I've recently heard a comment from a fellow bassist that those of us who dwell on the bottom end of the rock band spectrum are expected to be a little more round all over. Now I know that guys like Nate Watts aren't exactly slim, and that Anthony Jackson was, at one time, like 1.5 men, but what gives? Where does the stereotype of the "fat person" in the band being the bassist come from?
Are bass players SUPPOSED to be fat?
I NEED to know....there's a KFC buffet calling my name! I'll we're supposed to be pudgy, I'll be working at looking more like THIS guy:
Not all bassists are fat. Most of the 80's hair band bassists were all rail thin. Of course, they pretty much all used supplimental weight loss methods from the Columbia area.
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Victor Synn wrote:Not all bassists are fat. Most of the 80's hair band bassists were all rail thin. Of course, they pretty much all used supplimental weight loss methods from the Columbia area.
On the "Backyard Rocker" 10th anniversary special two weeks ago, one Rockpager asked what instrument I would choose to play if I had the time to learn one. After considering for a few moments, I said on air that I leaned towards bass, citing Jeff Clapper of the Hurricanes' incredible skills as inspiration. Then again, I am a bit round. Coincidence? Maybe...maybe not.
In an interview long ago Paul McCartney was talking about switching
from guitar to bass in The Beatles after Sutclffe left. He said when he
was a kid, no one wanted to play bass because "Only fat boys played
bass".
Wonder if that's where it all started?
Note: Sutcliffe wasn't fat...but according to Tony Sheridan, Paul used
to unplug his bass from the amp during shows because he was so awful.
DaveP.
"You must be this beautiful to ride the Quagmire."
Team Transylvania wrote:When in doubt...ask Peter Steele
I bow to the masculinity of that pic. I mean bow in the figurative sense...not bow in the "I'm going to orally service you" sense. LOL
Ventgr wrote:Note: Sutcliffe wasn't fat...but according to Tony Sheridan, Paul used
to unplug his bass from the amp during shows because he was so awful.
Pretty funny stuff. Paul's actually a HUGE influence on me. All of our heros sucked at some point.
...some still suck. LOL
"He's the electric horseman, you better back off!" - old sKool making a reference to the culturally relevant 1979 film.
I guess I am the bulkiest band member. I always attributed it to having to carry the drummer all these years! If you believe all the the stereotypes then the bass player is also always a raging alcoholic that will hump anything that doesn't hump him/her first. (I guess all legends may be based in fact afterall).
