OutToPlayJazz

It's all down to experience. When you start improvising, blues is of course a good place to start. The chord sequences aren't hard & nine times out of ten there'll only be three of them! Start simply & then start to put in fills between the chords. Just go with what sounds right to your ear. You'll gradually pick up on patterns that work for you. I started from the other end of the spectrum. I started going to blues jams in my late teens & was an already accomplished classical cello/double bass player, so I could read anything you put in front of me. But I couldn't improvise for toffee! Just by joining in, I went through the same process as you're going through now. Think of it as a fun exploration of the potential in your playing Rich.

PM me your postal address & I'll send you some copies out of the (now out of print) Literate Bassist. Lots of styles, all chord charted over the lines, with positions & fingers edited by me

[quote]You might not need effects but that doesn't mean nobody else does.[/quote] Indeed - That's what I was saying! They're mostly pointless for me, but I'm sure that in the right context some people find that they have their uses. I mean, Bootsy without his auto-wah and flanger would be unthinkable!

It can often go that way - When I first found my OLP HH Ray copy, it was the best playing and sounding bass in the shop. And that was up against G&L's, Warwicks, several 'proper' Stingrays & so much other stuff. I think I mentioned in another post that a new Classic Vibe Jazz blew me away the other day. Still tempted now!

[quote name='bassman2790' post='352773' date='Dec 12 2008, 03:56 PM']I used to have a modest number of effect pedals (chorus, exciter/limiter, compressor, overdrive)...then I convinced myself I just had to have a Boss GT-6B. About a month later, I questioned why I would need the choice of umpteen different distortions, compressors, choruses etc etc and the Boss went on eBay. Back to my pedal board then.... This morning however, I set up my pedal board, amp and cabinet and started to experiment with different settings on my Tech 21 VT bass pedal and my Exciter/Limiter, but the more I twiddled, the further away I got from a sound I liked. In frustration, I unplugged from the board and plugged directly into my amp....eureka! That's the sound I'm looking for.... Why do I have all these pedals when I only use a little bit of chorus for about 30 seconds in one song? It's madness The pedal board will definitely be staying at home tomorrow when I set off for the gig.[/quote] I know exactly what you mean. I had a multi-effects board in the 90's that I never used & ended up selling. More recently I had a Zoom B2 which I ended up giving away to a lad on BC for the cost of the postage. Again, unused. I basically have no need for these things whatsoever. I really like my sound & people I work with really like my sound. Why change it? I've never used compression (I'm sure a few engineers have added some to my sound from time to time) & never used effects to enhance/change my sound on stage. All these pedals & multi-effects are all fine & good for a bit of a mess-around at home, but there's no substitute for a well set-up, good sounding bass through a good amplifier or preamp. All I do have these days is a Digitech JamMan, which is a part of the act at times where I do a looped solo. Thinking about it, I never even use the effects on my BassCube, either. What's the point?

I thought it was very musical. Good to hear a Precision doing something different

Just looked at both the Jonathan Ross Show & Live Aid. Looks like the same bass! An old favourite, eh?

Yes, I've always found the Japanese Fender Jazz pickups a little buzzy and lacking output. My new American one has massive output & is as quiet as a mouse. Let me know how the Norstrand changes goes. I've always fancied something like a Sadowsky with the big singles on board.

I was in town only the other day, thinking to myself, "Ah, the summer brings 'em out, doesn't it...?" Anyway, back to the basses... Love your Status S2 (obviously!) - It has a really interesting top wood - What is it? Any idea? The other one that really caught my eye was the MM with the lovely figured maple top. Fantastic looking bass! How well does your 75RI jazz do the Miller sound, then? Congrats on a fab collection

Hi Michael, there's something about that '71. It has such massive body to the sound. Very un-fretless sound if you get my meaning? The 'TonyF' has the more traditional fretless sound you'd expect, with more ring and musicality to it, but the old one is just priceless. It makes your bones shake! I'd like to hear it with some new strings, but would that spoil the whole idea and effect of the bass?

[quote name='markdavid' post='471171' date='Apr 23 2009, 11:16 PM']I wasn't questioning that you knew the bass needed a setup I just thought it was worth mentioning as people do sometimes equate high action with cheap basses when all that is needed is a quick setup. Im glad you agree with me about the ed freidland video , it shows my hearings not playing up after all [/quote] Nope, definitely nothing wrong with your hearing. The custom shop jazz sounds decidedly muddier. The Squier sounds very Marcus Miller clear and zingy to me. Rich.

