New Old Bassist would Appreciate Advice...

[TripleB67]

Recently, at the age of 51, decided I wanted to learn how to play the six string guitar.  I have attempted to do so a couple times throughout my life, only sticking with it for about two months each time.  But I decided that this is the time I'm going to stick with it and learn the joys of playing guitar.

So I headed to the grand opening of a Guitar Center in my area (United States) and bought a new Epiphone LE Les Paul Special-I in worn cherry for $90 (father of 2, helping put 1 through college, extra funds are minimal). 

Went back to the GC the next day just to check out all they had because it was a mad house at the grand opening.  While there I heard 8 guys jamming on their six strings all at the same time....the sound was God awful!!!  But over on the side there were these two guys playing bass, jamming together, feeding off each other - it was just incredible!!!!

So I went back home and realized that maybe the reason I didn't stick with the six string each time I tried it was because I love the sound of the bass better----long time Geddy Lee fan and then a huge Billy Sheehan fan (still continuously listen to both Rush and Mr. Big).

So the next day I headed back to GC, got my nerve up, picked up a bass guitar (never held one before), plugged it in, turned on the amp, and it was almost like nirvana.  Something just felt right about a bass in my hands!

Went back home and thought long and hard about that six string downstairs and how that bass felt in my hand and the sounds I listen for when hearing music.  Played some Rush and some Mr. Big loudly...specifically listening for the bass part!

The last day of the GC specials I went back to GC, returned the Les Paul, and picked up a new Yamaha RBX170Y bass for $129.99!!!

I never plan to play in a band, will only play for my family, and learning/playing is just for my enjoyment...so it's not like I'm trying to be a pro, I just want to play for the love of it!

So, what advice would you give a 51 year old brand new bassist?  It could be about becoming a competent bassist, the instrument, learning the instrument, taking care of the instrument, or anything else related to the bass guitar.

Is there an online bass guitar teacher with a video series that would be great for a beginner?  Any books you'd recommend?

And one last specific question: from the few number of videos I have watched so far, it seems most instructors do not use a pick - so for someone brand new to playing a bass, would you advise to stay away from a pick as well (and learn using your fingers)?

edit: my music background is basically playing the tenor saxophone for 7 years from 6th grade until I finished high school (but haven't picked it up much since)

Thanks for any and all advice you can give....cannot wait to get started!!!!

TripleB67

Edited October 3, 2018 by TripleB67

[Grangur]

Hey @TripleB67,

Firstly, a big welcome to BC from another mature bass player. Actually, many of us here are the wrong side of 45, so you're in good company. You got a good deal on the bass there.

I started bass in earnest when I was 50, and also don't gig. I've been in 2 bands, but found it's not for me either. I play a lot of tunes and melodies. There's a lot you can do on a bass, and plenty of challenges in bass-playing, without committing to humping gear in and out of bars at sill hours in the night. (IMHO)

A good place to start learning is YouTube. You also won't spend long there before you come across Scott Divine and Scott's Bass Lessons. Scott does some good free lessons on YouTube, but he promotes his "SBL Academy". This is well worth the investment. He does a 14-day money-back trial. Take advantage of this. The number of lessons there are phenomenal. They go from "parts of the bass", playing technique, etc, right on the walking bass lines, Jazz and loads more. There are also lessons on SBL, from other teachers who teach at major music colleges in USA.

www.studybass.com is also worth taking a look.

[Unknown_User]

Good stuff, TripleB67!  I endorse Grangur's endorsement of Scott's Bass Lessons on You Tube.  Daric Bennett is pretty good too.  If you've never studied music before then don't worry about the stuff that makes no sense and watch the stuff that does and slowly you'll work up to understanding more and more.  I'm self taught and have gone from knowing nothing to knowing next to nothing, but enough to get me started at least just from guys like that on You Tube.

Also sites like Songsterr are good for learning songs.  There are also a million bass lessons or bass covers for songs on You Tube where you can learn from.  Just search for the song name followed by "bass cover" or "bass tab".  It's good to learn theory and such but sometimes you just want to play along with something for fun.  If you want something dead easy to play, maybe try Get Back by the Beatles or Summer of 69 by Bryan Adams, which are two I can think of off the top of my head which are easy ones to start off with.  Don't be afraid to learn different songs to what you usually listen to either.  I've come on loads and found loads of songs that I wouldn't have listened to but actually now like from having to learn them for rehearsals.

The main thing is to have fun with it.  It's all about the journey!

