bassmancb
Well-known member
I used to think I played good music while drinking untill I played sober a few times!
- Thread starter Headstock
- Start date
adouglas
Well-known member
The thinker you play, the drunker you better you are.
Or something like that.
Or something like that.
mrpackerguy
Well-known member
Play along with a CD of your favorite music unless it's death metal or something. ues stuff is good, Steely Dan stuff is very challenging but rewarding. I think it helps with timing and helps you learn the fretboard as well.
I would also suggest learning how to read a bass clef and apply it to the fretboard.
I would also suggest learning how to read a bass clef and apply it to the fretboard.
I will be sure and sign up for your bass clinic if you ever hold one at a place nearby.
tk
adouglas
Well-known member
Playing along with CDs is great, especially as a motivator. But it can also drive you nuts. Sometimes they're out of tune (I had a record once that was more than a half step out of tune), and often the bass is buried in the mix so deep you can't really tell what's going on.
If you REALLY want to make yourself crazy, try learning a bass line from a CD like that while drinking. You can convince yourself that it's in just about any key.
The other hazard is that if you rely too much on CD practice (which many of us do because it's fun) and don't learn any theory at all, you wind up just learning licks and gain no understanding. It's like a parrot...it can say "good morning" but it doesn't know what the sounds mean.
You don't NEED to know and theory to play really well (we've had this discussion here ad nauseum) but IMHO it's a good thing to understand the rules of the language you're speaking. Without it, once you step outside the memorized bass line, you're lost. With it, you can improvise and come up with something new, and that's when things start getting really fun.
Notes and riffs are your vocabulary. Theory is the rules of grammar. Put the two together and you become fluent in the language. Your tone and technique are like public speaking skills. Add those to the mix and you become not only fluent, but a great orator.
If you REALLY want to make yourself crazy, try learning a bass line from a CD like that while drinking. You can convince yourself that it's in just about any key.
The other hazard is that if you rely too much on CD practice (which many of us do because it's fun) and don't learn any theory at all, you wind up just learning licks and gain no understanding. It's like a parrot...it can say "good morning" but it doesn't know what the sounds mean.
You don't NEED to know and theory to play really well (we've had this discussion here ad nauseum) but IMHO it's a good thing to understand the rules of the language you're speaking. Without it, once you step outside the memorized bass line, you're lost. With it, you can improvise and come up with something new, and that's when things start getting really fun.
Notes and riffs are your vocabulary. Theory is the rules of grammar. Put the two together and you become fluent in the language. Your tone and technique are like public speaking skills. Add those to the mix and you become not only fluent, but a great orator.
adouglas
Well-known member
I will be sure and sign up for your bass clinic if you ever hold one at a place nearby.
tk
Only if you bring the beer.
*urp*
*braaaaap*
oli@bass
Well-known member
Fully agree...
When I was just starting out, I was totally into Iron Maiden and Pink Floyd. Played along all of their albums (... the ones I owned, that is). I kept on doing that for years... I learned a lot, and whenever I thought I knew every note of an album, I stumbled over a detail I hadn't noticed before. After a while you'll start to appreciate how hard it is to exactly reproduce the playing and style of another musician.
...and wholeheartedly disagree!
What's wrong with "death metal or something"? If you like a certain style, or want to make that style of music, then learn it. There are great bass players in all genres of music. I for one learned a whole lot by playing along to earlier Metallica albums with the late Cliff Burton... awesome bass lines, I can tell you, buried under a pile of guitars and drums, but they're there, and the music would be different without them.
Last edited:
Psycho Ward
Well-known member
I actually have a couple of Beaver's videos and they were a great help to me.
I also recommend playing with live people, go to blues jams or get together at someone's basement. Practice with a metronome or a drum loop, play along with CD’s, shave frequently, do good deeds, stand up straight and play your bass!
I also recommend playing with live people, go to blues jams or get together at someone's basement. Practice with a metronome or a drum loop, play along with CD’s, shave frequently, do good deeds, stand up straight and play your bass!
scottbass71
Well-known member
Nah too easy I let someone else take that one on
Adouglas great tips I guess my moto is knowledge is power
Playing along with CDs or a drum machine is excellent practice is as some metronome time at home.
Playing with different drummers and guitarists make for a world of learning that you need to experience.
The best advice is always feel the music the best you can. Play what you feel. One note or 22.
Don't think too hard to learn.
As you can see there are many ideas here on how to get to a point in your playing.
I am sure no real rock star ever played drunk or high. That would not have made a hit.
