What have you got against slap bass?

[Barking Spiders]

some good stuff here from Scott explaining why Hair by Larry Graham is his fave slap bassline and that it's got nowt to do with the rata-tat-tat style 

 

[Barking Spiders]

And slapping is so much fun..

 

[Al Krow]

49 minutes ago, Stub Mandrel said:

As mentioned above I both appreciate slap and play a bit.

Burt I think many people appreciate it without realising its a significantly different technique. I'm not meaning Level 42 fans.

Come to think of it, I bet most non-players couldn't tell pick from fingers by listening to a record.

Yeah, that's completely fair: most non musicians won't necessarily appreciate the techniques used on most instruments, whilst being able to appreciate the sounds and experience being created. 

Mention "double tonguing" to a non woodwind player... 

[drTStingray]

1 hour ago, Barking Spiders said:

some good stuff here from Scott explaining why Hair by Larry Graham is his fave slap bassline and that it's got nowt to do with the rata-tat-tat style 

 

Yes, good shout. However this is quite inaccurate. The main problem is if you Google Grand Central Station youll find ..... a railway station in the US (or if you're very unlucky the shopping centre at Birmingham New Street 😀

The band is Graham Central Station - a play on the station name using Larry's surname - I'm a bit surprised Scott got that wrong - twice in the first two or three mins 😁

In terms of the analysis, I do like Scott and he's right this is a clever groove. I loved his recent stuff on Jaco and found his analysis on parts of Havona very useful. 

However Juliaplaysgroove does Hair far more accurately including those slides being octaves on the E string - they sound much better. The slid 7th fills are really very important as well and the arrangement works around the bass part and vice versa - a very clever track indeed!!!  

Edited May 20, 2020 by drTStingray

[odysseus]

I like it sometimes, but not when it becomes an Olympic event.

Ron Pickering voice: "So we're into the last ten seconds of the one minute slap, and Mark and Victor are neck and neck* on 456 notes...."  

 

 

 

 

 

 

* pun intended

[ClassicVibes]

4 minutes ago, odysseus said:

I like it sometimes, but not when it becomes an Olympic event.

Ron Pickering voice: "So we're into the last ten seconds of the one minute slap, and Mark and Victor are neck and neck* on 456 notes...."  

 

 

 

 

 

 

* pun intended

Ronnie?

[Stub Mandrel]

Who's that?

[DiMarco]

Got nothing against slap, tap, chords, picks, fingerstyle or large effect boards. Just play the damn thing.

 

[Misdee]

The point is that it's all about context. Slap bass can sound great in a song , even when it is very prominent :

 

 Without  mentioning any  names, ,  it is no coincidence that a lot of  high-profile  virtuoso players have very limited careers because they can play like demons but they lack the wit and imagination to contextualise their skills effectively in a wider musical context i.e on other peoples songs. 

[Barking Spiders]

2 minutes ago, Misdee said:

The point is that it's all about context. Slap bass can sound great in a song , even when it is very prominent :

 

 Without  mentioning any  names, ,  it is no coincidence that a lot of  high-profile  virtuoso players have very limited careers because they can play like demons but they lack the wit and imagination to contextualise their skills effectively in a wider musical context i.e on other peoples songs. 

Go on, go on, go on, go on..name and shame the guilty parties 😁

[EBS_freak]

On 21/05/2020 at 11:00, Misdee said:

Without  mentioning any  names, ,  it is no coincidence that a lot of  high-profile  virtuoso players have very limited careers because they can play like demons but they lack the wit and imagination to contextualise their skills effectively in a wider musical context i.e on other peoples songs. 

i say that about A LOT about musicians. There are those players that play for the song... and then those that have to be oh so clever.

For example, if the song requires a held root note, there's a flood of self proclaimed virtuoso musicians that will deploy everything in their bags of trick to avoid playing that held root note, to the detriment of the songs.

That is why you find so many great musicians, whilst being in a supportive role and under the instruction of a decent producer, produce absolute perfection - yet release their own album of absolute pretentious nonsense.

Having the knowledge, skills and chops doesn't always grant you taste.

Edited May 23, 2020 by EBS_freak

[Cuzzie]

With the above comments to me Marcus Miller is right up there as one of the bests - he tends to play what the song needs despite all the chops in the world.

I prefer him on other people’s stuff to his own though

[ubit]

3 minutes ago, EBS_freak said:

For example, if the song requires a held root note, there's a flood of self proclaimed virtuoso musicians that will deploy everything in their bags of trick to avoid playing that held root note, to the detriment of the songs.

Yup, sometimes less is more. The lead guitar solo in Thin Lizzy's Still In Love With You is an example of leaving "windows" that give the piece more feel than chucking hundreds of notes in which would ruin it.

 

 

[EBS_freak]

4 minutes ago, ubit said:

Yup, sometimes less is more. The lead guitar solo in Thin Lizzy's Still In Love With You is an example of leaving "windows" that give the piece more feel than chucking hundreds of notes in which would ruin it.

 

 

Indeed. BB was a master at it also.

[Misdee]

2 hours ago, Barking Spiders said:

Go on, go on, go on, go on..name and shame the guilty parties 😁

I am much too diplomatic to be drawn on exactly who, but suffice to say there are some very high profile bass players who seem to spend their lives going to trade shows , doing endorsements and appearing on Youtube. Where are the albums ? What is their body of work ?😉 

Jaco Pastorius, by comparison, played with Weather Report and Joni Mitchell. Stanley Clarke played with Return To Forever and then made some very accomplished solo albums , as well as doing sessions for major artists. Alphonso Johnson  similarly showed his skills in any number of  musical settings , from jazz to top 40 pop music. I could go on .

