The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
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  1. #26

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    I second the Uke bass, fretless. Light, small, and sounds like an upright, for less than $400. Perfect for guitar/bass doublers.

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    The Jazz Guitar Chord Dictionary
     
  3. #27

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    So many good options here! I just got Squier P bass. Good for the $. The Uke bass sounds very good as does the Epiphone.

  4. #28

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    I play a double and for a fretless electric I really like the MIM Fender Jazz (not the Squire) that I purchased new about 15 years ago. You may find a used one. The Squire might be fine, I just have no experience with it. I use the MIM fretless on rock gigs rather than my Custom Shop Fender Jazz. Decent growl, nice straight neck. I use jazz flats on it and it sounds great. Good luck on the hunt; a good bass is a delight.

  5. #29

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    Or you can pull the frets out of a fretted bass and fill in the slots with wood putty, like Jaco.

  6. #30

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    Pulling out the frets is a good way to go. I used to play in a band with a couple of guys with an interesting background. The drummer used to play with Jaco Pastorius in an earlier band. (Cool.) The bassist has a brother who was Prince's sound guy. Fender's John Page approached Prince about accepting a bass Page had made--a recreation of the Jaco bass. Prince didn't want it, but the sound guy did, so Fender gave it to him. Anyway, it ended up in the possession of my bassist. He played it for years and has it to this day. It is a great bass--it is a Fender Jazz Bass with the fret positions filled in with epoxy. The bass sounds fabulous and plays wonderfully.

    As I said on the previous page, I play a recreation of a Fender Precision Bass, but fretless. It is a 50s version with the early 50s headstock and single-coil pickup. It, too, is a fantastic bass.

    I have a bunch of gigs coming up on that bass. With tape-wound LaBella strings on it, it gets a great tone that is about half-way to the sound of my upright bass. I really like it.

    My son plays a Warwick Thumb Bass like the one that Jack Bruce played with the Cream reunion concerts. It, too, is a great instrument. I'm just not an active pickup guy. Call me old school.

  7. #31

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    Please forgive my ignorance on the matter as I've just gained an interest in bass.....
    what is the purpose of the plate under the strings on Gary Willis's instrument?

  8. #32

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    Quote Originally Posted by Hugh
    Please forgive my ignorance on the matter as I've just gained an interest in bass.....
    what is the purpose of the plate under the strings on Gary Willis's instrument?
    It's to keep the player from digging in too far with their fingers.

    I'm not not sure I would like it. I think digging in gives it a more rhythmic feel because there is more decay (more like a double bass). I've never tried the Gary Willis style bass. Gary Willis bass style is very legato. I think he does a lot of right hand dampening to make the playing more rhythmic. More recently he looks to play with his thumb and dampens with his palm.

  9. #33

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    That's what I was thinking, that it would hamper a players technique in not getting in deep.
    It obviously works for Gary but I think I'll leave things as they are.

  10. #34

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    my fave is the japanese gary willis bass

  11. #35

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    Quote Originally Posted by Greentone
    I'm just not an active pickup guy. Call me old school.
    For some reason, there is a lot more love for active electronics in the bass world than the guitar world.