The corect way to play bass

[Akami]

I don't like it when people try to get into someones spot and deliberately play something that they know their "friend" can't do; and to what end? To make their friend both feel and look small?

The friend in my opinion had just been crapped on by someone with a point to prove, and in a very un-friend like manner, did it in public, almost guaranteeing that he would have a hard time following it up.

Incredibly rude and in bad taste.

If he's a "friend" then an apology is certainly in order as friends don't try to make friends sound inept, especially knowing their limitations.

How about if you play Bob Dylan style and your friend Steve Vai shows up and just rips the guitar to shreds, then says here you go, impress the hell out of them. Very bad taste to showboat.

If he's your friend, go apologize and refrain from sabotaging others like him in the future who happen to be inferior players compared to yourself, at least at their own gigs.

But if you just wanted to make him feel embarrassed and hold no value in your friendship then go ahead and hold onto your defensive position.

 

[morf]

I say if you can sing like Dylan then Vai's got nuthin on ya

 

[morf]

Lets not forget the harmonica!

 

[s.m.80808]

I say if you can sing like Dylan then Vai's got nuthin on ya

true.

 

[s.m.80808]

My goodness.

Has it ever occurred to you that some of us may have grown up in a different, more competitive musical environment where "showboating" or "letting it fly" wasn't necessarily considered insulting or disrespectful? Is that so hard to fathom?

At someone else's gig?

If not even invited to play?

Yes. That is lame behavior. Kind of attention whore-ish.

At a jam/open mic/your own gig, show off all you want. . . and if it is the local bar/restaurant/party/casual gig watch people leave after a few minutes or just begin to talk louder so they don't have to listen to you.

I have been outplayed at parties while growing up as a bassist many times and I dealt with it....

That hasn't happened to me. PLaying bass isn't exactly like playing basketball where there is a clear cut victory anyway. If "outplaying" someone means winning more respect from your audience, i think the OP was outplayed by a guy who only played 8th notes.

 

[morf]

That hasn't happened to me. PLaying bass isn't exactly like playing basketball where there is a clear cut victory anyway. If "outplaying" someone means winning more respect from your audience, i think the OP was outplayed by a guy who only played 8th notes.

lol. That made me laugh

 

[hartke20g]

i seem to have gotten a different message from all of this. what i got is that TS was bored at the show, so before the band played, TS asked to noodle around on the other guy's bass. there's no problem with that. it's not insulting- you're not even the reason anyone is there. TS was just wanking around a bit passing the time with her favourite hobby. i've let people noodle on my bass before shows and i find nothing wrong with that person being better than you. story time:
i have a friend who plays very melodic walking lines. i'm not too good at that- i play lead lines more, not backup lines. now, he upstaged me then by doing something i couldn't, and i was fine with it. i just thought "now i have to get better than him", which i've pretty much done.

edit: IMO, TS' "friend" was just being a ****.

 

[Dirty Dave]

At someone else's gig?

If not even invited to play?

Well in your case I guess I have my answer. Let's not forget this gig was also a party. Where I'm from parties were never considered an exclusion of where it was acceptable to ASK someone to play their instrument.

Yes. That is lame behavior. Kind of attention whore-ish.

Why? She asked to play his bass, not sit in for his band. It's harmless...unless of course the bass owner is easily intimidated and insecure with his playing, in which case maybe he shouldn't be lending out his bass in the first place.

At a jam/open mic/your own gig, show off all you want. . . and if it is the local bar/restaurant/party/casual gig watch people leave after a few minutes or just begin to talk louder so they don't have to listen to you.

Read what the OP wrote about the crowds reaction to her playing. Doesn't exactly sound like that's what happened if you ask me.

If "outplaying" someone means winning more respect from your audience, i think the OP was outplayed by a guy who only played 8th notes.

I'll give you an "A" for the humor on that one but that's about it. If you are any kind of seasoned musician that's been playing a while, you know when you have just been outplayed or when someone plays better than you. You can admit it, not admit, be in denial about it or whatever gets you through the day. I guess it all depends on your personality.

In my opinion, some of you do not sound like you could handle this situation any better than the subject host of this thread....maybe because you are insecure about your skill level...or maybe because of the simple fact the OP is a woman.