3 notes make a chord and 3 chords can make one great song. That cuts the point of study down a lot in my book. If you hear the chord. Learning how to play a line in any key is the goal.
tk
Playing with different drummers and guitarists make for a world of learning that you need to experience.
The best advice is always feel the music the best you can. Play what you feel. One note or 22.
Don't think too hard to learn.
As you can see there are many ideas here on how to get to a point in your playing.
I am sure no real rock star ever played drunk or high. That would not have made a hit.
3 notes make a chord and 3 chords can make one great song. That cuts the point of study down a lot in my book. If you hear the chord. Learning how to play a line in any key is the goal.
tk
Last edited:
hankSRay
Well-known member
Play In Time, dont limit your style of playing (ie; learn pick, finger, slap, etc.), play with people who are better than you are, Learn as much theory as you can and bring the awesome.
Aussie Mark
Well-known member
Use dynamics when playing live. Come down in the verse, come up in the chorus/guitar solo.
If you make a mistake on stage, forget about it immediately and don't draw attention to your goof. 95% of the audience are not musicians, so won't have noticed.
A stage is not a place to play volume wars with other band members. Have your rig just loud enough to hear yourself on stage, and let the sound guy work the rest of it out.
Be early for rehearsal and gigs, to allow plenty of time to setup without rushing and to do a sound check.
Put your drink on your amp or in a mic stand holder, not on the floor/stage. Drinks at feet level always get kicked over by somebody.
Always coil your leads/cords/cables (or whatever they're called in your country) carefully and properly before throwing your gear in the car/van/truck.
Make sure singers who don't play an instument pull their weight when it comes to lugging and setting up gear. Don't let them get away with being lazy.
If you make a mistake on stage, forget about it immediately and don't draw attention to your goof. 95% of the audience are not musicians, so won't have noticed.
A stage is not a place to play volume wars with other band members. Have your rig just loud enough to hear yourself on stage, and let the sound guy work the rest of it out.
Be early for rehearsal and gigs, to allow plenty of time to setup without rushing and to do a sound check.
Put your drink on your amp or in a mic stand holder, not on the floor/stage. Drinks at feet level always get kicked over by somebody.
Always coil your leads/cords/cables (or whatever they're called in your country) carefully and properly before throwing your gear in the car/van/truck.
Make sure singers who don't play an instument pull their weight when it comes to lugging and setting up gear. Don't let them get away with being lazy.
bovinehost
Administrator
And wear glasses if you need 'em.
Maybe the amp is not the best idea. Just a few days ago, SOMEONE put an ashtray on my amp with a live cig in it. I didn't notice and was busily thumping along. When I turned around, my 2-10 cabinet had been mojo-d.
Oh gosh no.
Ahem.
Sometimes the target is just too big. No sport in it.
Jack
phatduckk
Well-known member
honestly ive played drunk a billion times. its all the same dude
bovinehost
Administrator
Not for me! I'm telling you this is true. I can rehearse and drink, but I do not generally play in public and drink. I know guys who can do it but I'm not one of them.
I was a BIT happy at the Open House and thought, "If this gets any more complex, I'm going to go hide."
I was even a bit happier in Dallas but it's my party and I'll drink if I want to, drink if I want to, drink if I want to. (Plus I've played those Cowpie tunes a million times. How hard can it be?)
But I'm just not one of those guys who can get sloshed and still play worth a crap.
Psycho Ward
Well-known member
OK, OK I'd better clarify my drinking tip.
I never drink on or at a paid, professional gig; you won't see me with any sort of drink, except for a bottle of water with the cap on!
At a blues jam, party or any other type of non-paid, non-serious gig, I've been known to... enjoy myself. Hell I've had gigs where the pay was in beer.
And the more complicated, "We'll pay you a couple of hundred bucks and all the beer you can drink!" What do you do with that one? I usually don't drink on those either, but I might stock pile a few beers for the load out.
Remember Psycho says, "The truly hip don’t need booze or drugs."
I never drink on or at a paid, professional gig; you won't see me with any sort of drink, except for a bottle of water with the cap on!
At a blues jam, party or any other type of non-paid, non-serious gig, I've been known to... enjoy myself. Hell I've had gigs where the pay was in beer.
And the more complicated, "We'll pay you a couple of hundred bucks and all the beer you can drink!" What do you do with that one? I usually don't drink on those either, but I might stock pile a few beers for the load out.
Remember Psycho says, "The truly hip don’t need booze or drugs."
