a $50K set up with dedicated staff in an ensemble designed to feature the bass player then you are bound to come up short.

Great info. Thanks for that! That’s exactly what I thought. Never seen him with a compressor pedal. But the sound guy might add it. But as I said, a compressor is a good and useful tool but it is not an absolute must for slap. You still can do all of your slapping without it and learn to control the dynamics yourself.

 

[Deleted member 271037]

I might have missed the part where the OP said he was trying to play slap lines in songs where they didn’t fit.

You're right. My apologies if I got this all wrong.

But how often is it really appropriate to use slapping on a jam session? I got the impression that the OP might be trying to "force" more slapping into these jam sessions. If that's not the case, please disregard my post above.

As for getting audiences more excited about slapping... I think the best way of doing that would be to play a well known hit song with slapping (and where the bass is a key element) and really NAIL it. Getting an audience excited by slapping in itself, in the context of jam session, will probably be hard. Slapping can be a very bass-centric thing. Most non-musician couldn't care less and many (but obvisously not all) non-bassist musicians seem to have varying degrees of contempt for slapping. At least that's my experience...

 

[Lance Bunyon]

The plucking to slapping ratio is exactly 3:1 in my Forever band.
At a jam it's closer to 5:1.
There are many elements at a jam that are different from playing with musicians I play with for 6 hours every weekend.
One of the keys to surviving a jam is fitting in musically.
Emphasize the pizz and use the slap and pop sparingly.

 

[Les Fret]

But how often is it really appropriate to use slapping on a jam session?

Depends on the session. If it's a funk jam session then it's appropriate. If it's a 'let's play a blues schedule in A' or play Proud Mary or Valery type of session (as lots of them are...) then it's not appropriate.