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Gospel Instruments => Bass Guitar => Topic started by: aaamastin on March 24, 2009, 08:47:04 AM

Title: victor wooten
Post by: aaamastin on March 24, 2009, 08:47:04 AM
has anybody ever heard of victor wooten hes real good at bass look him up on youtube and post here pls ;)
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: jkbeckwith4 on March 24, 2009, 09:10:15 AM
He's very famous. He has awesome technique. I like his double thump with the thumb to resemble a guitar pick.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: aaamastin on March 24, 2009, 09:27:41 AM
yea could u post a video of him idk how
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: aaamastin on March 24, 2009, 11:47:56 AM
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vdJvHE8qxA (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8vdJvHE8qxA)
here is a site where victor wooten is playing
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: aaamastin on March 24, 2009, 12:29:07 PM
is victor wootten the best yes or no lets vote
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: ssab on March 24, 2009, 12:35:30 PM
He's the best at being Victor Wooten.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: DWBass on March 24, 2009, 12:37:50 PM
The best is subject to opinion. I don't think there is a best. Does he have a total command of the instrument? Yes! Is he an innovator? Yes! I enjoy bassists who play best in an ensemble setting and supports the music! In a solo bass setting. I can appreciate the skill and command it takes to pull off a live solo act but I'd grow tired of listening after a 1/2 hr. or so!
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: aaamastin on March 24, 2009, 12:44:46 PM
He's the best at being Victor Wooten.
so whos better
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: ddwilkins on March 24, 2009, 01:00:23 PM
so whos better

Unfortunately, in here, we don't do "who's the best." Everyone has the place and plays to their abilities. Each person has their own technique and style. Especially in the gospel genre. We are here to uplift and encourage everyone.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: aaamastin on March 24, 2009, 01:15:51 PM
you do have a point i just wanted to see wat everyone else thinks is the best
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: floaded27 on March 24, 2009, 01:29:04 PM
im the best charles there is. period! and nobody can be better at being charles and playing like charles than me. and thats final. and the same can be said for each individual of themselves.

which is why we dont compare, everyone has a different taste, favored style or technique. we just appreciate the skill level. If you ever listened to victor, he says he's learning things from other people as well. so if he's learning from someone, then apparently he's not the best at everything. so if you say, who's the best at being victor wooten, then i'd say victor wooten hands down, and so would everyone else. but anything else would just be subjective to opinion.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: Kelz-Da-Basshead on March 24, 2009, 03:01:11 PM
It would be nice to have all the abilities victor wooten has but, if you are playing in a band then you won't be able to use all those techniques and stuff all the time. As you grow as a bassist and realize what your job is as the bassist you will realize that most of those techniques are almost useless unless you are playing by yourself. No one likes a bassist that is to busy or someone on any instrument that is too busy. One of the main differences between professionals and amateurs is the art of restraint.  There are many bassists who can stand next to victor wooten but, they play for a band so they don't do all that extra stuff.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: ssabass on March 24, 2009, 05:39:47 PM
Here is a better video. Yeah the fellas are correct, that "best" is subjective, but I would put Wootens skills against any bass player. Stanley Clark said in a BP mag interview & I quote "Victor is just a marvel; he has the greatest facility i've ever seen on the electric bass. Now I don't own a Wooten solo cd cause, I'm just not into his style of producing, but I must say, you won't find to many cats that come close to Wooten.    http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVQEe8OI3zk (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVQEe8OI3zk)
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: DWBass on March 24, 2009, 05:59:02 PM
Here is a better video. Yeah the fellas are correct, that "best" is subjective, but I would put Wootens skills against any bass player. Stanley Clark said in a BP mag interview & I quote "Victor is just a marvel; he has the greatest facility i've ever seen on the electric bass. Now I don't own a Wooten solo cd cause, I'm just not into his style of producing, but I must say, you won't find to many cats that come close to Wooten.    [url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVQEe8OI3zk[/url] ([url]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jVQEe8OI3zk[/url])

Ya ever checked out Doug Johns?
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: ssabass on March 24, 2009, 06:06:54 PM
Yeah I've checked out Doug Johns he pretty good but, he couldn't even hold Wooten's bass strap.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: DWBass on March 24, 2009, 08:26:12 PM
Wooten is otherwordly for sure but you did say 'comes close'! Doug is a freakishly good player while maybe not on the same level as Wooten, he does have complete command of the instrument and can make it speak quite well!
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: BimmerFan99 on March 24, 2009, 09:18:11 PM
Wooten is not the best.  There is no best, and he is still learning like every other bassist and musician.  Wooten even takes tips from beginners.

