Bass Session Recording and playing tips with Nashville Bassist Amos Heller - Produce Like A Pro

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We're joined by the incredible Amos Heller, touring and session bassist for Taylor Swift.
While rocking stadiums and working out of the the best studios of the world, he also records bass for artists and bands remotely from his home studio.
Amos opens the doors of his home studio in Nashville, TN and shows us his recording process: He showcases his favourite basses and pedals and explains which situations he like to use them in. He also shares tips on improving the most valuable skill of any bass player: Your feel of rhythm and groove.
Have a look and enjoy! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing,
Warren
Produce Like A Pro is a website which features great tips to help the beginning recordist make incredible sounding home recordings on a budget.

[@Producelikeapro]

Hi Friends, I hope you're doing marvellously well and are enjoying your day! I wanted to chime in with a quick video to sweeten your day: We're joined by the incredible Amos Heller, touring and session bassist for Taylor Swift. While rocking stadiums and working out of the the best studios of the world, he also records bass for artists and bands remotely from his home studio. Amos opens the doors of his home studio in Nashville, TN and shows us his recording process: He showcases his favourite basses and pedals and explains which situations he like to use them in. He also shares tips on improving the most valuable skill of any bass player: Your feel of rhythm and groove. Have a look and enjoy!

[@soeffingwhat]

Is he touring with TS next year? Cos the tour is comnig to Ireland where I'm from next Summer, and I'd go, not only cos I think it'd be a great show, but to see and hear Amos Heller's bass playing behind TS and the rest of her Band.

[@patrickcarroll1754]

Wherever you are, Warren, I hope you’re doing marvelously well. Great playing Amos

[@bones2532]

My favorite statement: "There's really no reason to turn your nose about anything." And what's even better, you're not only saying this (like some others did before) but instantly proving it by your playing and experience. Great tones, great playing, really like your versatility. Great lesson for all bass players. Motivates me to keep on practicing all those different playing styles and techniques even if I don't really need them right now. Thanx for the inspiration, Amos!

[@LetzBeaFranque]

Excellent, straight to the point, no excess verbage, just excellent!

[@DarkoP9.13]

I very happy he mentioned playing and listening(right side of the brain) as separate experiences.i got major struggles with this too.From the "billion" videos i watched on youtube i dont remember any one mentioning this for musicians in general. Good vid.

[@midiman5045]

Amos thanks. Great video. I am a guitarist and what you said about incorporating a bit of others style in to your playing is dead on. My teacher told me that learn every style and use what you like in your style of playing.

[@noisesoundtonevibe]

Great player with great advice... Thanks Amos and Warren!

[@Producelikeapro]

Yes agreed noisesoundtonevibe!! Amos is an amazing Bass player! I loved this advice! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@MarkBayfieldvillageidiot]

Grandiose! What an enjoyable video, great playing. Thanks for uploading, those octave pedals are the way to go.

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks Mark!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@erpaloinen]

What an absolute goldmine of material!

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much erpaloinen!! Yes, Amos is amazing! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@bassfacebraeson4196]

Such a helpful video! Just noticed it was even uploaded on my birthday! Also I heard that funky duck vulfpeck reference ;) anyways, great video! Great playing!

[@joeribraams]

15:03 Vulfpeck!

[@chrishayworth282]

I have 3 basses, a fretted short scale a fretless and a fretted. They have made me a good living over the years since I started playing session and live. My point being as long as you can do what the producer wants then you should be good. I also use a line 6 straight to the PA.

[@adreamofwaking]

Warren, I think that you are one of the most likeable personalities in the audio world. I'm incredibly grateful for the hours of education and enjoyment that your videos give to aspiring producers like myself. I hope that your life continues marvelously well, and that you never cease to share your wealth of knowledge and experiences!

[@Producelikeapro]

Wow Kasey! You are very kind indeed! I really appreciate that wonderful comment! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@cornbobrimlove7892]

I agree with his comment Mr. Huart

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much Cornbob Rimlove! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@DannyW_bassp]

Fantastic video! Great words of advice and you sold me on my next bass! Custom shop Fender Jazz, loved that tone!

