How hard is it to play bass?

[hekawi]

i've only ever played guitar, but started thinking today that it might be fun to get a bass to noodle around with. something inexpensive, maybe a Squier P or pawn-shop special. i know some of you guys play both guitar and bass. how much fun is the bass, and how hard is it to play? i'm not looking to be McCartney or anything, just keep good time and stay in key.

[EunosFD]

Not really any harder to play the actual instrument than a guitar (although the strings are much bigger & can be tough on fingers if you're not used to it), but to actually PLAY bass is another story. Takes a different approach than playing guitar, but to me equally as fun (although not typically as up front and showy as playing guitar). And IMO it (along with drums) is the most important part of a band. A crappy rhythm section can quickly ruin a song. Just my 02¢. Heck, I almost like playing bass more than guitar, but sold my last bass (fretless Jazz) last summer so I'm bassless right now.

[Telenator]

Playing basic bass is very easy. To really play bass is rather challenging. You really need to know your arpeggios and chord types.

[guitarzan13]

Originally Posted by Telenator

Playing basic bass is very easy. To really play bass is rather challenging. You really need to know your arpeggios and chord types.

+1

[aunchaki]

Originally Posted by EunosFD

to actually PLAY bass is another story. Takes a different approach than playing guitar, but to me equally as fun

+1

A year ago I switched from all guitar to about half-and-half guitar and bass in my church band. I knew my way around the strings already, but it did take a while for my brain to learn that I wasn't playing guitar. For me, it's like a different part of my brain's at work.

I love both and can now easily switch back-and-forth between songs, if necessary. The biggest surprise for me was discovering where in the measure the bass really shines (not where I'd be strumming a guitar). I've also become good at intuitively finding the notes between notes for walking basslines. For example, if I'm going from a C to a G, I might stick a quick A before the G. I've also learned (from experience) that this kind of lead-in note can be overused.

All told, I love both bass and guitar, but they're quite different experiences. I recommend every guitar playing pick up a bass now and again. Good luck!!!

[killacaster]

Originally Posted by Telenator

Playing basic bass is very easy. To really play bass is rather challenging. You really need to know your arpeggios and chord types.

i think that you need to know way more to play guitar. we have to know modes, arpeggios, chord sonorities, inversions...the list goes on and on. plus theres more ways to play one thing on the guitar. i'd say that bass is far easier but just be aware of it texture in the band.

[11 Gauge]

Originally Posted by Telenator

Playing basic bass is very easy. To really play bass is rather challenging. You really need to know your arpeggios and chord types.

+2

Took the words right out of my mouth. Also learning fingerpicking on a bass is extremely challenging. It really adds a great deal of texture to the notes that you will never ever get with a pick.

Another thing that you need to decide on, at some point, is whether you want the bass to just sit in the pocket, and felt more than heard (little treble), or something a bit groovier, that can enhance the drum groove, rather than just reinforce it. It's a thin line to walk, IMO. Flea ruins it, but Geddy Lee walks the fine line very well...JMO.

[Pete Galati]

I can't think like a bass player. I think that that's one of the most essential things about playing bass.

But if you want to hear some great bass playing, get some Grand Funk albums from before Tod Rundgren messed them up, and turned them into hit makers.

[ghosttour]

As much as I enjoy playing guitar, I LOVE playing bass. I think it just depends on the person. I feel much more competent on bass, I have better ideas for songs on bass, playing bass "feels" better than playing guitar to me, etc. etc. etc. Different strokes for different folks, right?

[Oster]

Bass is terrific fun but it's no walk in the park. You can't make any mistakes with bass. You have to be rock solid and then of course you get to watch everyone else get the credit!

Seriously, there are few joys in music as sublime as driving that train through a great show and once you pick it up - Just watch - You'll suddenly find yourself with all kinds of gig and recording offers.

Have fun and Good Luck!

[11 Gauge]

They're a truly horrible sounding band (Imagine what the bar band in Hell might sound like, and you'll have a good idea), but Mudvayne's bassist is simply incredible and gifted. I hope one day he realizes that he deserves to be in a band that plays music...

...He's really got it down - all the nice little nuances, locks it in tight with the drums, good high end snap, but a sweet growl on the lower notes. He can play fretted or fretless equally well, and doesn't wear the bass down over his g0nad$ like so many kids do these days...

It's a shame that you have to listen to all that other racket that's going on just to hear him. Oh well - he's young - I guess I just need to give him some time to figure this out for himself...

Truly great bass players seem to be in short supply.

[Telenator]

As guitar players, we're throwing out chords and blazing over pent minor scales without a care as to what we're actually doing and we get away with it.

