Quote:
Originally Posted by targa911S
You guys are crackin me up......just don't think about the lead instruments. Lock yourself with the drummer, keep it simple, and stay in the groove. Resist the urge to overplay. The groove is much more a part of the song than the leads. Think of you and the drummer as the canvas and the rest of the band as the painters. Let em paint on a solid canvas....trust me in this I have played bass for almost 50 years.
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While I agree with most of this and that any bass player worth his salt should know how to play/stay in the pocket, I think there is room to handle some of the melodic stuff as well. Keep in mind that my two favorite bass players are Peter Hook from Joy Division and Moose from New Model Army. (Sorry targa911S, I've only been playing for 25 years so my influences might be a bit different than you "old farts"
) Coincidentally, Tommy Shannon is one of my faves as well, but for totally different reasons.
I recently joined a band with an acoustic guitarist, fiddle player, drummer, and me on bass. The most fun is when the fiddle player and I bounce around with the melodies and leads. I can also lay low in the pocket and play a mean (read: slightly better than crappy) groove, but being out front is fun as well.
