Ever play with a bassist that thinks their a lead guitarist?

[felty]

My bassist is all over the place.. Don't get me wrong he's great but so hard to "lean" on in a jam...

I really like a steady bassist but, it's def a learning experience playing with someone like that..

Any advice?

[IAmNotATable]

I occasionally play with one at church. He's so all over the place it actually makes me laugh. Like, he's really good. He just can't groove for crud is all. It's just constant spasms. I would never talk to him about it, so I either deal with it or check the band I'm scheduled with before accepting the plan.

[almostmatt1]

There's a guy I know that plays bass and sings, is terrible at both, but as far as he's concerned his god's gift to... well, life. I've never known someone that co.cky and obnoxious towards EVERYTHING... as far as he's concerned he knows more and is better than everyone at everything. You know the type? Well, yeah, it certainly comes out in his "playing". I know exactly what you mean, except of it being "difficult" to work with, it's just flat out impossible.

[jumpwing]

Plenty of horror stories like that for each position in a band.

Except us drummers of course.

[slinky]

a good bass player is so important. I've always liked the guys that ''just play bass". I do appreciate the Billy Sheehan's and what they can do though.

Whenever I see a five or six string bass it's kinda like "ok here we go"

[Aviator42009]

Haha that describes the bassist in my band perfectly, he keeps it under control pretty well though. When we jam together we go from grooving to all this crazy stuff, so we both overplay on purpose. When we jam with out guitarist though, he usually keeps to the groove. We are actually looking for a guitar player though and he plays pretty well, so he may be switching instruments, still undecided.

[Pearl MCX Man]

I like to see the bassist move around a little you know instead of looking dead and boring LOL. A good example of a bassist giving us a show is Flea from Hot Chili Peppers now there is a real talented bass player. I enjoyed watching Flea and his band's performance when they were inducted into the R&R hall of fame.

[Northern Redneck]

Our bass player definately has the ability to play "lead bass" but the talent to know when not to.

[Drumbledore]

There's a guy I know that plays bass and sings, is terrible at both, but as far as he's concerned his god's gift to... well, life. I've never known someone that co.cky and obnoxious towards EVERYTHING... as far as he's concerned he knows more and is better than everyone at everything. You know the type? Well, yeah, it certainly comes out in his "playing". I know exactly what you mean, except of it being "difficult" to work with, it's just flat out impossible.

Aw man,we had one of those at my music diploma course years ago. We used to nickname him "The Professor". A few of the guys from the course that I stay in touch with will still share a few "Professor" stories when we get together now and then.

[rickthedrummer]

I had the good fortune to play with 2 excellent bass players in my last band.

I have worked with a couple of guitar players who thought they were God.

[isaacvining]

I played in a band for over a year with a bass player that had more chops than most any bass player I've ever seen/heard (seriously, this guy could go hard in the paint on a bass), but the issue was he didn't understand when to not use them. We were playing a genre (piano pop music) that needed nothing but 1's and 5's to really fill up that bass frequency, but his Wooten-esque mid-range tone with nonstop slapping left and right just didn't work at all. His frequency was getting in the way of the guitars, leaving the bass frequency un-filled and the songs could never really groove.

He's way better now though

[kay-gee]

I read a lot right here on this forum, that not even drummers are happy as solely time keepers anymore, so it's not surprising that bass players play this way as well. I suppose everyone has a "melodic" side that they need to express. Music has become much too free. There was a time when music was all written out and those that couldn't play the music as written, drove cabs!!

all the best...

[NewTricks]

Mine seems to think that the volume of his bass must override everything else in the song. I think his hearing is just shot on the low end side.

[rickthedrummer]

When my friend and bass player passed away, I auditioned bass players literally for months. A young lady got the gig. Not because she was the most technically proficient bass player that auditioned, but because she had the best feel for what we wanted.

We keep the time, but the underlying current that keeps the music moving is the bass player.

Good drummers are hard to find, but a good bass player is worth their weight in gold.

[Xoferif09]

I play with a bass player that is like that. Do not get me wrong, this guy is a PHENOMENAL player, one of the best I have had the pleasures of playing with. But he comes up with this stuff sometimes, and is like lets make a song to this...and it has no rhythm to it. Its just notes. It would make a great solo, but not a song. But, when he does come up with a line, I love it. He fits perfect.

[late8]

The bass players in the two bands I play in are at opposite ends of the playing spectrum. One guys is really solid and has the ability to pull me along the song as we play. I like that in a bass player. It allows me to 'lean' on him as we groove.

The second guy has less experience than the first guy. This guy has zero dynamics and is flat line all the way across the board. I find it a struggle to play with bass players who lack confidence. I find this guy staring at the guitar player's fret board more than making eye contact with me during a number. I asked him why he's so locked into the guitar player instead of me and his answer???

"I haven't learned the song yet...."

[imnotverygood9]

"I haven't learned the song yet...."

This was my guitarist when we were in a band. He had tons of potential and stuff but he ever practiced and never learned the song.