[SubsonicSimpleton]

Rethink your plan of never playing in a band - it isn't compulsory to play gigs if you want to enjoy playing music with other people, so discarding this as an option outright is limiting your experience. Of course playing music with other people has it's own set of challenges and complications, but if you don't give it a try you'll never know what you are missing - if you have a friend who can strum an acoustic guitar and sing, providing a bassline to fill out the sound and drive everything along would be where I would recommend you give playing with others a go rather than dismissing the idea completely.

[Bridgehouse]

I would concur with the views expressed above re not being in a band. 

"Being in a band" can sound very formal - and it doesn't have to be. It can be as simple as finding a couple of like minded mates who play drums/guitar or whatever and hiring a practise room for a few hours on a Saturday afternoon. 

For me, bass is about playing with others. Even informally. There's nothing like the feeling you get when you are "locked in" with a good drummer, or the way bass can influence the general tone of a song with note selection. 

I find that a good practise setup at home can really help in the early days. See if you can work out a way of playing along to prerecorded stuff that you like - maybe an amp with an aux in, or an interface for a computer so you can use headphones or the like. I have a slightly convoluted setup with a Helix whereby it acts as an audio interface on my laptop so I can play bass along to any music I have access to - a little EQ'ing to drop some of the prerecorded bass lets me play along and learn songs easily. I noticed a much quicker progress when I started doing this. 

 

[Dropzone]

Between pick and fingers, try both and see which suits your style of playing. You get a different sound from both and if you play a lot you will develop both styles.

Treat yourself to playing some simple riffs before diving in at the deep end of Rush and Mr Big. Think more root notes rather than tricky runs.

Do what you enjoy and enjoy what you do ;-)

Good luck

Mike

[Grangur]

Agree with much of the above. It's work commitments mostly that stop me being in a band, and not finding a band that plays stuff I get interested in.

Being in a band does, generally get you learning faster. So, don't close the door on it entirely.

[Monkey Steve]

another vote for playing with other musicians - not necessarily joining a band.  When I first started (many, many years ago) what helped enormously was having a mate with a guitar who wanted someone who had a bass to jam with.  depends on the mate so it might not always work (for example i had a jam with a really excellent guitarist the other weekend - complete disaster, all because of him) but having someone to bounce my playing off of, to see how it all fitted together, and also to give me some tips where i was getting stuff wrong or could do better, gave me my biggest leap forward in playing.  It may not work for everybody, but it certainly worked for me.  Do you have any friends who are bedroom guitarists?

For picks vs fingers, in my experience picks will get you a fairly consistent sound quite quickly - I loaned my bass to a guitarist friend a couple of years back so that he could record the bass lines for his band's new album and my one tip after hearing him play some of the lines he'd written was to use a pick as he didn't have time to get up to speed on finger style.  However, if you are starting from scratch and aren't about to go into the studio then there's nothing wrong with trying both and seeing which you prefer, or simply learning both at the same time - they are equally valuable tools, and while they can sound different, neither is any more "right" than the other (contrary to what you will hear on this site!).  Whatever suits you.

Edited October 1, 2018 by Monkey Steve

[Bridgehouse]

I'm a fingers player. I use pick from time to time when needed, but I like what fingers can do. Then again, I'm a flats player pretty much exclusively too. 

However, I would say that trying both fingers and pick is definitely the way to go - give them both a good try and work on both - they both have their place and they will together make you a rounded player

[TheGreek]

Welcome to our forum...My learned friends have covered a lot of what you'll need to know....

In regards to online resources, the SBL is a good site to use. You don't have to join and hand over any cash - the free online lessons will help you get a long way before you decide whether to join the academy. As well as, not instead of...When I started playing again I also used Marlowe DK's site: Playbassnow.com which is currently under re-construction/ maintenance. 

Check him out on YT:   https://www.youtube.com/user/MarloweDK

I think most would agree ..Regular practice is a must..even if it's just 45 mins a day.

Don't feel intimidated by more experienced musicians - everybody was rubbish when they started...a phase you have to go through. Aim for "competent" and "solid" before aiming for "good". Good timing is more important than having good riffs. 

I find inspiration in a quote by Pele:

 

Edited October 1, 2018 by TheGreek

[yorks5stringer]

'So, what advice would you give a 51 year old brand new bassist?'

 

Get another job because if you spend any time on here you'll soon be lusting after more Basses, Amps, FX's etc etc...it's called GAS😁

[TripleB67]

3 hours ago, Grangur said:

Hey @TripleB67,

Firstly, a big welcome to BC from another mature bass player. Actually, many of us here are the wrong side of 45, so you're in good company. You got a good deal on the bass there.

