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I've been asked to give advice for bassplayers just starting out, here's my 2 c:

Get a bass teacher to show you the fundamentals, preferably someone who do it on a regular basis and even better someone with a music education.

Learn the major and minor scales, chords & modes - you can get that information everywhere, thats general music knowledge, go to your local library and ask for music theory books

Train your ear and sense of time.

Learn /transcribe songs you cop of albums by ear, start with easy ones - simple blues, rock, pop songs with few chords and simple rhythms ie "stand by me", "knocking on heavens door", "Walkin on sunshine", "one of us"...

Always analyze those songs with your knowledge of theory, you will notice in time that 99% of all rock, funk, pop, soul, reggae.... songs, uses the same harmonic principles


Always play with a metronome or drummachine

Play everything slow at first, dont speed up until you can play your lines with fluidity and in perfect time.

You are the foundation of the band and If you want to work as a bassplayer, you have to be able to groove your ass off, not tapping the latest Wooten lick (dont get me wrong, the original Wooten grooves HIS ass off).

Practice every day, 10 minutes a day beats 70 minutes once a week

Learn to read music, a little goes a long way

Play with as many bands you can get into, always play with people at the same level or better than you

Dont say no to a gig or experience
Be willing to play for free (until you're so good they'll have to pay you)

Dont post videos on youtube with poor playing, you wont pick up the girls that way (the always chooses the bassplayers who grooves, because they know that..........;-) )

join the bassplayer forum talkbass.com, you can find a lot of answers to technique, exercises, theory....
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Basses i use on videos:
Fender jazzbass sunburst 1963
Fender jazzbass "the red twangy one" (originally sunburst) 1971
Fender precision Olympic White 1976
Fender jazzbass Olympic White Marcus Miller signature 2005 (from 07-07-20 Sadowsky onboard preamp installed)
Rickenbacker 4003 black 2006
Maison electro-acoustic bass
Yamaha TRBll 6 string bass 2003
Music Man Stingray 1977
Fender jazzbass Olympic White 1978 with Nylon strings
SX fretless jazz bass
SX shortscale jazz bass w piccolo strings

For strings I use roundwound standard gauge 45 - 105, brands vary, but I've used DR, D'Addario, La Bella strings

I use a Korg "Pandora" PX4D headphoneamp/effectsbox to record these videos.
BUT before you rush out and buy it, thinking its the solution to all your recording wishes, bear in mind thats it's a cheap (and exellent) practice amp with effects and no more.
The effects are too noisy for serious recording in my opinion.You could probably use it live but I have no experience with that issue.
It sounds ok on youtube, thats not hi quality sound anyway (mono, low bitrate etc)

People keep asking me what setting I use on the Pandora, so here's the lowdown:

The STUFING setting as a starting point
Comp: 5.0
Amp: LA STUD
Cab: MTL 4X 10
Mod: Chorus2, 0.26
Delay: OFF
Reverb: OFF

I DONT make "tabs" for my stuff, så stop asking, please
Most of the time i'm making up the basslines as I go along and YouTube is a way to store my musical ideas (and impress some of you folks of course, lol)
Its almost hilarious when people ask me; "please send the tabs to me"...
Hey! Its music, use your ears ( and eyes in this instance).
I had a teacher once who said : "There is some people that can play and get music out of their instrument, and then there's people (a lot), that only wiggle their fingers in a fixed sequence" (highly trained chimp/paint by numbers fashion). My point here is, never forget to actually listen and learn with your ears, of course seeing players play is of valuable additional help.
Theres no "right" og "wrong" way to play, its the sound/music/originality/feel/r hythm that matters.

Im currently playing (in Denmark, where im a citizen) with Henrik Hall & Himmelstormerne, MofoSteel and Al Campos

But if you have the right funk, I will travel;-)
Private bass tuition in your home is possible too! (You of course - have to be a millionaire;-))

If you have tracks and you want funky, groovy bass on it, give me a holler (and a mp3 file)

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