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Thread: BAS(s)

  1. #26
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Quote Originally Posted by Billy Packard View Post
    Not so long ago I went to hear a local Handy-man contractor, (who originally came from the deep south) play blues.

    Lloyd is in his 60's+, plays an old Strat through a Peavy classic tweed.

    What you should know is his drummer for life coupled with a super-talented young bass player just adjusted to his occasional half measures, lengthened verses and various takes on the chorus in stride.

    Non-musicians didn't notice a thing, only those of us counting up to 4 had a clue--!! and then only the TOTALY anal ones would object.

    I especially enjoyed the thirty year old-ish bass player. He was very talented, had great tone and (most of all) didn't bat an eyelash when Lloyd's meter strayed because the song required it, (ban the bullocks). He was supportive and held the trio's tonal foundation. Live Blues.



    Billy

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    A couple of comments here. First your friend was the band leader and yes it is the band's job to follow the leader. Second I bet that band had a lot of time playing together. It wasn't a bunch of volunteers playing in a church. I stand by saying the problems the OP mentioned are not ones he made but ones the piano player made.

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  3. #27
    Registered User Billy Packard's Avatar
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Hey Nevin,

    I'm not for a second debating your point. I won't play with people like you refer to, it's not fun or productive. I've played at a high level my whole life, often with super talented artists who understand what it means to "listen" and "play together."

    My anecdote was meant to spin a little tale about some fine old musicians playing in an organic and spontaneous style that can breath and reincarnate each time.

    I'll add that some of the most inspiring music I've heard has been bone-simple played by non-virtuosic musicians. One such occasion was back in the 80's when the Talking Heads were promoting their first album. They were playing in a small meeting room at UC Santa Cruz--set up on the floor--just the four of them--no lights, no sound guy, just them. I gotta tell you, I was blown away. None of the band was doing anything special but the combined sound was massively compelling. I kept looking at the band trying to figure out why it was SO good when the various elements were...well, non-spectacular!

    All I'll say is you can't always judge a band by the bling!


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  5. #28
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Agreed. By the way I saw Talking Heads in a small room at Rutgers University, probably around the same time and I agree fanstastic set.

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  7. #29

    Default Re: BAS(s)

    A friend of mine was in a recording studio once and I tagged along for fun. His drummer was absolutely rock solid. They were recording bass drums, and guitar live. I complemented the drummer who replied he couldn't do anything fancy, but he could keep time. I said that is what 99% of musicians are looking for. The same could be said for bass. You can make a band sound great playing nothing but root/ five.

    Another friend was in a band with Darrell Jones in college. He later played with Miles Davis, Sting, and the Rollng Stones. I asked what made him so good. It was his ability to play not one more note than was necessary for the song. Sometimes that is just the root. Don't overplay and folks will want to play with you. It takes a certain discipline to do that.

    Now if I could learn to sing and play bass at the same time.....l
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  9. #30
    Registered User Billy Packard's Avatar
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Right!! A defining moment in my life. The memory is vivid. I remained a fan of the Talking Heads going forward but that one time I mentioned was by far my favorite performance. They were just so LIVE and passionate, relentless and irresistible.


    A local Santa Cruz band back in the seventy's that were greater than the sum of their parts was "Dirty Butter". There's often something like..Magic?..when certain people assemble their talents. Dirty Butter would pack in the crowd, play their version of music that was somewhere between jug band, blues, primal rock and old-time, wear out the dancers and not play any "hot licks" all night! AND none of them were particularly good looking ether! Charisma, on the other hand, was plentiful.


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  10. #31
    Worlds ok-ist mando playr Zach Wilson's Avatar
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    I thought I was a guitar player until I started playing bass for my youth group band.

    I thought I was a bass player until I started playing mando in a folk group.

