Would you consider this overplaying the bass line?

[CGremlin]

Sounds great to me. The only things I'd change would be to slow it down a bit, and to make the unison line with you and the guitar a bit more staccato to give it some extra funky contrast, but that's just me - you guys should play it how YOU feel it.

 

[Rootbeer]

I think its cool

 

[JRT64]

Sounds good to me. I thought you played it just fine.

 

[Acoop]

No, you're laying down a good solid groove. ... I play the tune the same way without the fills, which you do repeat the same fill coming out of the break, so you could switch that up. ... You're doing a good job at keeping the drummer honest, which I'm sure he likes. ...

 

[bearhart74]

But when it gets to the "13-month-old baby" bit, you jump into a very crisp unison, and it starts to feel jumpy rather than groovy. I'd suggest you keep hanging behind it there. Kind of slide into the first phrase of it - rather than "dat de dat, da da de da..." go "daahh, dahh, da da de da..." Just my 2 cents.

Agreed with this.. thats the pre chorus part and it does not feel right to my ears.. too on top of the beat? The rest sounds great...

 

[zubrycky]

Great rendition, OP! Cool bass line!

 

[ThinCrappyTone2]

Just wanted to say thanks to everyone for the advice, kind words and encouragement. I was a little worried about posting this, but talkbass is such a fantastic community. This has been a great learning experience on many levels. Thank you all.

 

[2F/2F]

Drop that song immediately. It's an embarrassingly bad version of one of the greatest songs ever made. It's so far off the mark, that nothing can be done to save it.

 

[Sonicfrog]

OMG!!! IT'S HORRIBLE!!!!!!!!

PS: Just kidding. I really really liked it.

 

[Minimalist]

I actually think you are not playing enough. In particular in the guitar solo I'd try to emphasize the chords more.

 

[ThinCrappyTone2]

Drop that song immediately. It's an embarrassingly bad version of one of the greatest songs ever made. It's so far off the mark, that nothing can be done to save it.

kind of harsh, but fair play, if that’s how you feel. Thank you for the feedback.

 

[jamro217]

Forgive me for not reading through five pages of responses first, but every opinion still counts, so, "it's fine". The reason it's fine is because of the sparse instrumentation. If this was in the setting of a thirty-piece orchestra, maybe not fine. The fewer instruments are playing, the more sonic space each needs to fill in order to avoid the pitfall of sounding weak and anemic. Guitar trios suffer greatly. During solos the only reference to chordal changes as well as the low register is the bass. Fills are not only acceptable, they become mandatory. If the guitarist is clever and can fuse enough rhythmic clues into the solo to maintain coherence, you're a step ahead. You still have to play your butt off. What you play in this situation is just as, if not more important than how you play it. Choosing which parts to accentuate at any given point and which parts to skip can create the illusion of all parts being present, although they aren't. Listen to Joe Pass or Tal Farlow play solo guitar. They give the impression of two guitars playing simultaneously (or at least a guitar and a half). If the guitarist and bassist work together complementing and supporting each other, the holes are filled by the audience hearing what isn't fully there but is hinted at. Think of paintings where the background is fuzzy and you still get the effect of distance and spatiality. They aren't in 3D, yet you perceive them as such. The same is true for aural tricks. Convince the audience that what they expect to be in the background actually is (even though you know better). Sorry to be longwinded. Hope this helps.

 

[ThinCrappyTone2]

Forgive me for not reading through five pages of responses first, but every opinion still counts, so, "it's fine". The reason it's fine is because of the sparse instrumentation. If this was in the setting of a thirty-piece orchestra, maybe not fine. The fewer instruments are playing, the more sonic space each needs to fill in order to avoid the pitfall of sounding weak and anemic. Guitar trios suffer greatly. During solos the only reference to chordal changes as well as the low register is the bass. Fills are not only acceptable, they become mandatory. If the guitarist is clever and can fuse enough rhythmic clues into the solo to maintain coherence, you're a step ahead. You still have to play your butt off. What you play in this situation is just as, if not more important than how you play it. Choosing which parts to accentuate at any given point and which parts to skip can create the illusion of all parts being present, although they aren't. Listen to Joe Pass or Tal Farlow play solo guitar. They give the impression of two guitars playing simultaneously (or at least a guitar and a half). If the guitarist and bassist work together complementing and supporting each other, the holes are filled by the audience hearing what isn't fully there but is hinted at. Think of paintings where the background is fuzzy and you still get the effect of distance and spatiality. They aren't in 3D, yet you perceive them as such. The same is true for aural tricks. Convince the audience that what they expect to be in the background actually is (even though you know better). Sorry to be longwinded. Hope this helps.

Thank you for the feedback and thoughtful suggestions, @jamro217 ! i appreciate the response and tge advice and will take it yo heart and check out the folks you referenced. Much appreciated! Still figuring this stuff out, so advice like this is welcome and very helpful!

 

[Acoustic356]

I think there are some places where you do step on the singer... for example:
0:16-0:17 - your fill when the singer comes in? Again at 1:10-1:12 and 2:28-2:30 - I think leaving space for the vocals to accent the verse might be better.

Vocally, there is a lot of space in the song, so there's no need for the bass to draw attention from the vocals.

Other than that, I really dig the bass work.

 

[ThinCrappyTone2]

I think there are some places where you do step on the singer... for example:
0:16-0:17 - your fill when the singer comes in? Again at 1:10-1:12 and 2:28-2:30 - I think leaving space for the vocals to accent the verse might be better.

Vocally, there is a lot of space in the song, so there's no need for the bass to draw attention from the vocals.

Other than that, I really dig the bass work.

Thanks for the feedback, @Acoustic356 ! Good points!

 

[jamro217]

Thank you for the feedback and thoughtful suggestions, @jamro217 ! i appreciate the response and tge advice and will take it yo heart and check out the folks you referenced. Much appreciated! Still figuring this stuff out, so advice like this is welcome and very helpful!

Thank you for your kind reply. I started out as the guitarist in a rock trio (before switching to bass) and had to figure out a way to make it work. Completely ruined any aspirations as a guitarist by transforming the "one guitar" mentality to that of a "full orchestra guitar". Once you begin thinking that way you can't go back. Unable to function in a band with more than one other guitarist anymore without constantly stepping on toes. Bass (as a separate instrument from guitar) can fit into many genres with a busy approach and not sound out of place. Rocco did just fine in TOP. Take care!

 

[Plain Old Barry]

Isn't the basis of 90's Prog rock overplaying?

So, it's fine...

 

[braud357]

Great take of the song and good execution. The only weak part (in my opinion) was the slap part at 1;07 - not needed, and did not contribute to the "feel" of the rest of the song.

 

[juancaminos]

I think it's perfect! You didn't step on the lead guy at all. The little pop wasn't too much, a little goes a long way.
I thought the rendition as well as your playing was spot on!

 

[Green Hornet]

Looks good..Sounds good..Really diggin' that practice space.
Rock On!