Maybe the tide is turning a bit. I just got a gig replacing the keyboard player's left hand. Did the first one last night and they were very happy with a real bass player.
Take Care,
Timbros.
Take Care,
Timbros.
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Why do so many bands now use a keyboard player for bass?
- Thread starter NelsonNelson
- Start date
LOL, don't get me wrong...I love Good Old War. These guys do this style of music the best and they're very under rated. I would go to guess these guys do it because sometimes the lead singer on the piano bass plays keys too and they don't want to cut their low income with a fulltime bass player.
I guess I sounded too negative before. What I meant is that it sounds very "synthetic" not that it's bad...just doesn't have the real sound a bass player gives.
Again, it depends a great deal on the genre; like techno-rock, much of the disco stuff and other genres can get away with the "synthetic" sound. Back in the 60's and early 70's I played drums with two different guys who sang, played Hammond B3's and did the bass on the pedals...just the two of us. Great gigs; no rehearsal. Just told me where to be, how to dress, I showed up played and got paid $50 to $100 a gig; which was good money back then.
wow.. not to derail too much... but using this
http://www.bankofcanada.ca/rates/related/inflation-calculator/
$50 - $100 a gig in say 1965 would be about $360 to $720 per gig now. Yeah right, who gets that now for these kinds of gigs? 50 years later, $50 - $100 is still "good money" for a casual no-rehearsal gig, though the money is worth so much less now.
Twice in 1966 (when I was 17 yrs old) I approached another band in our area and we had a joint venture where we rented the local Armory. We paid for some radio spots, hired two off duty cops for security, had our parents take the door money. We played a set, they played a set and so on until we all jammed the last set togther. After expenses we had $50.00 a man net profit with ten guys between the two bands; or, $500.00 net.
edit: please excuse the deviation from the OP's intent
edit: please excuse the deviation from the OP's intent
I'm sure a lot of other musician's can complain about keyboards replacing them. In my own music use a keyboard as a cello, violin, harp, etc...
I think that the most important part of forming a band is having the right chemistry among the musicians. You should enjoy hanging out together, etc... If not, why force it? You can use a keyboard for just about anything, so there's no reason to feel that you have to find a real drummer, bassist, or whatever.
I think that the most important part of forming a band is having the right chemistry among the musicians. You should enjoy hanging out together, etc... If not, why force it? You can use a keyboard for just about anything, so there's no reason to feel that you have to find a real drummer, bassist, or whatever.
The doors did it!
Like I said without Jim Morrison they woulda been the nerds of rock and roll?
A couple of organ players? Huh???
Like I said without Jim Morrison they woulda been the nerds of rock and roll?
A couple of organ players? Huh???
Just like the title asks, why is this a growing trend? I don't get it.
Last night I took my wife to see The Fray with Kelly Clarkson. Great show for music I am not a fan of but the opening band, Carolina Liar, had a keyboard player that played bass on a small keyboard. Then...a few weeks ago, Good Old War, on Jimmy Kimmel Live was doing the same thing!
Sounds very fake to me...but why is this a growing trend?
I think that keyboard bass can sound really good for some things. Maybe they do too?
Synth bass, bass guitar, and DB(heck, also Tuba, guitarron, 808 kick, organ pedals, you-name-it) are simply different "bass instruments"--they're all viable options for handling the low end, just depends on the genre and the music. Just use each one for their own sonic properties.
Personally I don't ever try to make a synth sound like a bass guitar or vice-versa (it usually falls short of the mark anyway even in skilled hands...)
...and again-
The Doors used many different bassists on their records...live concerts was solely the Fender Piano Bass. After LA Woman, the group was going to ask bassist Jerry Scheff to become a member.
Without Morrison? The 3 other Doors did put out 2 albums post-Morrison.
FWIW, I would not call Densmore-Krieger-Manzarek "nerds"...
Then...a few weeks ago, Good Old War, on Jimmy Kimmel Live was doing the same thing!
Sounds very fake to me...but why is this a growing trend?
Keyboard bass or not, those guys are pretty boring. Though I am judging them on this one song, perhaps it's their "safe song". Either way, it doesn't really compel me to look into anything else of theirs.
Not so inline with the keyboard topic, but I have noticed an absence of bass players in groups coming out in the new folk scene, one place I like has photos of each act that plays there. Not one of the more than 30 pics I looked through had a bass player in the group. Lots of mandolins, little (homemade looking) organs, banjos, guitars & drums...no bass. One such excellent, local group was "O' Deer", 5 people, no bass.
I don't think it is any kind of trend. Like someone mentioned in an earlier trhead; its been going on for years. One of my favorite bands is Soulive. They're a trio (most of the time) but never have a bass player. Neil Evans plays a mean bass on the keys. In fact he's one of my favorite bass players. JJ Grey and Mofro (also one of my favs) used to have their keyboard player play bass but they have a bass player now. I think the reason for this may be the core of the band just never found a bass player who fit but wanted to play gigs anyway; then it just ended up working.
Who really gives a crap what they use for bass? It's not like I'm going to get the gig if these bands suddenly hire a bassist. And who am I to tell others what their musical vision should be?
Joey DeFrancesco is pretty unbelievable on the hammond organ. He plays beautiful bass lines to begin with, then he'll play an incredible organ solo over that. I'm not talking Ray Manzerak bass lines either.
The band is Steve Gadd & Friends, with Joey DeFrancesco, Ronnie Cuber and Paul Bollenback.
The band is Steve Gadd & Friends, with Joey DeFrancesco, Ronnie Cuber and Paul Bollenback.