Now, that doesn't mean I don't think Wooten is awesome.  I just won't tout him as the best.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: aaamastin on March 24, 2009, 09:38:12 PM
ok maybe i wasnt specific enough at this time in my opinion
here is some doug johns he is good to

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2j-N0GSXyb4 (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2j-N0GSXyb4)
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: browntree on March 27, 2009, 10:49:13 PM
The electric bass guitar is such a young instrument, it's hard to say who's the best.  Cats like Pastorious and Wooten will definitely be noted for developing advanced bass techniques.  It's like any other field (outside of music); it's hard to say who's the best doctor, professor, scientist, etc...
Honestly it's a toss up for me...it's either Wooten or Jaco.

Browntree

And David spake to the chief of the Levites to appoint their brethren to be the singers with instruments of music, psalteries and harps and cymbals, sounding, by lifting up the voice with joy. I Chronicles 15:16
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: MrSteve on March 30, 2009, 03:04:20 PM
As far as Victor Wooten goes, no one can deny his remarkable ability but, personally, I can only listen to a few minutes of that solo style of play before my ears get tired. I have nothing but respect for his technical ability, but we just don't have the same taste. When a player gets to the technical level that Victor is at, then his instrument just becomes an extension of his personality. You can hear a Victor Wooten line and know immediately who it is, not just by his tone but by the feel and content of his playing.

There's no one person on the planet who everyone is going to like, so it's not like we can come to a consensus on the one bass player that we all like the most. We might be able to get close to agreeing about the player with the best techincal chops, but that's less than half the story when it comes to being a great bass player. I think that people like James Jamerson or Paul McCartney are better bassists than Victor is but they never had as impressive a technique. You can't compare them fairly because they're all trying to use the bass to say different things. For me, the best bass players are the ones who are honestly expressing who they are and not letting their ego get in the way of the message in their music. If they can respect and appreciate styles that they don't play, from showboat slapping to using a pick to play root-5 quarter notes, that's even better. I think Victor qualifies there, but so do lots of other players.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: dhagler on March 30, 2009, 06:09:35 PM
I'll chime in.  "Who is the best bassist?" sounds a lot like "Who is the best basketball player?" Some like Kobe's game, others prefer LeBron (me, I'll take Tim Duncan  :)).

I think versatility is the mark of a good bassist. The ability to play different genres, being effective live or in the studio, these qualities make for a working bassist.  If you read enough credits on enough albums, you will find two names more consistently appearing than any others:  Nathan East and Marcus Miller.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: MrSteve on March 30, 2009, 06:14:42 PM
Yeah, but even then it's tough to say someone is the best just because they get the most work. It's definitely one factor to examine but I still say that your taste is probably more important when discussing who is the best. It's like saying "Which book of the Bible is the best?" There's not one right answer to that but there's also no wrong answer either. It's whatever moves you the most and fits with your own idea of what bass playing should be about.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: emrewooten on March 31, 2009, 10:05:27 AM
yeah absoluty wooten best bass playaa   my favorıte  8)

www.myspace.com/emreturkmenstyle (http://www.myspace.com/emreturkmenstyle)
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: kmcbride0003 on May 06, 2009, 08:51:38 PM
Victor is one of my favorites but as some of u have said the solo technique does get on my nerves after a little while. I actually prefer the style of bassists like Andrew Gouche Abraham Laboriel and others in the same field. By the way one of my friends has taken lessons from Victor and also has a fodera bass that was signed and given to him from Victor but that dont make him the greatest because every bassists style and technique has its own place when it is used at the right time
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: QJJH on May 15, 2009, 11:16:02 AM
His skills are on point though
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: Mysteryman on November 02, 2011, 11:18:15 AM
I was listening to this today. Victor Wooten is off the chain.
Victor Wooten, Steve Bailey and David "Fingers" Haynes at 2011 NAMM (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lbKeR2FMv0s#ws)
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: thunderkat on November 05, 2011, 10:16:53 AM
If you judged every part of bass playing (pocket, plucking, soloing, tapping, composing, or whatever) on a scale of 1 to 10, Victor would not score any lower than a 8 at anything. That's why he is the best to me.

With that being said in certain situations I love to hear other bassist like Adam Blackstone and Tim Rawbiz Williams in gospel, hip hop and R&B. If we're talking uprights and traditional jazz, I love the late Neils Henning Orsted Pederson.

My point is at the end of the day we all have our favorites but, if the question is who is the best it's gotta be Vic.