A good place to start learning is YouTube. You also won't spend long there before you come across Scott Divine and Scott's Bass Lessons.

Thanks...with all the replies I've gotten so far I'm obviously in the correct place to learn a lot!!!  Glad to hear I'm not the only over 45 bass player here....was definitely worried about being the "old guy."

Thanks for confirming my purchase---really had no clue what I was looking for in a bass but I had heard of Yamaha and it was regularly $200 on sale for $130, so I was hoping it would be a decent started bass for me to start out on.

I'll check into Scott's lesson....I may have already looked at one of his videos.  Does he wear a glove?  It wasn't really a bass video but a video of him explaining why he has to wear a glove when he plays - very likable guy.

I appreciate the input!

2 hours ago, Unknown_User said:

Good stuff, TripleB67!   There are also a million bass lessons or bass covers for songs on You Tube where you can learn from.  Just search for the song name followed by "bass cover" or "bass tab".  It's good to learn theory and such but sometimes you just want to play along with something for fun.  If you want something dead easy to play, maybe try Get Back by the Beatles or Summer of 69 by Bryan Adams, which are two I can think of off the top of my head which are easy ones to start off with.  

The main thing is to have fun with it.  It's all about the journey!

Thanks!

I appreciate you giving me a couple easy songs to start with.  While I'm going to take it slow and learn the basics correctly, I was hoping to find a song or two that were super easy so my practice time wouldn't be simply going through the basics.  My 11 year old son will be happy...the Beatles are his favorite band!  

I'm looking forward to this journey!!!!

2 hours ago, SubsonicSimpleton said:

Rethink your plan of never playing in a band - it isn't compulsory to play gigs if you want to enjoy playing music with other people, so discarding this as an option outright is limiting your experience. 

Right now it isn't so much the fact that I don't want to eventually play with others, it's the time (and life).

I've got a 21 year old daughter I'm helping put through college as well as an 11 year old so who is in 7th grade.  So if I do my math correctly my son will finally be out of college when I'm 61.  As well as a wonderful wife to keep happy 😀   So short term I don't see me in a band but maybe in the future when life slows down and I have more time to dedicate to playing.

I appreciate your help!

1 hour ago, Dropzone said:

Between pick and fingers, try both and see which suits your style of playing. You get a different sound from both and if you play a lot you will develop both styles.

Treat yourself to playing some simple riffs before diving in at the deep end of Rush and Mr Big. Think more root notes rather than tricky runs.

 

I think I actually like the freedom of using the fingers brings.  Obviously when I tried playing the six string I used a pick and I felt so rigid with my playing.  When I picked up that bass in the music store and played it with my fingers it felt so much better.  I'm not sure how many fingers you're supposed to use...for me two fingers felt natural but I don't want to start out with bad habits so I'll watch the videos.

Again, I appreciate all the help and advice so far!

TripleB67

[Bridgehouse]

Two fingers is the norm - as you are starting out, I'd recommend reading up and watching videos on the 'floating thumb' technique - I found it really helped to nail it early on. 

[thebigyin]

Welcome aboard this is without doubt the best Forum....lots of advice and help at hand....enjoy your Bass.

Edited October 1, 2018 by thebigyin

[seashell]

Another late starter here! (First started learning aged 53) So glad you have discovered the joys of the bass.

I'll tell you what worked for me.. it's not 'advice' as such because different people learn in different ways. But I went for private lessons  from a tutor from day one and really loved my lessons.  For me, nothing could beat that one to one input,. And a good teacher will tailor the lessons to suit your needs. I don't think I would ever have motivated myself to practice so much if I hadn't known I had another lesson coming up. I went weekly for the first month or so, then dropped it back to fortnightly. After 2 or 3 years I was just going every 2-3 weeks. I've only just stopped going for regular lessons 7 years on!

I always knew I wanted to be in a band of some sort, but what I never expected was that I could actually earn some money out of this! I thought I would just be doing it for fun, but this year I have in fact secured a few paid gigs, which has been very welcome as it coincided with me retiring from my day job. So you never really know where this lark will lead you! 

If I had another piece of advice it would be .. don't worry to much about muting strings. I'd read all sorts about palm muting and other stuff and it started to do my head in a bit. It seemed like this was very important but I couldn't really work what to do. My tutor told me not to worry, eventually you'll be doing it without realising.. and that has been the case!  Just learn to play the notes first and the muting (if required) will come naturally. IMHO and all that.

