I've Been Playing Bass For 50 Years, So What?

[Bluewine]

15 hours ago, peteb said:

You have to remember that you have lived all through the golden age of rock music. Things change - there are other things for people to spend their leisure time / money on these days, whereas in your time (and mine) it was predominantly music and movies. I still think that there is a viable audience for live music, just it will never be the same as it was up to 15 years ago. 

I've just come back from a local pub gig where we were complaining that we didn't have as big a crowd as we normally get. However, it was still pretty busy - just that there were only 100 or so people there rather than closer to the 150 we would normally expect. It was still by far the busiest pub in that part of town... 

 

Pete,

100 people in a pub sounds good to me.Especially after last weekend when we had 10.

Daryl

[peteb]

5 minutes ago, Bluewine said:

 

Pete,

100 people in a pub sounds good to me.Especially after last weekend when we had 10.

Daryl

This was in a place where we usually get a decent crowd. We played there not so long ago, which may explain why we didn't get so many. Last week we played to a reasonable audience in a town an hours drive away where we have never played before, but the week before that only 15 people turned up...

[Bluewine]

47 minutes ago, peteb said:

This was in a place where we usually get a decent crowd. We played there not so long ago, which may explain why we didn't get so many. Last week we played to a reasonable audience in a town an hours drive away where we have never played before, but the week before that only 15 people turned up...

Cool,

We have a private event next weekend. 

It's money so I'll make the best of it. However I think it's one of those scenarios where the host is a huge fan of the band, usually the guests are not.

I guess I shouldn't say not a fan of the band. Not a fan of live rock music at a party.

Daryl

Edited September 23, 2018 by Bluewine

[Lozz196]

I`ve been playing for 37 years, gigging pretty regularly for about 25 of those years, the main things I`ve learned from this have been don`t be a tw8t to any of the bands/promoters/sound-men/venue staff, but above all, audience members. And don`t play when drunk, the only person that thinks you play better when you`ve had a bevy or two is yourself, everyone else notices it for what it really is, pi88ed and cr8p.

[MacDaddy]

On Fri Sep 21 2018 at 20:06, Bluewine said:

 

At the earliest age possible;

Understand your strengths and weaknesses.

Understand what you want to do with your playing, teach, perform, write and what level you can realistically achieve.

Learn to recognize pitfalls and real opportunity.

Blue

Disagree. 

I think that to be inspired and improve, you have to reach for the top. Wether you get there or not is moot, but it has nothing to do with realism. 

As one Bass Chatter put it 'you don't need to learn how to slap, to play Brown Sugar'.  Had I thought that when I started I would not have bothered with those Billy Sheehan & Stu Hamm tuition videos. 

The only thing I knew I wanted from my playing when I started, was fun. 

[12stringbassist]

I've been gigging for 41 years or so now.
What I have learned is to play what suits the song.
To sit down and learn songs rather than just busking it.
Play with players who are as good or better than myself and make damn sure I keep up.
Not to take duff musicians on, as the band will only go to their level.
Let mistakes go and try to laugh.
It''s not all about me.
To try to 'project' while playing and to talk to the audience.
To try to smile sweetly when a venue dumps on you.
Perseverance.

Edited September 25, 2018 by 12stringbassist

[Bluewine]

7 hours ago, MacDaddy said:

Disagree. 

I think that to be inspired and improve, you have to reach for the top. Wether you get there or not is moot, but it has nothing to do with realism. 

As one Bass Chatter put it 'you don't need to learn how to slap, to play Brown Sugar'.  Had I thought that when I started I would not have bothered with those Billy Sheehan & Stu Hamm tuition videos. 

The only thing I knew I wanted from my playing when I started, was fun. 

Disagree?

I agree with all those points.

Blue

[Staggering on]

2 hours ago, 12stringbassist said:

I've been gigging for 41 years or so now.
What I have learned is do play what suits the song.
To sit down and learn songs rather than just busking it.
Play with players who are as good or better than myself and make damn sure I keep up.
Not to take duff musicians on, as the band will only go to their level.
Let mistakes go and try to laugh.
It''s not all about me.
To try to 'project' while playing and to talk to the audience.
To try to smile sweetly when a venue dumps on you.
Perseverance.

Perfect!

...I can't add anything to that except to say  that I played my first gig 56 years ago.

[Happy Jack]

11 hours ago, MacDaddy said:

As one Bass Chatter put it 'you don't need to learn how to slap, to play Brown Sugar'.  Had I thought that when I started I would not have bothered with those Billy Sheehan & Stu Hamm tuition videos. 

And think of all the time you'd have saved!

[Happy Jack]

On 22/09/2018 at 19:51, Bluewine said:

It's like telling me;

'You know, you should really think about stopping having fun."

 

Too much fun? Well that's news to me,

Too much fun? There must be

A whole lot of things that I never done ...

I ain't never had too much fun.

Bill Kirchen

 

[bassace]

And I’ve been playing bloody So What for 50 years.

[chris_b]

27 minutes ago, bassace said:

And I’ve been playing bloody So What for 50 years.

Ever played "Life's A Bowl Of Cherries" in 5/4?

[bassace]

With the fecking added?