My favorite surf bass line is "Inertia" by The Hustlers. Although my guitars outnumber my basses, by a long shot, I actually started learning bass before guitar. From that, my personal guitar "sound" is fairly bass heavy, to the point that I have several guitars strung with hybrid (skinny top/heavy bottom) sets. And then I have my Bass VI, which has caused me to rethink my "bass as lead instrument" arrangement of "Limbo Rock," in that I can have my cake and eat it too, although I do need to start noodling with a guitar arrangement...possibly, and quite likely, alternating it between rhythm and some complimentary lead.

Fast Cars & Loud Guitars!

I've used Best Practice for a while to slow things down, but lately I've been using Audacity to boost some of the levels and isolate channels. I can shift it to one side or the other, which will sometimes take out one guitar.

Will

"You're done, once you're a surfer you're done. You're in. It's like the mob or something. You're not getting out." - Kelly Slater

The Luau Cinders

Our bass player uses:

• 1975 Fender Jazz Bass
• mid 70ies Fender Super Bassman
• Ampeg SVT810E

It is the best sounding combination I can imagine. And I've heard a lot of bass amps in my life. Our bass player is always willing to let other guys use it, as we have to carry it to the gig anyway
This year we were playing locally at a 'festival'. His stuff was on the stage and the teenie band playing at 04:00pm aksed if they're allowed to use it. Sure, go ahead! The bass player (~16-17years ols) plugged in his aria bass and cranked the amp up to 7-8...I laughed my a** off when he hit the first note and almost fell off the stage due to the sonic blast he got in his back. Sweet, made my day.

The Hicadoolas

Staredge wrote:

Surf Bass article in Vintage
Guitar

holy smokes, nice long article,
I thought it would be a paragraph or so.

thanks for posting Will

Jeff(bigtikidude)

jp wrote:

Some thoughts on surf bass.
I have always said that it requires a fair amount of
discipline to be a bass player in a surf band. A modern
bassist really has to take a step back to fit into the
surf/instro idiom. Bass technique took a huge leap
forward in the 70s with the advent of funk and fusion.
All of a sudden there are players like Jaco Pastorius,
Stanley Clarke, Louis Johnson, Bootsy, etc etc. They
changed the language and the role of the electric bass
in pop music. The bass lexicon has continued to evolve.
Modern bass requires more technical prowess than most
of the early "Fender Bass" styles of the 50s and 60s
(however, see what happens when you ask a chopper
bassist or a shredder to do a simple walking bass line
you will likely be disappointed). In my opinion modern
bass styles wouldn't really work in the context of a
surf band. For one thing most surf guitarists would
crap their pants if they had to compete with a "lead
bass" player, also surf would sound silly if there was
a lot of slappin' and poppin' and hammerons. Surf
bass, to my ears, requires traditional blues/r&b style
bass lines. It's a support role, but for me it is
always rewarding to lock in with the drums and rock.

In surf bass, you can't be afraid of leaving some space. Let the drums breathe a little bit, and bring a line that is going to compliment the other instruments. Is that true for a lot of styles of music? Probably, but jp's point above is well-taken. Modern bass playing has too much going on to effectively work in a lot of surf music. It's all about the arrangement, and surf bass is an art all its own.

I think I'd like to find a little surf band to play bass with this summer. Anybody near Ventura County Line?

As for surf bass gear, I am currently playing:
- '73 Fender Jazz, Squier SCPB, and OLP/EBMM StingRay 5
- Eden WXT 550 head (not thrilled with it, thinking about getting an Ampeg PF500 and/or fixing up my old blackface Showman)
- Ampeg cabinets: Portabass 1x12 or SVT210
- and a PICK! well, sometimes...

Of course, Bass VI or a Dano 6SB is a whole different mentality and rig!

Last edited: Feb 17, 2012 15:56:43

Dario! Dude! Thanks mucho. How's things?

So now that I have had my bass for a couple weeks now...

What is the Theory behind Surf Bass?

"Maybe there aren't any surf bands; there's only surf music?" Tuck

BeachBumScott wrote:

So now that I have had my bass for a couple weeks
now...

What is the Theory behind Surf Bass?

Root and 5ths....twelve bar blues...I IV V progressions have helped me figure some stuff out....tough when ya can't hear a clear bass line.

"DP" quote from previous post -

"one thing to remember is "leading tone"...the tone right before the root note...for example D# is the leading tone for E...and E is the leading tone for F...etc. Adds a nice surf-drive to your bassline by starting your attack on the leading not and then hammer-on to your root note...nice pulse to the rhythm...
like this:
"..dow do do dow do do dow do dow do do do do..."

"...D# E E ...D# E E ...D# E ...D#E E E E ..."

I should totally be shot since I don't listen to Duane...but I'll add it to my list. Its not that I had not heard of him or his songs....just so many other songs and influences that I listen to.

Forgot to add the Major Pentatonic scale to the list

vintagesurfdude wrote:

alot of early surf bass lines are:
"..dow do do dow do do dow do dow do do do do..."

"...D# E E ...D# E E ...D# E ...D#E E E E ..."

However, some of my favorite surf bass lines are
actually pre-surf Ventures. Still with a pick and
musically, a little more interesting also very
detectable in the mix.

I would agree with the pick attack for surf bass. Not all early surf bass was pick or plectrum attack, but most seems to be. The nice percussive "thunk" or "boing" of a heavy pick sounds great on a Fender Bass. Learning some tasty walking moves (for example Perfidia) and learning the chord structure so that you can walk around (or through) the changes while leaving space for the melody and drum bits... it's actually an exercise in balance and emphasis. The thing I try to remember about surf bass playing is to try to keep whatever you choose to do fluid and don't forget that surf is a sort of dance music...the bass should make you want to move...

being able to be fluid and rhythmic and creative all at once while supporting the guitars and drums is what all about for me. I feel fortunate and humbled when I am able to pull it off.