When did you get into bass playing and why?

[powmetalbassist]

So what got you playing bass? Why did you start? how old were you? What influenced you?

For me I was 14 years old and began listening to alot of 80's Hair metal (it was the mid 90's at the time) I found a band called MR.BIG and fell in love with their sound and their bassist -= Billy Sheehan. The way he played and the sound of the bass on the records got me fired up. I also discovered that the bass makes the music. It's what people groove/dance/mosh to. I loved the soloist in billy Sheehan, but never really found myself as attched to this as his fundamental playing and sound.

 

[WhoSeyes]

In reality I always wanted to be the singer and the bandleader.

I bought an electric guitar. I never really learnt how to play it.

I "downgraded" to bass.

I consider myself quite an awesome bass player now.

End of story

 

[AaronVonRock]

I was a crappy guitar player as a teenager and found bass much easier to play as an adult.

 

[jd56hawk]

There's something satisfying about being the foundation.

 

[Antisyzygy]

Some guitar player I knew talked me into being his bass player in a band. I started taking lessons, then kinda branched out and took guitar in high school as well as took some private lessons for classical guitar, and electrical guitar. I never really was that great at guitar in a traditional sense as I tended to stick to open tunings and play with a slide. I prefer playing fingerstyle slide in open D on Teles or with a Dobro. Oddly enough this does help bass playing as you have to get used to using all your fingers for picking. Still, I completely suck these days in standard tuning on guitar.

I later found that that guitar player who talked me into playing bass is the worst kind of "musician" to play with. He's always trying to mooch off your equipment but is fiercely protective of his, he won't treat you back if you treat him to something, he will turn your volume down without asking, and he turns his amp up to where you can't hear yourself. He had no respect for other people let alone the rhythm section.

That's besides the point the guy doesn't even know a shred of music theory because "Jimi Hendrix didn't need to know that". I don't know as much music theory as I should (I did take band for 8 years and formal guitar lessons for 4, I just forgot some of it) but this guy was just a noodler that couldn't play in the key you told him you were playing in. While he was creative, he wasn't a Jimi Hendrix.

I lost that guitar player and played guitar solo (easy to do if it's delta/folk blues) for a few years until I met another guitarist that needed a bass player. I stuck with bass after that and I still write stuff with that second guitarist I met even though we live in different States. We're kind of an internet band. He's got a lot of respect for the rhythm section.

 

[David Jayne]

As a youngster I was always attracted to the drums and bass, hearing all the 70's soul, R&B and disco stuff I grew up hearing at home. I took voice and piano from around age 10 to 15, then played drums for awhile with my friends who needed a drummer for their punk band. Then I was accidentally exposed to Blues and Jazz for the first time and heard the walking bass parts and it blew my mind. I'm not much of a jazzer now but that's what hooked me.

 

[Deleted member 264575]

1972. I heard a song called Roundabout, by Yes.

 

[catcauphonic]

I'd always been attracted to the low end since my youth ... after hearing guys like Geezer & Bruce kill it

I got a super late start at the age of 43 when the wife went back to college, & I had some free time on my hands to learn something. People have always asked me if I was in a band, based on the way I look ... so I finally thought I ought to be.

Fast forward a few years, and I'm (now divorced, &) making beautiful music with a band called StarMeetsSea

 

[wmhill]

in grade school, as a huge KISS fan, I wanted to be a drummer- the next Peter Criss. So I signed up at school for drum lessons. The band teacher in all his wisdom decided that because I'd signed up for drums, that the trombone was going to be my instrument. At that age, I was pretty small, and couldn't reach the last notes on the slide. No sweat- here's a baritone instead. I hated them both, as I wanted play drummers (no horn players in KISS right?). After a few weeks of this, the teacher informs me that I had no musical aptitude and should forget about music, which I did for a bit.
In the early 80s, I went to listen to an older friends bar band- and thought that was the coolest thing ever ( besides being in a bar at age 16). I started helping out with lights/beers/roadie duties etc... but soon wanted to be one of the guys making the music. I talked with the guitarist, about learning guitar. He commented that everybody is always looking for a bass player, and that good ones are even harder to find. I liked the heavy loud bass tones anyways, so it wasn't to hard to sell me on the idea. 30+ years later, I'm still gigging.