[@jkyles1000]

I just started using a pick because so many great players use picks (usually both fingers and picks). McCartney, Chris Squire, John Paul Jones, Mel Schacher, Sting, Carole Kaye, etc

[@Thombrawley1]

Awesome, man A lot of cool info. There is so much depth to the instrument, and you know your stuff.

[@Producelikeapro]

Marvellous!! Thanks ever so much

[@phillippasteur3904]

Awesome information!

[@gecbucca4205]

i'm pretty sure the recording part comes soon ;))

[@jatinrajmusic]

Thanks for this meaningful and significant video in terms of bass choice for recording. I have the same bass (fender precision 50 bass,the same color too).that bass is seriously good for recording . Thanks Warren and Amos for this beautiful video.. I have a question though, why most of the bass players use , a p bass for recording session. I have a jazz and a p bass too..but most often I find P bass doing the role more smoothly

[@Aldorelaxingguitar]

Nice range of basses and tones, I like that little Freeze pedal! Ciao, ALDO

[@Producelikeapro]

Hi AldoRelaxingGuitar.com fantastic! I agree! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@Producelikeapro]

Yes! I agree, great selection!

[@koukleum]

Seems like a nice guy. Only figures he's got great taste. Loved the little bit of Funky Duck when he started demo'ing octavers :-)

[@Producelikeapro]

Hi Stefan, definitely! He is a great guy! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@IanRLewis]

This may sound crazy but since I only play bass on my recordings I left my bass in the basement for an upstate ny winter and it got warped. I ended up putting washers under the bridge to raise the strings so I could get a sound out of it. Only 3 strings play notes in key and I have used this on every recording utilizing only 2 strings and it makes no bit of difference. Just finished another one of my songs using it.

[@rawstarmusic]

He plays simple 8-notes and nothing crazier than that. I never used a 5-string but I think a bass should go lower than E cause very often I need D. Other uses for D is this :D which can be fun. I have 6 years old strings on my bass so I'm definitively in the plunk category but still works. When I record I just load some amp up. Shop says buy new strings every 3 weeks 'n I'm not doing it. I sing and play bass unison. It's good for both the voice and the ear.

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much for your great insight rawstarmusic!! I really appreciate it! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@franciscodanconia3551]

rawstarmusic If you just need to get down to D, you don't need a 5-string, just tune to drop D or D Standard. When they say new strings every 3 weeks, they aren't just trying to make money. A new set of strings makes a huge difference in sound quality and makes the bass feel better to play. Furthermore, you could order in bulk from Amazon.

[@rawstarmusic]

I have never tried to play bass with D-A-D-G tuning. Would have to learn that. A reason for D is that many songs are in D because of the singers register. D, C, G are very common and there's ton of songs in D. Moving down on the E string: A-G-F#-E and..D would be nice. Solution, play E and use Melodyne. It's true I miss out timbre on the strings since old strings lacks overtones. I got used to it since it's gradual from day one. My bass sounds like a motown 60's bass. It forces me to play well as fck to make up for the sound.) I usually play for hours in the bathroom so only me listening. I can focus on the playing and not the sound. For recordings I choose something suitable from Logic's amps, drives, EQ's and pedals.

[@franciscodanconia3551]

rawstarmusic You can get d'addario flat wounds for $25 on Amazon. Those will sound like Motown bass. If your bass is pretty common, take it in to guitar center and compare its sound to a new one's. If it's not buy one set of strings, record a riff, change strings, record the riff again, then objectively A-B compare them. If you don't like the way the new strings sound it'll only take 3-6 months for them to be as dull and lifeless as your old ones, and the rust will probably feel comparable within a year.

[@rawstarmusic]

I play an Ibanez bass now so it's common. It's light and easy to play. It doesn't sound as anonymous as Amos first Beatles bass but the strings don't hold out as long as fresh ones. I have to compensate with a virtual amp for that. Guess I'm used to old strings. I had a Grotrian Steinweg grand piano from the 80's -nope not 1980's, but 1880's,) which is Steinway while still made in Germany. I tuned it but I didn't change strings, 3 for every note. I played a Fender Jazzbass earlier while on the road for 5 years and I prefer more the sound of Amos second bass. I could imagine myself buying a bass solely for performances and tune down the strings between sessions to keep them long time fresh and use the fast Ibanez solely for practice. Thanks for your input.

