Bluegrass and electric bass

[columbia]

Originally Posted by Nymuso

However, I recently heard a Bluegrass band in Gatlinburg in which a young lady was playing a Kala U-bass through an amp. It was a very impressive simulation of an upright.

I think the U-bass is the next best thing for bluegrass if an upright isn't available.

[Rudy4]

Originally Posted by difalkner

The first Bluegrass group I ever heard was Red, White, & Blue(grass) in 1974 - fantastic group with Grant Boatwright leading and they were the headliners. Their bass player used an electric while every other group there had a stand-up bass. I asked why they could get away with that and the response was simple; they were the headliners and it's easier to travel with an electric than it is with a stand-up bass.

This brings to mind the countless photos I've seen of Bill Monroe and the Bluegrass Boys traveling by station wagon with the doghouse bass strapped to the top. It was good that the upright bass was built to withstand the rigors of road travel!

[frankmcr]

But wait . . .

how about a bass that's both

upright and electric?



There's plenty of other companies making EUBs, I just picked this video cause it doesn't have so much talking.

Used by jazz, salsa, classical bass players - but no bluegrassers?

[Silly Moustache]

I remember seeing Newgrass Revival with someone playing a P-bass.

Their wiki entry say Butch Robins as bass - alhough I thought of him as a banjo player and also John Cowan on bass - again I knew him as a guitarist.

However I certainly remember hearing them with a very obvious Bass guitar.

Trouble is, it is so much easier to play "more" on an bass guitar and so not only the sound is different but the bass player is tempted to do a little too much.

For a time there was a pretty ragged bluegrass band that asked me to join and as I judged that they needed bass more than dobro I also played bass for a while.

IMHO - in bluegrass, bass should be almost indiscernible but you'd miss it if it wasn't there.

[PineMarten]

Originally Posted by Nymuso

Sorry, disagree. Listen to the attack in relation to the decay. How do you mimic an upright? Me, I mute the note.

There's more than one upright bass sound - technique, string choice and setup can change things a lot. Traditional bluegrass tends towards laminated basses like Kay, gut strings, higher action and technique that brings out some thump. But an upright player with a more modern jazz informed approach, Thomastik Spirocore strings, lower string height and a carved bass could actually be a bigger departure from the trad bluegrass sound than a Fender P Bass with flatwounds and the old foam bridge mutes would be.

[Rudy4]

There are quite a few options for electric bass if you don't confine yourself to traditional acoustic upright bass. Folks that play upright have already adopted the 3/4 size upright as the "standard" instrument.

Here's a design that I used for a while that used a removable neck section so it could be played as a "stick bass" or with a bit more normal-looking shape. This video was made before the bass was stained and finished, so it appears "in the white".

[FrankHudson]

Originally Posted by columbia

I think the U-bass is the next best thing for bluegrass if an upright isn't available.

I like my U-Bass too. It's not quite upright bass sounding (at least as I play it) but it gets into the same territory. More portable than even a Fender bass too.

[dnf777]

Originally Posted by Rudy4

There are quite a few options for electric bass if you don't confine yourself to traditional acoustic upright bass. Folks that play upright have already adopted the 3/4 size upright as the "standard" instrument.

Here's a design that I used for a while that used a removable neck section so it could be played as a "stick bass" or with a bit more normal-looking shape. This video was made before the bass was stained and finished, so it appears "in the white".

Is a 3/4 bass AKA “cello”?

I see The Dead South bassist plays a cello, strapped on like an e-bass.

[KevWind]

To expand on the electric upright a bit

Not yur' daddies BG band I guess you could say more of a Contemporary Sting Band

With electric upright and electrified banjo (who would'a thought) and certainly not a traditional BG songs. but pretty cool non the less IMO

[FrankHudson]

Originally Posted by KevWind

To expand on the electric upright a bit

Not yur' daddies BG band I guess you could say more of a Contemporary Sting Band

With electric upright and electrified banjo (who would'a thought) and certainly not a traditional BG songs. but pretty cool non the less IMO

That was fun! The first one gives me reason to mention the Epiphone Jack Casaday hollow-body bass which is another "not quite like a Fender P Bass" in-between choice.

[Rudy4]

Originally Posted by dnf777

Is a 3/4 bass AKA “cello”?

I see The Dead South bassist plays a cello, strapped on like an e-bass.

No. The cello is much smaller than a 3/4 bass and uses lighter string gauges and a different tuning. I've seen a number of folks use converted cellos. They tend to be a little fragile and easy to break when using them as a bass.


The one shown in the video is my own design, using a standard 34" scale length neck. The neck is removable so it can be used as a conventional "stick bass". The body has a piezo transducer so you can combine the body with the magnetic pickup externally through a two channel preamp.

I have a bass playing friend who solved the transportation problem by using an actual 1/2 size upright bass. I'd never seen one before I saw his.

[RustyAxe]

I have, in addition to a bevy of electric bass guitars, two fine acoustic bass guitars; a Guild B50 and a Tacoma Thunderchief. With tape wound strings, good amplification and EQ, and a good attack (with a little muting) either sound quite good in an acoustic BG setting. I save the electrics for our country dance band where I can pump out honky-tonk and rockabilly all night long.

Age and arthritis forced me to abandon the upright a few years ago. Still got the gigs, tho.