The jug, in truly capable hands, serves as a bass (actually a sort of bass-horn or tuba, i.e., a low-register wind instrument), not a percussion instrument.

The washtub bass or "gutbucket," a (one-)stringed instrument, is also a venerable jug-band instrument. Generally, one or the other of these homemade-type bass instruments is used on a given number, not both.

Of course, in the hands of less capable players, both of these bass instruments are often played in an atonal fashion, in which case they provide only rhythm, not a discernably melodic bass line.

The undisputed master of both the jug and the tub was the recently-deceased Fritz Richmond. He came to prominence in the 60s as a member of Jim Kweskin's Jug Band, and much more recently was a key member, along with John Sebastian, of The J-Band. In addition to his considerable musical accomplishments, Fritz was the first to wear tinted "granny-glasses" on stage, predating the "look" popularized by John Lennon by about a half-decade.