Grateful Dead Music Forum

Really having trouble wrapping my head around what the bass is doing in this tune...Fellow bass players, what are y'all doing?

Chords, scales, turnarounds, runs? What specifically?

Make it do what you want it to do. My approach is to be influenced by Phil, not necessarily BE him. I have other influences, also.

To elaborate (since I am in that rare mood), When I was young, I used to watch William F. Buckley, Jr., on television, because his command of the English language was so accomplished. When he used a word I didn't know, I would look it up, and then incorporate it into my vocabulary. I should probably mention here that I did not absorb his political perspectives without critical thought, but I did have the tendency to give credence to his ideas simply because he was so much more intelligent than me. This was part of my development and education.

In music, I learn the "vocabulary" of the bassists, and any other musical ideas absorbed from listening to other instruments, also, and filter these ideas through my perspectives, so that I can use them to express myself musically. Sometimes it works out better than others, but that is all part of my education. I don't try to be any particular person or replicate their ideas or perspectives, but try to use the ideas I like and incorporate them into the expression of my interpretation of the music. Sometimes I have to "dumb down" in order for others to understand, just as I did as a precocious ten year old with the nickname "professor" on the schoolyard (no one likes extreme intelligence to expose the fallacy in one's reasoning) in order to get along, not that I was necessarily intelligent, but I was more educated than my peers at the time, and able to use my education to apply critical thinking skills to life's situations. This also kept me from fitting in, so I always had an outside-looking-in (Moody Blues reference) perspective, which kept me somewhat lonely at the time, but ultimately kept me from being a follower, and gave me the independence of thought to create my world and live in it. Exposure to Timothy Leary, Richard Alpert, Ken Kesey, Carlos Casteneda, and the freedom of new unconventional experiences and ideas, along with a training or indoctrination into Christian religion, which ultimately led me to understand that all religions are inventions of the weak and none have empirical foundations; all of these influences taught me that music is whatever you want it to be, and though you have to conform, to a certain extent, to common ideas, just as in language you have to have common understanding of what words mean, the gamut from a simple twelve bar blues to the unconventionality of John Cage or Morton Feldman, can be used to express oneself musically just as a thorough understanding of language increases the precision one uses to express himself. To limit your expression to a ver batim parroting of what someone else has said, although useful and even necessary at times, keeps you from bringing to the table your personality, perspective, interpretation, and individuality. This keeps you from being the musician you can be, though you may perfectly replicate notes, timing, and tone. I think you should be the best "you" that you can be, and let your light shine brightly.

Can you narrow down the problem a little? Is the rhythm giving you trouble, or the chords, or the groove? And are you playing it like Phil or George Porter Jr, or someone else?

Rusty the Scoob wrote:Can you narrow down the problem a little? Is the rhythm giving you trouble, or the chords, or the groove? And are you playing it like Phil or George Porter Jr, or someone else?

haha...5 years later and Im being asked to play this song again after avoiding it for that length of time.

The meters version I'm fine with and have played it that way with non-Dead bands but the guys Im currently playing this with will probably want to do it Dead style.

The Deads version on the other hand ? I just can't wrap my head around what exactly Phil is doing. It's not one specific thing, it's the tempo, the syncopation, etc. It's just one of those songs I don't get for whatever reason.

Part of the problem is that for most recorded versions of this I've heard Phil is pretty low in the mix so theres that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DoBPUYvauiY

When we were playing this tune in Laughing Water I found that going to this specific youtube video, slowing down the speed of the video to 75% (go to settings > speed) the bass line jumps right out at your ears. For some reason when music videos on youtube are slowed down the bass line is more prominent and easier to pick out by ear. Good luck, I know you'll rock it with Dean & Company!!

That's the funky ass pick playing of Phil. Playing the root notes + arpeggios + following Jerry + Philzone.
Super cool example of why Phil was so important for the GD sound. Thanks for posting.

This whole video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rs_4TQLycQI

Especially from 22 min - 25: pulse & substrata

Triplets over eighth notes and spilling over the barres is what I hear for Pockey Way.

I'll try to spell it out. To work, say this out loud:
one two three | waah two three | waaaah two three | wa two (rest)
one two three | waaaah two three | waaaah two three | (rest)

Thanks for sharing this. So much for getting caught up on paperwork today!