A bass player must know what type of cords he's playing against. If the bass player is playing a b7 against a major 7 chord, the whole band is going to sound like it's off. And if someone tries to solo over the bass players line, the sweet tones of the major 7 are going to sound real sour.

Effective bass playing is every bit as difficult as guitar playing and in some instances requires more knowledge and technique. I have the highest regard for skilled bass players.

[Dr. T]

Originally Posted by Telenator

Playing basic bass is very easy. To really play bass is rather challenging. You really need to know your arpeggios and chord types.

Ditto. I was going to say that to work the "mechanism", i.e., put your fingers down and pluck low notes, is often easier to do if you're accustomed to playing guitar. To put together an irresistible groove; to know just where to put the notes; to know when to play and when not to; very difficult. Lots of fun trying to learn though. If you are a control freak (as is yours truly) there's nothing more satisfying than being both the "motor" and the "rudder" of the band. Who needs the attention when you've got raw power?

[eggman]

Howdy,

I play guitar, too. Recently I had a Little Kids Rock gig where I had to play Bass. BTW, Kix Brooks, James Burton and the guy who played "Sweet Home Alabama" was there in the wings. So I borrowed a danged ol' 5-string Fender Jazz Bass to play "Jambalaya" and "Hang On, Sloopy". Simple enough.

I'm no Bassist, but wound up getting a call to play Bass a week later! Small gig, short as well. Got all I could eat and had fun. But this has got me to thinking: What If I'd have invested some time in learning the Bass 20 years ago?! If my bidness venture goes well this Summer, I might be inclined to shop for a used Rickenbacker 4003..who knows?

Eggman
PS: I have more respect than ever for Bassists.

[Ben Harmless]

Originally Posted by killacaster

i think that you need to know way more to play guitar. we have to know modes, arpeggios, chord sonorities, inversions...the list goes on and on. plus theres more ways to play one thing on the guitar. i'd say that bass is far easier but just be aware of it texture in the band.

Yer right. You don't need to know squat to play bass 'cause it's so darn simple.

[BrassNut]

Originally Posted by Ben Harmless

Yer right. You don't need to know squat to play bass 'cause it's so darn simple.

Awesome clip! I wonder why my P-Bass won't do that?

[BritishBluesBoy]

Damn - Ben... I'd never heard of Victor Wooten... I just watched a bunch of his stuff on youtube...

That guy's unbelievable....

Thanks for posting that.

[kyle1167]

[quote=Ben Harmless;805096]Yer right. You don't need to know squat to play bass 'cause it's so darn simple.


Thanks Ben, I was hoping that someone would reply to that comment.
Every one of those things applies to the bass just as well. I think Victor's playing shows that. I love his playing, although my all time fav is Jaco. He lived for learning and playing bass and it showed.

[11 Gauge]

This makes me think - boy do I miss the days when Geddy Lee and Chris Squire used to play Riks.

You just don't hear that any more - at least I don't (probably some of you are saying, "thank goodness!). Even if it's a good bass groove, a lot of times it's pretty tame sounding. At least it's not as tame as it was in the 80's - I'll always remember the bass tone on Radioactive by The Firm - yech!

[hekawi]

what do you guys think of this one:
http://www.rondomusic.net/product932.html

[Paul in Colorado]

Playing bass is really fun! How did I live so long and not know that? I've been playing seriously for about a year and a half. What I do is think up bass lines and figure out how to play them. I know scales and stuff from playing guitar for years. Once I have a bass line down, I can improvise on it. Of course sometimes I'm just doing roots and fifths. Get solid and tight with the simple stuff, then add to it a little at a time.

It's a lot easier then mandolin.

After my first time sitting in with a band on bass I started getting people who wanted me to play with them. I'm too busy with my own projects, but I'd like to find an open mic or jam where I could play bass.

[0le FUZZY]

...Bin doin both fer over 40 years now and it jes adds tew the joy of bean a magician iffin yew kin pick both bass and TELECASTER (at different times of course) yew will have even more fun.

...Makin noise onna bass is eazy but pickin good bass ain't.

...It will take yew a spell but dew witt!! Yew won't be sorry.

...Buy a cheeeeeep Squier P-bass offin Magacians fren and git a good strong amp and yew will be all set. A more expensive bass won't make yew a better picker practice will. Yew kin even learn tew use won hand!

...I never got good but Boy! did I haff fun fer all them years (click)

0.F.

[Telenator]

..........and Wooten plays a 4 string bass!

[timgreene]

I just took up the bass a couple of months ago, and it is very satisfying to
play. very different than guitar. Bass requires a much stouter amp, than guitar. Practice amps for bass are a joke.

