ltownbass

Probably won't hurt. Chord charts, paired with theory are important. Bass players, particularly in jazz are expected to read chord charts and solo, that's about it I think. . I find it helps to know which chord is the root etc. so that you can find your way in the chord chart when you get lost. Also, get an app called fakebook on android or iPhone. They're superb, loads of chord charts. Maybe more than all of the real books. The more conventional the jazz, the less music you'll have to read. At Least that's what I've found

I do it. It will provide invaluable experience to your playing. I gained lots of awareness. I learned to listen to everyone else and fit in. The other thing I learnt is how to read chord charts and start impromptu jams. There's lots of crap aswell. You'll end up playing with sh*t people in a sh*t song for way to long because no-one can end a song. That happens to me loads, still. Definately worthwhile. The rate at which you learn will slow down after six months or so but you'll learn loads

Thanks everyone for responding so quickly and with such good advice. I feel like I should clarify some things. I'm listening to jazz pretty much as often as I can. I've recently got into it and I'm beginning to develop some proficiency when reading chord charts and generally playing jazz. Normally I use a fretted G&L tribute. I have flats on a DIY fretless bass on which I use foam to dampen the strings. Yesterday I made the neck a more bowed and raised the action so that I have to fight it a little more and I must say it feels and sounds a lot better than before(more ballsy and less jaco) . I'm most tempted to listen to the advice of Tinyd, Bilbo and zero9: Do the (up) right thing. This may be because they are saying what I expected or wanted to hear. People tend to play differently on guitars. There seems to be a lot less emphasis on the depth and placement of notes. These are reasons why I'd like to make the switch. I think I want to the dynamic range you get with the upright bass. It seems like you can put so much expression in within your straight four notes per bar and guitarist have to use placement and muting among other things. However, I agree that in a band context it's unlikely to make a huge difference; especially in my crappy bands. I think I'm gonna try some big heavy flats on my fretless and see how that goes for now. I'm almost certainly gonna buy one of those Stagg EUBs to begin with. They go for something like £200 on here, I can't really go wrong with something like that. Thanks and keep the advice coming, Ryan

Hey dude. I'm pretty interested. I live in Luton and have a car. Gimme some more details. Thanks

I've been playing pretty conventional jazz for a little under a year with my bass guitar. I use some foam to dampen the strings and I've used this effect with some success. However, the more I listen to jazz, the more my satisfaction with my own tone decreases. Instead it is replaced with the desire for a deep, woody tone with low sustain. So I'm looking at fretless basses now, which I will try to use with the foam to dampen it and give a bit of a double bas thump. I'm not sure if I will want the double bass sound in the long run. There are characteristics I like about playing bass guitar, but I've not quite got to a point where I'm satisfied either way. Should I skip a stage and go straight for an upright? Has anyone else experienced something similar? What did you do? How did it work out? Thanks, Ryan

[quote name='Ghost_Bass' timestamp='1445596993' post='2892649'] Reading this comments i think i went overboard with my Promethean covers. I bought some kind of leather/vinil from a car fabric seller and some sponge from a local fabric store. Glued it on the back of the vinil, cutted to shape and sewed it all together. Materials: Vinil: Foam: End result: It's a bit of work but it was cheap and these covers have been here for a few years and still going strong. The cab in the picture is the extention cab of the Promethean combo and it was sold to a basschatter a few months ago, he can vouch for it, i guess. [/quote] Great idea. I might have to do something similar.

I guarantee you will be disappointed by the GruvGear thing. Completely [i]inconsistent [/i]dampening. I've got foam under my Gruvgear to hold it in the right place and a clip to hold it closed, clamping the strings, and it's still rubbish. I bought mine, as an experiment, thinking it's probably rubbish but you never know. However, the experiment would be pointless unless I tell everyone else it's a crappy solution to your problem. I've been trying to play jazz on bass guitar but instead I've just spent my whole playing with this stupid, glorified gypsy clothes peg. [quote name='rodney72a' timestamp='1439506879' post='2843519'] Would this be an option? [url="http://www.stringsdirect.co.uk/accessories-c2/string-muters-c63/gruv-gear-gruv-gear-fump-bass-bridge-muter-dampener-p10306"]http://www.stringsdi...dampener-p10306[/url] [/quote]