The 40th Birthday Bass: Restringing the Potential

As WordPress continues to recycle old prompts, I pulled another prompt from The Coffee Monsterz Co to respond to today

What is a hobby you have been wanting to try?

Many moons ago, for my 40th birthday, X2 got me a bass guitar starter kit. It wasn’t a super nice guitar—I think the whole set might’ve run $100 or $150. It came with a little amp and a “case,” which was really just one of those flimsy vinyl gig bags.

But it didn’t matter. Playing guitar was something I’d always wanted to learn. I figured the bass might be a more accessible entry point than a regular guitar since there are only four strings to worry about.

The $100 Starter Kit

Around that same time, I had gotten the video game Rocksmith for the Xbox 360—my God, I’m going down a memory lane here! Unlike the more popular Guitar Hero games, Rocksmith actually allowed players to plug in a real guitar or bass, as opposed to a plastic toy with five buttons on it.

Rocksmith wasn’t so much a game as it was an instructional program. Sure, there were points and it tracked how well you were learning a song, but you weren’t really playing “against” anyone. The coolest thing about it—and probably what led to its eventual licensing downfall—was that it used real contemporary songs.

Mastering the “Blitzkrieg Bop”

The first and only song I truly mastered was “Blitzkrieg Bop” by the Ramones. I was starting to get the hang of “Oh Love” by Green Day and “Jane Says” by Jane’s Addiction, along with a handful of others. I think I also mastered “Every Breath You Take” by The Police. Look, it was nothing crazy; I’m not pretending I was the second coming of Cliff Burton or Les Claypool. But I was having fun, and I was doing something I had never done before.

Now, Rocksmith didn’t teach you how to read music. I was playing off of “tabs,” which are basically charts showing you which fret to hit on which string. It doesn’t give you a deep foundational understanding of music theory, but I could see how someone could start with tabs and quickly gravitate toward learning to read music.

From the Spit Valve to the Strings

My musical history before that was brief: for a grand total of about two weeks, I played the cornet in my elementary school band. For those who don’t know, a cornet is basically an offshoot of the trumpet. I wasn’t really into it, and to be honest, the whole “spit valve” thing really grossed me out.

But the guitar—or the bass, for that matter—is something I’ve always been drawn to. There was even a time I wanted to learn the drums. The old man played drums when he was younger; in fact, he was playing a gig the night he met mother. I’ve heard that people who pick up one instrument can often learn a second one fairly quickly because they develop an ear for notes and tones—terms I’m probably slaughtering because I’m still musically illiterate.

Getting back to the question at hand: the hobby I’d like to pick up again is playing an instrument.

Restringing the Potential

I still have that original bass. One of the strings is loose and it likely needs a full restringing. Since it’s an inexpensive model, I’m sure the sound isn’t world-class, but I’m not at a point where my skill level requires an equipment upgrade anyway. Every now and then, I think about picking it up one more time. These days, I’d have to find some physical tab books or online resources since my Rocksmith disc is long gone, but thankfully, I still have that small amplifier ready to go.

Today’s post is inspired by the WordPress Daily Prompt. While I’ve taken the topic in my own direction for the Road to 1,000 Days, you can find more responses to today’s prompt HERE

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The article “The 40th Birthday Bass: Restringing the Potential” first appeared on Rebuilding Rob.