What have you got against slap bass?

[ClassicVibes]

Has Clutterbuck been mentioned yet?

[Woodinblack]

4 minutes ago, ClassicVibes said:

Has Clutterbuck been mentioned yet?

Mrs Clutterbuck was my first (and last) piano teacher when I was a kid

[krispn]

As a test could someone post a video on you tube saying Dua Lipa bass cover and play no slap and see how many hits it gets in four weeks. I’d be really interested to see the out comes and think it could really start a good debate on click bait verses technique.

I’m sure it would generate some fine opinions and theories. 

Edited May 20, 2020 by krispn

[Cuzzie]

 

nowt to do with it being Dua Lipa, it’s all even views across all her videos....

[Al Krow]

2 hours ago, krispn said:

For clarity I simply said most audiences don’t care for slap bass. 

That's quite a big assertion! 

[Al Krow]

For me DrT put it really well when he said:

16 hours ago, drTStingray said:

Although I agree it is only usable as a technique relatively sparingly (though if you've ever been to a Level 42 concert, especially in recent years, you'll find possibly a larger proportion of females in the audience (than say the beard stroking male domination of some types of rock band audience). And slap is obviously de rigeur - although not everything is - perhaps a larger proportion than say a Marcus Miller show. This is also true of double bass slap on rockabilly - three songs and all but the most hardened fan will be bored (btw that was a heavily chorus-laden fretless Pino P that Alan P was air-bassing to in his caravan in leather underpants - Songs for Chameleons - Gary Numan). 

Where I disagree fundamentally is that audiences dislike slap bass - my own experience (and this goes for fretless as well) is that people come up and make very positive comments, including that it's refreshing to hear rather than the boring and inaudible plodding that is the stuff of bass sometimes  - I tend to use slap bass as you've described, but have been known to play whole songs with it - for instance Albert Collins songs based on his 1980s/90s band and arrangements. 

Possibly the biggest critics are musicians, and notably other bass players on occasion (this thread suggests this as well).

I'd agree the appalling din at a bass show caused by lots of people slapping is majorly irritating. But don't throw the baby out with the bath water!!!! 😏👍

Slap bass is really associated with soul and funk music, and modern (ish) rock music - having seen the Fatback Band at Ronnie Scott's last New Year's Eve (remember live gigs 😯) I sure felt the funk and groove in my chest - and there was some slap bass as well. In the same way I would be bored **itless at a Neil Young gig (in fact I fell asleep in a Pink Floyd gig pre Meddle in about 1970 much to the astonishment of some of my prog loving mates - whereas I loved Yes gigs to the extent I saw them at least 3 times), I wouldn't expect a Neil Young fan to be in the slightest moved by a funk or soul band and would no doubt be irritated by slap bass peeking out from the shadows of normal bassdom. 

So I think it's a genre issue as well as an issue for some musicians - I must confess to being mildly irritated by two handed tapping for more than, say 10 seconds - that might be partially because I don't get it and more importantly, have not learned how to do it beyond stringing a few notes together 😁 - brilliant though I accept Messrs Sheehan and Hamm are 👍

My emphasis in bold to address the point at hand, but his whole post is worth re-reading for its balance and thoughtfulness.

[drTStingray]

some more examples here - note the one I posted earlier but couldn't embed (Brandy) got 80k in one day 😧

However there may be a point here  as her bass cover of Hair by Grahan Central Station (which incidentally prompted me to learn it for the first time in 40 yrs) has 150k views - a Vulfpeck one 99k whereas covers of modern pop get far more views, and the more popular the song the more views - maybe that should tell us far more people are interested in hearing bass covers of modern pop songs!!! 

