Funny, but Ed Friedland -- who, for my money, is one of the most tuned-in bassists out there, and who has a knack for producing instructional techniques that work; see any of his many Hal Leonard titles, or look him up on YouTube -- says, in his book Bass Grooves: Develop Your Groove and Play Like the Pros in Any Style, pretty much exactly the opposite of what MNAirHead is propounding here: "While there are many active ways you can develop your groove, you can't just sit there with a metronome and become a groove monster" (11). While practicing with a metronome is a great way to develop time awareness, playing to a drum machine beat that you yourself have programmed (Ed goes into detail as to why this aspect is so important) is a much better way to develop groove awareness -- which, of course, are two very different aspects of playing the bass in an ensemble.
Just goes to show that different techniques work for different teachers, and there's *usually* no single right way to approach any given instructional or learning issue.
Jawbone, I'd definitely recommend picking up an inexpensive programmable drum machine -- they can be had all over ebay relatively cheaply -- and learning to make it walk and talk. Then get Bass Grooves and start working from it. I'm having a blast with it, learning a ton, and I suspect your experience will be similar. By the time you're done with the book, you'll be telling -- and showing! -- drummers how to play with you.
