Welcome aboard. I believe that there were very little use of effects on the original 1960 recordings. My understanding is that the bass went directly to the amp. Your best bet is to listen to the original recordings, and try to match the tone with your gear. A lot of bassists play with picks, though some don’t.

Hope that helps a bit.

Rev

Canadian Surf

http://www.urbansurfkings.com/

Thanks for the advice. I do use picks and currently have 2 basses with active pickups. I’ve been listening to a lot of recordings lately and will go light on effects.

Flatwound strings facilitate bass guitar playing, and they contribute deeply to the tone (double meaning intended). I tried rubbing paraffin candles on roundwound bass guitar strings instead. That was an improvement but not nearly as much as switching to flatwound strings.

Roundwound bass guitar strings are wickedly abrasive. It is far easier to fingerpick a bass guitar with flatwounds, and you are less likely to damage your fingernails. Lately I've seen Fender flatwound bass guitar string sets on Ebay for $20-$22 including shipping.

Playing bass guitar with picks is ok, but they should be fairly stiff. A completely rigid pick can tire out your picking hand quickly, however. I started out flatpicking bass guitar, but after I practiced fingerstyle on guitar I enjoyed playing fingerstyle on bass guitar, using index and middle fingers--on flatwound strings only.

Insanitizers! http://www.insanitizers.com

Surfer_Joe_1961 wrote:

Evlwevl wrote:

Hello, I am new to this group and new to playing Surf music. I have recently joined a group of guys who have been playing for quite some time and have a thorough list of cover songs already learned that I am catching up with. they have an authentic surf guitar tone And even though they have not requested a particular type of bass tone from me, I think it’s time for me to develop a more distinct tone that might have been used on original recordings. I play through a Fender rumble 100 and a boss GT1B processor. What kinds of effects if any should I be looking at to achieve an overall authentic tone for that period? Thanks for the input

Hope I'm still on topic here, but if your looking for a classic surf tone on bass like found on the early 60's produced by Terry Melcher - you might try a Danelectro bass - I have one and it sounds pretty good and much like many surf era recording. The only thing is the session player on most of these same recordings used a 6 string danelectro bass which I've never been able to find. So I'm thinking Melcher was actually referring to a Baritone Guitar and not a bass - but you could find a pedal to add the Baritone part on top of your bass parts probably - many old 60's records had Baritone Guitar on them and that's why the sound so good - you have a thick sound on the low end. Hope this helps - but you should be able some how find that sound with a whammy pedal that allows added lines similar to the Baritone parts etc.

Six string Danelectros, tuned an octave below a standard guitar, were used in many recordings during the sixties. In some cases, they doubled the bass part note for note. Carol Kaye had one, apparently with upgraded re was also the Fender VI Bass Guitar, most commonly cknown as the Bass VI.

There’s a lot of differing opinions regarding these instruments. I have always maintained that the Bass VI was a bass, first and foremost, and The Beatles used one on the Let It Be sessions. It is a bit tighter sound than the average electric bass, but I’ve learned to get a sound somewhere between a P Bass and a Jazz Bass from mine.

But any of these instruments, the Dano VI or the Fender VI, do have a chRacter all their own. Long scale basses tend to give me tendinitis, so I have three short scale basses; a Mustang, which sounds somewhat like a P Bass; a Warwick fretless with passive J Bass style pickups and a MIJ Bass Vi, built in 2013 which I improved by adding Vintage RI Jaguar pickups.

The Mustang and the Warwick sound like a traditional electric bass, but the VI is capable of being played much more like a guitar. It lends itself well to lead parts or a Tic Tac sound over another bass.

I don’t know how many Classic Surf recordings employed a VI, Dano or Fender, but I imagine that it would fit in well. A few years ago, I played an instrumental version of Secret Agent Man and doubled the lead part of the fourth verse on the VI. It was an interesting sound.

Redfeather wrote:

I'll suggest that more important than tone on the bass is developing an ear for authenticity. The surf bass lines from yesteryear were widely varied and often a lot different than what you generally hear today.

For me, nothing ruins surf music faster than rock drumming and close second is rock bass. I think that whatever your tone is, it's what you're playing that will determine how appropriate it sounds for surf.

Of course this goes for all the minutia of tone and gear we sweat over, too.

I agree completely. I’m not much on tone chasing, but I believe strongly in at least learning the original parts used on recordings of songs I am planning to play on stage. Play the riht notes, with the right feeling, audience will love it, even if you aren’t nailing the timbre.

The artist formerly known as: Synchro

When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.

Great comment, Jack.

It is good to note that in the days of the First Wave bands, flat sound strings were probably the only thing available to bassists and on many guitars, as well.

The bass position in the Lug Nuts is more than adequately covered by “Cactus” Andy, bassist extraordinaire. He plays clean through a straightforward amp, sometimes an Acoustic brand, an SVT or occasionally my own Genz Benz. Stompbox effects were hardly ubiquitous in the early sixties and I doubt greatly that they were used in the First Wave bands. Andy plays clean, although he may add a touch of reverb, post production, on our recordings. (As an aside, our drummer has returned from hiatus and we hope to get back to work on our recording project soon.)

It’s also worth noting that many of the First Wave guitarists were likely using flat wounds, as well. The Thomatiks I use retain their twang, but have the unique attack of a flat wound. Once again, stomp boxes were not likely to have been part of the equation in those days, but a Showman and a Fender Tube Reverb were very common.

When I first joined this forum, I assumed that a Showman and a Twin were pretty much the same amp, but someone here suggested that I listen to Freddie King’s Hideaway, if I wanted to draw a bead on the Showman’s sound. It was revelatory. The sound of First Wave Surf was strong and relatively clear, but it wasn’t the Blackface sound, it had a stronger midrange.

The artist formerly known as: Synchro

When Surf Guitar is outlawed only outlaws will play Surf Guitar.