Slap bass in 500 words or less

teeder · Post by **teeder** » Wed May 11, 2005 3:29 am

Keith, no problem.

Jeff, are you doing the thumb stuff back between the bridge and rear pu also?

Thanks

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Wed May 11, 2005 4:43 am

yep ... I like the bite I get back there ... I like to use a pick by the bridge as well ...

hieronymous · Post by **hieronymous** » Wed May 11, 2005 5:11 am

I don't slap anymore for the most part, but I used to. I thought I'd just contribute a couple of thoughts on technique.

A long time ago I used to use what I think of as the standard slap technique: the direction from which one hits the string is towards or into the bass. It can be done by just pivoting the wrist, or by using the entire arm (Flea comes to mind). Also, it can be done very aggressively or very subtly. Some people are really clinical about it, going for extreme economy of motion.

The other way that I learned (by watching Mark White of the Spin Doctors - Victor Wooten uses this technique too) is more like playing with a pick. I think someone earlier in this thread mentioned this technique. Here, the thumb goes up and down in a pick like motion, often coming to rest on the next string. I think this is sometimes called "double thumping." It can be just downstrokes, or down- and upstrokes. I found that using this technique preserved a lot of the bottom end that I always lost when using the first method. Also, it has a different feel than the previous method - that was a big part of what made Mark White's playing so cool. It has kind of a natural loping rhythm to it if you use both down- and upstrokes. It can also be used to play slow or super fast - witness Victor Wooten's use of the technique. I used to practice it by playing along with CDs that had really fast fingerpicking, like Blues Traveller. I think it works really well for mid-tempo kind of groove stuff - again, I used to use it for a different feel.

Part of the reason I used to slap was for the different feel that it offered - I like playing with pick and with fingers - I lean towards playing with fingers when playing with a band, but recently been playing mostly with a pick - I really don't use the slap technique anymore.

Sorry this was so long!

teeder · Post by **teeder** » Wed May 11, 2005 6:31 am

Harry,

Thanks for the info!

keb · Post by **keb** » Wed May 11, 2005 2:03 pm

I employ the double thump thing (and yeah, I slap in general.) I'm working on getting Yes' Heart of the Sunrise down using that technique! One of these days...

The biggest keyword when it comes to slap: taste. Which pretty much applies to ANY technique, be it pickstyle, fingers, or whatever. But it is easy to get carried away with wakkita-wakkita-wakkita slap lines... oh hell, it's a fun workout at any rate, even if it has no musical value.

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Wed May 11, 2005 2:51 pm

here's a good exercise ... take a song you like and play it with a pick ... then fingers ... then slap ... then typewriter method ... get to the point you can do it equally well with all of the above methods ... then when you play out you can on the fly pick the method that sounds the best ... that's what I do ...

dean712 · Post by **dean712** » Wed May 11, 2005 4:08 pm

That's a great idea, Jeff.

I guess I'm just in a comfort zone playing fingerstyle. I will use a pick if it is a cover song that just absolutely calls for it. But I can't play equally well with both methods. Not even close. And that's not even including slap.

I have other areas of need, first, though. Perhaps someday....

cwk · Post by **cwk** » Wed May 11, 2005 6:56 pm

Milt Hinton.

heinpete · Post by **heinpete** » Wed May 11, 2005 8:46 pm

For bright and aggressive sounds I generally play without a pick, just with the fingernails of the first and second finger. As I play long sets, I support my fingernails with cyanacrylate glue, so they don't wear off too fast. On the next weekend the fingernails are grown back to a usefull length again, then glue again...

BTW: The frets of my axes also have certain wear after a few years already (I mentioned that already in another thread), but here I can't apply the "glue-solution". Any recommendations?

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Thu May 12, 2005 3:10 am

nickel wound strings ... nickel is softer than steel and wears the frets less ... also play more than one bass then you spread the wear around ...

dean712 · Post by **dean712** » Thu May 12, 2005 1:01 pm

Jeff is correct - switching from steel to nickel is the #1 best thing you can do to avoid fret wear. And avoid steel Rotosounds like the plague if you're concerned about fret wear - they will eat you up in no time.

And if you have suitable backup basses... that makes some sense too.

heinpete · Post by **heinpete** » Thu May 12, 2005 8:58 pm

...I'm only using nickels since in 1979 I separated the fingerboard from the neck on my '78 4001FG with some Kramer steel strings (however the best sounding, so far). I don't dare to use others.

...as for the back up it could only be another Rick of course...

jwr2 · Post by **jwr2** » Fri May 13, 2005 2:59 am

seperating the fret board is from incorrect truss rod adjustment with the old truss rod system ... also a 1979 bass was designed for low tension flatwound strings ... another reason I play modern ric basses ...

rictified · Post by **rictified** » Fri May 13, 2005 5:30 am

flatwounds= no fretwear and better bottom and more clarity because you can crank the treble without all the annoying overtones.

dean712 · Post by **dean712** » Fri May 13, 2005 6:47 am

Bob - In the spirit of open-mindedness, I'd like to try a set of flats on one of my backup Ricks. Never tried flats before. What's the closest guage/brand you'd recommend to the Rick 4003 standard 45-55-75-105 so's I don't have to tweak the setup too greatly?