Yeah, still....you got nothin' - paid full price for a Fodera - that ain't right. Maybe there's a way out of this - are you missing any fingers? Did your girlfriend cut one off when you were caught cheatin' on her?
Enjoy the benefits of a premium membership!
Upgrade Account
-
TalkBass has been independent since 1998. Add your voice.
Create a free account to reply to discussions, view embedded media, and browse with fewer display ads.
Join free Log in
Want zero display ads or expanded classifieds tools? Compare plans.
What makes a great Blues bass player.?
- Thread starter IamGroot
- Start date
Yeah, still....you got nothin' - paid full price for a Fodera - that ain't right. Maybe there's a way out of this - are you missing any fingers? Did your girlfriend cut one off when you were caught cheatin' on her?
Having had enough divorces, home fires and bad luck to fully play from the soul, along with having found lost family members to devil and an absolute pleasure in being awake till dawn
Being a Pict. Especially if it's a woad band.
I do have a 2016 Corvette! Lol
But I do play old school as well! Photo from Rum Boogie in Memphis.
1) tone 2) tasteful choice of notes 3) tone 4) no slap
You might want to go back further in time and get hold of the early Clapton recordings with John Mayall..Bluesbreaker album is a classic study. Fleetwood Mac’s John McVie plays bass. Also track down Fleetwood Mac in Chicago.. classic recordings with some of the blues legends. Also check Otiss Spann with Fleettwood MAC. McVie was/is a master.
I think the real answer is: a great blues guitar player. Let's face it, without the guitar player you probably won't get noticed.
(yes, my response is somewhat sarcastic
)
(yes, my response is somewhat sarcastic
)
Yeah, bass players are hat needy.
I liked your hat and shoes, but would have lost the jacket and worn suspenders.
Peter Mars Cowling! He kept guys like Pat Travers on their toes with his ball-busting bass riffs. Way underrated and always seemed to fly under the radar until his death. I saw him in action several times and was mesmerized by his powerful style
Wow! Almost to a man you guys seem to start with Clapton. If you want to play blues, you have to go back a lot farther than that, unless you think Allman Brothers, Cream, and the Blues Brothers were blues bands. Walk a little farther back. 20s and 30s at least. In my mind Little Walter was recent. Not many white guys are important in your searches
Feel and stay in the pocket with the drummer. Know the different styles (West Coast, Texas, Chicago, etc.) since each one has it own approach. Some songs have a signature line so the bassist need to know them.
The general crowd may not appreciate what you are doing but other blues musicians, on and off stage, will.
The general crowd may not appreciate what you are doing but other blues musicians, on and off stage, will.
It's bonus if you can make it interesting and laid back at the same time. Some passages in certain songs will whisper to you "play a few extra turnarounds in here" and it is possible to occasionally be downright busy as a blues bassist and have that be what serves the song, but the key is knowing when and where and how. You still have to play in a way that anchors everything else that's going on and doesn't intrude on the rest of it.
Don't drive a Volvo. What do Volvo owners know of lives of quiet desperation?
This is the problem with many blues bands. Not enough depth in the genre. There is nothing wrong with Clapton but his blues catalog has been visited and revisited to death. If you want to play an informal, casual blues jam you probably have to know that stuff. If you want to headline at the premier blues club in your town, you need to be digging a little deeper.
Smooth_bass88
vaxx!
- Oct 31, 2006
- 12,122
- 16,796
- Disclosures
- have been on nationally released albums, charting on the Billboard 200
