Bass Players in Scientific Study

[mc2NY]

....sort of an oxymoron of a title but science has proven bassists are the most important member of the band.

Keep on mind this WAS a CANADIAN study.


http://m.music.cbc.ca/blogs/2015/6/Bass-players-actually-the-most-important-member-of-the-band-according-to-science

[Dave W]

Can't argue with science! 

That last sentence, though: "Something to think of the next time you're tempted to groan when the bass player steps up to do their solo." Ugh. I'm tempted to groan b/c so many bass solos represent the opposite of keeping the song together.

[uwe]

My new band wants me to do a bass solo. And I said (seriously), "I'm fine doing a solo if you guys keep on playing and I can solo over your rhythm and harmonies". They looked at me incredulously, it completely shook their world. "No, we mean a bass solo!" To them, a bass solo is a bass demonstration clinic (preferably with slapping) outside of a song. To me its improvising in the context of other music.

That says all what's wrong about (most) bass solos! 

[rahock]

Can't argue with science! 

That last sentence, though: "Something to think of the next time you're tempted to groan when the bass player steps up to do their solo." Ugh. I'm tempted to groan b/c so many bass solos represent the opposite of keeping the song together.

I agree with both of your comments.
1.] you can't argue with science
2.] so many bass solos represent the opposite of keeping the song together.

I can handle the occasional slow the tempo down to draw everyone in and then show 'em what you got thing. That's cool with me in small doses, like maybe once a night. Makes the solo stand out more, and even get remembered. When you use that technique in every freakin' song, as so many jazz bands do, it tends to dilute rather than enhance your overall performance. Unless you're Superman, you're going to be rehashing the same licks over and over in a rather self serving attempt to milk more applause . If you're playing a short solo line that is the backbone or the groove of the song, like "Tighten Up", WTF solo your ass off all night long .
Rick

[gearHed289]

I regularly did a unaccompanied bass solo with my last cover band. It was the first time in 20 years I did something like that (and most of the riffs date back to that time!). I wasn't crazy about it, but the band featured this "virtuoso" guitarist, and everybody took a solo. People liked it. It fit in with what we did. I'm doing an original prog-ish band now, and I have NO intention of doing a stand-alone solo!

[uwe]

I just like harmony and rhythm! Most of my bass playing (at home) is already me and just the bass, I have enough of that! That doesn't mean that I can't enjoy other people's stand-alone bass solos. It's a myth that there are too many bass solos. There was always (in rock) less of them than, say, drum solos and drum solos too have become rare.

[Lightyear]

UGH, I'm not into solos - of any type really.  Are drummers so clueless as to not know that the drum solo means - "time to get up and go take a wizz"?     I guess that one of the things that attracted me to punk movement way back when..... no solos

[wellREDman]

when I was playing as a performer I would have died of shame rather than contemplate playing a bass solo (although hypocritically i had myself some pretty showboaty intros)

    Now that I am coaching the type of kids I do, its really important for morale (at least with my advanced group) that they all get their moment in the spotlight. so everyone gets a solo as often as the song allows.

   One of the things that i try and impress on them is that any solo (although particularly for bass) lives or dies by what the rest of the band do beneath it.

   in the case of the bass solo, its imperative that the keys and/or guitar picks up the groove that the noodling bass player has to relinquish temporarily, and that the drummer, as well as keeping the beat has to really try to connect to what the bass player is playing so they can accent and support it.
the singer just has to STFU

[gweimer]

When I played for a living, my band *insisted* that I do a bass solo.  I was never too thrilled with doing one, but I ended up constructing something that was closer to a drum/bass duet.
One of my last bands did "Mustang Sally" - hey, I still like playing it - and the guitarist thought it would be fun to announce a bass solo out of the blue.  What I started doing was to stop playing when he announced my solo, and then start playing when he went back to the mic to recover the song.  He'd stop, and I'd stop.  He'd start and I'd start.  We managed to get about 16 bars that way.   

[Psycho Bass Guy]

I'll just leave this here:

[Dave W]

And I'll just leave this here.

http://www.hulu.com/watch/824050

[7615]

Bass solos should be few and far between. Best if the guitarist just drops out completely and drummer either simplifies or if they have the chops and can follow like a dirty shirt that's OK. Trouble with guitarist continuing to play is they force your solo to take a shape dictated by the rhythm they are putting down.

The classic 3 piece is best for a bassist. Then improvising vs soloing is a lot of fun. Rather than playing licks (which abandon moving the rhythm)  it is more interesting to alter the groove over the form after each pass. So one might go from a straight 4 to a 6/8 depending on what is happening with the guitar solo at that time - its even more fun if the guitarist never plays the same solo twice. In effect it becomes group solo as the bass/drums alter the pattern for each pass through the form based upon what they are hearing from the guitarist.

[Granny Gremlin]

If shazz is whatchu want, then shazz ye shall have:

[nofi]

was that video filmed at a talkbass function.
don't care for bass or drum  solos in rock music. other genres are more suitable.

[uwe]

If shazz is whatchu want, then shazz ye shall have:

That is at least good fun and self-deprecating. Could you imagine a dozen guitar shredders doing the same?