Go for it. Get bass for dummies, or idiots guide to bass, and you will have plenty to work with.

[BillJ]

Let's do the math. A guitar has six strings. A bass has four, two less than a guitar. So a bass is 33.3% easier to play than a guitar.

[biker joe]

Ben Harmless,
Awsome. Thanks for posting that Victor clip. Not only is he just jaw dropping amazing, he is playing in my town tomorrow. I would not have been paying attention if you did not post that. Lets see, dinner reservations made long long ago with relatives in town at 6, eat fast, so maybe I can make the Vixshow at 9, now just have to convince the wife that this will fit in the schedule...

To keep from steeling the thread:
I think playing base is extrememly difficult to do well. Yes, as a guitar player I can pick up a base and make it through a song or two, but I just barely make it as filler. The instrument has to be approached differently than guitar and I just suck at it. We all have to pick our battles/instruments and to avoid spreading myself too thin, I have decided to leave the bass playing to the real bass players and the world probably is a better place for me making that decision. That being said, I'm sure I could learn alot about the guitar, if I actually tried to take up the bass seriously...

[telejake]

Originally Posted by Ben Harmless

Yer right. You don't need to know squat to play bass 'cause it's so darn simple.

Victor is one of the two best bass players in the world! The other one is a matter of opinion.

[WisconsinStrings]

Originally Posted by Ben Harmless

Yer right. You don't need to know squat to play bass 'cause it's so darn simple.

Wow, amazing!

I bet he decided to give you a firm handshake, you'd never play guitar again.

[Chris S.]

All good stuff, thanks guys. :-)

I took up bass as a "2nd" instrument in '72 or so. It's been a JOY ever since. For a while there, I was playing as many bass gigs as guitar gigs (and just here recently, I've gotten back into it – and again, I'm having a ball. And getting BOOKED for a bunch of gigs.) :-)

It DOES take time to learn how to play like a BASS player, NOT a guitar player playing "at" bass. But as others have said, it's worth it. And it will help your guitar playing a lot just to learn to hear the music from a different perspective. So I say, "Go for it!" :-)

Also, here's a truism for ya: Everybody always needs a good bass player. Nobody EVER needs another guitar player. If you're ever tired of sitting at home on Fri or Sat nights and would rather be out playing, learn how to play bass. Spend some time "woodshedding" and learning, and you'll have more gigs than you can handle.

Best of luck, CS :-)

P.S. Attention DC area TDPRIers: One of the best bass players in the world (IMO) is right here in the DC area: Gary Grainger. Yeow. =:-O Here's some info:

http://profile.myspace.com/index.cfm...ndid=119249207

AND he's playing Tuesday, May 22 at Flanagan's Harp & Fiddle in Bethesda as part of the WPG Trio (with Benjie Porecki on keys and drummer Blues Webb – both amazing in their own right). I'll be there. My best friend and bass player buddy since high school and I caught them there last week, and he described listening to them as a "near religious experience." I couldn't disagree. HIGHLY recommended! See you there. :-)

[genelovesjez]

As someone who recently bought a bass after years of guitar playing I will say this: it's harder than I thought. IMO, playing bass really well is no easier than playing guitar really well. Many of the same skills are required, but they are required in different ways. The toughest thing for me is getting out of the guitar headspace and into the bass headspace, all the while trying to draw on skills that I developed playing guitar.

[Tim Bowen]

I've always considered myself more of an arranger than a player, and whenever I do arrangements, the bass line is always what I hear first; I build everything else around that. In fact, I probably love bass the most, and would be perfectly happy to "just" be a bass player. I do some sessions occasionally on bass, and play bass on 6-7 tunes with one of my projects. I've tried to find a bass gig on the side for the last couple of years, but typical reparte' is: "well, you play electric and acoustic guitars, mandolin, banjo, harp, and you sing, so there's no sense in 'sticking you' with the bass chores!" Gahhh.

For the guitarist that wants to play bass, it's an entirely different discipline. Guitar and whatnots are ice cream, bass is integral and fundamental. It's about groove. Bass player is only as good as the drummer, and vice-versa. The music that makes me jump up and down is ignited by a great rhythm section with big ears.

I'm incredibly prejudiced when it comes to bassists, and rhythm sections in general. If I see something other than a four string Fender Precision or Jazz electric, I start to get nervous. If I hear a bassist dial in a bunch of high end presence with his rig, and immediately start slapping and popping, I become agitated and irritable, I can't help it. I'm hopelessly locked into the old school, round and warm, "more-felt-than-heard", locked in with the kick drum, school of thought. Give me Willie Weeks, Duck Dunn, Kenny Passarelli, James Jamerson, John Paul Jones, and those of similar mindset. I love virtuosos and I dig Jaco, as long as it's Weather Report music.

