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Post subject: A Middle-Aged Beginner with a new P-Bass
Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 3:15 pm
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This is my first post to one of these forums, and I hope you will be kind. I have always wanted to play Bass, but it never worked out for a variety of reasons.

Now, I have finally mustered up my courage and purchased a P-Bass (not US made, but not a Squier). With five children, I couldn't see investing $2K on an instrument that I am a novice on. Why am I doing this now? Because, frankly, I simply fell in love with the bass sound a long time ago courtesy of Duck Dunn and Paul McCartney (in that order, btw). I know I'll probably never play in front of anyone other than family or friends, but I also won't look back with the regret I would have if I never did this.

Anyway, I am looking for good resources for distance learning because I am always away from home on business. DVD's, books, online, etc. Any help that any of you can provide is much appreciated. Have a safe and happy July 4th.

Too young for AARP, not too old to give bass a chance. :D
:D
Best,
Mark


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Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 3:18 pm
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Mark, congrats. The only thing I can say is, never too late to learn!!! Any DVD that is geared toward learning the bass is good. I learned by reading back when I was 14, technique comes after playing for awhile. I joined a band when I was 15. Welcome to the low end.

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Posted: Mon Jun 30, 2008 7:07 pm
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Congrats Mark. Regardless of what you bought, you bought yourself a bass and now you will make your own sound with it. I have a fanatastic time playing mine, I look forward to it everyday. Even just making noises and sounds with the help of effect pedals is a blast for me.
Here's a few websites to check out for lessons.

http://www.activebass.com/default.asp?src=l&l=12692&p=1

http://www.studybass.com/

http://www.cyberschoolofbass.com/index.html

http://www.cyberfretbass.com/index.php

http://www.adamnitti.com/lessons.shtml


Also, a good beginner book is this one.

http://www.amazon.com/Leonard-Bass-Meth ... 957&sr=8-1


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Posted: Tue Jul 01, 2008 8:59 am
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Congrats, your 1st step was a good one, buying a great instrument. I'd suggest getting a good general bass technique book to start (Hal Leonard, Berklee, Ed Friedland all make great books), and then trying to play along with music you like. Technique and theory are extremely valuable, don't get me wrong, but they can only take you so far. You'll have more fun when you feel like you're playing along with bands/bassists you like.

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Posted: Tue Jul 01, 2008 10:03 am
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Hey Mark,

Welcome to the forum. You'll find a lot of guys here that will give you some excellent information. Glad to hear you made the move to buy a bass, doesn't matter how old we are, the itch needs to be scratched.

Any questions you may have will be answered, all mine were.

Only advice I can give is, is you buy a lower end bass, get it set up by a pro, you'll be amazed at the sound and playability afterward.

Good luck,

Ron


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Posted: Thu Jul 10, 2008 8:56 am
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Congrats!! Welcome to those of us who play the low end. I laid the bass down for about twenty years and raised a family. Seven years ago I saw a very ragged out MIM P-bass in a pawn shop for $175.00. Bought it, brought it back to life and having a blast every since then. What really helped me was learning the blues penatonic scales on a six string and applying it to the bass. I play in two bands, one is a Friday night jam band, the other is my church band. I practice in my "stress shed" that I have set up. I got my stereo, my T.V. DVR, my fridge with my favorite beverage, and all my music at hand. But one thing is the most important, I am always learning something different and challenging. Good luck, stay committed.

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Post subject: Re: A Middle-Aged Beginner with a new P-Bass
Posted: Fri Jul 11, 2008 1:07 pm
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PIMarkGator wrote:
This is my first post to one of these forums, and I hope you will be kind. I have always wanted to play Bass, but it never worked out for a variety of reasons.

Now, I have finally mustered up my courage and purchased a P-Bass (not US made, but not a Squier). With five children, I couldn't see investing $2K on an instrument that I am a novice on. Why am I doing this now? Because, frankly, I simply fell in love with the bass sound a long time ago courtesy of Duck Dunn and Paul McCartney (in that order, btw). I know I'll probably never play in front of anyone other than family or friends, but I also won't look back with the regret I would have if I never did this.