He's the G.O.A.T.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: Fingers! on November 05, 2011, 02:01:43 PM
If you judged every part of bass playing (pocket, plucking, soloing, tapping, composing, or whatever) on a scale of 1 to 10, Victor would not score any lower than a 8 at anything. That's why he is the best to me.

With that being said in certain situations I love to hear other bassist like Adam Blackstone and Tim Rawbiz Williams in gospel, hip hop and R&B. If we're talking uprights and traditional jazz, I love the late Neils Henning Orsted Pederson.

My point is at the end of the day we all have our favorites but, if the question is who is the best it's gotta be Vic.

He's the G.O.A.T.


Gotta be?  On all the techniques listed, would you say, outside of favoritism, that Victor is better than Stanley Clarke?  Listen to Stan before you answer the question.  I won't say who's better but I will point out that Stan has an "ease of effortlessness" when he plays unlike the other two...It almost 'looks' as if Stanley is playing down to thier level just to play with them, and I'm NOT a 'Stanley Clarke" fan.  Maybe I should start listening to him.

WOW! Stanley Clarke, Marcus Miller and Victor Wooten (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mrav_MSMjNs#)


Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: mjl422 on November 05, 2011, 05:40:45 PM
Gotta be?  On all the techniques listed, would you say, outside of favoritism, that Victor is better than Stanley Clarke?  Listen to Stan before you answer the question.  I won't say who's better but I will point out that Stan has an "ease of effortlessness" when he plays unlike the other two...It almost 'looks' as if Stanley is playing down to thier level just to play with them, and I'm NOT a 'Stanley Clarke" fan.  Maybe I should start listening to him.


You do realize that Stanley wrote that song and has been playing it for over 30 years don't you?  They are all great musicians in their own right.  If you wanna check out Stanley, I would recommend "East River Drive".  It's a great album.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: Fingers! on November 05, 2011, 07:13:27 PM
You do realize that Stanley wrote that song and has been playing it for over 30 years don't you?  They are all great musicians in their own right.  If you wanna check out Stanley, I would recommend "East River Drive".  It's a great album.

Yep.  The album has him spraying music notes onto a brick wall.  I remember when it came out back in the 70s.  Stanley Clarke ALWAYS played ANY song with that ease, then and now.  I don't think it had anything to do with him playing that song for 30 yrs.  Maybe it has something to do with that fact that he's been playing for over 30 yrs. 

What's strange about it, back in the 70s Stan didn't have 30 yrs under his belt, yet, he had the same finesse.

I'm just trying to make a point that I find it difficult to hand Vic the "Best Man" trophy when there are others out there with the same caliber chops....or maybe better.

This reminds me of the story about in the 60s, England's music scene was trying to hail Clapton as the best blue artist/guitarist in the whole wide modern world while the likes of Muddy Waters, Lightening Hopkins, Buddy Guy, Albert King, BB King, Albert Collins and others were still alive and playing over here in the United States.  But it was Hendrix, at that time a no-name, who went over there and scared Claption almost to death. 

Let's stop comparing.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: floaded27 on November 05, 2011, 10:37:14 PM

Let's stop comparing.

this!!!!

Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: malthumb on November 06, 2011, 07:47:26 AM
Yep.  The album has him spraying music notes onto a brick wall.  I remember when it came out back in the 70s...........................

Let's stop comparing.


Just for the record, the album you are describing is "School Days".
(http://www.progarchives.com/progressive_rock_discography_covers/4629/cover_132317572009.jpg)

 Phenomenal album.  "East River Drive" came out sometime in the 90s, I think (too lazy to go look at the CD jacket).
(http://img1.ranker.com/list_img/1/151442/full/stanley-clarke-albums-discography.jpg?version=1315663210000)

 People who are not yet tuned in to Stanley should also check out "I Wanna Play For You", a live 2-album set from the late 70s early 80s
(http://lh4.ggpht.com/MyJazzWorld/RujNqjxdDrI/AAAAAAAAAn4/DUknvb9_gYY/s288/StanleyClarke_IWannaPlayFor.jpg)

and "If This Bass Could Only Talk".  That one has a picture of the bass Stanley used to record "School Days" and a bunch of other hits. 
(http://s50.radikal.ru/i130/1005/9a/8b1942464164.jpg)

I believe that bass is now owned by Victor Wooten, which brings this thread full circle.   ;)

And I agree, nothing gained by comparing the greats.  They're all great.  It's not like they're gonna have a Bass-Off.

Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: phbrown on November 06, 2011, 07:00:38 PM
They're all great.  It's not like they're gonna have a Bass-Off.

I would hate to even try to judge that.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: SavnBass on November 06, 2011, 07:20:15 PM
He's the best at being Victor Wooten.

