do u guys go through this problem??

[ruixist]

i like the football analogy very much!

was playing a live set yesterday and when i missed a couple of notes it was glaringly obvious to me. but i told myself 'just go on, don't let those couple of notes screw my confidence up'.

bass and drums are very similar in a band context because both are rhythm based. so if a bassist or drummer misses a beat/note, the lobang is there for all to notice...

keep going though! just don't stop playing because then it'll become more obvious to everyone else..

 

[kazkingpin]

thanks guys for your opinions, thoughts and advice. what i was playing was some 70's malay pop songs. which i havent heard b4 in my life. and yes every song has a pattern, but every song/ genre has a different pattern. its very different from our modern straight 4/4, 4 bars patterns. the song i messed up had a pattern somthing like 5 bars, 8 bars, then another 5 bars, chorus had 7 bars in the first progression, and then 6 bars it the next progression with 2 counts only at the last bar.

i hope you guys don't find me like im trying to be professional saying i've been playing for 10 years. on my own yes 10 years. do small gigs, playing punkrock, ska blah blah all the minor stuffs. so im really new to the professional working musician scene.

once again, i'd like to thank all you nice softies for taking ur time to guide me.

 

[schmuardian]

you mentioned you dunno to follow the singer or the original song.. well i guess you gotta confirm this with you band members lah.. although I don't see how you can follow the original song and your singer doesnt haha..For me, I always follow the singer as much as possible, unless got a part he is not singing. For example if it's a guitar solo or something, then will have to listen to your guitarist.. are they building back down? is there a roll that your drummer does when he goes back to the verse etc. but i believe best is to arrange everything before hand. Look like you're doing it impromptu, but actually all rehearse already I used to count the number of bars, but for me I always lose count, plus I focus too much on what I'm playing, instead of listening to the band. so now i listen to the band/singer haha.

and practise practise practise! If you're screwing up riffs and technical stuff etc e.g. dead notes, buzz, then that is still understandable and ok (unless you are doing studio recording).. but if you are forgetting which chord, jialat until you have to stop playing, then that IMO is unforgiveable. I think musicians owe a duty to the audience as well. if you want to perform, then must have certain level of standard lah. they give you their time to listen to you, you must give them ur time by practising. but from what you said I don't think this is your problem lah think your music arrangement extra difficult, so you probably just need to coordinate more stuff with your band mates.

I also hope to one day go "pro" and play bass so congrats to you, and keep working hard! I'm sure you can do it. like lummer said above.. attitude most important. as long as you are willing to improve, then you will get better.

 

[logicdroid]

Are you ABSOLUTELY SURE you're the one who made the mistake? Or is it them? and they gave you the look? KEKEKE.... Pluck with your middle finger la.

Did you pick up the bass not knowing that you and the drummer are the engine of the band? You dumb a?@, should've been a guitar player eh?

Making mistakes..... terrible but great! Without it, there's no innovation, no thinking out of the box, no surprise in a song! There's no... no.... mistakes... why don't just stay home and listen to the CD player?

17 years of professional mistakes (and I'm not joking) and still going strong....

Aiyah just play la!
Tell them to go smoke a joint. Chill!

 

[adwin]

You know, in a professional band setting, the drummer and the bassist get paid the most. In most pro-bands, I believe the order is first Bassist, Drummer, Singer , Keyboardist and guitarist. Guitarist are the least paid most of the times because there's so many around. That's the reasoning they always give. But, there's exception... I remember being told that Michael Jackson paid a drummer a million for 1 concert just to hit crochets on his snare (how true is that, I din't verify)

So u can see that value being placed on a good bassist. In a sense, that's why it is important that you don't make mistakes as well.

 

[FourSling]

First of all, congratulations on starting out on this life of being a pro working musician. Whether amateur, semi-pro, pro or godlike, this "look" stuff will happen, and like many of the fellow bassists here have testified, you are going to get little to no thanks but yes, THAT look when there's a screwup and the occasional "turn the bass down" request by a guitarist who needs the room for his solo. Look at it this way - that's the importance of the bass as the invisible foundation of all music today. If it's not there or it goes wrong, well, frankly, the music will sound wrong. This is our great mission! The others posting here have shared their tips on how to recover etc. One piece of interesting advice I received from a bassist who used to play at Crazy Elephant was that, if I wanted to be a working bassist, I would have to learn to accept and adapt to many different varieties of people, bands, styles. It's as much a conversation with them and not just laying a solid pocket. It is likely as you continue your career you are going to meet every type of bandmate/band leaders. Some will be laid back. Others, not so. The late great James Brown was very famous for being harsh and exacting with the many musicians who worked for him, especially his rhythm sections. Adapt, believe, groove. Good luck!

 

[exin]

Hey bro!

I think many of us share your sentiments ...

Firstly i think we have to recognize that we are still human after all and mistakes are part and parcel of our life. =)

I think if we're willing not to beat ourselves silly for the mistakes that we committed, we should be doing just fine really.

Enjoy playing bro! I think many of us here play simply because WE LOVE IT!!

Were you at the SMV Thunder Tour last year? Victor Wooten was pulling off a solo and he missed a few notes not just once but twice! All of us saw it, he reacted to it and we just laughed it off. Does that diminished his legacy as a bass player? Does it make him un-professional then?

I think seeing the mistakes really added to his own playing and even though it was obvious i still enjoy seeing him play. i still respect him for his technical skill and musicality.

so if victor could handle a few mistakes, i think you can too. =)

Just keeping playing bro.

 

[EADGBe]

I couldn't help it but just needed to comment on this --- Kazkingpin, look at your own signoff, "You can't hold no groove if you ain't got no pocket!".

You just have to have enough 'ammo' in your pocket!

thanks guys for your opinions, thoughts and advice. what i was playing was some 70's malay pop songs. which .....

once again, i'd like to thank all you nice softies for taking ur time to guide me.

 

[fann]

its only a title of the great vic wooten song. i just like that phrase.

 

[dumbcube]

UNderstand

I understand you feeling totally. Recording is actually harder than playing live because everything is especially clear. I play live in church every week and once in awhile I do make mistakes. However, if your team understands that mistakes comes once every little while (ESPECIALLY for fresh songs), they should understand too.

If they do not, they aren't very good teammates. Everyone makes mistakes. Wrong just re-do until swee swee lor.

Perfect your playing, one song at a time.

 

[scylla019]

yea i know, sometimes when I'm walking away from root note, i mis-count the timing and end up one note short or extra. then I stun and sit there for almost a bar. its scary.

but then, its always somewhat safer to run on pentatonics cos you can just hit off where u left off somehow.

 

[alanchia]

While I play in church during services, mistakes are bound to happen. Just try to 'recover' as soon as possible. If mistake is in going back to verse or chorus (thus striking wrong root note), then it implies more practise needs to be done to get more familiar with the song.

Everyone in the band did their best, thus we ourselves shouldnt let them down. Though, of course no one is flawless.