My current band is Acoustic Highway, a folk / country / gypsy band with three guitars, many harmonies, and myself on bass. One of the guitarists will sometimes do percussion, but the basic pulse of the songs falls on me and me alone. Most of the time, everyone is in sync, but on a few occasions, the meter of the songs can fluctuate. It’s kind of interesting how you learn the tendencies of your fellow players, and can compensate for such things.

We had the great fortune to have Jerry Harrington, a well know Bakersfield session drummer, sit in with us a few times. The first time was pretty amazing. Many of the songs are originals, and he was playing them cold. When I wasn’t glued to the microphone singing, I was helping him through and giving him cues through the songs. For playing cold, he did fantastic. Later he complemented me on my sense of meter and timing. This is a guy who’s played with the heavies from Bakersfield, including Buck Owens, and given his cold performance with us, he was obviously a pro. Needless to say, I was smiling for the rest of the week. It’s always nice when your work and musicianship is appreciated by a peer of the professional sort..

I didn’t play sax, though I wish I would have (that instrument is soooo cool). I played the “baby tuba” baritone horn.

That is an EXCELLENT bit about playing solo’s in the lower register. I don’t do too many solo’s and I never thought about it. When I do, I just go and see what comes out. Still, I’m going to pay closer attention when I do and see if I have those upper register tendencies.

Fast forward a few years. By 1986, my older brother had switched to guitar from bass and the “Spider Queen”, his old beat up Precision with an hour glass painted on it, was just sitting around. I was 21 at the time (yeah, I started late) and had always wanted to play something, so I asked if I could borrow it. I had never really thought about playing the bass, but since it was there, I figured “what the heck”..

So now I had a bass. It’s four strings – how hard could it be?

I started trying to play the stuff I was listening to at the time – Toto, Dire Straights, David @ David, Level 42, Genesis, English Beat, Police…..

Turns out it was a lot harder than it sounded, and I’m still getting the hang of it.

There are so many players I love to listen to, too many to mention. Consciously or not, I’ve stolen lots of grooves and moves from guys like McCartney, Geddy, Mike Rutherford, Nick Seymor, Chris Squire, Sting. To hone my timing, I’ll play along to Mark King or David Hungate. Throw in some Guy Pratt and Larry Klein and you have me, but not as good – I’m a hack!!!

I had strong links to bass lines after playing trombone at school for years, but it wasn’t until many years later I offered my services to the worship leader at church that i’d even considered bass.
He basically suggested that they were short of bass players and if he provided me with the equipment would i learn ? Happy to help out i agreed, but secretly wanted to be at the front with the acoustic like everyone else. 10 years on and i would describe myself as a bass player who also plays guitar and keys when needed. My personality suits being at the back of a band… I really was a bass player waiting to be unleashed! I love the way bass and drums drive the ‘bus’ i feel (maybe a little biased) that bass and drums are the foundation of the band!! I’ve learn runs and licks and solo and even chords and not being shackled by music (i never learnt to read it) I play everything by ear and throw in whatever i feel sounds right at the time. I’ve been fortunate enough to work with people that understand how I work and are happy to let me feel the mood and play as i feel is right!

I wouldn’t want to be anywhere else .. bass is my niche and i really enjoy being there!

Actually I never have heard that. I think I have intimidated a few players and ran them off. With the shortage of good bass players around here we don’t get grief over a few to many notes.

As far as why bass? From the time I was just a kid I knew the bass and the drums were the pulse of the band and the music. The other instruments were just fluff and I didn’t really care what others thought. So……? LOL I guess I was born to be a bass player. Nothing guitar players hate more than a drummer and bass player that can carry on without them.

I always thought that bass was supposed to blend back but recently I did a 180 musically. I’m now in a band where all of the members are very balanced, so to say. Our keyboardist doesn’t like sticking out, our drummer also doesn’t, but our two guitarists are a little different. Both of them and I love collaborative bass lines and such. One of our guitarist’s style is like Jonny Greenwood’s, so working with him is great. The other is like John Fruciante when he’s live, he doesn’t solo by himself, he loves to work with the other instruments. So I guess being the bassist ain’t so demanding for me.

God, well Church anyway, saved me. I sang/sing bass/baritone with a lot of great guitar players and other, properly trained, instrumentalists. No need for a dodgy guitar player there but space for a bass player….. then I found Steve Lawson and he opened my heart and mind to the possibilities of solo bass.

Once in a while I’ll play solo bass in Church as a piece but I’d never play a bass solo during a piece if you get my meaning. That’s me, that’s ‘my’ style. I don’t want them to notice me playing, I do want them to notice when I’m not there. Taken years to develop the subtlety and dynamic control that playing in my faith community requires. The less is more approach works for me.

In bands, over the years I’ve struggled, as often you are having to play what someone else wants you to play and I’m not technically competent enough to do that without a lot of woodshedding. So I’ve taken the easy way out and formed my own (praise and worship CCM type) band just a few month ago. Who knows where ‘lessISmore’ may go….

Starting out, I remember playing in bands that REALLY wanted me to do less. In fact, several years ago, I actually got fired from a punk band cuz the drummer wanted me to “play more root notes, and start using a pick” and I told him to screw himself, Lol! Since then though, I think a lot more people have opened up to the idea of more “collaborative” bassplayers – a la’ Jaco, Manring, Steve Lawson, etc – and the end result has been a lot more freedom for the rest of us!! Hallelujah!

Tom Boyd: I like the ‘Bass Guitar Hang out! good work! But, yes, indeed-it’s all about the balance! One thing I ask myself before ‘throwing a lick’ on bass is: Do I REALLY, feel like there’s not enough happening in the music right now, enough that I think a bass lick would improve it?? 8/10 times the answer is NO. It’s usually a good test! But, if I’m still left with a desire to play melodies on the bass, then that’s, in part, what leads me to a separate outlet in ‘bass driven music’

I have heard this far to many times…

Sometimes I guess I’m guilty of adding extra licks and fills on the fly but I like to keep it interesting.

All that said… I CHOSE the bass at an early age. I actually WANTED to BE a bass player What that experience is now teaching me is that I can still be creative and blend in. With my playing, I try to bridge the gap between foundation and melody. I’ll use a certain set of effects on the bass to bring colour and texture in where needed. Occasionally that may be emulating an ebow guitar, or chordal work using chorus. For me, its about listening and being concerned about your own part, but being aware of all the other nuances of a song and ‘playing appropriately’ but always CREATIVELY!

Jessie: I hope you’ll still hire me to play gigs-really, I won’t resent you while you’re soloing! heh heh…Seriously, you touched on something that I kept thinking about while writing this post, the fact that this ’syndrome’ applies differently to different styles. In music where dancing is intrinsically connected to the style, the bass seems to have more movement and be at the core of the song and display more melodiousness, in styles where it’s all about the ‘text’ all the instrumentation, not even just the bass, NEEDS to be %100 supportive, as my main thing is playing w/ songwriters, I guess that’s the perspective I’m most experienced with.