 

Edited May 20, 2020 by drTStingray
Apple auto spell check thought popular was ocular today - crazy 😂

[Cuzzie]

6 minutes ago, drTStingray said:

some more examples here - note the one I posted earlier but couldn't embed (Brandy) got 80k in one day 😧

However there may be a point here  as her bass cover of Hair by Grahan Central Station (which incidentally prompted me to learn it for the first time in 40 yrs) has 150k views - a Vulfpeck one 99k whereas covers of modern pop get far more views, and the more ocular the song the more views - maybe that should tell us far more people are interested in hearing bass covers of modern pop songs!!! 

 

That’s exactly the point - you cannot look at the view numbers on the videoS and say, yep people like slap because it got X amount. Brandy won’t hit the same heights, it’s not as popular - she has 280k subscribers so getting 80k in a day is probably par for the course.

She is a nice player for sure, the more popular the song, the more views no matter what technique is used.

No offence to her but I would say Bobby Vega Is an infinitely better player and those 3 videos I posted involving him combined don’t reach one of her pop covers.

Pick, finger, slap n pop, tapping, finger slapping like Doug Wimbish-horses for course - done well at the right time sound great

Edited May 20, 2020 by Cuzzie

[Woodinblack]

5 minutes ago, drTStingray said:

However there may be a point here  as her bass cover of Hair by Grahan Central Station (which incidentally prompted me to learn it for the first time in 40 yrs) has 150k views - a Vulfpeck one 99k whereas covers of modern pop get far more views, and the more ocular the song the more views - maybe that should tell us far more people are interested in hearing bass covers of modern pop songs!!!

I think that is a much better indicator. For a start noone knows what is in the video before they start playing it, and when searching for a bass playing video, I start looking for the song, not the player. OK, when I see the list, I can pick at that time, but I certainly never think 'I won't watch that one, it might have some slap in it'

[ClassicVibes]

54 minutes ago, Cuzzie said:

 

nowt to do with it being Dua Lipa, it’s all even views across all her videos....

I think it's to do with something else... 

[dmccombe7]

We seem to be going round in circles with this and its turning into a slap appreciation thread rather than what the OP asked.

The criticism has been mainly where slap is used excessively and not where its used tastefully within a song.

For me there's a distinct difference between them.

Because i don't like excessive slap like Mr Clutterbuck does not mean i dislike all slap.

Is that not what the majority of critics on the thread are saying.

Dave

  

[Stub Mandrel]

13 hours ago, drTStingray said:

Hopefully I haven't annoyed you by mentioning Neil

Hardly!

I think though that some folks have much wider tastes than others. There's very little music I actually dislike* although I know what I prefer. At the other extreme some people can only bear a tiny slice of music that meets their exacting standards, but as I grow older I find my tastes widening, not narrowing.

 

*A duet by Johnny Mathis and Katy Perry might stretch my patience...

[dmccombe7]

1 minute ago, Stub Mandrel said:

*A duet by Johnny Mathis and Katy Perry might stretch my patience...

Nowt wrong with Johnny Mathis. Katie Perry on the other hand 

[drTStingray]

But surely anyone clicking on a bass cover of Hair will know it's a slap fest? It most definitely is and having heard it, the bass playing on the original is hilariously OTT but brilliant all at once - I mean whoever would play a middle 8 in power chords on the bass with fills comprising a full tone bend on the top D (yes fret 19 D string).

It's rarely worth arguing over individual tastes in music (although I well remember being forced in my youth to defend my taste in blues rock against people who thought Emerson, Lake and Palmer was somehow, more highbrow and relevant), and good and renowned as Bobby Vega is (I like his playing) it can also be boring as hell (as can relentless 80s slap bass or anything else for that matter). 

 

 

[ClassicVibes]

3 minutes ago, dmccombe7 said:

Nowt wrong with Johnny Mathis. Katie Perry on the other hand 

I have nothing against her...

[EBS_freak]

12 minutes ago, ClassicVibes said:

I think it's to do with something else... 

