Of all things bass related, what are you most embarrassed about?

[Cestrian]

I’ll kick it off - I’m terrible at working out bass lines to songs without using someone else’s tab or notation. 

[MGB]

That at gigs I still sometimes can panic and screw up when having to play a song I don't know yet by ear. Knowing that if I would be comfy at home it wouldn't be a problem at all to play it faultless the first time round.

[paul_c2]

Hmmm.....2nd most embarrassing would be endlessly playing root and fifth for hundreds and hundreds of bars, while others are playing something really difficult, fast, awkward, melodic etc etc

But the most embarrassing is making my audience endure a bass solo.

Something in between please - interesting but still does the job of a bass line.

[FuNkShUi]

Not being able to tune by ear anymore after becoming reliant on a tuner.
Not the end of the world, but the battery went on my tuner a couple of gigs ago and i realised how utterly useless at it i'd become!

[ped]

When someone asks me to ‘play something’

[CamdenRob]

I once spent five minutes frantically faffing with my amp, bass etc (with the sound guy) to try and work out why I had no signal (having been fine in the sound check). It was at the start of a short set on a multi-band night. The rest of the guys had to wait for me, whilst offering the audience some terribly awkward banter (as you do when you’re 15).

After the full five minutes someone in the audience politely enquired as to whether the absence of a cable between my bass and amp may be the issue... 😐

That was pretty embarrassing... 😐

Edited August 19, 2019 by CamdenRob

[chris_b]

I am embarrassed by the noise I make when I try singing. Apparently it's nearly as bad as my whistling!

And, if I'm honest, my solos are to be endured.

[TrevorR]

Sitting in a guitar shop about to start trying out that nice bass and realising I have suddenly forgotten every single bassline I’ve learned in the last 30 years except for Money by Pink Floyd and The Chain by Fleetwood Mac. Every. Single. Time!

[Cat Burrito]

When I'm not getting a signal out of the amp, only to realise that I haven't switched the amp on or plugged a cable in!

I've been playing over 30yrs!

[T-Bay]

15 minutes ago, TrevorR said:

Sitting in a guitar shop about to start trying out that nice bass and realising I have suddenly forgotten every single bassline I’ve learned in the last 30 years except for Money by Pink Floyd and The Chain by Fleetwood Mac. Every. Single. Time!

This x1000, the guy working there passes you the bass and instantly every song you ever knew disappears, for me I can only remember Pearl Jam Alive (not too bad) and sweet child o mine - that always goes down soooooooo well.........

[casapete]

57 minutes ago, chris_b said:

I am embarrassed by the noise I make when I try singing. Apparently it's nearly as bad as my whistling!

And, if I'm honest, my solos are to be endured.

My utter lack of being able to play anything remotely interesting if made to play a solo. One of the reasons I like bass is that (in my world at least) I don’t have a ‘feature’ on any songs / gigs. Was always attracted to the bass as an accompanying instrument, ditto drums. Still can’t stand either doing solos when I go to see a band, probably a result of being a 70’s teenager when such things were commonplace. And relax.....

[bassbiscuits]

The facial expression i appear to have in any photo of me playing bass live. Sort of slack jawed and slightly delirious.

 

[Hobbayne]

The presence of another bass player in the room staring at my left hand turns me to quivering jelly. 😥

Its usually when I,m playing something dead simple like an 8 to the bar ACDC song as well, So I cant show off!! 😁

[scalpy]

28 minutes ago, bassbiscuits said:

The facial expression i appear to have in any photo of me playing bass live. Sort of slack jawed and slightly delirious.

 

Totally agree, not helped by my recently acquired habit of singing the bassline at the same time! Need to break that habit fast.

[Greg Edwards69]

Looking back at old gig photos in disbelief at what I was wearing to an average pub gig.

Then there's the time I was depping with a friends band and had to change basses after the first song, so I didn't bother wrapping my lead through my strap as I usually do.  Only for me to stand on said leaf halfway through the song and pull it out.

[Lozz196]

1 hour ago, Cat Burrito said:

When I'm not getting a signal out of the amp, only to realise that I haven't switched the amp on or plugged a cable in!

I've been playing over 30yrs!

Yep, been there, panicked unbelievably only for it to be something like that, hugely embarrassing.

[Barking Spiders]

..that i play bass 😀

[JohnR]

10 hours ago, paul_c2 said:

Hmmm.....2nd most embarrassing would be endlessly playing root and fifth for hundreds and hundreds of bars, while others are playing something really difficult, fast, awkward, melodic etc etc

But the most embarrassing is making my audience endure a bass solo.

Something in between please - interesting but still does the job of a bass line.

Don't ever be embarrassed about that. Many of the truly greats based their career on root and fifth with the occasional pentatonic. Enjoy your playing.

[Stofferson]

Forgetting to stomp back on the Tuner/Mute Pedal when your hear the 4 count into the next song 😅

[casapete]

18 minutes ago, Stofferson said:

Forgetting to stomp back on the Tuner/Mute Pedal when your hear the 4 count into the next song 😅

Ha ha, used to do that all the time! Now I use a clip on tuner (don't start...) and guess what? Forget to turn the bass volume back on sometimes 🤣

[ahpook]

My inability to believe that I'm anything other than an OK-ish bass player.

It sounds fat-headed, but I can't be that bad - I've never been kicked out of a band for not being able to play, I've been playing for 30 years, people say I'm good...

...but I still can't get myself to believe that I'm actually any good at it.

Who knows, maybe I'm not !!

Edited August 19, 2019 by ahpook

[FinnDave]

25 minutes ago, ahpook said:

My inability to believe that I'm anything other than an OK-ish bass player.

It sounds fat-headed, but I can't be that bad - I've never been kicked out of a band for not being able to play, I've been playing for 30 years, people say I'm good...

...but I still can't get myself to believe that I'm actually any good at it.

Who knows, maybe I'm not !!

I thought we all suffered from that!

[ahpook]

5 minutes ago, FinnDave said:

I thought we all suffered from that!

What, you all struggle to believe I'm anything other than an OK bass player ?

Oh.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited August 19, 2019 by ahpook

[ead]

For me it's the dread moment when trying out a bass in a shop or such.  Mind goes blank as to what to play,doubly so if there's someone waiting to be impressed

Edited August 19, 2019 by ead

[Merton]

That after the length of time I’ve been playing I’m really not that good. My left hand technique is a bit clunky and my right hand technique is lazy as hell and suffers badly from bad habits which I’m struggling to break.