Oh Dear!!!

[Owencf]

Since i have decided to learn how to both read and play music on the double bass i have collected in just a few months 12 books.
All on recommendations from people on the forums, I swear im going to have to build a new bookcase before december at this rate hope there aint any joiners here.

To accompany the books ive also amassed a larger collection of music, guess that means i can justify a new 64gb memory card for my phone.
Anyone else have this problem?
Glad im buying a house soon with a shed/doghouse/place for me and the bass.

[FLoydElgar]

What books

[Owencf]

Ray Brown's Bass method
The Evolving Bassist Rufus Reid
Suzuki Double bass
Belwin string builder 1-3
Steven Mooney walking Jazz bass lines triple pack
these are the ones i can see at the moment.(feeling lazy on sunday afternoon)

[stingrayPete1977]

I hope you have learnt everything in them all!

Edited August 11, 2013 by stingrayPete1977

[Owencf]

still working on the Belwin series but im supplementing them with Ray Brown
Just to allow my wife the sound of something different to twinkle twinkle tiny star

[sarah thomas]

Oh, it's desperate! I used to have a perfectly decent sized house. Now it's way too small. It's not so much the books and the CDs as the keyboard, spare upright, amp and drum kit. We bought the house four years ago having decided to downsize. Pah!

[geoffbassist]

That's a great collection. It's crazy the way they stack up. I have loads I need work through.
My favourite is John Goldsby's The Jazz Bass Book. That and Standing in the Shadows of Motown for bass guitar would be my 2 desert island bass books.

[mtroun]

Love the Motown Book. I don't really like any of the double bass method books available. The Goldsby book is a nice historical survey of jazz bass playing though. I do use some exercises from the Rufus Reid and Ray Brown books mind you. My favourite books are possibly 'The Jazz Musician's Guide To Creative Practice' by David Berkman and the totemic 'How To Improvise' by Hal Crook, plus Barry Finnerty's 'Serious Jazz Practice Book' which despite its title is brilliant for players of any style.

[ubassman]

+1 on the goldsby . Its sub-title sums it up "teqhnique and tradition" There's a whole final section of exercises that help to unravel and illustrate the jazz bass genre ...common progressions , cycle of 5ths , styles, jazz forms etc etc theres also backing tracks and examples on cd to play along . Covers quite a bit of ground on theory.

But theres the unique take on the jazz bass playing tradition and musical evolution which is hugely relevant. Its a very accessible and interesting book with a lot of musical references and ideas to unpick with the 'movers and shakers' phrases / styles quoted in transcriptions , where to find the original tracks, and further listening.

The book invites the reader to go and find key pieces of music and walk around in the musical shoes of nearly 50 influential jazz bass players, listen to what they are doing, play key passages and to "get" what is special about that players contribution. That for me is a really cool idea . It's a "guide book" that i keep coming back to time and time again and its as much about understanding musical context as it is about using the ears to learn as it is about playing technical studies. There are some great other resources out there. But for me, +1 , the Goldsby would also be one of the desert island books I'd grab!

[Owencf]

It looks like i have another few books to buy .
Yes i have flicked through them but as im still learning to read some of it boggles my mind.
But most importantly im getting there and thats all that matters to me.

[SevenSeas]

I also have too many books, finding it impossible to go through them all!

Mark Levine - Jazz Theory Book.
Simandl.
Rufus Reid - The Evolving Bassist
Jazz Fake Book.
Shadows of Motown Book.
Stuart Claytons - Scale Book.

I don't know if I'll ever reach the end of any! (literally years/decades of work) I suppose I keep dipping in and out of each book.

[Hector]

I have far too many bass books and jazz biographies at home as well. They're all a good source of ideas though, but I'm gonna feel a right plum when moving house next week.

Yeah, that Goldsby book is a really great read. He also comes across as a lovely bloke in his online presence (that I'm aware of). He can play as good as his book suggests, beautiful tasteful solo on this (3m25 ish onwards):

[media]http://youtu.be/U9p-GYUAPg0[/media]




(I thought I was sick of the cry me a river lick, but somehow he makes it sound fresh!)

Edited August 14, 2013 by Hector

[geoffbassist]

Johns amazing! what i love about the book is that at first glance the sheer amount of text makes it look light on music, but the music that is there is so good! As its mixed with the text I still keep finding new bits! Its also really worth spending time to learn the exercises by memory as they are really cool. I cant think of another double bass book that is so consistent in the quality of its content. The Rufus Reed book or Ray Brown are great, but there are large sections I'm not into.
That said it works for me, but wont be for everyone.

[fatgoogle]

Too much music over here too. Really enjoying the Hrabe and Bottesini exercises at the moment. And a dirty great pile of the real books which i now and again delve into.

I've ot the Rufus Reid book as well. Didnt enjoy it too much but never finished so i should probably give it another go.

[ubassman]

Yep, the bottesini studies would be my other desert island book ( if you can put both volumes as one book ) ! Funnily enough I was just looking at no 18 and 25 this morning . The man was a complete genius ....I sense a bottesini thread coming on !

Edited August 14, 2013 by ubassman

[FLoydElgar]

Bottesini all da whey= http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kEh_AfOvfk0

[ubassman]

Brilliant post Floyd

...12/8 with syncopated rubato crickets in the background !

[geoffbassist]

[quote name='fatgoogle' timestamp='1376517613' post='2175504']
Too much music over here too. Really enjoying the Hrabe and Bottesini exercises at the moment. And a dirty great pile of the real books which i now and again delve into.

I've ot the Rufus Reid book as well. Didnt enjoy it too much but never finished so i should probably give it another go.
[/quote]

I also love the Hrabe studies and prefer them to Simandl. I think the Rufus book has some great stuff (like the Ray Brown book) but both have a lot of unnecessary exercises written out in all 12 keys..etc... The blues bass lines in Rays book are worth the price of admission and I remember a couple of the standard from Rufus's book were superb.