Pretty much.. there are waaaaayyy to many GREAT bassists out there some have passed, for any one to be called "the best" .... Stu Hamm,Ant Wellington,Clarke,Miller,Flea,Levin,Claypool,Jackson... Just to name a few..
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: Mysteryman on November 06, 2011, 10:01:09 PM
Gotta be?  On all the techniques listed, would you say, outside of favoritism, that Victor is better than Stanley Clarke?  Listen to Stan before you answer the question.  I won't say who's better but I will point out that Stan has an "ease of effortlessness" when he plays unlike the other two...It almost 'looks' as if Stanley is playing down to thier level just to play with them, and I'm NOT a 'Stanley Clarke" fan.
Stanley Clarke has some large hands compared to the other guys. I think that has something to do with why he plays the way he does. It looks like he is playing a guitar where as its different with the other two.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: ssabass on November 06, 2011, 10:03:05 PM
It is really hard to say who is the best, because sometimes I like someone's style of playing better than actual technique. But I do think when it comes to just out right playing, nobody can touch Wooten. He can do what everyone else can do, but not to many people can do what he does. He has mastered most every style & technique there is. So I will give him that edge over most bass players. With that said, when it comes to style I like players Like Marcus, Gouche, Joel Smith etc.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: Mysteryman on November 07, 2011, 10:09:37 AM
I also pulled this thread up because I didn't want to start another Victor Wooten thread. Not to say he is the best. I have not listened to Stanley Clark but he is definitely a master bass player. When I watch people like that I try to absorb what they are doing. He does play effortless. That's hard to achieve on any instrument.
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: malthumb on November 07, 2011, 12:27:08 PM
Stanley Clarke has some large hands compared to the other guys. I think that has something to do with why he plays the way he does. It looks like he is playing a guitar where as its different with the other two.


Keep in mind that he's also playing on a short scale (30.75" scale) bass.  His large hands dwarf that teenie neck.  It's about the size of a guitar.

Here's what a short scale Alembic looks like compared to a pair of 34" scale Alembics.  Stanley almost always plays a bass like the short scale in the middle.

(http://i590.photobucket.com/albums/ss348/martinjlm/Alembic%20Basses/ThreeSeriesBasses.jpg)

Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: thunderkat on November 07, 2011, 03:37:50 PM
It is really hard to say who is the best, because sometimes I like someone's style of playing better than actual technique. But I do think when it comes to just out right playing, nobody can touch Wooten. He can do what everyone else can do, but not to many people can do what he does. He has mastered most every style & technique there is. So I will give him that edge over most bass players. With that said, when it comes to style I like players Like Marcus, Gouche, Joel Smith etc.

That is the exact point that I attempted to make. His skill level is simply unmatched.

As a matter of fact I read an interview with Marcus Miller and they asked him something about doing an instructional video. His response was "Get one of Victor Wooten's videos and slow it down to half speed."

We all know how great Miller, Clarke and everyone else is but, Wooten seems to be able to do whatever he wants to do and often times twice as fast as anyone else, still managing to play notes cleanly.

I'm not saying I'd hire him for every situation but he is the most complete electric bassist ever. Hence the best.

Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: SavnBass on November 08, 2011, 06:59:46 AM
Ya ever checked out Doug Johns?

Thanks Ddub.. I had never heard of Dough Johns.. Wow.. what a player..
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: stix_clgi on November 08, 2011, 03:29:18 PM
WHAT, Victor Wooten....the BEST????!!!!




You obviously have never heard Gene Simmons.....
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: thunderkat on November 08, 2011, 05:43:17 PM
WHAT, Victor Wooten....the BEST????!!!!




You obviously have never heard Gene Simmons.....

Hilarious.  :D
Title: Re: victor wooten
Post by: Fingers! on November 30, 2011, 03:41:53 PM

This reminds me of the story about in the 60s, England's music scene was trying to hail Clapton as the best blue artist/guitarist in the whole wide modern world while the likes of Muddy Waters, Lightening Hopkins, Buddy Guy, Albert King, BB King, Albert Collins and others were still alive and playing over here in the United States.  But it was Hendrix, at that time a no-name, who went over there and scared Claption almost to death. 


I’m sorry, but when I mentioned the Hendrix/Clapton incident, I couldn’t stop thinking about it, it’s so funny.  You have to remember, Clapton was so godlike that Jimi wasn’t allowed to ‘play’ with him.  So he played with Cream – minus Clapton.  Clapton just stood there, strapped up, ready to come in and clean up ‘after’ Jimi finish messing up the set.

When Eric Clapton met Jimi Hendrix (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KPJgtQwtVVA#ws)