REACTIONARY BASS

"When we dropped the drummer (when we decided to work as a duo) that was when I started to thump the strings with my thumb to make up for not having the bass drum, and I also plucked the strings with my index finger to fill in the snare backbeat... I wasn't thinking in terms of creating anything new; I was just trying to do my job--to provide as much foundation as I could."

Larry Graham/Sly & The family Stone

As bass players, we're expected to know every song ever written. Since this is an impossibility, we must acquire the kinds of skills that would make it sound like we know every song ever written. This process makes us master improvisers—reacting in a musical way to rhythms, chords, and melodies of a given song. Basically, we're reacting to everything we hear on the bandstand—from the groove the drummer is laying to the chord changes that make up the song (which requires understanding key centers and tonal colors), often without the aid of a chord chart. This practice and philosophy of reacting to all musical stimuli is what I refer to as REACTIONARY BASS. All the great bass players are masters of this "reactive" skill. To be masters of REACTIONARY BASS, you must learn about music and your instrument: scales, arpeggios, music theory, ear training, the blues, generic style analysis, reading, and SONGS--these are our tools to acquire advanced "reactionary" skills.

© 2007: BASSES LOADED ONLINE