mmm hmmm-Less is More  

That really is a hard question Mike.

I can say from my guitarist point of view that I have two
basic views;
One is the simplistic approach of working "box patterns" with
the walks and drummer.
The other is trying to think like a progressive bassist and understand
the great way they can completely change the way of looking at chord progressions
or a chord....the effect that playing the minor third on bottom for instance and the effect
it may have on the guitarist...for example- Am  and the bassist decides a C on bottom
and the guitarst thinks C6. ( maybe an F# and now the guitarist thinks F#m7 instead of
Am.....etc.) - Just the idea that 1-5 box patterns are cool but breaking out has it's pluses.
Of course I'm a guitarist so all that could be horse pucky.

Probably not the answer you are looking for but had to bring something to the table...cause working today just seems to suck.

Mike,
If you can play guitar at all, even at a beginner level, you can play bass

case in point.. I bought a bass when i hauled my boat, I had had it 2 days and was asked to participate in a jam.. (gulp).. went and actually got complemented...why?.. because i was holding down the beat.. simply played roots, occasional 5th and octave, occasional walk up/down transition (for songs i knew)..

playing the bass to a high level for funk, jazz etc certainly takes lots of skill and practice.. but holding a rhythm on a cover or known song does not take huge effort..

Ian

Hi Ian,
 I've been teaching my wife to play bass with confidence as I drum. We do really simple pop standards and have fun.

 Lucky for her, she didn't play guitar much before.

 Good stuff.

best regards,
mike

spacey


That really is a hard question Mike.

I can say from my guitarist point of view that I have two
basic views;
One is the simplistic approach of working "box patterns" with
the walks and drummer.
The other is trying to think like a progressive bassist and understand
the great way they can completely change the way of looking at chord progressions
or a chord....the effect that playing the minor third on bottom for instance and the effect
it may have on the guitarist...for example- Am  and the bassist decides a C on bottom
and the guitarst thinks C6. ( maybe an F# and now the guitarist thinks F#m7 instead of
Am.....etc.) - Just the idea that 1-5 box patterns are cool but breaking out has it's pluses.
Of course I'm a guitarist so all that could be horse pucky.

Probably not the answer you are looking for but had to bring something to the table...cause working today just seems to suck.

I think my issue is that I start harmonizing with the melody, enjoy it, and then keep at it incessantly... it's real fun to play... but it doesn't necessarily support the song or help make the song seem more cohesive.


I find discovering all those upside down harmonies is really interesting... when I'm playing them... when I listen the next day I find some moments of "just right" and some interesting intervals that seem to help, but on w hole it all seems distracting.

I also like dancing around the rhythm with hot picking... but the next day I am reminded; "there can only be one"... and I have to surrender to the song and the melody and start over. :-)

I keep searching for the bass parts that seem to support the song and sort of disappear into the song yet contribute to the vitality... when I find them they always seem so simple... simple enough to take for granted. It seems like finding those really simple parts takes me a long time.


best regards,
mike

Hi,
 
I can not answer that ... but of the 2 teachers I have had a couple of lessons with, it surprised them that I was able to pick things up, and add something or other in some spots  ... not accidentlaly mind you! ... that surprised them.
 
I do not know why, or how ... I only know when I hear the notes while playing that I felt that a note was missing in between here and there, and I added an "in between" to smooth it out, and in more than two instances, it was the right thing to do ... but I can not explain that "musically" ... I can only explain that in an experiential way! ... for example ... most "chord changes" are stupid for me, and just dumb (just technique! ... not necessarily music!) ... but if you link them (somehow) so that the "chord change" becomes invisible, all of a sudden you have something else ... and a new opportunity to make the piece different, and often more interesting. How you blend these is another story ... and makes it what it is! The feel of that flow is totally different from a simple chord change, and this tends to add depth to the piece! But it's "harder" to do this on a Chuck Berry song, or a CHB piece, than other pieces of music, see?
 
This is the hard part about having a teacher for me ... one of them got frustrated, because he only thought that I was not following the "script" and just playing the notes ... and I told him, once, that the music had no liveliness to it ... and he said ... "yeah, but if you can't play with anyone else, it won't matter!" ... but I did not have another lesson with him.
 
The other two instructors were professionals and had CD's to their credit and they appreciated "touch" when they heard it ... I simply could not afford more at the time.
 
It's hard for me to discuss instruction ... in music. I can only compare it to theater and film, but some folks here don't like parallels that might suggest their world is too small, and I do not want them to think that way!
 
What is hard for me, is "combining" the finger location with the sound itself ... since to my ear, that same note does not sound the same all the time, and this makes it harder for me to even learn the simple bruhaha blues ... my ear "floats" and has a tendency to hear more than just ... "one note".
 
Is it hard? ... probably more frustrating, because I can not locate the point ... where mechanics, are no longer in the way of playing anything, or with anyone ... whereas some instructors think that mechanics teach you the groove, and then, how you gonna deal with it when you have the groove and the mechanics don't match? ... tell the kid he's stupid? This has been my problem, when (even) discussing stuff here!

digi2ns


mmm hmmm-Less is More  

I don't think that less is more ... any more than ... more is less or however we want to size it up and discuss it.
 
It is simpler (more than likely) for the guitarist, because he KNOWS what the bass player is doing ... and he can adjust easier ... but then ... that does not describe a Chick Corea playing with Stanley Clarke or combinations that are way out there ... and the only common thing is ... we will meet again at 0.45 minutes and use this chord for us to re-unite ... at some point and redo the main theme ... this time with an augment or two ... and this was somewhat the process for Miles Davis ...
 
The main issue I have with "popular music", and a lot of the players in it, like here ... is that they demand a type of "industrial" diligence and control, so that it always sounds "familiar" and the "same" as the "original" ... never mind that even the original was an idea by someone else! It takes away the freedom of individuality and the basis for experimenting and learning something else that makes you a better player ... ask Stanley ... ask Bootsie ... it's not how many notes you know and play ... it's how much you care about "each moment" ... and how you respond to it.
 
Thus, I say, again ... the answer is YOU ... not any comment by anyone else, including me.  Look, Mike, my tagline is not accidental or a joke ... !
 
 

mike_mccueI think my issue is that I start harmonizing with the melody, enjoy it, and then keep at it incessantly... it's real fun to play... but it doesn't necessarily support the song or help make the song seem more cohesive.
...

 
Duuuhhhhhhh ... make a new song! You got the secret ... now use it!

Playing bass guitar is a lot like making love to a beautiful woman....