Playing bass and singing

[harley]

I'm transitioning from rhythm guitar and vocals to playing bass in a new band. I'd like to pick up a few songs that I can sing and take a bit of pressure off the primary singer. So, I'm coming to the experts.

For singing bass players, what cover songs do you find the easiest to pull off? We're doing classic rock with a definite "get 'em dancing" strategy. I know that with time and practice it gets easier but I'm looking to stand on the shoulders of some RRF giants.

[fabandgear]

It's a blast to sing and play bass! I first worked that out on "Lady Madonna" and "All My Loving" by The Beatles. After years of playing Chet Atkins, syncopation was nothing new to me. I just had to slowly play and sing a few bars at a time, until I got through the whole song. On more difficult phrases, I'd play/sing just that section over and over until it flowed easily.

[iamthebassman]

My main gig requires me to sing and play almost constantly. I get the bass part into my muscle memory and then just concentrate on the singing/lyrics.

[paologregorio]

The Cars' bassist Ben Orr sang a number of their "danceable" hits, so any number he sang on would fit the bill; bass lines on the songs he sang are pretty simple. Not sure I'd place them in the classic rock category, but they're first album's from `78-79, so they should technically qualify.

[bassduke49]

I play bass "by ear" (you should see the blister on my lobe!), and singing and playing the bass line has always crossed me up. Sort of like rubbing your belly and patting your head, "thinking" about the melody and lyrics as well as executing a counterpoint bass line and rhythm just doesn't work for me. Maybe my brain is wired for "mono" only. One song that I could probably do is The Police's "Every Breath You Take" as it has a constant rhythm to the bass (what are those, eighth notes?) and simple changes.

[Dave Scantland]

I was in a six-piece cover band for many years and all but one of us sang. We had a lead singer, but he got two or three breaks per set, so lead duties got passed around. We also did a lot of vocal-heavy stuff: Beach Boys, Yes, Beatles, Styx. Ronn is right that muscle memory is key, at least for me. Compared to singing, playing bass is easy for me (with a few exceptions; I was exempted from singing on, say, Roundabout!) Make your fingers memorize their parts so you can concentrate on vocalization. Not to downplay the importance of good bass playing (that's why we're here, after all), but a bad singer will drag a band down in a hurry; a mediocre bassist won't.

But Paul makes an excellent point, too: choose your material wisely. Ben Orr is a great example. If you listen to his playing on the songs where he takes lead ("Let's Go," "Drive," "Bye Bye Love," for instance), he doesn't get fancy during the lyric. "Just What I Needed" is a good one to listen to as well; note that the interesting parts of the bass line bookend the vocal. Part of that's just good basic songwriting, but it's also a clever way to showcase your two talents without them crossing each other up.

[bigbajo60]

My approach has always been getting the bassline imprinted into my brain first.

IMO, once the instrumental part has become as close to "instinctual" as you can get it, singing while playing is really not that hard to do! But of course, as always... YMMV!

[guitfiddle]

The biggest challenge for me was the Cream version of "Born Under a Bad Sign". It took a while but I finally got it.

[s4001]

Nothing better than woodshedding. Get the bass down first, then the singing. The more you do it, the better you'll get.

[antipodean]

Police numbers are amongst the easiest to sing and play, provided you can get Sting's high notes. Sting used some very economical bass lines that complemented the vocal part.

Learning the bassline until it is second nature is an excellent tip. It's also not a crime to write your own bassline for a cover that you can sing over comfortably.

[harley]

It's also not a crime to write your own bassline for a cover that you can sing over comfortably.

Trust me, that's a strategy I have definitely embraced (sometimes out of need, sometimes out of desire).

So far, I have a fairly good grasp on "Mustang Sally", "Bring It On Home To Me" and "Ooh, La La". The muscle memory approach is a definite plus and makes picking up the singing a bit easier.

Thanks for the assistance and advice and please keep it coming (if not for me then for the poor innocents in the audience).

[fatcat]

Well, I used to sing backup harmony whilst plucking 4...;then spent 8 years playing guitars and singing backups...spent 6 years playing nothing, and now that I'm bottom feeding again, I'll be go-to-hell if I can sing along;just can't keep rhythm doing both.Walk and chew gum is easier.
I'll try all of the good ideas presented.

[rickenbrother]

Sometime switching from playing fingerstyle to using a pick makes it a little easier to sing and play at the same time.

[rikk]

As co-lead singer in 2 bands I find I may change the bass part slightly on cover tunes, and my originals I write the bass part to go with the vocal.

[ricmic]

As a singing bass player, I agree with those that say that you should be comfortable with the bass part first, and the vocals will follow. Mark