what are some good exercises with a metronome? Im trying to be more on target rythmically, more tight. Thanks guys

scales:hiding:

Try moving the accent around: instead of on 1, try 2, 3, 4; double accents ONE two THREE four. Start off at 80 and try increasing the tempo by 5 every few days. Hope that helps -- it's helped me.

Try playing exercises with the metronome set for half time. In other words, rather than having the metronome count 1-2-3-4, imagine the click being beats 2 and 4.

This helps your groove because in many types of music the drummer hits the snare on beats 2 and 4. In effect, you are learning to groove with a perfect drummer rather than learning to play metronomically correct.

I had played for about 20 years before a kind soul tipped me off to this. I've taken my playing to a new level since I started practising this way.

+1 to all of those suggestions above but I might add set the metronome as slow as it can possible go and make the click the "1" of each bar and play scales, arpeggios, etc. like that and then do the same thing with the click being on the "2" of every bar.

If you want to get really crazy with it, make the click something other than a pulse beat. How about "Click" = 2nd 16th note of the 3rd beat?

The idea of a metronome is it helps you learn to be a time monster, but if you use it as a crutch to show you where every beat is then you really won't get much better.

A good exercise is to practice playing behind, on, and ahead of the beat. This helps when one plays with drummers who may tend to drag or rush.

Another one, kind of advanced, is to put the click on all subdivisions but the first: 2nd 8th note, 2nd and 3rd 8th notes in a triplet, and 2nd, 3rd, and 4th sixteenth notes.

check out the 1st few pages of Ed Friedland's "The Working Bassist's Tool Kit" (published by Backbeat Books in 2001 & distributed by Hal Leonard).

It's tempting to quote the exercises here but Ed seems like a nice, hard working guy, the book is only $20 & is loaded with good stuff.

Kool finger dexterity exercise...

Play this sequence in a closed position(4 frets) and move it up and down the neck on all strings, with a metronome. Try to challenge yourself and play it really fast. It also makes for a great warmup.

21324320 (the 0 meaning open string...duh!)...repeat

Here are two videos I made for my students.. Great exercises. Well all my students dig them anyway..

Jon's Pinky Busters... have a weak pinky? Not after doing these for awhile.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ulljTV7X2jc

Jon's Mini Spider exercise. Alot of work without ever moving your left hand placement.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G4JGF2bg7bg