[@megap2m]

scale + dynamic = success!

[@k1ttyF158er]

OMG The transformer hum off those active pickups would drive me INSANE in the studio.(Sounds like a bug zapper). Most LA & Nashville sessions I'm seeing these days are P-Basses.Some J-Bass.(People certainly have others. But P-Bass just sits in the mix more easily).

[@carterfelderva]

Great video, very helpful, thanks. Amos looks like Ben Stiller, and even sounds like him a little. I mean that as a compliment. :)

[@Producelikeapro]

Hi Carter Felder haha strange I don't see it! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@miladbaygan10]

Very good taste, I'm a P bass addict.

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks very much Milad! I agree, the P Bass is so versatile! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@danielleprushansky8992]

Awesome!

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much my friend!

[@jaseyn]

Hello. The video inspired me, I decided to purchase a course at the Pro Mix Academy. Watched in full - very informative. Мery interesting to know which option the producer ultimately chose in the end? And secondly, about the use of MXR DI. Why is this special setting used only when playing with a pick, but when playing with fingers, a straight signal is recorded? It would be interesting to understand the logic of choosing one or another timbre of the second signal depending on the chosen playing technique.

[@grdmusicandproduction]

Time: Yes... %100... Inner Body Clock & Feel

[@networkunplugged]

nice basses

[@Producelikeapro]

Yes indeed Network Unplugged! Wonderful collection he uses both for recording and playing live! I love the explanations of why he uses them! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@AndrewBeveridge461]

Would love to have seen that black and white Yammie up on the wall!

[@dirtyjared]

AH is a kewl dude

[@ec-hi1br]

What cable do you use?

[@hbrookes]

Man that japan bass has a nice fat tone! Question..I do home recording covers and my basses are washburn passive and SRD active, I have noticed lots of string fret noise? Which would be a quiter string flat or round for studio work? Thanks..Bass ON!

[@Producelikeapro]

Thanks ever so much!!

[@overbeekaudio3808]

Flats have less hand noise! The tone is different so you may need round wounds for styles like metal and pop punk.

[@greggjohnson305]

Thanks

[@Producelikeapro]

Thank you Gregg! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@IDMD8]

“Not a lot of producers will let me do that” 😂

[@71bassg]

im a p bass kinda guy but have a active 5 string with emg and some quirky basses to cover all bases

[@Producelikeapro]

Great stuff! Having a variety of instruments is a great idea to cover every eventuality! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@dinglebass]

the active 5 string has a lot of hum, is that typical?

[@GregByers]

My exact thoughts

[@Jakeman90210]

What's your opinion on tweeters?

[@Producelikeapro]

Tweeters for Bass? If the genre demands it then great, but I don't personally use them. Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@dumyes]

What pick does he use. Different picks for different styles?

[@shiningcut7]

lot of my producer don't allow me to do that hehehe

[@vendettawarcrime]

Did Amos just play Funky Duck?

[@HarrisonBeam]

Even Amos can’t resist Joe Dart 😂

[@gavinnaylor786]

When commenting about picks you bring in McCartney.

[@DreamhopMusic]

u made my day :p

[@Producelikeapro]

Aw shucks thanks very much Mojalistic!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@DreamhopMusic]

Thank you !!

[@Producelikeapro]

Hi Mojalistic! Thanks ever so much! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@babayaga1767]

sooooo many nashville players are from cincy

[@JanneOksanen]

Maybe the title should have been "Here Are Some of My Favorite Basses and Pedals". ☺️

[@Producelikeapro]

Hi Janne, thanks for the comment! For Bass Players Amos is showing the basses and techniques he's using for recording! I found it incredibly useful! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@uglijimus]

Bass is lif!

[@Producelikeapro]

Haha yes it is!! Have a marvellous time recording and mixing, many thanks Warren

[@gimmeagig]

you use a lot of vibrato. That would not do it for me,