Vic's playing is sterling as always. I actually like him playing the bass line best these days, although his soloing in the fast latin number was fantastic. He's still the best out there Yes, I'm not too impressed by Steve's fretless playing on this occasion either, but it's a good opportunity to hear his new Fender signature 6-stringer in action. When he puts his thumb on the board it's the same as thumb position on the double bass. Enables the player to play higher registers while maintaining the hand shape. You don't see it on electric bass very often, but as stated earlier in this thread, I guess it's a neccesity on a Fender jazz. Dave Fingers Haynes isn't a player I've come across too often, but he does seem very good. Very similar to Vic's brother, but not as Wooten-esque complex.

[quote name='markdavid' post='470383' date='Apr 23 2009, 08:54 AM']That can probably be corrected with a setup , a lot of the time music shops dont bother to set up their instruments which makes no sense to me Regarding the sound , I saw the infamous Guitar world video of ed freidland comparing his Fenders to the Classic vibe basses and I gotta say I actually preferred the sound of the classic vibe jazz to his Fender jazz bass[/quote] Yes, you're right on the Ed Friedland video. The vibe jazz did sound better. And yes, I know the bass needed setting up. If I'd had alan-keys in my suit pocket at the time, I'd have done it myself

Bass player - Excellent. Drummer - Fun. Guitar - Just a wall of nonsense noise. Singer - Good at screaming. In essence, a great rhythm section spoiled by the usual tossers. Yes, I am oooold!

Nice. Very, very nice

[quote]You know what, I haven't had a go on one of these yet. They don't last long in Jon's workshop. Some sound clips would be really handy if you have any.[/quote] Me either - Really like the look of these as well

Even simpler than the string retainer idea, try making sure that the B-string is wound top to bottom on the post. Good way of making sure the string is as taut as it can be.

Just a thought here - I was having an idle moment in a local store today & two pretty cheap basses literally blew me away... 1. Squier Classic Vibe Jazz in white with tort guard - If you think Squiers are cheap basses, think again. This thing has the glossed neck/board, excellent fit & finish, no earth hum, hi-mass bridge with brass saddles, lovely chrome work/frets & does the classic jazz sound sooo well that it's unbelievable it's only around £250. 2. Ibanez Jet King. Massive sound with loads of fundamental bass (more than a Precision) but still loads of tone with no muddiness. Great to play. Usual great Ibby fit & finish. Again, only £250. My point? You don't have to spend £4-500 to get a decent new bass

That looks really nice, Josh - Surprisingly like an M5-24!

Nice one, Stan - How does it compare to yoour old Energy?

Just noticed Pooles in Grimsby mentioned a few posts ago in this thread... Dropped in there after finishing teaching earlier & played one of the Classic Vibe Jazzes... OMG! OMG! OMG! (Yes, it was THAT good!) Now I've got one of the current Fender American Standard 09 jazz basses with the maple neck running through a Sadowsky preamp - Which is utterly excellent But if you're after the classic jazz sound, look no further than one of these. I was only playing it through a cheap Peavey amp & you could fly an airliner between the strings & fingerboard, but it really nailed the classic jazz sound better than anything I've heard or played in ages.

Below about 6th position (1st finger on the octave G for instance), you should never use the third finger. In the lower positions, correct fingering is 1,2,4, with the larger gap being between the 1st & 2nd fingers. This way the whole hand covers only one tone & intonation is reliable. When using for instance a 4th finger note, make sure you've got all four fingers on the board at the same time. The 1st & 2nd may be lifted for vibrato purposes. Also while in the lower positions, the thumb should remain behind the 2nd finger & should move in sync with the rest of the hand, the left hand moving as 'a unit', as it were. Make sure that you never take all fingers off when changing string. Leaving a finger (or fingers) in reserve on the previous string increases speed and makes left hand movement significantly more economical. As has already been mentioned, the third finger comes into play higher up & usually involves "thumb position", where the thumb sits across the top two strings about an inch behind the index finger. The thumb need not press on the strings. It's only there as a guide for the hand shape.