    Welcome to the world of multi-instrumentalists. However, beware of the banjo.
    Last edited by Zach Wilson; Nov-02-2017 at 12:29pm. Reason: Autocorrect kills

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  12. #32
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    My first instrument as an adult was banjo. Fortunately, my very good friend is a very accomplished Reno banjo player and out of my league and why I tried other instruments.
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  13. #33
    Registered User red7flag's Avatar
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Here are pics:
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    Tony Huber
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  15. #34
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Nice looking bass. They have a good reputation.

  16. #35
    Registered User Billy Packard's Avatar
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Wow, that's a beautiful bass. Y'all could settle in with that one for a loong time and never miss a beat!!

    Billy
    Billy Packard
    Gilchrist A3, 1993
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  17. #36
    Registered User Billy Packard's Avatar
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    ps...call me if you decide to sell off any of your mandolins!!
    Billy Packard
    Gilchrist A3, 1993
    Stiver Fern, 1990
    Weber Fern, 2007
    Gibson F4 Hybrid #1, D. Harvey 2009
    Gibson 1923 A2
    Numerous wonderful guitars

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  19. #37
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    I acquired an NS NXT passive pickup bass a few years ago, just to "play around on". Very nice, well built instrument, and fun to play. If you do go for it, consider getting a bow too! That really opens up a whole new world of sound. I'm very green on bass, but still very enjoyable to learn. Fretless neck really makes you pitch aware as never before… 😬

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  21. #38
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Quote Originally Posted by Tomando View Post
    I acquired an NS NXT passive pickup bass a few years ago, just to "play around on". Very nice, well built instrument, and fun to play. If you do go for it, consider getting a bow too! That really opens up a whole new world of sound.
    Yes, that's the one I'd get, or another in that series just to fool around on. That is, if I had some spare cash that wasn't already aimed in other musical directions (trying to save for a keyed Irish flute).

    I don't have a bass amp, but I use QSC K10 speakers as part of the PA system for gigs, and one of those through my compact mixer would sound great with a NS upright electric. But then I'd want another tube DI like I used to have... ah, see how the BAS grows...

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  23. #39
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    I am a guitar ,mandolin, bass player in that order.
    I built a 1974 fretless p bass from vintage parts
    Bought on ebay. Took about 6 months to aquire
    The correct period (1974) parts. Hardest was finding
    The neck. I don't consider myself a bass player.
    There is a difference between a guitar player playing bass.
    And a true bass player. I am the former. But I do several songs in the band on
    my "frankenbass".

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  25. #40
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Quote Originally Posted by mandobassman View Post
    Yeah, double bass and associated equipment is a pain to carry around sometimes, but it is well worth it IMO.
    And that's why I love the electric bass!

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  27. #41
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Quote Originally Posted by DavidKOS View Post
    And that's why I love the electric bass!
    Mandobassman said it could be a pain to carry but it was worth it. Never heard an electric that had the depth of a real bass. In country and rock the kick drum fills that hole caused by the lack of depth. In BG that hole is just there.

  28. #42
    Registered User red7flag's Avatar
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    While the electric bass is not such a trial to carry, especially in a Mono gig bag, the Ampeg BA210v2 is more of a beast. Looking into a cart. This link seems to be cheep effective way - http://www.globalindustrial.com/p/ma...AaAv9bEALw_wcB . Any thoughts?
    Tony Huber
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  29. #43
    Mando-Accumulator Jim Garber's Avatar
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Back in the 1980s I got myself a beat up old Kay upright bass and had a blast playing at parties and jams. At one point I was bass player for 5 bluegrass and old time bands but it got to be a little much. A good bassist is always in demand. I almost always watch the bass players in jazz ensembles. Along with the drummers they keep it together. Same is true in other genres.
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  31. #44
    Registered User j. condino's Avatar
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    "I made a lot of money playing bass. Never made a dime playing mandolin."