[Telenator]

Originally Posted by Tim Bowen

If I hear a bassist dial in a bunch of high end presence with his rig, and immediately start slapping and popping, I become agitated and irritable, I can't help it. I'm hopelessly locked into the old school, round and warm, "more-felt-than-heard", locked in with the kick drum, school of thought.

I hear ya! I saw Robben Ford with a pickup band at The Bottom Line in NYC a few years ago. The bass player had a rig that nearly reached the ceiling! It was all high end and sub woofer. No middle. Totally inappropriate for Robben Ford's music. Robben just couldn't get his groove on. I felt bad for him.

On the other hand, I really dig Stew Ham. He pops and stuff, but he's real tastey about it.

Anyone remember Fernando Saunders or Pop Popswell?

[Telenator]

This one features Pop Popswell on bass and Carmine Appice on drums. The video sucks but the recording is great. That's a P90 Les Paul making all that sweet sound!

This was recorded in 1977/78

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XzupiAewmNk

[captain gorgeous]

i play both regularly and just love playing bass. i probably get more satistaction out of nailing a set on the bass than i do from my scrappy guitar playing while trying to sing and put on a show etc.

[Sarge]

I played bass back in the 60's cause I figured 4 strings was easier than 6 and it was. I was thinkin' of taking it up again but more gear to aquire. I'll stick to the geetar.

[chet]

Originally Posted by timgreene

I just took up the bass a couple of months ago, and it is very satisfying to
play. very different than guitar. Bass requires a much stouter amp, than guitar. Practice amps for bass are a joke.

Go for it. Get bass for dummies, or idiots guide to bass, and you will have plenty to work with.

I've got a small Crate practice Bass amp and it does the job very nicely. I can practice bass lines without disturbing my neighbors and play along with cd's if I want.
Practicing/gigging with a band is a different thing though but don't completly discount the small amps.

[11 Gauge]

A lot of my fave players have/had a style that's reminiscent of playing upright bass (LOVE that sound) - totally supportive of the drumbeat.

I hate the modern rigs too - give me a good old P bass or Rik with an SVT.

I can tolerate 5 strings, fretless, or a nice Warwick bass in the right hands, but that's about as modern as I want to go.

And yes, no slapfunk, please. Some love it, but I think it just destroys any kinda synergy to the rhythm.

[Dave Hopping]

Haven't done a bass gig in quite awhile,but bass was always fun-made me feel like Atlas carrying the band around....My 2 cents worth for 6 stringers aspiring to basshood-a bass may look like a guitar but it's really a species of polyphonic kick drum that works with the real kick drum.

[Big Tony]

4 strings - 12 notes --- how hard can it be???

Seriously, I've gained a new respect for the instrument since I started to play bass about six years ago. The hardest thing for me was to stop thinking like a guitar player when I played bass. It isn't just a guitar tuned an octave lower, and missing two strings...

It's all about the groove, and building a foundation for the music (and having fun!).

It's quite easy for a guitarist to pick up a bass guitar, and "make do", but there's a big chance that you "make doo doo" instead. Great bass playing is an art form in itself, and I'm still on my way to become a capable bass player. The more I learn, the more I begin to see the depth of good bass playing.

There are virtuosos, like Victor Wooten, Jaco, Stu Hamm, and others - but a solid walking bass is something you can devote your whole life to - and playing "root - five" in a country band is not as easy as it looks, if you want to be real good at it.

Just my 5 öre.

/ Tony

[Ben Harmless]

There's something that bothers me, and I haven't seen anyone truly cross this line in this thread - so I'm really not targeting anyone here at all. I think you'll know what I mean though.

The thing is, if I told another guitar player that he or she shouldn't play arpeggios, or shouldn't use pinch harmonics, or that slide guitar was a "fad" that should have gone out with the '40s, he or she would rightly slap me upside the head.

Somehow though, guitar players see no problem with telling bass players what "their role" is in a band, and pretty much how they are allowed to play their instrument. Sticking bass players in with drummers is an insult to both types of musicians, and really makes guitar players sound like elitist snobs, when 99.99% of us have no ground to stand on.

Holding the 6-string doesn't make us guitar players the authority on how music is to be played, but a good number of us seem to think so. Of course, if we don't like the music, we shouldn't be in the band, but we don't really have the right to expect that another musician should conform to any specific set of rules just because we say "that's the way you're supposed to play."