Switching 100% to bass...

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UnclePsychosisUnclePsychosis Frets: 12881
Kind of thinking out loud here but aware there's a few folk here who have done this (given up "normal" guitar to focus on bass). 

Looking for your thoughts and opinions. I've been playing both for a long time, and I'm definitely a better bass player than guitarist. I also think I enjoy it more---can't see myself ever playing guitar in a band, but I'd like to play bass with other people again in the future. 

Been getting some guitar lessons to try and focus a bit but just don't feel like I enjoy it as much as the low end. 

Not sure if I would 100% give up but I am sorely tempted to sell all but one guitar and "just" be a bass player. 

Thoughts / comments very welcome. 
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Comments

  • fretmeisterfretmeister Frets: 23966
    I did that 20 years ago.

    I never looked back.
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  • AntonHunterAntonHunter Frets: 916
    You'll get more gigs!
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  • UnclePsychosisUnclePsychosis Frets: 12881
    You'll get more gigs!
    Joking aside I've done loads of gigs on bass, and very, very few on guitar. 
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  • UnclePsychosisUnclePsychosis Frets: 12881
    I did that 20 years ago.

    I never looked back.
    You still play guitar though, right? 
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  • octatonicoctatonic Frets: 33725
    I haven't switched to bass completely but I gig mostly as a drummer and then a bassist.
    Guitar gigs are a distant third.

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  • camfcamf Frets: 1190
    edited May 2022
    Wanna job? :) 
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  • camfcamf Frets: 1190
    If I could go right back, I wish I’d given playing bass a go. A great classic bass and a quality acoustic to write with and play at home would have been a pretty neat place to be. 
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  • ReggaebassReggaebass Frets: 63
    I haven’t got any option, I can’t play guitar  =)
    Riddim up
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  • UnclePsychosisUnclePsychosis Frets: 12881
    camf said:
    Wanna job? :) 
    @camf always!

    Hit me up... 
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71963
    edited May 2022
    I’ve become almost exclusively a bass player now - in both of the band/‘project’ I currently play with I’m the bassist, despite a previous history of being the guitarist, including in the ‘project’.

    I do still play guitar, especially acoustic, at home, but I don’t really need most of my guitar gear and I’m slowly cutting down on it. I’m more likely to buy more bass gear than guitar gear now.

    I started on guitar, but originally started playing bass because I realised it would be a much better way to get into a band than as a guitarist, and nearly forty years later I’m still right! There are always more good guitarists than good bassists, and since I struggle with being a good guitarist, the solution is obvious .

    The key is to think like a bassist and not like a guitarist. I do, to the point that I think I play guitar like a bassist more than the other way round…

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • mid57mid57 Frets: 42
    Same here I have been away from the bass for a while but the urge to return is coming back. I worked at Bass Merchants in Colchester as a guitar tech for around 5 years and switched sides back then as I was offered loads of gigs from bands dropping in asking if there was anyone interested in playing bass for them it was a very steep learning curve !
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  • ICBMICBM Frets: 71963
    mid57 said:

    I worked at Bass Merchants in Colchester as a guitar tech for around 5 years and switched sides back then as I was offered loads of gigs from bands dropping in asking if there was anyone interested in playing bass for them it was a very steep learning curve !
    Apparently, Chas Chandler asked guitarist Noel Redding if he knew any bassists he could recommend to play in a band he was putting together with an amazing guitarist he was managing called Jimi Hendrix. Redding said “I play bass”. Chandler asked him to come back for an audition, so Redding went and bought his first bass!

    "Take these three items, some WD-40, a vise grip, and a roll of duct tape. Any man worth his salt can fix almost any problem with this stuff alone." - Walt Kowalski

    "Just because I don't care, doesn't mean I don't understand." - Homer Simpson

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  • fretmeisterfretmeister Frets: 23966
    I did that 20 years ago.

    I never looked back.
    You still play guitar though, right? 
    Only when I’m writing guitar parts.
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  • KristoKristo Frets: 123
    I’ve pretty much switched completely now. Started on guitar about 25 years ago, and never really got great. Spent a lot of those years buying and selling loads of guitars/amps/pedals without ever really doing anything with them. Got a bass about 7 years ago to jam with friends, started a band, and haven’t looked back since. I love it and wish I’d got a bass originally 25 years ago. I find when I pick up the bass I get a lot more enjoyment from it and spend a lot of time learning stuff. I never really did that on guitar, just messed about with fuzzes and sounds. I still have an acoustic in the living room, but hardly pick it up. Too busy learning soul basslines. 
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  • FunkfingersFunkfingers Frets: 14324
    I play both.

    Some times, on a recording project,  bassist me plays the backing part over which guitarist me can noodle ad nauseam.

    Other times, I do the rhythm guitar chords first. What the bass part does afterwards can make a world of difference to how the chord changes are perceived.

    I suspect that I would find playing either instrument to the exclusion of the other boring. 

    For a real challenge of your musical sensibilities, play fretless. 
    Be seeing you.
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  • PhilKingPhilKing Frets: 1473
    I play both in my band, as does the other guitarist.  We both have been in other bands on the opposite instrument too.  Years ago, when working men's clubs were big gig venues, I played bass in a cover band and the singer/guitarist played bass in my rock band, where I was singer/guitarist.   Through the years I've managed to be able to play bass and sing, but I still find it easier to sing when playing guitar.  I really think differently about what I am playing though on each instrument and have to lock into the drums much more with the bass.  

    I actually enjoy playing both, but have had more gigs on bass than guitar through the recent years (when I was younger, it was many more on guitar).
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  • slackerslacker Frets: 2216
    Having played acoustic guitar bass guitar and real guitar in various bands duos etc, my opinion is play what you want when you want to.
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  • OssyrocksOssyrocks Frets: 1673
    I’ve recently picked up the bass after forty years of being a guitarist. Until a few months ago, I had never played a bass. I’m totally hooked. I’ve had to sell a few guitars and amps to keep up with my house renovation, but I’m resolved to keep a couple of guitars and amps just in case.

    Bass wise, I now have two, a Precision and a Jazz, as well as a small practice amp, and a full fat Mark Bass rig. I may have an audition coming up for a pop/rock/soul covers band, and this will be the first time I will have played bass with other musicians. …..bit nervous, but looking forward to it.

    I’m never going back to running/fronting/organising a band again. Just let me stand at the back next to the drummer and groove.
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  • fretmeisterfretmeister Frets: 23966
    Ossyrocks said:
    I’ve recently picked up the bass after forty years of being a guitarist. Until a few months ago, I had never played a bass. I’m totally hooked. I’ve had to sell a few guitars and amps to keep up with my house renovation, but I’m resolved to keep a couple of guitars and amps just in case.

    Bass wise, I now have two, a Precision and a Jazz, as well as a small practice amp, and a full fat Mark Bass rig. I may have an audition coming up for a pop/rock/soul covers band, and this will be the first time I will have played bass with other musicians. …..bit nervous, but looking forward to it.

    I’m never going back to running/fronting/organising a band again. Just let me stand at the back next to the drummer and groove.
    A small suggestion.

    If you can - stand on the hi-hat side of the kit. You'll usually hear the kick drum everywhere, but if the sound is shocking then the hi-hat cuts through, and its movement can give you a visual indication of timing. 
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  • bloodandtearsbloodandtears Frets: 1646
    I've been "Angus" and "Cliff" in various ACDC tribute bands..  both equally rewarding and enjoyable... the latter being physically easier than the former mind you..
    My trading feedback

    is it crazy how saying sentences backwards creates backwards sentences saying how crazy it is?

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