…slippery, but tasty
The Doclopedia #3,547
Skills I Picked Up: Playing the Bass
(Yet another tip of the old bandana to Spike Jones for suggesting this theme.)
Well, ya see, it was 1977, I was 19, and touring with my high school buddies in a five piece rock band. And by “touring” I mean driving around in my old Chevy Bel Air and Jimmy’s VW van, stopping at every town that had a rock & roll bar or a festival in the park or even a street corner. We were making about enough to pay for gas, food, and a six pack every week or so.
But we were young, having fun, getting laid, and sure we were going to get a record deal once we hit the big city. Then Rico’s dad died, Jimmy decided to go back home, and Luke just got on a bus in Denver and we didn’t know what happened to him for 8 years.
So with no lead guitar, bass, or singer, it was just me and our drummer, Stew. We bought a 12 pack and camped out for the night to get drunk and think about what to do next. Come the morning, we decided to head for New York City. We had about $55.00 between us, plus a used guitar, amp, and drum kit. We stopped in a couple of little towns off I-80 and made enough to gas up. When we got to Peoria, Illinois, the water pump went out on the car and I had to call my dad and ask him to wire me $125.00. Since we had a couple of days to kill, we walked down to the closest bar and heard live punk music. The place was a dive, but it was packed. The bands were pretty good, and we stayed about 3 hours.
On the way out, we got talking to a guy who said his band had gigs lined up, but his drummer was in jail for 90 days and his bassist had quit. We said we’d take the jobs, but I’d need a bass. Dude, said he had one, and though I was not a bass player, I had a couple of days to practice.
Over the next two months, we played about 14 gigs, often 2 a day on Saturdays. When Stew and I left, I was not a bad bass player or singer. We had more than enough money to get us to New York. The music scene there was huge, and the punk scene was on fire. We got another couple of folks to join with us and so the Drain Clogs were formed. We played all over town for 2 years. Then Stew got married and went off to give drum lessons to kids. I broke up the band and moved to San Diego.
So that’s how this middle aged cabinetmaker with a wife and three kids learned to play the bass.
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