As to the issue of bassists, the only bassist I've ever played with was my brother ( no band experience, ( small town)) and he was a solid bassist until he lost the drive to actually play.

[Ciz]

Whenever I see a five or six string bass it's kinda like "ok here we go"

LOL! That's my normal reaction, most of the time. That's probably other people's reaction when they walk into church and see my massive 6 piece DW kit

My brother bought him a 6 string walnut/maple Carvin bass. Sounds AMAZING, but I was wondering the need. He was really all over the bass when he first got it, but thankfully he has turned into a pretty tastefull player, and doesn't over-play, especially in a worship band. When we're short a guitar player, he can do things with that bass that sound pretty cool to substitute. When we were playing light for a short period last Sunday, and it was just the singer/bass/drums, he grabbed a guitar pick and played rhythm on it, similar to what the guitar would normally do, sounded really cool and clean. Said it's more difficult on his 4 string.

Used to play with a bass player that thought he knew how to play all of the instruments, so he would always ask us to jump off our instrument to 'show' us something. Then we he couldn't do them, he would blame it on his 'rusty' skills. As a bass player, he was decent, didn't really do much...at all, but he had a MASSIVE ego. Said he used to play professionally, and that we didn't know what we were doing, and that'd be lost without him. Replaced him with my 14 year old brother, and we've just completely notched it up a level. My brother can absolutely tear him up, but he won't admit that

1k posts!

[drumsetsnide]

...had the best feel for what we wanted.

Good drummers are hard to find, but a good bass player is worth their weight in gold.

I agree 100%. I like a bass player that has "chops" and technical skills. They can come into play (pun intended) and have a purpose at times but the ability to groove and help the music flow and compliment the rhythm and time keeping of the drummer is very important.

I played with a bass player in our church band and was all over the fretboard and slapping and looked like he was having uncontrollable convulsions or like he was trying to shake a bee out of his pants. He had the ability to groove but was too interested in being a show off.

Eventually we had to call a meeting with the rest of the band and tell him while we appreciated his technical abilities and theatrics, they were too much too often.

So my advice is to talk openly and honestly. A band is a team and open communication is vital to every part of the band.

Compliment his abilities and contributions first. Then nicely let him know your concerns. Then finish by reinforcing his positive attributes again.

[marko138]

I used to overplay when I played bass. That's the kind of bass I enjoy. Now, in my band, I don't even listen to the bass player. Seriously. I follow the guitar. Our bass player is tremendous. Doesn't over play but gets down when appropriate.

[DamageDrummer]

hahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahahah
this thread is too funny.
one that plays like a lead guitarist, well maybe not, but i do like a wild bass player. i would rather have a bass player that is wild in their on-stage performance, than one you need to kick in order to make them move around the stage.

[MR. G]

We keep the time, but the underlying current that keeps the music moving is the bass player ( from rickthe..) I've always been fascinated by the drummer which is why I lean more towards following their music but also find myself on diversion when the band's bass player is just right on the money, not too suttle, not overbearing. I like it to the point of appreciation and liked rickthedrummer's analogy. Just the two together ( drums and bass) can sound quite nice !

[jumpwing]

The first thing I always listen for when auditioning a bass player (or when playing the bass myself): Can he/she link up with the kick drum?

This is a quick, easy way to winnow the chaff.

[Northern Redneck]

Mine seems to think that the volume of his bass must override everything else in the song. I think his hearing is just shot on the low end side.

Thats an easy fix.

[Strider]

Like all players of all instuments, some "Get it" more than others, some younger and some through experience and being told/shown. Ego runs rampant in some while some world class players are humble. How do the vain/bossy/know-it-alls act outside the band situation---in the rest of their life? Probably about the same. So do the humble people. The rest of us fall somewhere in-between.

That being said, I've played with bass players who made me smile because I had that feeling of "locked in" with no effort and made me think "This feeling is why I play drums". The guy plays some great lines on top of being solid in the true sense. Sometimes it takes a while for me to figure out their idiosynchracies (when he does that "de-dowww-dah-dah" that I will match with accents). I've also played with bass players who had some/all of the aforementioned faults, some of them caused by overindulging in "beverages and other things". I usually get the self-absorbed "drifters" back on track with a quick "Hey" and when he looks at me, I mouth the word "Smile". That's enough to get his attention past his fretboard. The off-time soloists, I play a straight groove on the beat so I and the other guys don't get lost. Hate train wrecks. Then I talk to him nicely in the next break, just him and me, whether its about dynamics or locking in with my kick or whatever. It's a learning process and I won't mention the topic again that night but I sure will at the next rehearsal but address everybody, not just center out one person. If things don't improve, I'll mention it to the leader to speak to the individual about it. Then I just put up with it or find another situation.

Just as the drummer has to learn his job and add his own "persona" to it, so does the bass player and every other member of the band for that matter. I'm trying to get my band to rehearse a tune until we can play it 5 times in a row without mistakes. I expect mistakes on stage and say "****" happens. I'm ready to cover and get things back on track. That's part of the job. All in MHO.

Cheers!

Strider