I concur. There’s currently a young lady doing pretty unspectacular covers in her kitchen doing the rounds on Facebook. Her engagement figures are huge and there’s the typical male leches making the expected comments. If I played exactly the same, or indeed pretty much any of us, our “likes” or “views” or whatever measure you want to use are unlikely to get out of single figures.

This isnt putting the girl down, it’s more a sad reflection on males.

[EBS_freak]

And if you are wondering...
https://www.facebook.com/Shreddzzzz/videos/3280552532009200/

 

[ubit]

11 minutes ago, Stub Mandrel said:

There's very little music I actually dislike* although I know what I prefer.

+1

[ubit]

2 minutes ago, EBS_freak said:

And if you are wondering...
https://www.facebook.com/Shreddzzzz/videos/3280552532009200/

 

To be fair she is pretty good

[drTStingray]

6 minutes ago, dmccombe7 said:

We seem to be going round in circles with this and its turning into a slap appreciation thread rather than what the OP asked.

The criticism has been mainly where slap is used excessively and not where its used tastefully within a song.

For me there's a distinct difference between them.

Because i don't like excessive slap like Mr Clutterbuck does not mean i dislike all slap.

Is that not what the majority of critics on the thread are saying.

Dave

  

Threads do evolve - AND I've tended to agree with the view you've stated regarding slap generally - however I have seen Level 42 live 4 times so you can tell I also like 80s pop and jazz funk (with plenty of slap bass) - I also like it with plenty of keyboard bass - I think we've got to the point that many bass players on Basschat dislike it (many of whom can't play it anyway) but Basschat is clearly, as has been shown umpteen times before not representative of the general bass playing or music loving populace.

If it was most people would believe music which doesn't contain playing on an old single pick up bass with a mute under the strings, often inaudibly (as NOT) used in at least three decades of popular music history was the only bass relevant. Thankfully modern pop music is dragging itself out of those recent doldrums. 

As for Mr Clutterbuck, that was a famous comedy surname IIRC in - you guessed it - the 60s!! Certain drum fills of the 60s and 70s were often referred to as the drummer dropping several drums down the stairs - never bass players in the 60s - because you usually couldn't hear them properly (unlike drummers). 

 

[krispn]

36 minutes ago, Al Krow said:

For me DrT put it really well when he said:

My emphasis in bold to address the point at hand, but his whole post is worth re-reading for its balance and thoughtfulness.

Totally agree some good points well made. I agree with him on two handed tapping and feel the same way about slap. Great technique and sound but many of us would be pained to endure a whole set of it on guitar or bass (we do count as they audience’ too). Fans of Plini, any of the go to guitar gods form the 80’s and many modern shred bands probably dig it in moderation etc  

I was simply defending myself in that I said many audiences don’t care for slap. I didn’t say they dislike it and seeing how I was quoted in that reply I felt a bit misrepresented. Maybe it is a bold assertion but I stand by it. Let’s face it if we all checked back through our post on BC there’s be many a contradiction, revelation and 180 flip on opinions we held not so long ago. I don’t think my opinion has change on this matter too much over the years. I use slap on one tune in the covers gig where I feel it really drives the section of the song along. Only person to notice so far is my drummer but she also acknowledged the variation I play to the bass during the solo section directly after it which takes on a more melodic theme and changes the feel. To be fair she’s a very accomplished musician and has a great ear and hears everything.!

[EBS_freak]

4 minutes ago, ubit said:

To be fair she is pretty good

Make sure you leave her a comment then.

[Frank Blank]

[Stub Mandrel]

51 minutes ago, dmccombe7 said:

Nowt wrong with Johnny Mathis.

My mum was into Johnny Mathis.

'nuff said?

 

Edited May 20, 2020 by Stub Mandrel

[Al Krow]

43 minutes ago, krispn said:

I was simply defending myself in that I said many audiences don’t care for slap. 

Ah ok - if you had originally said "many" audiences, there would be nothing at all for me to disagree with; that is a self-evidently true point.