Anyway, I am looking for good resources for distance learning because I am always away from home on business. DVD's, books, online, etc. Any help that any of you can provide is much appreciated. Have a safe and happy July 4th.

Too young for AARP, not too old to give bass a chance. :D
:D
Best,
Mark


Okay, a couple of things....

You bought a decent instrument. The not investing too much a a novice is a mistake for many. Thy get something that isn't even good enough to learn on. You have beaten that scenario. A Squier is a fine instrument.

However, don't say you know you'll never play in front of anyone. That's the fun part. Even if you play with some friends, or at church, or whatever, go on out and play with others.

Try things that seem too hard. They help you grow.

Listen to as much as you can. If you don't have home system that has good bass response, get some decent headphones.


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Post subject:
Posted: Mon Jul 14, 2008 3:50 pm
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Good on yer. I picked up the bass as a sideline to playing lead about 27 years ago, but never got into it until I started gigging with a CW band a couple of years ago as the bass player. It took me a few gear swaps, but I ended up a Fender Classic '50s Precision that sounded so good the band literally would not let me play anything else.

Bass gives a different perspective on music...I also play Dobro and harp, both of which tend toward the "lead" side of the "rhythm/lead" spectrum. I found that songs that I thought I knew as an electric guitar player required some study to effectively play the bass on. After all these years, it was quite a lesson in the real bedrock of song structure.

Personally I now believe that everybody should do some playing on bass. You are in the perfect position to move the dancers' butts around!

Don't worry about the age thing. The music director at the church I attend puts together a "summer string band" of me on Dobro, herself on guitar, dulcimer or banjo, and several strummers on guitar. She has an upright bass, and taught her husband -- a person your age -- to play it with us. He had never played an instrument before, but he developed very quickly and now that he's busy many Sundays with his pool business the ssb misses him badly.

And the first time you get into a jam on a song you know well that rocks, you'll never look back.


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Post subject: Welcome to the backline
Posted: Fri Aug 15, 2008 8:14 pm
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Don't sell yourself short. With practice you can get out there and find some guys to play with. To me bass by itself can get boring fast so as soon as you get good enough find someone to play with. No you won't go on tour, but you'll have fun!

I have used all sorts of instructional materials. I strongly urge you to get with legendary studio bassist Carol Kaye's program. It is the main thing that worked for me. Her DVD's, books, cassettes, CD's are all reasonably priced. You could spend ten times what her products cost on private lessons and learn less.

She was an Electric Bass Instructor at the Henry Mancini School of Music at UCLA for about 7 years and of course played bass at over 10,000 LA recording sessions including Mancini hits like "THE PINK PANTHER THEME." To see the study materials she has go to her website, click on CATALOG and then select BOOK/DVD from the drop down box.

First two titles I'd suggest are BASS DVD COURSE WITH MANUAL and MUSIC READING DVD WITH MANUAL. Both together are under $50.

I've learned more from Carol Kaye than all other books, DVD's, tapes and private lessons combined AND SQUARED. I got her first Bass Tutor book in the early 1970's. When I found her DVD's for sale on line I jumped right on them. When I email her, she emails me back. She also teaches private lessons in her home at a reasonable price.

http://www.carolkaye.com
Do it to it!


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Post subject:
Posted: Thu Oct 09, 2008 12:30 pm
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Hi:


That's really great....after a while you may just want to play along with the radio and see how many songs you can play all the way through

Wish They had the DVD stuff when I started 30+ years ago


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Post subject:
Posted: Fri Oct 10, 2008 8:03 am
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Joined: Sun Jul 22, 2007 10:50 am
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Congrats on pursuing your dreams! As another who has reached middle age, I hope you can learn from my mistakes:

1. You did good getting a decent Bass. I wasted a ton of money on inferior instruments. If I had it to do over, I would have bought the J-Bass first (which I now own).

