Good point Howard. My proto-band was formed using a) Bandmix (guitarist), b) Facebook (drummer) and c) work (vocalist).
So yes, work can be a good place to look!
I recorded a bunch of covers. Posted them to YouTube and created a catalog of work. Then posted the best of those videos to various FB music groups and other social media sites saying ‘Hey I don’t completely suck, anyone need a bassist’
Took me a while but you’ve got to put your name out there. Nobody came looking for me.
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I’m currently just over half way through B2B and moving fairly quickly through the material. I’ve established a habit after each Module is complete of going back through the previous modules and repeating the workouts that I either found to be good practice, or that I had (or am having) trouble with just to master them. I loaded up on Talking Bass courses when they had a 30% of sale recently on the advice of a number of folks here in the forum. I’m actually now working my way through “Simple Steps to Sight Reading” as I never learned to read music in the past and wanted a structured way to approach it. I’m now spending a couple days a week on the sight reading course and the rest of the time making my way through B2B. I’m definitely finding the sight reading course to be really effective so far.
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Simple Steps to Sight Reading really is a great course. The way it teaches you to learn the fretboard as you read the lines is excellent. It quickly and effectively breaks you out of “needing” to watch the fretting hand while playing. Highly recommended.
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agree with the second one, currently doing the talkingbass groove trainer course.
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not to disagree with our lord and master but… i would add to this “if you want to”. it will definitely get you better, no doubt. but a lot of people have zero interest in doing this, ie the bedroom player. which i am one of. and as we comment a lot about how many of the people here are more ahem “mature”, it is hard enough starting a band in your twenties. starting one in your fifties seems a lot like trying to date in your fifties 
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Yep, other than suggesting more practice, further study, and playing along with cover tracks, it’s very difficult to offer universally helpful suggestions that apply to every beginner/intermediate bass player.
Personally, I’ve played with lots of people over the decades and, while it was fun and invigorating, it now isn’t easy or convenient to add that activity to life’s pressing responsibilities. So I happily just play for myself.
But for anyone who aims to play in a band, there is no better way to prepare for that than by jamming with humans. It definitely offers a lot of benefits no other playing experience can.
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My wife is currently learning piano while I’m learning bass so I will often offer to play bass while she practices songs. It’s definitely a different kind of practice than just sitting in my room working on scales, or music reading or learning a song. As I improve I’m going to start looking for some local folks who might want to jam occasionally. Seems like a good thing to throw into the mix, but I’m definitely not an outgoing type so it’ll be a social stretch for me to play with others 
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yep. gives me hives thinking about it 
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I’m trying to figure out what to do next. I’m basically looking for a course that’ll help me with with putting notes together like solos or fills. Pretty much how to string together notes and not sound like shit.
I sorta narrowed it down to Marks chord, scale or groove trainer courses but I’m not sure.
For people like me who can be a little rhythmically challenged the Groove trainer course is quite good but I’m not sure it helps much with improvisation (which is what it sounds like you want to do). For that I suspect the Chord Tones would be better.
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Improvisation, thats the word I was looking for lol, thanks.
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I’d think something along the lines of the scales mastery and / or the walking bass courses would help with that. I haven’t taken either of them yet though so please don’t take that as any kind of expert opinion.
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I have been following Chord Essentials and for solo/improvisation I think that is perfect.
Not a proper “scale oriented” course, but knowing the base triads, 7th and extensions, you can build every scales.
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Mark Smith is currently working on a course dedicated to improvisation. I don’t know when he will have it ready for release, but he sent out an email weeks ago about the news that it’s in development.
I have studied his Chord Tones, Scales, Walking Bass (course and workbook), Groove Trainer, Cyborg Bassist workbooks, and Music Theory for Bass. They are each great for diving deep into specific areas of technique and theory. They demystify the how and why of playing.
I’m looking forward to Mark’s improvisation course. It promises to be pretty great.
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