Re: How many guitar players have a bass?
I started on guitar when I was 14-15. In college I picked up the bass, I was maybe 19 at the time. Played in a band and learned a lot about rhythm that way. It actually helped me as a guitar player. Meeting Greg Chaisson after a Badlands concert is something I'll never forget. I asked him for some tips since I was new with bass and he gladly shared. From then on I worked at playing the bass as a bass player, not as a guitar player.
I had a bass for a long time (80's Peavey Patriot) and then sold it when it was collecting dust more than anything. I got the itch to play bass again and last year picked up a Sterling SUB Ray4, and not long after swapped the pickup for a Duncan SMB-4. My bass rig is an Ampeg PortaFlex PF500 with a GK CX-410 cabinet. No effects or anything extra, I plug straight in and go.
I auditioned for a few bands, landed in one on bass, then our guitar player had a heart attack on stage (he's fine now, thank God) and while he was recouping, we had a gig scheduled so on to guitar I jumped whilst the bass player I replaced (tinnitus forced him to stop) came back so we could do the gig. And here we are, I'm now on guitar but can jump back and forth no problem. It took some getting used to because I have to change my mindset between guitar and bass and what I'm doing. As long as our bass player has his earplugs, he's fine.
I'd love to get a nice P-Bass or build one, or even build a P-J Bass like the AeroDyne, or a PJ Bass w/ a '54 body and a Tele bass neck.
