Learning Bass Is Making Me A Better Guitar Player

[hekawi]

since i started learning bass, i've noticed my fretting hand is lots stronger, 'specially my pinky. my reach is better, my rhythm is better, i'm hearing songs in a different way. by stretching myself to take up the bass, i'm becoming a better guitarist. anybody else have a similar experience.

[Tim Armstrong]

Yep! Particularly my rhythm playing. But my fills and solos have gotten lots funkier, too...

Cheers, Tim

[tom grossheider]

I'd agree with that, and only add that for me it has made a better overall musician. My newest analogy is that playing bass is like riding a motorcycle, you have to really pay attention and be very deliberate in what you do. As a guitar player, most of the time I don't have to do that, I just add or suppliment the rest of the band.

[bluesfordan]

playing bass made me much more aware of the rhythm, and changes. I hear stuff now in the bass player's choices of notes, syncopation, etc.

I sold my MIM P-bass a couple of years ago, trying to pay down some bills. I'm always on the lookout for a good used one, and will consider a Jazz bass or a P-bass/Jazz special. 4 strings for me, please. Medium scale, and maybe a long scale if the action and sound is right. Unfortunately, the only bass amps I like are humongous jobs like the original SVT, or a Traynor Mono Block D, and whatever John Paul Jones played with Zeppelin (Acoustic?). Hartke, Eden, Bag End just don't really strike me that much. The new Ampeg stuff made in China is garbage, sad to say.

[Stackabones]

You make me want to be a better guitarist.

[Tim Bowen]

These days, I'm only playing bass live on a couple of tunes, and I play bass on the odd session now and then. My concept of bass in the grand scheme of things has always been that it's foundational... I've always built arrangements around bass lines, whether I've played it or somebody else has. Bass line makes or breaks a tune, for me. I always encourage my ambitious guitar/fretted instrument students to purchase a bass and study bass lines. And has been said many times before, if you're having trouble finding a gig or making money as a musician, hire yourself out as a bassist. If you can deliver the goods and the groove, it's not unusual to find yourself having to turn down work offers.

[winny pooh]

The biggest thing for me is that your timing has to improve 100% to play bass well. Plus its great to learn another instrument and become more independent if you do need bass at a jam or own your home demo. For me the bug has bitten, its 5 years now since I picked up my first and I have since then been playing an electric upright for about a year now. Double bass is the only instrument in my heart that competes for affection with electric guitar.

[FirstBassman]

Learning Bass Is Making Me A Better Guitar Player

Works in the other direction too.

That's why Jack told me to learn to play guitar.

[bobbybigmac]

This is kinda off topic but all this talk of guitarists wanting to be a bassist kinda reminds me of an observation a sound-man shared with me.

He said " In a band of musicians :

" All bassists wanna be the lead guitarist "
" All lead guitarists secretly desire to be the front-man vocal "
" All front-man vocals wanna be the drummer
and drummers, well ............ they just wanna get lucky "

I smiled politely and said " Oh yeah what do sound-men want ? "
His reply : " To get paid and then get stoned with the light crew "

[beep.click]

I've found that every new instrument improves your playing on all the rest. When I decided to teach myself keyboards, it TOTALLY changed my approach to guitar.

[mattaslacker]

Playing bass has helped my guitaring too. I also started playing sax recently and it has helped too. I'm amazed at what I missed or glossed over with the guitar, playing these new instruments.

[Telarkaster]

There's no cheating on bass, nowhere to hide. You have to be in tune and on time.

Playing drums helps too, the bass and drums play off of each other. Root on the kick drum, octave, third or fifth on the snare, fills on the drum rolls. I find it really hard to keep it simple, as a guitarist there's always the temptation to overplay.

Learning other instruments helps understand what is going on in a song, and how each member in a group interacts.

As much as I love my bassist, I'm secretly happy when he can't make it to the jam and I get to bring my own bass and hold down the bottom end. Such a powerful feeling, really rewarding when it's down right. Playing with a good drummer is a blessing too on bass. Me and the other guitarist take turns on bass, we both love it...

[Old Cane]

I'm glad to be in a place where guys get it and you guys do. Bass is it's own instrument. Back when i was teaching I can't tell you how many times a mother would come in and say "well, I want my little prodigy to play the 12-string but I think he needs to start on bass since it only has 4 strings". My standard reply was well, you know, a trumpet only has 3 valves......a trombone only has 1 slide........and fortunately I don't teach either. And, right over their heads.

[jefrs]

Originally Posted by Telarkaster

I find it really hard to keep it simple, as a guitarist there's always the temptation to overplay.

I must remember not to play the bass too fast.
I must remember not to play the bass too fast.
I must remember not to play the bass too fast.
...

[Telarkaster]

Originally Posted by jefrs

I must remember not to play the bass too fast.
I must remember not to play the bass too fast.
I must remember not to play the bass too fast.
...

When I first started I wanted to play like John Entwistle. Unfortunately I ended up sounding like mush...

What works for the Who doesn't work for any other band because Keith Moon played the drums as a lead instrument and it was Pete that was keeping it together on rhythm.

At my last jam I made a point of keeping it simple: not too fast, don't wander, stay on the beat. My drummer kept complementing me, it was just what he wanted to hear. I figured as much because I was playing what I want to hear when I play drums in my other band.

[FirstBassman]

Originally Posted by Telarkaster

I find it really hard to keep it simple, as a guitarist there's always the temptation to overplay.

As the great Jedi Master (<-- Casady pictured left, not Yoda) has taught me, the two most important things about bass playing are good tone (from the fleshy tips of the fingers) and good timing.
And, yes, keep it simple. Don't overplay. You're there to drive the song along.
And to "move air" as Jack likes to put it.

[mudbean]

Originally Posted by FirstBassman

As the great Jedi Master (<-- Casady pictured left, not Yoda) has taught me, the two most important things about bass playing are good tone (from the fleshy tips of the fingers) and good timing.
And, yes, keep it simple. Don't overplay. You're there to drive the song along.
And to "move air" as Jack likes to put it.

+1 ... You're growin' on me, boss! Oh and BTW, JC is one of the best, IMO, too.

I am very fortunate to play with a few drummers that have excellent kickfoots (kickfeet?). If your drummer has a good, solid kick, you can really lock in and groove.

mud

[Paul in Colorado]

It's also made me a better mandolin player! In the band I play bass with, I also play guitar and mando. Playing bass has really made a difference in everything I play. My rhythm is so much better. The bass player in the other band I'm in is a friend of Victor Wooten and has shared a lot of Victor's methods with me. I don't play anything like Victor, but good time is good time. I've made the metronome my friend and try to think like a bass player when I come up with lines.

BTW First Bassman, if I could have any bass player in the world in my band, it'd be Jack. I first saw the Airplane in 1967 and he's been my bass hero all along.