Help for a wedding gig

[Lazurus]

Ok here the issue, I am a new UB player I take lessons regularly and practice when I can, I have now fitted my silver slaps to replace the orchestral strings that were originally on. My good lady has booked a rockabilly band to play at our wedding at the end of may
[url="http://www.thehoundogs.co.uk/"]The Houndogs Official Website - Best Rock n Roll and Rockabilly Band in the UK! : Hound Dogs[/url]
I have been invited by the band to do a couple of numbers with them and will be arranging a couple of days away to learn a couple of their songs.
However as I said I am new to the UB, can anyone recommend a simple bass line or reference that I can learn in the mean time, trying to learn to slap in a couple of months is a tall order I know but a simple base line with some basic slaps and a lot of practice may just stop me making a fool of myself.......... All advice welcome.

[Burns-bass]

I have no meaningful advice here (I play, or rather 'attempt' jazz), but she sounds like a great woman and what a lovely present. The band look fantastic, and I bet will be brilliant.

I'd say not to worry too much. I've played gigs at weddings and you'll have an amazing time and everyone will be rooting for you. Get the start and the end right, and you'll become a legend!

Hope someone has some better advice, but good luck from me.

[Lazurus]

I am guessing some simple root & 5th in the key of the songs will save face for me!

[Burns-bass]

50s and 60s stuff is all based on arpeggios, so just make sure you learn major, minor and dominant arpeggios and you should be fine.

If you know the route and 5th, just add the 3rd, 7th and octave and you should be fine!

[Marc S]

Isn't the houndogs bassist a basschat member? Think he might be, but can't think of his name....

[Lazurus]

Ian WILSON but not aware of his connections on here.

[pete.young]

There are some helpful videos by Kid Rocker on YouTube. Here's one. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8bAba-JrjQY

Basic slap should be doable, if you can nail the first 12 or 13 minutes or so of that video you'll be fine.

[JoeEvans]

Metronome, root, fifth, and you're basically good to go for about 75% of life with a double bass.

[Marty Forrer]

Folsom Prison by Johnny Cash contains the most basic slap line. Rock Around The Clock by Bill Haley contains a basic pentatonic line. Learn those two and you will be able to play 80% of rockabilly songs.

[Lazurus]

Ok I heard back from the band with the song suggestions below, anyone point me to some sheet music that I can start practicing with!!!!!! Anything?


Folsom prison blues by Johnny Cash, we do this song in the key of A. It's a straightforward country rhythm root note and fifth and a standard 1,4,5 or (A,D,E) cord progression . Then I thought we could go into shake rattle and roll which we do in the key of C. This one is a little more challenging as it's a swing Beat with a walking bassline. It's still a 1,4,5 (C,F,G) cord progression.

[tinyd]

I think that Folsom Prison Blues is pretty straightforward as you can play the roots using just open strings plus the fifth on the "second fret" of the string above e.g. open A string with the E on the D string.

For Shake, Rattle and Roll you're going to need to highlight the root, third, fifth and maybe the seventh of each chord. There are lots of ways of doing this. Probably the easiest in terms of shifting etc is something like this (all notes are crotchets).

C7 chord
C (on A string), E (on D string), open G, A (on G string), Bb (on G string) and then back down again (that gives you 2 bars)

F7 chord
F (on E string), open A, C (on A string), open D, Eb (on D string) and back down again.

G7 chord
Same fingering as C7 chord, but a string lower (i.e. start on G on E string).

If you want to simplify even more, you can just take the first half of each pattern above and change direction at that point (so for C7, you play C, E, G, E for each bar).

Hope this helps - depending how you get on you can then embellish the above (or ignore it)

Edited February 10, 2017 by tinyd

[Lazurus]

tinyd, that's a great help thank you, as a beginner it is quite daunting to actually play a song, in time, in tune and with other musicians, also not having any sheet music (Not even the WWW could produce a free download) its is hard to know where to start.
In at the deep end I guess,

Many thanks
S.

[tinyd]

Lazarus - Yep, it's hard alright, plus you're "fighting the instrument" a lot at first as well. I can try and put what I described above into notation if that helps. I think I have some software somewhere...

[Lazurus]

That would be a great help I will PM an email addy..... Your a star