Please, my fellow bass players, Learn Your Roles! It is not necessary to play every single note that you can between each chord. Sometimes, less is more. You should not play fill lines during every measure, and especially not on top of the melody, verse being sung, or anothers solo spot. The fills should be occurring tastefully between verses, bridges, stanzas, choruses, phrases, etc. Your role is to keep the groove, stay in the pocket with the drummer, and carry the essence of the tune. There are times when you should be heard and times that you should not be heard. In other words, you dont have to play above anyone else in to rhythm section. Play with the dynamics that the tune calls for. And....If you discover that theres another bass player in the house, do not overplay, trying to show off. It does not impress anyone. It ruins the tune and shows how unprofessional you really are. For me: I like to play transparently. Im there, the groove is happening, and Im locking in with the drummer. You will only notice when Im not playing. I perform live! just as if I were in the studio, without overplaying the part. Now when the time comes for a bass solo or other stand out part that the tune calls for, I will definitely make my presence known, but tastefully. (This rant brought on by a recent visit to a night club.) Peace!
Posted on: Fri, 29 Aug 2014 11:41:13 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015