[AdrianP]

A lot of good advice from everyone here. As a relatively new bassist I can heartily recommend finding a band - or rather letting a band find you. Bassists aren't as prevalent as guitarists and you may find you spend more time fighting off the offers than you realise. But I appreciate with family commitments, that might not be easy.

My two words of advice, though, are these. Record yourself and listen back. Maybe get a cheap digital recorder or use a phone app. But, whenever you practice, take the time to evaluate how you sound to yourself. 

And, secondly, try to give some priority to technique within your practice routine. Not to the exclusion of playing songs and having fun. But just like a footballer (soccer player) will play practice matches, they will also endlessly practice trapping the ball, shooting, dribbling etc. So treat your practice time like a professional would even if your just playing for fun.

Plus, have fun!

[SpondonBassed]

Welcome TripleB67.

[Frank Blank]

41 minutes ago, seashell said:

But I went for private lessons  from a tutor from day one and really loved my lessons.

This. Unlike the eminently sensible @seashell I waited almost forty years before I had lessons and I regret every day I missed out on learning with a teacher. Now I do just that and it is excellent. Everyone previously has given sage advice but I will reiterate that playing with other musicians will get you playing better quicker. As has been said you don’t have to play in a band, just play with other folks and don’t be worried about playing with musicians who are more experienced or advanced than you, jump in and you’ll soon find yourself on the same level.

...oh and welcome.

Edited October 1, 2018 by Frank Blank
Slim

[Grangur]

Yes, @TripleB67, Scott is the guy with the glove. 

Just a word of warning: Try not to be put off by his YouTube "lessons" where he goes on about everything being "Super-cool" or "mega... whatever". In the SBL academy lessons he's more rational. Well, a bit anyway.

Oh, and I use fingers only. Could never get to grips with a pick.

[jonunders]

I first picked up a bass guitar at the age of 49. Never looked back. I shall never be a professional but you cannot beat the buzz you get playing with other musisions and creating music. When asked "What do you play" my reply is "anything from Adele to ZZ Top as long as we can play it!". I have played live and it an awesome experience. Making mistakes is part of the fun and no one really notices. ( just glare at the guitarist and roll your eyes). Just be careful of the gas. It will get you!

[TripleB67]

Again, I appreciate all the input, help, and advice.

One quick question (probably one you will laugh at): Do bass guitars require a specific type of amp?

I've got the following amp: Acoustic G20    I am guessing it won't work with my Yamaha bass guitar?  If not, is there a "cheap" (ie: under $100) bass amp that will be adequate to learn on?

Thanks again!

TripleB67

Edited October 2, 2018 by TripleB67

[Unknown_User]

7 minutes ago, TripleB67 said:

One quick question (probably one you will laugh at): Do bass guitars require a specific type of amp?

Yes they do.  You can use a guitar amp, but I think that long term you might knacker it and it certainly won't give you the right sound for a bass.

[Phil Starr]

I started playing at the age of 55, still loving it and learning loads 10 years later.

If I had one tip it is to play whole songs. It's amazingly satisfying and more importantly it makes you learn the difficult bits, and the bits you thought were easy but teach you so much about how songs are structured.

I'd recommend the Hal Leonard books. They are well written and thought out, easy to understand and come with a CD so you can hear what you are trying to achieve.

Finally you really should play with other people. Bass really comes alive when you play with others, particularly with a drummer. A lot of what we do is shaped around what the other instruments are playing and it is such a buzz. If you remember back to the first time you drove without thinking about the controls? That's nothing to the feeling you get when you realise that sound driving the band along is coming from your fingers without you having to think about it.

[TripleB67]

12 minutes ago, Unknown_User said:

Yes they do.  You can use a guitar amp, but I think that long term you might knacker it and it certainly won't give you the right sound for a bass.

So since I currently have a standard guitar amp, the Acoustic G20  (still new in box; paid $76.49), would you advise me to take it back and exchange it for something like the Fender Rumble 15 ... would it be adequate for home use to learn on?

I know they make a Fender Rumble 25 but would rather not put the extra money into it if I can get by with the Rumble 15 for a few years.

Thanks!

TripleB67

[Frank Blank]

3 minutes ago, TripleB67 said:

So since I currently have a standard guitar amp, the Acoustic G20  (still new in box; paid $76.49), would you advise me to take it back and exchange it for something like the Fender Rumble 15 ... would it be adequate for home use to learn on?

I know they make a Fender Rumble 25 but would rather not put the extra money into it if I can get by with the Rumble 15 for a few years.

Thanks!

TripleB67

Do it, do it now!