"I WANNA BE THE NEXT VICTOR WOOTEN!"
3 commentsI was in Guitar Center one day to mess around with a few bass guitars. I grabbed this Ibanez ATK, and started to play some of my favorite riffs. I played a few riffs by Victor Wooten (well, the ones I could actually play!) and the Woody Woodpecker riff by Les Claypool. It was then that this young bass player approached me, and told me that that was the kind of bass player he wanted to be when he finally joins a band: flashy. Ah, youth!
I showed him how to play a few riffs, and then I asked him to do me a favor. I asked him to go see some live bands that weekend, and get back in touch with me. He called me Tuesday to tell me that he saw 3 really good bands. The music was good and they all had great bass players. Then I asked him how many flashy Vic Wooten/Les Claypool licks did he hear. After about 4 seconds of silence, he said that he'd heard none. "That's the point.", I told him.
Yeah, Vic Wooten has mind blowing licks, but he can also sit in on a jazz jam session. Les Claypool has an array of tricks, but he also has the groove and pocket to sit in on an Allman Brothers tribute album. You know why they have that ability? Because it's about the groove and the song, not their tricks! Just concentrating on being strictly a flashy player, is like having all frosting and no cake. People will look at it, but nobody's gonna buy it. Yeah, other bass players will be floored by your flashy riffs and talk about you to other bass players, but they'll never recommend you for a gig. Trust me on this.
Learning this great instrument of ours take lots of time and hard work. Do you place so little value on your time and hard work, that you would spend it trying to be someone else, instead of a better you? Really? Taking up the bass is a noble and proud thing to do, but remember; we are the foundation on which the house is built. Here's something else to think about: when Flea sits down to practice, he's not trying to be the next so and so, he's trying to become a better him. As for that young bass player? He told me that he landed a blues/rock gig. I guess he realized that having a solid pocket was an even better trick, and the groove became more important to him.