What makes a good bassist?

[Barking Spiders]

27 minutes ago, MacDaddy said:

It all depends.

There is a train of thought that Sid Vicious was the epitome of the bass guitarist. 

Another would suggest Jaco Pastorius. 

Has anyone ever been at a gig and heard (a non-musician) someone say 'they're a good bass player!'.

No I haven't and I don't know any non musicians who give a flying one about how well someone can play. There's a good reason why the likes of Oasis, Robbie Williams, Ed Sheeran, Coldplay etc are minted and why any mention of Weather Report, Dream Theater, Rush etc to most people elicits a ' who the fook are they' look.

[fretmeister]

Not Me!

[paul_5]

Lots of practice.

Not being a twät.

[bassintheface]

To know what not to play

[Guest]

I’d say the hallmark of a great bass player (when coming up with a bass part) is to keep removing notes until you can’t remove any more without losing the essence of the line. Another way of looking at it is making sure that every single note you play, you mean it.

[Powertripper]

Aside from basic proficiency, such as being able to play [relatively] in time, and in tune, I believe the most important factor in being a 'good bassist' is STYLE. 

Style seems to have been replaced by the race for technical prowess. Equally, I appreciate the viewpoint of 'discipline' and 'it's the notes you don't play' etc etc, how to accompany your songwriter and whatnot, but I've always favoured bass players who branch off from the minimal and into something tasteful, artistic and their own. Having style means you've got something different to the next guy. 

[Newfoundfreedom]

In my case it's definitely down to me being the only one in the band with a rehearsal space. 😂

[Barking Spiders]

10 minutes ago, Powertripper said:

Aside from basic proficiency, such as being able to play [relatively] in time, and in tune, I believe the most important factor in being a 'good bassist' is STYLE. 

Style seems to have been replaced by the race for technical prowess. Equally, I appreciate the viewpoint of 'discipline' and 'it's the notes you don't play' etc etc, how to accompany your songwriter and whatnot, but I've always favoured bass players who branch off from the minimal and into something tasteful, artistic and their own. Having style means you've got something different to the next guy. 

True. There are hundreds of highly technical virtuosos out there but they're all pretty much doing similar things to eachother, especially those You Tubers who like to show their flashy chops from the comfort of their living rooms. I too prefer those players who have a trademark sound such as Mick Karn in his Japan days, JJ Burnel (first 4 Stranglers albums), Mark King (in his Level 42 days he was very recognisable) and Mike Dempsey (Associates, Lotus Eaters, Cure).

Edited October 24, 2018 by Barking Spiders

[Powertripper]

1 minute ago, Barking Spiders said:

True. There are hundreds of highly technical virtuosos out there but they're all pretty much doing similar things to eachother, especially those You Tubers who like to show their flashy chops from the comfort of their living rooms. I too prefer those players who have a trademark sound such as Mick Karn in his Japan days, JJ Burnel (first 4 Stranglers albums), Mark King (in his Level 42 days he was very recognisable) and Mike Dempsey (Associates, Lotus Eaters, Cure).

JJ Burnel is a perfect example. On that note, I should have mentioned tone as well. Smashing tone!

[TheGreek]

To quote Discreet from another thread:

3 hours ago, discreet said:

If bass players are getting  themselves noticed, they probably aren't playing for the song. All those bands with a 'feature' bass player such as Cream, Yes, Rush and so on - ground-breaking as they undoubtedly were - aren't necessarily the best examples of what a good working professional sideman should be.