 

[morf]

If youre any kind of seasoned musician you know if you're being outplayed even if the other guy's playing eigth notes.

i think we all dont know enough about what happened exactly, what volume was the amp put on when she played for example, etc... I think if I walked in on a party and saw a girl sitting on top a bass cab playing solo bass, I'd think she was showboating without a doubt. When I want to test out a bass at a party I play unplugged, to not bother anyone with my noodling and because modesty is still a winner in my book. Sitting on top of someone else's cab and wanking like crazy doesn't seem so modest to me and starting a thread like this afterwards seems even more suspicious to me. Not to mention how quiet the OP has been throughout this entire thread...

Anyway, I won't be judging or saying this or that happened because I wasn't there, but if I had to give an opinion, seeing how this thread was created, there are just two words popping to mind: attention whore.

 

[s.m.80808]

Getting "outplayed" hasn't been an issue for me.

I agree music is competitive, but I leave that in the practice room and when I am on the gig, I focus on the task at hand (i.e. making good music)

Humility is as much of a virtue as shameless self-promotion is annoying.

Back to this topic specifically:

You can't deny, because even the OP stated it, that there was the element of having a chip on their shoulder going into it. That alone makes the whole story suspect.

The bigger issue for me is it is a bit disrespectful to go to someone else's gig and ask to play. Male or female.

In this situation, it was the host's gig. . . be respectful and let him have his moment.

Dave - would you personally go about doing things the same way? What would you do if someone asked to play "try out" your rig between sets? What would your audience think?

 

[Bass Viking]

I have a question for the guys that thought what the OP did was cool (Dirty Dave and Bass Viking):

If it were a guy (instead of a girl) doing the same thing, would all you guys be so quick to jump on their side?

To me, the gender doesn't matter. I thought, based on the info provided, that the host behaved like more of a jerk than she did. Now if she had taken his bass without asking, or played a tune with the band and showed off with Jaco bass lines where 8th notes are called for, then I would find that objectionable. But he gave her permission to play his bass. If he doesn't like being shown up or hearing Jaco style bass, he should have said no.

 

[s.m.80808]

To me, the gender doesn't matter. I thought, based on the info provided, that the host behaved like more of a jerk than she did. Now if she had taken his bass without asking, or played a tune with the band and showed off with Jaco bass lines where 8th notes are called for, then I would find that objectionable. But he gave her permission to play his bass. If he doesn't like being shown up or hearing Jaco style bass, he should have said no.

Well, there are other reasons for saying no besides worrying about being shown up (by a girl..for whoever thinks that is an issue).

Maybe he expected the OP to try out his bass quietly and the OP had different intentions and played their song loudly. Maybe he isn't into Jaco, or didn't like the OP's choice of melodic playing. We don't really know enough to say one way or another. We only have one side.

The bigger issue for me is this:

Generally, I still think it is a bad idea to ask people to play. Trying out a bass can happen at the end of a set or end of the evening at a quiet level (unplugged even).

Granted, there have been a few times I would be talking shop with someone and they handed me their bass and said go for it. I personally wouldn't feel really comfortable asking someone to try out their gear.

If someone is nice enough to let you try it, why intentionally step on their toes? You don't need to play a song all the way through to get an idea of how a bass plays/sounds/feels.

 

[hartke20g]

If he doesn't like being shown up or hearing Jaco style bass, he should have said no.

EXACTLY! +1 bass viking.
also, it's not like the TS wanted to show off or anything, or even make the guy feel bad. if this party was anything like the one's i've been to (and played at), then i find nothing wrong with it. however, if it was an audition for the subject to be in a band, and the TS upstaged him and cost him his chance, then yes i would get mad at the TS too. and i always play other people's instruments at their houses, and with me being better at it than they are, they are amazed. but i've NEVER had someone get mad at me for making them look less musically talented in front of their girlfriends/family/friends/etc. the subject in the TS' post is just a jerk.

 

[hartke20g]

edit: my bad for the double post.

Maybe he expected the OP to try out his bass quietly and the OP had different intentions and played their song loudly. Maybe he isn't into Jaco, or didn't like the OP's choice of melodic playing. We don't really know enough to say one way or another. We only have one side.

i agree with you on the first part. maybe he didn't expect the TS to show him up out loud. but we don't know. however, i fail to see why someone would get mad because you played something they're not too fond of. when an emo band (an example) has played at the shows i've been to, i don't go up to them after their set and say "learn how to play your instruments properly". i don't say anything, or unless they ask me about it, i compliment them.

Trying out a bass can happen at the end of a set or end of the evening at a quiet level (unplugged even).

if you read the TS' post, you'll see that she was playing at a tim when no one in the room was paying attention, hence "the room got quiet and everyone watched me play" (or whatever she said exactly). now, if she had played right after a song in the middle of their set, that's inappropriate. but she didn't.

