Scott Henderson Discussion

[Gonza]

What's up!?

I hope you're all doing good, I'm stealing my job's internet

Alright so I have a question that I feel the need to clarify, I guess I need examples. Scott, when you compose your songs, you write the bass sections right? Maybe not everything but you do have some idea of what the bass will be doing right?

Do you write the bass in a score sheet and hand it over to Travis (or whomever is your 'bum bum' man is today) or maybe you just right down the chords and trust in his ability to develop a good section. What is the most efficient and fastest way to do so when it's a completely new song for the bassist

How do you people do it in your case?

I want to know cause I my bassist came up with some good stuff, but it took us months to be able to play 1 tune, to be fair it was a tune with a lot of changes but I couldn't figure out how to give it to him, for him to learn it at home, since at the time it was not my idea to write it in a score sheet. So the arranging of that 1 tune got sooo delayed I need to find a quicker way.

Anyway, thanks for taking your time to checking this out!

Gonza.

[Scott Henderson]

If the bass parts are under melodies or composition sections, they're written out like in classical music. He has the option to add his own ideas - sometimes it improves the music and sometimes I have to ask him to stick to the written part. In improvising sections, it's more like a chord chart and he's free to play what he hears. Some songs have a balance of arranged and improvised sections while other songs lean more one way or the other.

[Kevin Thomas]

And what about the "boom tss pam pam pam tsss bom guy?"
Do you write anything for him, or do you simply ask him not to fuck up?

[Gonza]

I see, so you DO need to read to be a good musician, lol.

Alright, I'll start getting better at it. thanks for the advice!

[Thanasis]

Gonza, I would suggest having a look at this http://scotthenderson.net/Online_Store.htm

Scott has released his play along version where there are bass and guitar charts and all the tracks separately in mp3 format. It solves a few questions you might have and it helps a lot. There are no drum charts, but I think that it is more than enough to get the main idea.

My humble unqualified opinion is that you don't necessarily need to read to be a good musician but reading will get you a lot further in communicating your ideas with other people, especially as a bandleader.