 Could I just point out that I certainly would not count Marcus Miller as a trade show bass player, not in a million years. Marcus is as good as it gets in my opinion. He has it all, taste, feel,  chops, and the nous to know how to use it all to great effect. And when it comes to slap, he is the best in the business. And he has played with too many great artists to list. 

 

 

Edited May 21, 2020 by Misdee

[ClassicVibes]

Here is a great example of slap playing done well. Two things - the bass and drums are ball clenchingly tight and the slap passage, played during the guitar solo, is very tasteful. 

 

[Barking Spiders]

4 hours ago, Misdee said:

I am much too diplomatic to be drawn on exactly who, but suffice to say there are some very high profile bass players who seem to spend their lives going to trade shows , doing endorsements and appearing on Youtube. Where are the albums ? What is their body of work ?😉 

Jaco Pastorius, by comparison, played with Weather Report and Joni Mitchell. Stanley Clarke played with Return To Forever and then made some very accomplished solo albums , as well as doing sessions for major artists. Alphonso Johnson  similarly showed his skills in any number of  musical settings , from jazz to top 40 pop music. I could go on .

 Could I just point out that I certainly would not count Marcus Miller as a trade show bass player, not in a million years. Marcus is as good as it gets in my opinion. He has it all, taste, feel,  chops, and the nous to know how to use it all to great effect. And when it comes to slap, he is the best in the business. And he has played with too many great artists to list. 

 

 

I think I know of you mean. You might see some of them at Musikmesse vids on YT.

I'm a mahoosive fan of Miller. Remember seeing him play a Cheltenham Jazz Festival a fair few years ago. A great gig which I remember well. Not only was he playing some triffic bass but he also had a huge saxophone or was it a bass clarinet? And he has an impressive pedigree in his role as a sideman.

[spectoremg]

7 hours ago, ubit said:

Yup, sometimes less is more. The lead guitar solo in Thin Lizzy's Still In Love With You is an example of leaving "windows" that give the piece more feel than chucking hundreds of notes in which would ruin it.

 

 

Another great empty solo is Snowy White's on Chinatown. 

[spectoremg]

5 hours ago, Misdee said:

I am much too diplomatic to be drawn on exactly who, but suffice to say there are some very high profile bass players who seem to spend their lives going to trade shows , doing endorsements and appearing on Youtube. Where are the albums ? What is their body of work ?😉 

Jaco Pastorius, by comparison, played with Weather Report and Joni Mitchell. Stanley Clarke played with Return To Forever and then made some very accomplished solo albums , as well as doing sessions for major artists. Alphonso Johnson  similarly showed his skills in any number of  musical settings , from jazz to top 40 pop music. I could go on .

 Could I just point out that I certainly would not count Marcus Miller as a trade show bass player, not in a million years. Marcus is as good as it gets in my opinion. He has it all, taste, feel,  chops, and the nous to know how to use it all to great effect. And when it comes to slap, he is the best in the business. And he has played with too many great artists to list. 

 

 

Love Miller's slap version of Teentown. 

[Passinwind]

6 hours ago, Misdee said:

 Could I just point out that I certainly would not count Marcus Miller as a trade show bass player, not in a million years. Marcus is as good as it gets in my opinion. He has it all, taste, feel,  chops, and the nous to know how to use it all to great effect. And when it comes to slap, he is the best in the business. And he has played with too many great artists to list. 

 

 

True that, but Marcus was right up there with anyone I saw at NAMM as far as "show chops"  this year too. Difference was that he was playing actual self contained music the whole time,  stuff that needed no visual component or constraint to portrait view on a stoopid phone,  until some other guy joined him 15 minutes in anyway.

I did see a few other really great show demo sets too. Anyone with disdain for pick playing might want to check out Cody Wright, for instance.

At the booth I "worked" in it wasn't quite all slap all the time, probably only 85-90%. My crankiness is rock steady these days, no worries. What technique produces good music isn't all that important to me, as long as it happens.

 

[ubit]

The fact is, no matter what other musicians think, especially other bass players, if you want to impress the general civilian population in a bar, a bit of slapping and popping will have them baying for more. 

I remember years ago we were playing in a busy bar and we were having one of the incredibly annoying gaps between songs where the guitarist would be having a drag on his fag or tuning up. Some of the audience started shouting to me to slap the bass. I was clueless at the time but I hit them with a very sloppy version of Higher Ground  which I vaguely knew. They absolutely loved it. I thought I can't slap but even a simple passage and people think it's amazing. I decided that I would learn this technique and while Im not amazing by anyones standards, if I was to be asked again I could offer a more impressive show.

[ubit]

13 hours ago, spectoremg said:

Another great empty solo is Snowy White's on Chinatown. 

Indeed, another great blues influenced player who just knows when to fill and when to leave it out. Its all about the music, not look at me!

[oldslapper]

Yah wanna see someone slappin the buggery out of his Thunder iii back in 85??Do ya?? Mmm? 
Warning: 80’s Mullet in use. ref clothing choice: I was picked up and charged by the fashion police immediately after arriving back in uk. 
Warning: No funk involved. 

(The mullet was returned to the original owner, unharmed by September 85.)

 

[Stub Mandrel]

Fashion Criminals...

[dmccombe7]

Nowt wrong with a mullet. Always fashionable.