2. Be very careful on your instruction book and video purchases. I went overboard buying every book or video that I "thought" would help me make the breakthrough from mediocre to okay. I recently went over each book and realized they all taught the exact same thing: theory and application. I would suggest that you pick a learning resource that teaches a progressive method: each lesson builds on the previous lesson (in education, this is the principle of teaching the unknown from the known. For example, if you are familiar with the nursery rhyme, "3 Blind Mice" (the known), then I could show you how a chord progression works (the unknown).
3. While you may not intend to play in front of anyone, make every effort to play with someone. I cannot emphasize enough the value of playing with another person and its many benefits:
- It makes playing an instrument incredibly fun
- It is really motivating to practice through the hard parts (like developing finger calluses)
- You will learn at a more rapid pace, because you will see the things you hear. For example how the bass reinforces the chord structure of a song, while also establishing the pulse and rhythm.
4. You said you admire Duck Dunn. Make it a goal to learn all the bass lines he is known for. My bass hero is James Jamerson. My practice sessions usually involve dexterity exercises, scale and chord exercises then song practice. As my dexterity improves and my understanding of music theory grows, it shows in my ability to play Jamerson grooves. I am currently working on the bass line from "For Once in My Life".

I hope that this helps you somewhat. I wish you a long and fulfilling journey in your exploration of the low end.

Peace!


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Post subject: Re: Welcome to the backline
Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2008 1:20 pm
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I forgot all about her stuff...Get It...very well worth the cost.....She knows her stuff :D :D


brotherdave wrote:
Don't sell yourself short. With practice you can get out there and find some guys to play with. To me bass by itself can get boring fast so as soon as you get good enough find someone to play with. No you won't go on tour, but you'll have fun!

I have used all sorts of instructional materials. I strongly urge you to get with legendary studio bassist Carol Kaye's program. It is the main thing that worked for me. Her DVD's, books, cassettes, CD's are all reasonably priced. You could spend ten times what her products cost on private lessons and learn less.

She was an Electric Bass Instructor at the Henry Mancini School of Music at UCLA for about 7 years and of course played bass at over 10,000 LA recording sessions including Mancini hits like "THE PINK PANTHER THEME." To see the study materials she has go to her website, click on CATALOG and then select BOOK/DVD from the drop down box.

First two titles I'd suggest are BASS DVD COURSE WITH MANUAL and MUSIC READING DVD WITH MANUAL. Both together are under $50.

I've learned more from Carol Kaye than all other books, DVD's, tapes and private lessons combined AND SQUARED. I got her first Bass Tutor book in the early 1970's. When I found her DVD's for sale on line I jumped right on them. When I email her, she emails me back. She also teaches private lessons in her home at a reasonable price.

http://www.carolkaye.com
Do it to it!


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Post subject:
Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2008 3:48 pm
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Joined: Mon Jul 14, 2008 11:48 am
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Interesting that this thread is still going on. Let me relate my own experience today: being an old guy who's retired, sometimes I get into projects for which I can't claim any credentials.

So here I am, a non-sight-reader, sitting in on harmonica with a bunch of kids (to be fair, except for the fiddler and stand-up bass player) and learning the score for Big River, the musical based on The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, with music and lyrics by Roger Miller. It will be presented at the end of the month at the local state U.

Pretty challenging, but I must add:

Damn, is it fun! Apparently harmonica playing is not widely practiced by the youth of today.

The moral of the story isn't the abandonment of old traditions, but rather the fact that I let myself in for a huge amount of work, discipline, and, yes, fun just by not being modest about my modest talents.

The driector loves my harp playing, and I've got some serious work ahead.

So be it. I didn't get old sitting down.

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"Digo: 'paciencia, y barajar.'" Don Quijote de la Mancha, Part II, Chapter 23


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Post subject:
Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2008 4:05 pm
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I took up bass when i was 39, ( i'm now 40 ) and i love it, it has to be the best instrument you could ever learn.
Keep practicing, the only advice i can give you is ENJOY YOURSELF, the rest of the guys on here will tell you the same.
You will have bad days and good days but dont give up, just keep going.


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Post subject:
Posted: Sat Nov 01, 2008 6:07 pm
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bigbite wrote:
Keep practicing, the only advice i can give you is ENJOY YOURSELF, the rest of the guys on here will tell you the same.
You will have bad days and good days but dont give up, just keep going.

+1


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