Woohoo! I'm a Gigging Bass Player

[Racerbvd]

Congratulations Supe, YOU ROCK!!!

[targa911S]

Originally Posted by Superman

A good term would be "wired." I need to make sure I choke down some food today. This is going to be a BLAST. First time on stage in thirty years. I've worked on this material a fair bit, and I think I'm going to absolutely NAIL a good proportion of these songs. I just went through Day of the Eagle, and that'll be one I nail.

The conehead look.....I'm not ready for that. And I'm prolly going there without a hat. I hope I can still be in the club, after failing on the hat thing. But......I've become a pajama-pants guy lately, so I'll wear a cool pair of pajama pants and perhaps a Hawaiian shirt. That'll have to be "cool" enough.

Ya know, your spirit is refreshing. Thousands of gigs and thousands of miles puts callouses in many places. There are nights, playing to 20 people at 1 a.m. when you really want to be home, when I think I'm done. No more. Then somebody like you comes along and reminds me why we really do this. It's the joy of it. It's the smile within.

Thanks for that. Hope tonight goes well.

[nostatic]

The flip side is to try and contain expectations (those pesky Buddhists). Any gig can be great or lousy - most of it is in your attitude. Excitement is good. Expectations are dangerous. Go in and play your best, try to elevate those around you, and have fun. Avoid judging the band or yourself. Remember that the audience doesn't catch most screw-ups. They only remember your last note, and if you play the wrong thing but mean it, and don't let your demanor give it away, no one will care. The note you played is now gone - stay in the groove and be the ball, Danny...

Last Saturday I had worked all week, had a long Friday night gig, then two Saturday afternoon gigs. I was beat and kinda dreading my Saturday night gig. But showing up is more than half the battle. Ended up being a fun night where I turned around and we had played 15 minutes past when we were supposed to end. Am tired and burned out right now but will pack up my basses and head to another 8pm downbeat. Gonna try to reinvent myself in some small way. Play one new thing.

Knock 'em dead Supe. Fun above all else. Remember that music is a conversation. Listen to the other guys, not just yourself.

[targa911S]

Sage advice. I'm home on a saturday night for the first time in months. Agent screwed up the date and we didn't fill the hole. It feels wrong and right at the same time. Who knows I might get lucky.

[Rapewta]

I pretty much did the same thing as you. I quit playing for many years.
Got the passion back and after going thru three different bands and a dozen years, I formed a trio.
We practice once a week and have fun. Last gig was a wedding and worked out great.
One thing you probably know for sure is that we no longer yearn for groupies but roadies! Man, tearing down the equipment at 1 am and driving home sucks.
As a bassist in a trio, I can play a lot of notes without stepping on someone's toes.
Ironically, the best advice I ever got was "Put some space between your notes and some music will fall through." Have fun.

[nostatic]

dude - the sun is getting warm. Time for bass players to get up and give their report

[targa911S]

HELLOOOOOOOO......I think the boy had too much fun.

[Superman]

I just got home. My tallish, slender, left-handed, redhead GF needed my help with something. Plus, we made improvements to her rainwater collection system, felled another tree, cut and split firewood, put a solar trickle charger on her (8KW industrial-strength) generators's starter battery, etc. I don't deserve her, but she keeps me anyway.

The gig went GREAT. I played every song, and the band was most appreciative. Relieved, actually. This band has had bad luck with the last few bassists. That's not the case now, and in fact I am breathing some new vision into this band. There is talk about taking a fresh look at the setlist, practicing and rehearsing more, and generally kicking things up a notch. I think they see the handwriting on the wall. Even being out of shape as a musician, I learned 42 songs in a fistful of days and I intend to continue. I will be one of the premier bass players of my (rock/blues) genre in this area. And it looks like this band wants to join me in that search for perfection.

There was a pretty good crowd there. When I got there (Around 6:30), there was an outdoor stage in the back lot, motorcycles everywhere and a band playing. Parking was tough. Lots of folks still there when we started at 9:00. There was a good-sized table of ladies celebrating a birthday. The crowd danced their asses off and hooted and holler'd after each song. At times, the dance floor was PACKED with women dancing together, with 1 or 1 or 2 men. Gotta love that.

I had two beers the entire night. I had my sheets (multiple sheets for each song) paper clipped together and I had to organize things between each set and review. I was leaving nothing to chance. And I had to stay focused, which I did. And so......here is the message for you guys who are seasoned bassists (you know who you are): When I have moved into a position to play without those sheets......when I can relax and just groove and boogey.........I am going to have a LOT of fun. I am going to smile and dance and look people in the eye. I am going to give them a show. Entertain them. I'm not a Leo......I'm a Virgo. But I intend to 'connect' with the audience. I did this thirty years ago, and recall clearly the immense joy.

There you go, Dave. The gauntlet is thrown down.

[targa911S]

You talkin' to me? What? I don't get it,

[Superman]

You were thinking of throwing in the towel. The world needs more love, understanding, empathy for our fellow man......and blues bass players.

[nostatic]

One trick is being able to get fully into it while reading. It certainly is preferable to have everything internalized and there is another thread to be had on transitioning off charts or cheat sheets.

congrats on the gig. Now go practice!

[targa911S]

You mis interpreted. Yeah there are nights when I would like to hang it up. I'm 60 years old and have been playing for 40+ years. However I'm still playing with two bands at the moment and do side jobs. Your spirit is uplifting. That is what I meant to convey.

[Superman]

Whew! Dave is 'intrepid'. That's a relief. There's a reason the young punks fear us.

From the piano lessons I had as a grade schooler, I can read music. At a glacial pace. I need to internalize in order to relax and be in that groove. You're way ahead of me, dude. But I'll be coming up fast. Very much looking forward to it.

And here's another theme that's worthy of its own thread: I always respected the assertion that music is not a frivolous program in schools that can be cut when budgets are tight. Today, I have a keen awareness of the thought patterns that are part and parcel of music programs. Patterns, and patterns intersecting patterns. I have a long way to go before I am back to my old proficiency in improvising. And the path from here to there is arduous. Synapses need to be rebuilt and restructured. Music REALLY expands and stretches the mind.

[nostatic]

brief rant:

STEM education is a crock without arts/music.

wow, that was brief.

[Superman]

My GF was right, about one day ago, when she said that perhaps only certain students should really be made to take math beyond the basic level. Beyond using fractions, most of us don't need it. But we do need music. Not for the enjoyment, but for the thinking patterns. Trust me when I tell you that my current musical adventures have been arduous and mind-taxing. In a very good way.

[targa911S]

I don't read. Everything I do is based on repetitive sounds and movements. I can learn a song in a few practices via headphones and ipod hooked to a muted practice amp.

Now stop throwing gloves.LOL. Intrepid? hmmm never thought of myself that way. A bit jaded at times? Uh huh.

I'm REALLY glad your show went well and I wish you a million more nights just like it. GO GET EM!

[targa911S]

Something to inspire you...

[nostatic]

and a few to make you want to burn your instrument



In all seriousness, get the "Groove Workshop" DVD. You can see various clips of it on youtube. Victor and Anthony have some great concepts that can open your mind.