Getting the Right Bass Parts

[BigPhil]

Wassup ya'll,

I've been playing bass around 2 1/2 years. Whenever I don't know the song that the keyboardist is paying, I have a tendency to start playing the melody rather than the bass parts. Anyone suggestions on how to break that tendency?

[ddwilkins]

I would suggest when you are practicing, turn on the radio and just play along with the songs you hear.  I guarantee you that you wouldn't know all of them. But over time, you start to understand different progressions and will be able to follow a keyboardists on a song that you haven't heard.  Most gospel songs follow the same progressions from other songs. This is what I do.  I just play along with the radio and I can remeber different progressions and I can pick up a song by the second time through.

[BassMan2000]

ddwilkins is correct. I was the same way until I trained my ear to listen for progressions.
I listen to the radio and play what I hear.  Most songs go from a 1 to 4 or 1 to 5
then there is 3-6-2-5-1 is used alot . The 3 goes to the 6 most of the time and
the 6 goes to the 2.  There are more these . I have played  1-7-3 and  1 - 6 the 2-5-1

[jeremyr]

Wassup ya'll,

I've been playing bass around 2 1/2 years. Whenever I don't know the song that the keyboardist is paying, I have a tendency to start playing the melody rather than the bass parts. Anyone suggestions on how to break that tendency?

there have been great tips given so far, but I personally don't think there's anything wrong with playing some of the melody as long as you keep the bottom on the 1. 

I think that's just my personal style though.  I'll play the bottom on the 1 and kind of work around the melody inbetween for passing tones/chords and what not.  Don't be afraid to try different things.

[djgroovin]

I used to have this problem (and still do sometimes)...it just means that you're hearing the melody and not a bass line.

Try this limiting exercise...
1. find the root note and play it on beat one/with the bass drum
2. find out if it's major or minor (major 3 or minor 3)
3. play a rhythm using just the arpeggio (chord notes - 1-3-5)

This will get you started in outlining the song

[MikeGee]

I though I was the only one. I tend to play simple grooves on upbeat songs. But when we play songs that are a bit slower. Like Clint Brown's, I think CLint Brown, No Word but Holy. I don't know how to play the groove just can't get it. So I just play root as deep as my bass would let me and follow the vocals.

I had just got off that phone with a younger bass player and we talked about the saem things.

The advice I gave him, if you arn't stepping on anyones toes and playing the root on the bottom, then no one could tell you this is wrong.

[BACEFINGERS]

Big Phil I'm in the same boat a lot of times. The thing "I" do I guess can be called a bassline license. I may know where the bassline is and play only part of it, but to save myself some time and embarassement by trying to hunt and peck for that one missing link or note while playing "LIVE" I will just create my own bassline on the fly or just play the hightlights of the bassline, but you have to make sure you at least have your roots in place for the progression changes. It may not be orthodox, but it's functional and MOST ppl can't tell the difference they just know it sounds good, but really all it is is just smoke and mirrors.