    +1000

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  33. #45

    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Quote Originally Posted by red7flag View Post
    While the electric bass is not such a trial to carry, especially in a Mono gig bag, the Ampeg BA210v2 is more of a beast. Looking into a cart. This link seems to be cheep effective way - http://www.globalindustrial.com/p/ma...AaAv9bEALw_wcB . Any thoughts?
    Can you put wheels on the bottom of your bass amp? My Ampeg B100R has wheels on the bottom which makes it much easier to move around. I have to lift it in and out of the trunk of my car, but after that I just push it around.
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  34. #46
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    I have switched to a Class D head and a small cabinet. Weighs about 60 pounds less than my old setup.

  35. #47
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Old Ampeg fliptops and SVTs were great, but.....For most of my gigs I use a class D Acoustic Image Focus head that packs 900 watts and fits in the palm of one hand. The days of unrealistic heavy bass gear are essentially over. Usually the most awkward thing to load in is the bass itself.

  36. #48
    Registered User Jeff Budz's Avatar
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    String bass was my first and primary instrument but these days it bores me to death. There is no glory in holding down a groove and nobody really wants to hear a bass solo. At the bluegrass jams sometimes I’ll play a few on bass but it always feels like punishment. I could probably get into a much better caliber of band on bass than I can on mandolin or guitar, but who wants to carry all that stuff and play backup all night?

    OTOH, people who get into bass later in life seem to love it and relish “hiding in the background.”

  37. #49
    Registered User red7flag's Avatar
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    Default Re: BAS(s)

    While with mando, I did some scale work, but I did more learning tunes. With bass, I am working on more scales and arpeggios. Since they are moveable, then trying to apply them to tunes. Things like seeing how using a minor scale allows more flexibility playing a minor tune than I V or I octave. Am still just beginning, but more theory than I expected on bass. But, all things being equal, a missed or sour note is less offensive in a band situation, than getting out of the pocket and losing the time.
    Tony Huber
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    2013 Hester F4 #31
    2014 Ellis F5 #322
    2017 Nyberg Mandola #172

  38. #50

    Default Re: BAS(s)

    Quote Originally Posted by Jeff Budz View Post
    ... There is no glory in holding down a groove ...
    I'm sorry that you felt unappreciated in your bass work.

    For my own listening, the bass groove is what my ears zero in on first, I love a good interesting bass line. The bass can make the difference between night and day as to how the band sounds.

    Although I agree with you that probably the general non-musician public doesn't realize it's a cooperative effort, instead they focus on the singer or the "lead" instruments or the solos or whatever. This is somewhat apparent when watching the camera work, the camera operator typically focuses in on the lead and singer(s), they hardly ever devote much time to the bass player, but I wish they *would* because I want to learn more about bass by watching good players. Years ago I used to go watch live jazz bands whenever I had the opportunity, and my focus was always on the bass because that was the coolest part IMO.

    Although... I can't quite get as interested in bands where the bass simply does an alternating 1-5-1-5-1-5-1-5 thing all the time with no variations or runs or inventiveness at all. That sort of thing puts me to sleep and/or annoys me, depending on what mood I'm already in. Although some people must like it, otherwise it wouldn't exist.

    Quote Originally Posted by Jeff Budz View Post
    ... OTOH, people who get into bass later in life seem to love it and relish "hiding in the background."
    Well... I've always liked "hiding in the background", although my total newbie bass playing experience lasted only a few months, was too busy with complicated work hours (unrelated to music) to schedule any jams, never knew what days I would have off from work or what state/region I'd be in on those days off, finally gave up and sold the bass.

    A lot of the time now, the only reason I post a mandolin video, where I'm playing 'lead' and *not* hiding in the background (sonically, that is), is because I have an idea for a backing (usually some simple 2-note chord stuff on one of my GDAE octave instruments) but I'm dissatisfied with how any of my currently available musician friends play the lead/melody (shhh, don't tell them, they're not mandolin players and they likely don't read this forum. Lol). But I still need a lead/melody/tune part to play backing for. I will be thinking, "heck I could play that tune better than that", so I try it on mandolin because I happen to have one handy here. Sometimes it works out better than other times.

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