General Music Chat

Agrees with Paleopete....
Lets not call it "stealing". Lets call it maiking new contacts.

The idea is not to break up a band but to keep the band moving while seeking a permanent member.

It is SOP in my area (jersey Shore) and we all kinda help each other out.

Calling Cards = Good
Burning bridges or causing trouble for others = Bad
B)

I don't think it's a bad thing to check out players in other bands, as long as you're upfront about it. During my time in Denver, there was a severe shortage of drummers, and every one that I talked to was playing in at least three bands. Approaching a bass player to help you out is very different than trying to "steal" them from their current band.

And Pete, I gotta throw it out there, just to mess with ya...a couple of guitarists that turned to bass...Paul McCartney, John Taylor (Duran Duran), Robert DeLeo (STP). Excellent bassists-even groundbreaking (IMO)....just needed a little nudge in the right direction.

Very true, and I didn't say they were all lousy, but the good ones are the exception, that's for sure. I've jammed with a couple of bass players who didn't cut it on guitar, switched to bass and diod well, but generally they are the ones who are willing to admit they sucked on guitar...and tried to lern to be good bass players, not just picked it up to keep playing anything. McCartney is still a good guitar player, and has been for a long time. He did Blackbird on the White Album, everything on "Maybe I'm Amazed", a lot of his own guitar on solo albums over the years.

Add to your list Ian Anderson and David Gilmour. Anderson plays a bunch of instruments, and has done Tull songs by himself on albums. "Fat Man" is first to come to mind. I think "One Brown Mouse" too, but not sure.

Gilmour played more of Pink Floyd's bass parts than Roger Waters did, he would get tired of waiting for Rogers to learn the parts and do it himself. Waters had to come up and thank Gilmour for winning him bass player of the year awards a couple of times. Strangely though, Waters did "Money" himself, and originally came up with the oddball time signature lick everyone loves. "Hey You" on fretless is one Gilmour did.

Yeah, as one of those guitar players turned bassists, I admit that when I started I overplayed - a LOT!

I still have those temptations, but I hold myself back more often than not.

Mostly, it's the search for the perfect lick, in my case. I would bang around on any given song for weeks until I settled into one theme. It's part & parcel of switching instruments, I think. Looking for the perfect sound. Once I get locked in, I'm fine.

After playing for 11 yrs or so, it's getting much easier to find what I'm looking for much sooner.

You need to be a bit patient when someone is learning the bass after a history of guitar. It' s a whole new world for us. Once you get a good rhythm man working well on bass, though, we're hard to beat, because we know what to expect from most guitarists, & CAN double lines up for effect, or give him that long drawn-out spot he needs to jam in without losing the integrity or the timing of the song.

Where we tend to be weaker is in the areas of what I like to call "specialty work." The slap/pop stuff, the more traditional bass line work, because we tend to think of it as more of a string instrument than a percussion one. We can walk like a pro, though, & come up with approaches to many pieces that the traditional bassist can't think of.

It's a trade-off; melody lines or funk work, I guess.

The first time a guy that you put hard work into goes AWOL, you'll remember what was said here. lol

If it feels shady, it probably is.

Any bass player that you could "steal" wouldn't be worth the trouble.

Thats not true. There are a lot of "underemployed" musicians out there.
Its not bad form to go to bars and give your card to people who's talent you like and simply offer them a rotational position. For example...offer to book your band around his bands schedule. At the very least you'll buy time and make some new connections.

Good Luck!

B)

Yeah, you don't become the property of one band. Musicians generally perform in more than one musical feature. I know a bass player who plays string bass in the orchestra, upright bass in his jazz band and electric bass in his reggae band. Plus he fills in where is needed if he is needed.

One good place to look is the local college's music department. Don't try to nail one person down. A good musician can fill in easily.

Unless you are playing the same ole sheet, it takes practice.

When you show up to play and your over utilized bassist has a schedule conflict that "just came up", then you know.

If you have someone that can do 10 things at once and yet be dependable, you have no issue right?

I never met the chap that has many irons in the fire, didn't have to compromise and no one got burned. It's possible, but just not likely.

To some that's cynical, to others that's realism.

Unless you are playing the same ole sheet, it takes practice.

When you show up to play and your over utilized bassist has a schedule conflict that "just came up", then you know.

If you have someone that can do 10 things at once and yet be dependable, you have no issue right?

I never met the chap that has many irons in the fire, didn't have to compromise and no one got burned. It's possible, but just not likely.

To some that's cynical, to others that's realism.

That is why you have to form a network. I have had gigs where one or two of my regulars could not make it. Understandable, they can't wait for me to get their every gig. So what do I do? I get subs. They are out there. Once I get a gig, I take care of contracts so that I know who can and who can't make it. However, it doesn't mean that other things come up. Usually my guys would give me information leading me to alternative musicians. As a matter of fact, I have never been burned.

You're the exception rather than the rule.

I have been burned by no shows before and it's considered pretty weak to call someone an hour before a show to see if they can fill in.

I have had to do that before as well.

I prefer to have a regular guy, it's less of a headache.

It's a sum of the parts to me, that's why I prefer not to use a sub.

Remove a regular part and you reduce more than just the sum of the 1, it a reduction on the sum of the whole.

You like the network? Great. I say if it works for you, you have no problem.

i.e. Phil Jorgensen Trio. LOL

You're the exception rather than the rule.

I have been burned by no shows before and it's considered pretty weak to call someone an hour before a show to see if they can fill in.

I have had to do that before as well.

I prefer to have a regular guy, it's less of a headache.

It's a sum of the parts to me, that's why I prefer not to use a sub.

Remove a regular part and you reduce more than just the sum of the 1, it a reduction on the sum of the whole.

You like the network? Great. I say if it works for you, you have no problem.

i.e. Phil Jorgensen Trio. LOL

Heck, a regular member can call an hour before the gig and say that they can't come. That is par for the course. However, that person is looking to get fired while screwing up their rep. You may prefer not to use a sub but sometimes sub happens. You should always have a back-up .

A back-up? Man, I really am glad that the network works for ya...sincerely...but I can probably speak for a large amount of the folks on this site when I say that it's generally tough (all over) to find ONE person to fill any particular position, nevermind having a back up. My personal experiences with multi-band musicians have rarely been good. I don't know anyone who would be willing to learn set lists for five different bands-just in case one of them calls at the last minute.

I backed up for six months to get the players we have now! If one of our guys cant make a show and we cant do a compramise without him we will just have to cancel. But being as we are a "praise band" its not likely we will ever have to worry about any type of monitary contract or obligation.
Just the same I hope it's never a issue. Yet I am not foolish enough to say it "wont be".