How do you convert piano bass to electric bass?

[Mr Fretbuzz]

Hey guys I bought some Johnny Cash and Buddy Holly piano vocal and guitar books and I'm trying to convert the piano bass to electric bass as I can't find any specific bass books. I'm noticing a lot of double stops, chords and very low b , c and g on ledger lines below the bottom line.

Is it best to just play just the lower note of the stops and chords and how do you deal with the very low notes. Easy on a 5 string but if you've got a four, play them as low as you can on the E string and move everything else up onto the D and G strings within say the first 7 frets? I'm trying to keep the notes there as I guess that's where they would have been played on an upright?

Read somewhere that Larry Graham I think started playing bass to piano bass?

Any advice about converting the lines to TAB appreciated.

Thanks.

[ambient]

Just follow the root of the chords, it'd be a very simple root maybe root 5 pattern on that type of song, nothing too complicated.

[deepbass5]

I think it is or can be a great head start but you need to listen to the track (youtube) and figure out where the original bass player went. A Band I am doing stuff with uses or buys in Piano music and I try and tell everyone to be a little cautious. These are sing-along at home arrangements and often do not follow the original recording, but listened to in isolation sound fine. Ok to lift chords from and sort the general structure but I also find the keyboard player will trample all over your bass part instead of picking out what the keyboard is actually doing on the track, and you can’t stop them as it has been arranged for them to be doing everything.
I have photocopied these parts and the cut the copy up and pasted the lower register onto one sheet to get three pages down to one. My main tip would be trust your ears

[lobematt]

[quote name='ambient' timestamp='1390856844' post='2350599']
Just follow the root of the chords, it'd be a very simple root maybe root 5 pattern on that type of song, nothing too complicated.
[/quote]

+1!

[dlloyd]

[quote name='Mr Fretbuzz' timestamp='1390811462' post='2349651']
Hey guys I bought some Johnny Cash and Buddy Holly piano vocal and guitar books and I'm trying to convert the piano bass to electric bass as I can't find any specific bass books. I'm noticing a lot of double stops, chords and very low b , c and g on ledger lines below the bottom line.

Is it best to just play just the lower note of the stops and chords and how do you deal with the very low notes. Easy on a 5 string but if you've got a four, play them as low as you can on the E string and move everything else up onto the D and G strings within say the first 7 frets? I'm trying to keep the notes there as I guess that's where they would have been played on an upright?

Read somewhere that Larry Graham I think started playing bass to piano bass?

Any advice about converting the lines to TAB appreciated.

Thanks.
[/quote]

Transpose up an octave. You'll end up playing the same note as the piano would have done anyway.

[EssentialTension]

[quote name='Mr Fretbuzz' timestamp='1390811462' post='2349651']
Hey guys I bought some Johnny Cash and Buddy Holly piano vocal and guitar books and I'm trying to convert the piano bass to electric bass as I can't find any specific bass books. I'm noticing a lot of double stops, chords and very low b , c and g on ledger lines below the bottom line.

Is it best to just play just the lower note of the stops and chords and how do you deal with the very low notes. Easy on a 5 string but if you've got a four, play them as low as you can on the E string and move everything else up onto the D and G strings within say the first 7 frets? I'm trying to keep the notes there as I guess that's where they would have been played on an upright?

Read somewhere that Larry Graham I think started playing bass to piano bass?

Any advice about converting the lines to TAB appreciated.

Thanks.
[/quote]
If I had the piano left hand notation, I would take good notice of it but I wouldn't necessarily try to play it exactly - indeed, as you've noted that's not always possible anyway. I'd also listen to any recordings for the actual bassist.

There can be plenty to be learned for a bassist studying piano left hand. I recommend Ray Charles left hand.