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.
Which bass lines to play?
- Thread starter mcontour
- Start date
It seems to me that the only reason that this is even a question is due to the fact that you know the band and what their bass player is playing. If you came off the street as a sub, how would you know any better than to play the lines as they are written unless they gave you specific instructions about what to play? Having said that, you can almost bet that playing the lines "as written" will screw somebody up, probably multiple times throughout the night. It is important to note that they will also probably not believe that playing them as written will be a problem. I have done plenty of subbing over the years and you just never know what you are going to run into.
This was a very long time ago in a band that I was actually in. I had just joined and I had the usual 2 or 3 weeks to get all their material down, I think we practiced as a group about 3 or 4 times before the first show. Anyway, there was one song that I worked pretty hard to learn, it wasn't hard to play, but it was damn near impossible to hear the bass as the track was total mud (I don't remember what it was). So, the first time we ran it as a group, the drummer totally blew the whole song. I was like, I figured that all out for him to screw it up?! Run it though a second time, same thing. The leader finally said to me in private, you need to play it like this (however it was), the drummer isn't used to the bass that way. I did not last but about 3 gigs with that band.
This was a very long time ago in a band that I was actually in. I had just joined and I had the usual 2 or 3 weeks to get all their material down, I think we practiced as a group about 3 or 4 times before the first show. Anyway, there was one song that I worked pretty hard to learn, it wasn't hard to play, but it was damn near impossible to hear the bass as the track was total mud (I don't remember what it was). So, the first time we ran it as a group, the drummer totally blew the whole song. I was like, I figured that all out for him to screw it up?! Run it though a second time, same thing. The leader finally said to me in private, you need to play it like this (however it was), the drummer isn't used to the bass that way. I did not last but about 3 gigs with that band.
Play whatever you like. If you know the parts off the original recordings, knock yourself out.
I have done many sub gigs where playing the parts off the recordings doesn't work because the band has altered the songs too much. In one case they were playing the bridge of a song in the wrong key. So use your ears and back off being “correct” if it’s causing any problems.
If I get the chance I'll try to catch a show. Drop me a line with some dates if you get the chance.
Smooth_bass88
vaxx!
- Oct 31, 2006
- 12,122
- 16,796
- Disclosures
- have been on nationally released albums, charting on the Billboard 200
For cover gigs, I ALWAYS play the exact, correct bassline. This has served me VERY well, and usually elicits wide smiles and comments such as "it's so nice to hear the right bass parts!" and "you sound better than the player that's been with us for years!"
i'd play the best parts i can play and i wouldn't need to consult anyone.
you always have the option of doing your best! just play. congrats on your gig, break a leg!
I feel strongly about not rocking the boat when doing sub gigs. I feel as though I'm there to do everything I can in the spirit of being helpful. Anything that takes away from that should be avoided. But then again, what are they gonna do? Fire you? 
I see this too, and it drives me nuts. Saw a cover of What I Am by Edie Brickell, and the bass player didn't even try to play the actual, awesome fretless line, he just played root notes the entire song. Ugh....
This ^^^. You said you are going to setin in a few weeks? So, there will be no rehearsal? I'd say that I would request a rehearsal and find out what is needed then and if you really know their music?
Musicianship is called for here. Lee Sklar is a master at this. He can pretty much play everything but he never plays too much.
I remember a concert I went to back in the 80's. It was an Eric Clapton concert. He had a firecracker of a young guitarist with him, who just had blazing speed...but he'd get lost. He'd lose his anchor and play the wrong parts over the wrong chords...so he'd just try to play faster. Then Clapton with come in with some slow sort of counterpoints to what this guy was doing and slowly take over the lead. And then the lead would become more lyrical and even in the faster parts, he always played just what the song needed and not any more. I presume that's where he got the moniker "Slow Hand". But the point was play what the song needs, when it needs it. He knows when to fill and when lay back. Same thing here.
I toured with a nightclub group in the early 70's that had 4 lead vocalists, myself included. It allowed for a wide assortment of songs and the harmonies were excellent. We worked out harmonies for every song. When the focus of a group is on the vocals and vocal harmonies, you have to be careful not to go stomping all over them with aggressive bass lines. By the same token there should be spaces in the song where you can do more than simple thumps - some tasteful fills. Just pick your places and don't distract from the vocals. And yes, good vocals can cover for simple bass lines, lead lines, etc., but there is usually space in all of that for some better than basic bass lines as long as it serves the song.
Personally, I geek out on learning tunes the exact way the OG band recorded (or played live). Not every exact detail per se, but the iconic feel and bassline. I can get a sense as to what was arranged and what was spontaneously improvised like the fills - BUT if there are any fills that became an iconic part of the arrangement my tendency is to learn those like the original. Why fix what ain't broke?
Now live playing is a different matter. It depends on the pocket the band creates, especially the drummer and the rhythm guitarist or whatever the rhythm section consists of. If they AREN'T matching the exact fee of the recording, that "correct" bassline won't fit the groove.
My goal is to make sure:
1) I'm in the pocket with the team - people are grooving and dancing
2) If there is deviation from the learning material, it's never MY FAULT; rather, its my decision to play something more appropriate
3) whatever you end up playing makes the rest of the band sound BETTER, and not like you showing off that you're a know-it-all who did their homework and are opposing the groove/pocket/feel/tempo of their playing
This has got to be the most helpful thread on TB in at least the last five years.
Well done, people.
Well done, people.
Serve the song rather than the ego as a purist. My feeling is you’ve been called in as a sub, not to audition for a place in the band. So I’d suggest either discussing it with the band first or sticking fairly close to the band’s established arrangements but maybe add some judicious fixes and tasteful touches to make it your own. Just don’t overdo it.
FWIW, I’ll often simplify a bassline for instrumental solos or if there are complex vocal arrangements in order to let the soloist or the vocalists shine better. But that’s me.
FWIW, I’ll often simplify a bassline for instrumental solos or if there are complex vocal arrangements in order to let the soloist or the vocalists shine better. But that’s me.
Last edited:
And even then, is that necessarily the best possible bass line that could ever go with those parts? Them as go for it might only be one Tenacious D away from a better one.
I think that's your best approach. Being show-ready with their arrangements that their audience goes for is what being a professional is all about. It's about them, not us. And even then, given that you're a different person with different gear and a different touch than the usual bassist, even if you play the usual bassist's parts you'll still naturally put your own "stank" on them.
ASIDE: I remember seeing this video where Ryan Martinie (Mudvayne, Soften the Glare) filled in for Korn during several tour dates while their bassist, Fieldy, was on paternity leave. Ryan played the parts note-for-note as Fieldy would have, because he knew the audience was there to experience KoRn and he was a fill-in with the professional duty of giving the KoRn experience to the best of his ability. It wasn't about him showboating (even though he is a more skilled bassist than Fieldy). But if you watch Korn live vids with Fieldy vs. the shows where Ryan Martinie subbed in, there is a difference, because Ryan is naturally a very taut and technical bassist whereas Fieldy is naturally a more relaxed, loosey-goosey player.
Last edited:
Sounds like they follow the KISS principle on the instrument parts so singing is the star? Trust issue here too, you dont want to come across as competitive!
Yep agree with play like you. Pretty hard to play like someone else. Being solid matters more than being better though?
Gonna third that, great insight. A lot of people dance to lyrics... Not saying it's right, but...
Yep agree with play like you. Pretty hard to play like someone else. Being solid matters more than being better though?