 

[soniq]

I always wondered how guest bands felt when they came on the Leno or Letterman shows? Coming on to play in front of accomplished players like Will Lee or Kevin Eubanks would cause me some performance anxiety for sure. Then again I'm not worthy .

 

[s.m.80808]

edit: my bad for the double post.



i agree with you on the first part. maybe he didn't expect the TS to show him up out loud. but we don't know. however, i fail to see why someone would get mad because you played something they're not too fond of. when an emo band (an example) has played at the shows i've been to, i don't go up to them after their set and say "learn how to play your instruments properly". i don't say anything, or unless they ask me about it, i compliment them.

You have a point that it is good to be positive and not negative.

What I was trying to say is that you don't really know his frame of mind, or how the situation panned out exactly. We have one (very biased) side.

if you read the TS' post, you'll see that she was playing at a tim when no one in the room was paying attention, hence "the room got quiet and everyone watched me play" (or whatever she said exactly). now, if she had played right after a song in the middle of their set, that's inappropriate. but she didn't.

I think the "the room got quiet and everyone watched me play" bit was more for dramatic effect. Were they quietly awed by the TS/OP's greatness or wondering what is that person doing with that bass guitar. Again, we only have one side.

The intricacies of the story are not really what matter to me personally. I still believe that there is a time and a place to try out basses, dink around, show off. I still believe, based on the details provided, that this wasn't the best time/place.

 

[Bass Viking]

The bigger issue for me is this:

Generally, I still think it is a bad idea to ask people to play.

You're certainly entitled to your opinion but I don't believe everyone shares this view. It depends alot on the circumstances. Remember that this was a party at someone's house, not a gig at a venue with paying customers. Also, both these people knew each other beforehand, they weren't total strangers. If a person asks tactfully and doesn't wear out their welcome, I see no problem with that. On the flip side, their may be a multitude of reasons why you wouldn't want someone else playing your bass and you are well within your rights to say no.

 

[Dirty Dave]

The bigger issue for me is it is a bit disrespectful to go to someone else's gig and ask to play. Male or female.

I think one of the key aspects here is, although it was both, you keep referring to the situation as a "gig" and me a "party". That might not change anything for you but it certainly helps me understand why we see it differently and I do respect your point of view.

That said, I still disagree with you. Me and my friends ask to play each others instruments all the time, no matter where we are and I don't remember it ever causing any friction. If for whatever reason we didn't ask, we were usually offered. It's just the way it is with us.

Dave - would you personally go about doing things the same way? What would you do if someone asked to play "try out" your rig between sets? What would your audience think?

Well if it was a party, more specifically, MY party, then I probably wouldn't be too worried about what the audience thought and let the person play, amp on and all.

In a club gig environment you are expected to be more professional so chances are I might hand over the bass but my amp would have to be muted. I don't even play my own bass between sets at my nightclub gigs unless the amp is muted.

 

[s.m.80808]

I think one of the key aspects here is, although it was both, you keep referring to the situation as a "gig" and me a "party". That might not change anything for you but it certainly helps me understand why we see it differently and I do respect your point of view.

That said, I still disagree with you. Me and my friends ask to play each others instruments all the time, no matter where we are and I don't remember it ever causing any friction. If for whatever reason we didn't ask, we were usually offered. It's just the way it is with us.

The "gig"/"party" thing does make a bit of a difference in how we see things. I am cool about letting my close friends and bandmates play my gear too. . . so in the case of us chilling at someone's house playing a few tunes, it isn't a big deal.

I wouldn't be so open to strangers or people I don't know well.

-----------

In the case of this story, I think that the OP wasn't that familiar with the host, hence the tension. Maybe the OP could've been a little more careful not toeven give the impression of trying to show off. I hate to see that people slagged that guy so quickly without really thinking about the other side.

Maybe it wasn't the most tactful thing to do to play that song at that time.

Maybe he had a very good reason to react angrily beyond jealousy, sexism or some other BS of which he is blamed.

 

[Nojja]

I thought it sounded like the "stage" were kind of empty som guys were running around and putting the final pieces of the drumkit together, there were not so many in the crowd, and this girl comes forward and asks if she could play.
i mean it sounds kind of innocent, but well,ofcourse the people in the room started to look what was going on,and thought maybe the show started..
But i mean it sounds kind of more normal if she did it like before all people were there and the show had not begun yet.

IF she like, asks if she could play in the middle of the show, it would h ave been really stupid!"!!!