A bass guitar lesson that drummers should watch.

Dr_Watso

Dr_Watso

Platinum Member
Hey fellas, and fellettes,

I came across this while on one of my tumbles down the youtube rabbit hole. It's a fantastic lesson for bass players, but there's also a treasure trove of good stuff for us simple-minded drummers to get from this too. The video specifically goes into the ways that our drumming, and especially the kick patterns we choose affect the way a bass player plays, and in fact the options he has to play with. These are things we should keep in mind when for example, we might want to play a busy kick pattern. Consider that this gives the other players a bit less room in some cases!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ewMBhY_6qls

Good stuff, I say.
 
Very good info. I'll try keeping this in mind next time I jam with the band. Unfortunately, my band doesn't have a dedicated bass player. Rather they switch off between bass and guitars all the time so for me, it's like getting used to playing with three different bass players on different songs.
 
Excellent information, especially for those just beginning band work. Thanks for posting the link. Outside of situations where the original song determines the bass drum and bass guitar patterns, I work very hard to see where the bass player wants to establish his comfortable groove, then lay in a very simple bass drum pattern that mimics what the bassist wants to do. This has worked out very well for me. And the bass players love it!

GeeDeeEmm
 
keep it simple said:
Indeed, & obvious though it may be to those who work in band situations regularly, it's great to get a reminder. Nice to get posts too about working as part of a rhythm section rather than chops biased stuff :)
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I think just the fact that it seems "obvious" to us working with bands regularly is actually one of the big reasons why we don't put any active thought into it. We've been playing a long time, and we have a lot of bass drum pattern options, usually I recon we like to pick out the core bass notes in the groove and basically match them. I'm going to try and keep this video in mind for the near future and open up my listening ears to look for situations where something extremely simple might let the other players have a bit more room.

Of course, like all things, it's a balance. We can't always "keep it simple", and we can't always go nuts! None-the-less, I don't think it will hurt my playing to think about my bass patterns slightly differently for a bit.
 
Very good indeed... and as strange as it may seems, I actually prefer the sample with the money beat, I felt it was grooving more than the syncopated bass drum version.

Yes, a very good reminder that we should keep in mind :)
 
Excellent video. I enjoy playing with others who leave space, or lay back at times, and aren't playing through all the time (like his 2nd example).

Are the gloves to slide on the strings better?
 
It really depends on the bass drum syncopation or lack thereof. Many jazzers key off of the hats as well, or in lieu of.
 
opentune said:
Excellent video. I enjoy playing with others who leave space, or lay back at times, and aren't playing through all the time (like his 2nd example).

Are the gloves to slide on the strings better?
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Subscriber to Scott here (I'm a bass player). Scott has a nerve condition that means direct contact with the strings gives him cramps and spasms. It's a repetitive nerve issue - he explains it in one of his videos and on his website. The gloves provide a layer that means this doesn't happen.

Scott's a legit player, definitely. A while ago I was in a bass-playing rut and I watched a few of his videos on scale positions and musical phrasing and in a couple of weeks of practice, my bass playing improved quite dramatically. All of his lessons are very good. This one is one of an absolute goldmine.
 
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