Guitar envy

[noelk27]

[quote name='musophilr' timestamp='1329820154' post='1547723'][D]on't you think that this: "guitarists ... who would be asked to double as bassists" gives the game away? He was replacing the DB with alternative technology; the instrument is intended to do what the DB was doing beforehand. You're supposed to approach it from the mindset of a bassman, not that of a guitarist who happens to be operating an instrument in the lower register.[/quote]

Well, no. Again, you're approaching this from the perspective of what the instrument has become, not from the perspective of what the instrument was intended to be. If CLF had wanted to create an electric version of the double bass he'd have had a much easier time of it. Such instruments already existed. What he wanted to do was create parallel technology, a lower register instrument for guitarists who might be asked to fill another role, exactly what you say the mindset of the instrument is not, "You're supposed to approach it from the mindset of a bassman, not that of a guitarist who happens to be operating an instrument in the lower register". In some ways you have to appreciate the guitarists in question, country and western players, and understand the role of the rhythm guitarist in country and western settings. If you examine this music in the context of the period in time, you gain a better understanding of the role these guitarists played. These guitarists were also the beta testers for CLF, so their approach to music and playing is directly of bearing on how the solid body electric guitar developed. Taking account of what CLF said in interview, and the context of the time period and intended end user, then you appreciate that what CLF was creating was a new member of the guitar family, with its primary intended users being guitarists, in order, essentially, for those guitarists to more easily increase their earning potential. You only have to take account of the comments of the Musicians Union of that time, and the subsequent scales of fees published, to gain an appreciation of the level of resistance from double bass players to the Fender electric bass guitar, its role and its players.

That, and there's also the argument that the electric bass guitar created by CLF is more closely related to the bass viol aka viol da gamba (itself a fretted instrument, and a member of the same family as the vihuela, the predecessor of the guitar) than to the double bass aka bass violin aka contrabass.

[musophilr]

[quote name='noelk27' timestamp='1329832524' post='1548059']
That, and there's also the argument that the electric bass guitar created by CLF is more closely related to the bass viol aka viol da gamba (itself a fretted instrument, and a member of the same family as the vihuela, the predecessor of the guitar) than to the double bass aka bass violin aka contrabass.
[/quote]

Thank you for a patient explanation. You have exposed my ignorance of country music, not that I consider it a great loss though. Yep, I guess I do look at the electric bass from the standpoint of someone who sees what the EB has become rather than someone who wasn't there when Leo first developed it.

Point about the DB. The Penguin dictionary of music described it as having more kinship with viols than violins, while the Observer's book of music describes it as a hybrid between the violone and the violin family, retaining the body shape, the tuning in fourths, and the bowing methods of the viols. I remember being told once that the DB doesn't have much to do with violins at all but the aforementioned references would suggest a marriage into the family tree a few generations back. BTW I [i]lurve[/i] the sound of a violone. It's a bit like a Jazz bass - plenty of mid-range honk

[EdwardHimself]

[quote name='Jam' timestamp='1329777410' post='1547334']
Does anyone else here who just plays bass ever think about picking up the 6 string too? I've been listening to a lot of Porcupine Tree and Opeth recently and those two bands in particular always make me wish I'd picked up guitar instead of (or as well as) bass. Examples:
[/quote]

It's never too late to pick up guitar now. I don't know why people always think they have to limit themselves to one instrument, I think it is this worry they have like if they start playing another instrument then it means they will be cheating on their "first love" or some crap like that. I think it is all just about being realistic. There is one of my friends who started learning guitar but then didn't bother, because he plays the bass and I think he just feels as if he has to be the BEST at everything. You've just got to say to yourself that it doesn't matter if you are amazing, as long as you enjoy it. I play guitar, bass and drums and quite honestly I am crap at all 3 but it doesn't stop me from playing them

Edited February 21, 2012 by EdwardHimself

[Jellyfish]

[quote name='Jam' timestamp='1329822519' post='1547792']
Don't get me wrong, I really enjoy playing Opeth songs on bass. Saying that, some of the guitar work on their stuff is really beautiful. Bleak/Drapery Falls and the Lines in my hand are the ones I enjoy playing most on bass though. What about you?
[/quote]

I gotta agree man, some of their guitar work is beautiful. Especially their acoustic guitar parts. As far as playing Opeth, I love the bass parts in Bleak and The Devil's Orchard. I don't know if it's a trend, but a lot of newer albums from various metal bands (that I listen to) have really given the bass a boost. It's great.

[Chris2112]

I have often listened to Shawn Lane and dreamed about being a guitar player. Mind you, there is no way I'd ever be as good as Shawn so I might as well just leave that idea on the shelf!

[RhysP]

[quote name='Jam' timestamp='1329812939' post='1547616']
You have outstanding taste in music Did you know Wilson and Akerfeldt are collaborating and have put together a cd? They're calling themselves "Storm Corrosion" and it'll be out in April. Personally, I can't wait! Probably something else to make me wish I could play guitar!
[/quote]

I'm looking forward to that too. All I can be sure about is it won't be what I expect.
Wilson & Akerfeldt are the two most interesting musicians to come along in a very long time IMO.
They obviously have the same influences as me but aren't just on a nostalgia trip. Akerfeldt in particular doesn't seem bothered about losing his old death metal audience in order to make the music he wants to.

[Bilbo]

I own more guitars than basses. Have always played both but use gutar only for writing and don't gig on it at all.

[risingson]

I've played guitar longer than I have bass (marginally), but bass was what I focused on and took to more. I feel more powerful as a bass player, if that doesn't sound too ridiculous, you get a better bird's eye view of everything in a band situation. But because I like to write, I play quite a bit of guitar too, particularly acoustic.

[EssentialTension]

[quote name='musophilr' timestamp='1329779305' post='1547393']
I'm a guitarist who can find his way around a bass. It annoys me when people claim that a bass is a guitar with thicker (and usually fewer) strings. It's function within a band is different, and the techniques required to operate it are different. The visual similarity to the electric guitar is just that and no more. The instrument is a bass, it isn't a guitar (regardless of what Leo might have originally called it).

/rant
[/quote]
It's a bass guitar just as the upright bass is a bass violin, and a bass clarinet is a clarinet. 'Bass' is a reference to the range of the instrument in each case.

[Hobbayne]

I started off on bass and progressed to guitar. It made paying the bass much more of an eye opener for me, the way the chords and scales worked together and wasnt just following the chords playing root notes all the time.

[Lfalex v1.1]

Too small and fiddly for me, plus they look stupidly small on me (and I'm only average-sized)
I'll stick to my "DUPLO" guitar, thanks.

[Gizmo]

Just like Jam,Opeth/PT (and pink floyd) were the bands that made me want to pick up the guitar,after playing bass for nearly 20 years i was feeling a little bass'ed out and need'ed a break from it,so i decide to buy a few guitars & spend a bit of quality time on it,now after nearly 2 years spent with a 90% of my playing time on a guitar instead of a bass i have a new found respect for both instruments.

Im not saying that you cant learn all you need to know about harmony and melody on just the bass but for myself (just like Hobbayne)i found things to become much clearer after playing guitar for a little while,it also got my fingers out of there bass pattern rutts,im not saying that i now play bass like a guitarist but i no longer play guitar like a bassist if that make sense,& anyone who thinks your betraying what it means to be a bass player just because you picked up a guitar for a while really hasn't got a clue.