I know all the techniques of tapping, slap etc but i jsut cant seem to groove things together. I want to become an over all better bassist. Whats a good bass book to cure my problems. Something by Jaco? Sheehan?

Thanks

Standing in the Shadows of Motown. It's a book about that whole "groove thing".

The Charlie Parker Omnibook in bass clef will keep you busy for years. You can play the melodies of the tunes, the transcriptions of his solos, learn the changes, force feed phrases from the melodies through the changes, force feed phrases from Bird's solos through the changes, practice substitutions and reharmonizations, etc.

The point I'm trying to make is as you become more "advanced" then the instruction becomes more abstract and you have to learn to take 2 disparate things and put them together. If you want "Xtreme Bass Technique Secrets of Super Gonzo Bass Thrashing" then I have no idea. Those books are like Twinkies. They look good in the store but once you bring them home they actually really suck.

Have a look at Anthony Vitti's books - they are incredible. Range of styles, and really quite hard. I am getting a lot out of them.

He sells them direct from his web site - http://www.anthonyvitti.com/home.html

Oh and +1 on the Motown one too - great book.

Patrick's Pfieffer's . Improve your groove..

For a little more advanced technique in slap style, Percusive Slap Bass (http://www.melbay.com/product.asp?ProductID=95703BCD&Title=&mediatype=&Author=&Series=&Difoverall=&Publisher=&Category=&SongTitle=&TypeOfSearch=keyword) by Chris Matheos is a fun little study.
This style helps lock in with the drummer and fills the groove. Cheap.

It's purely for a more thorough study in this particular style. A narrow scope, but a lot of fun to play.

If you're saying that you have thus far been mainly preoccupied with technique studies, then perhaps another book isn't what you really need. Maybe the most beneficial practice for you at this point might be just copying a lot of good music by ear?

If you're saying that you have thus far been mainly preoccupied with technique studies, then perhaps another book isn't what you really need. Maybe the most benefecial practice for you at this point might be just copying a lot of good music by ear?

Absolutely +1

Listen to and transcribe some Jamerson, Chuck Rainey, Willie Weeks, etc...

I just bought Jazzology: The Encyclopedia of Jazz Theory for All Musicians and if you are looking into more thoery in order to evolve as a player (and arranger, composer or just to practice sight-reading in treble clef) it is a fine book.

It is layed out like a serious student workbook (like you would get if you were enrolled in University Theory classes) with different chapters, exercises and problematics for the student to solve and think about. It is boring to read like any school manual and the learning curve is pretty steep (complex chord types are discussed and need to be memorized very early and you need to have at the very least a modest grasp of theory), but it delivers. It is exhaustive, naming about every common chord/scale and their practical use. Ample examples are also given, with good analysis of what is going on (how cadences are modulated, the soudn it produces, etc.).

And the best part is, even if it focuses solely on jazz (and maybe some blues, but only to reinforce the importance of the blues form in jazz), the old adage is true: if you can play jazz, you can play anything. It is great if you want to get more melodic and stronger with your harmonies in any style of music.

As far as groove goes, I don't think any book, barring rythmn reading practice books, will make any improvement. You need to play with a metronome and transcribe groovy basslines.

If you were advanced, you wouldn't need to ask questions about something so fundamental. But that said, you won't learn to groove from books.

If you were advanced, you wouldn't need to ask questions about something so fundamental. But that said, you won't learn to groove from books.

Shut down the forum, he has spoken.

Shut down the forum, he has spoken.

Thing is, he is mostly right. No book will teach you how to play around the beat and how to lock-in with a drummer: might teach you about syncopation and different time figures/signatures, but feel comes with experience. Only metronome work and playing with great drummers will help.

"Groove mastery" by oneida James is very good. If you happen to be a big funk fan i'd reccomend buying "Funk: the music, people and rhythm of the one" by Rickey Vincent. That ones not a bass player book, but will point you towards lots of great music. Any books that do the same for other genres would be well worth checking out.

It's more about listening and doing than anything a book can teach. Get a copy of the James Brown tune "The Payback" after the intro its basically a two note bass line that is all groove. Work on that till you can cop the groove, then move on to more groove. The book of James Brown transcriptions and Standing In The Shadows of Motown all have good transcriptions and practice tunes to work on. Find a drummer and just the two of you jam on laying down grooves. Take turns changing up the groove and locking in, it has to sound like you're one person.

Want to get analytical take some great funk tunes and do just a rhythmic transcription of the whole rhythm section. What you tend to see is every 16th in a measure is covered by someone. Each instruments has its 1/16's they cover, but they all leave holes for others to fill.

And lets not forget listening to "Duck" Dunn and all the boys in Booker T, house band for Stax-Volt in addition to being a great groove oriented band in their own rite. "Duck" = basslines so simple & tasty. And Cropper is a master of push/pulling the beat! Featured in the "Blues Brothers" movies.

I agree listening is all important in regards to learning groove. No book can teach you this. But books can offer lessons in furthering styles and techniques, which may spark an idea in your head = inspiration. Books are a reference you have forever for at about the price of a lesson*.

But you really have to work on groove in "real time" with other players -- or a drum machine.

* no, books do not replace lessons!

I highly recommend Bass Grooves by Ed Friedland. The book is very well written. You will need a drum machine though....or some software that has common patterns.

Probably the most important thing in learning groove and most things musical is to slow down and listen.

Get Headhunters "God Make Me Funky" (Paul Jackson)

1) put it on and listen. