Ray Manzarek (not sure of the spelling), played kbs for the Doors, but he also utilized a walking bass (foot).I was fortunate enought to catch them live in Toronto, many moons ago. It was amazing to watch.
There was literally, never a "dull" moment in his playing. Busier than a one legged guy in a butt kickin' contest!
btw...when I saw them he was using a Vox Continental + the Farfisa+ a third unit which I couldn't make out, but it may have been a Hohner. Great show. I never really cared for Morrison too much but Manzarek always impressed me. Might even have been him that slipped me the bug!

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...L

I think playing with left hand or foot bass is becoming a lost art. I don't see many kids today learning that way. With all the computization and software everybody wants to take the shortcut. Including me, my excuse I'm too old(55) to start now, plus don't have the time or dedication. I just want to enjoy.


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qqqwq@hotmail.com

i agree with alot of what you say mike,to play like gerry lee would be awesome but just look at all those years of dedication,i,m quite happy to play 3/4 left hand chord ,and right melody,with the marvelous instruments that are now available,we can enjoy what we do,and make some beautiful sounds,and get a lot of satisfaction,mike

So, again, do you think that being able to do this, play bass with left hand, is fairly common with "decent" keyboard players, whatever that is. Steadily gigging players, put it that way.

You could do it if you have the time and dedication, also you have to think like a bass player. The only way to know is to try.

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qqqwq@hotmail.com

I don't want to do it. I will be playing guitar in a trio. As per the original post, I am asking about the likelihood of finding a keyboard player who can. That is my question. I'm too old to tackle it and can't play that well anyway, I'm a guitarist. I want to hire someone who can.

I agree with the Pro. Get a set of Roland PK-5 pedals a bass module and play left FOOT bass. That way you still have the LH for chords. This is how I do it when I'm playing with our band. When playing solo I use the arranger bass.

Tom

It has been my experience that those guys are few and far between and usually don't suffer from a lack of work offers.
Sorry I got lost off track of the original post.

[This message has been edited by mikeathome1 (edited 11-19-2004).]

[This message has been edited by mikeathome1 (edited 11-19-2004).]

I think if you find a guy (girl) who is decent at keyboards then he/she should be able to handle left hand bass. It really only requires a good knowledge of scales and intervals. Rock bass lines, for the most part, are pretty easy; pop too. Jazzy type songs require that walking bass and a person needs to know keys & scales.

If the person you get is no better than you, then why hire them if you could do their job. Again, footpedals are a good possibility.

Playing bass with the left hand should be a skill that any good keyboard player has. Most experience keyboardist should be able to play bass in the left hand. Unless they are exceptionally good with comping, fills and melody, maybe you don’t want them to be a keyboardist in a band.