Ever thought you've nailed a bass line but actually havent?

[KingPrawn]

Evening players

I've been around the block and played a fair bit. I have a dep gig on Saturday for a band I've stepped in a few times for. Thought id just play my fingers in and run through the set. Put the original track on and heard stuff I never picked up on when I first listened. I seriously thought I had these lines down. Sometimes think I'm so stuck on learning the structure and having the bass in hand I miss the nuances as I'm always picking out sections. when I listen without the bass in hand I hear all this new stuff. It was good to get a wake-up call. 

[Dan Dare]

All the time. I reckon aliens are changing numbers I've previously learned...

[chris_b]

36 minutes ago, KingPrawn said:

Evening players

I've been around the block and played a fair bit. I have a dep gig on Saturday for a band I've stepped in a few times for. Thought id just play my fingers in and run through the set. Put the original track on and heard stuff I never picked up on when I first listened. I seriously thought I had these lines down. Sometimes think I'm so stuck on learning the structure and having the bass in hand I miss the nuances as I'm always picking out sections. when I listen without the bass in hand I hear all this new stuff. It was good to get a wake-up call. 

 

Play them your way.

 

Sounds like the band are happy with your lines.

[lidl e]

Every time i play. And i only play originals.

[neepheid]

Every day's a school day

[Franticsmurf]

Yes, definitely. When I'm learning a new song I start by getting the basic structure right so that I can play through the song at a rehearsal, and then go back to pick up the fills and twiddles. More often than not I will make up my own fills that suit my ability and style and the arrangement we settle on. I'm not a purist and I'm more interested in adding something different than slavishly following the original. But it's quite educational to go back to a song that I know and have played for years to find out what was originally being played and I've learnt some new techniques by doing that. Every day is, indeed, a school day. 😃

 

I recently had an offer of an audition and one of the pieces they asked me to learn was 'Fool For Your Lovin'. I'd played that many times so no problem, but the band asked me to learn it note for note as this was the way they did all their covers. I decided (for the reasons above) that the band wasn't for me and they appreciated that. But as an exercise I decided to learn the original bass part myself. What a revelation! The song I thought I knew had far more happening on bass that I had ever realised.

Edited March 20, 2024 by Franticsmurf

[gjones]

If you listen to Gayle Ann Dorsey, playing live with Bowie, many times she doesn't stick to the original bassline. David Bowie didn't seem to mind

 

[nilorius]

I don't think it's bad to play Your own fills instead of perfect copy, if You know the main structure.

Edited March 20, 2024 by nilorius

[Reggaebass]

If I’m learning a Bassline I have to learn it exactly as it was played and I can’t rest until I’ve got it, depending on time of course ie if it’s short notice, but after that I sometimes just play it the way I like and also adding my own thing 

[Rosie C]

Yup. We played Atomic in a pub gig in London. Years later I told a new bass tutor I could play it. Then I saw the actual bass line and realised I must have played something incredibly simplified as it was way above my level. 

 

[Rodders]

Oh yes, ACDC stuff (like many I guess) I just thought the bass followed the guitar all the time but for the majority of the songs I've listened to it is not the case.

Thumping along one note for the majority of a song in a groove, driving with the drums is great fun!

 

I've always put my own spin on other stuff too, I guess I'm lazy.

[tinyd]

I agree with the sentiment that playing it "your way" is usually the way to go. But it's still an education when, as @KingPrawn says, you thought you _were_ playing them just like the original (but weren't)!

I remember doing exactly this with Cissy Strut (not just a bass line - it's played on guitar as well). In this case, the original has less notes that my version which helps....

[markbunney]

I find this all time, especially for songs I learnt when I first started playing, and learnt from cassettes through rubbish stereos.

 

Now I have a pair of decent headphones and digital music etc, things are always jumping out at me that I never knew where there

[wateroftyne]

Yep, happening at the moment.

 

I grew up listening to The Eagles. I know every song inside out, and have a deep knowledge of all the bass parts.

 

…but then I joined an Eagles tribute band, and discovered I was very, very mistaken.

[nilorius]

7 minutes ago, wateroftyne said:

Yep, happening at the moment.

 

I grew up listening to The Eagles. I know every song inside out, and have a deep knowledge of all the bass parts.

 

…but then I joined an Eagles tribute band, and discovered I was very, very mistaken.

Did the drummer made You feel bad?

[police squad]

1 hour ago, Franticsmurf said:

 

 

I recently had an offer of an audition and one of the pieces they asked me to learn was 'Fool For Your Lovin'. I'd played that many times so no problem, but the band asked me to learn it note for note as this was the way they did all their covers. I decided (for the reasons above) that the band wasn't for me and they appreciated that. But as an exercise I decided to learn the original bass part myself. What a revelation! The song I thought I knew had far more happening on bass that I had ever realised.

dodged a bullet there I think

 

I'm sure Neil Murray explained on this very site, that he sort of busked it. He hadn't written all the fills, he just played it

[Woodinblack]

2 hours ago, Franticsmurf said:

 one of the pieces they asked me to learn was 'Fool For Your Lovin'. I'd played that many times so no problem, but the band asked me to learn it note for note as this was the way they did all their covers. 

 

Had a same thing with that track, as a one of someone asked me to play it and I thought, well, its whitesnake its not going to be hard is it. And I was wrong.

So I learned it anyway and we ended up not doing it.

But it to this day irritates me hearing people doing a stripped down version of it!

[asingardenof]

1 hour ago, tinyd said:

I agree with the sentiment that playing it "your way" is usually the way to go. But it's still an education when, as @KingPrawn says, you thought you _were_ playing them just like the original (but weren't)!

I remember doing exactly this with Cissy Strut (not just a bass line - it's played on guitar as well). In this case, the original has less notes that my version which helps....

If it's any consolation there a lot of famous bassists that don't get it right either...

 

 

[Jay2U]

Several times, but in a way almost nobody would notice. Sometimes it's an octave, sometimes an almost hidden lick...

[MacDaddy]

In a covers band, what I play can be due to the band lineup.

[Lozz196]

Re Fool For Your Lovin’, we do it and although I’m sure my add-ons & flourishes are probably not exactly what Neil Murray played it sounds pretty close. The only bit I dumb down is on the second half of the guitar solo as it sounds a bit empty (we only have 1 gtr) so I do more root notes on that part to give more depth. 

[KingPrawn]

It's so great to read this thread. I'm not alone!

This has been a valuable lesson for me. I'm going to spend a bit of time listening instead of just working out structure and notes. 

 

[Guest]

It's easy to learn RHCP stuff.  Flea never played any bass line remotely the same way twice, so I provided I'm moderately familiar with the song can trot out any old sheet and no one is any the wiser.

[Rayman]

I don't think I've ever nailed a bassline. Not even the ones I wrote. 

[itu]

13 hours ago, neepheid said:

Every day's a school day

School days is one extremely difficult song, and I didn't mean that Chuck Berry version.