 

[morticia]

I suck at regular guitar but I have okay rhythm so I figured why not, eh?

 

[sharkbait130]

1st time...I was playing guitar in a band in Jr. high school and the coolest band in the school lost their bass player (he moved away.) They asked me if I played bass. I said yes.They asked me when I could practice with them. I said this weekend. I borrowed a bass from a friend and made the practice with one day to spare. I eventually bought that bass and played in bands for a couple of years till I wrecked the old mans car and had to sell my amp to pay for damages.That was around 1967.
2nd time... Around 2001. A guy I worked with told me his bass player was leaving his band. I had an old borrowed bass laying around , a 100 watt amp , and a 2 15 cab. I offered my services and they accepted. Played with them for a little over a year ,got bored with their music and quit. I did give them about 4 months notice to find another player. Got bored with not playing after about a year , found another band and have been playing steadily ever since.

Oh yeah. Hi motricia. welcome to talk bass.

 

[RED J]

There was a kid in school who was a drummer who needed a bass player, and knew my brother had a bass and he was going to sell it. I would noodle on it at home with my thumb.He kid would find me on the stairs between classes at school and really push the issue. Anyway, I got the bass, (66 P bass) by matriarchal decree, and a '64 Bassman amp. He showed me the notes on the board and I went home and learned the old way scratching records into oblivion. I fell in love with it. I went out with his really cute sister for four years as a bonus. She's long gone, he sadly died at 40 but I'm still playing every day.
I gave my brother a bass and an amp that were not getting used a couple of years ago. I don' know if he plays it, but he deserved the payback.

 

[Off-Beat]

Always liked the bass in songs, never had any money so I forgot about it. When I turned 25 a keyboard friend convinced me it's never to late to learn an instrument.

 

[cliffburtono]

I started the bass at 13 just because everyone else in my class was playing the stupid guitar, and it was the easiest way for me to get into a band. Didn't play as much until this year when I turned 20, and found out about Cliff Burton. I knew some big names like Jaco and Stanley Clarke and Flea before and I admired their bass play, but I just didn't like the groovy/funky/jazz genre sound so I was never inclined to learn from them. I 'rediscovered' early Metallica when I saw a gag pic with Cliff Burton captioned "Should've been Lars" and decided to look further into it. I found out all these sounds I was hearing, all this shredding coming out of these early Metallica albums, all I could think of is holy poopie! That's a bass! After that I was hooked man and started playing 4-6 hours a day trying to get to the same level as Cliff, trying to replicate those mad solos I've always believed to come from a guitar.

 

[Tony In Philly]

I can play decent finger-style acoustic guitar but when I play electric, it sounds like Chuck Berry or surf music. I never learned the art of distortion lead playing. Bass seemed like a natural to me and I enjoyed it was well. I first started playing bass back in the 70's and then put it down for a while and concentrated on other instruments. Then, around 2002, I started getting pulled back into playing bass again. This time it really stuck.

 

[SDH]

I was in 9th grade and wanted an electric guitar so bad I could taste it! So, Christmas I was allowed to get one, but I had to pay for half of it.
It didn't take me long to figure out that I was never going to be great at it, so I borrowed a bass...and it just felt "right" in my hands.
Pretty soon, I was in a band and we were doing weekend gigs. That was 45 years ago.

 

[DavC]

1963 - started on piano at 6 , trumpet at 8 , gtr at 12 , bass at 13 ... there where just tooooo many guitar players around and very few bass players ..! plus i could read music/bass clef ... and at that time , playing keyboards in a band was still pretty hard to do ( Rhodes, B3 , 1 notes synths ) ... but that soon changed ..!!

 

[sonicnuance]

In my teens because it is the "sound I heard in my head"

 

[Mantis Tobaggan]

My friend played guitar

 

[Johnny Crab]

Local friend's band needed a "bass player" so when I was 10(1965) my Dad got me a Japanese P-clone and 60 watt tube amp. I had enjoyed crawling around on the pipe organ bass pedals at church as a toddler when my Mom practiced(and let me) so that may have influenced love of the low frequencies too.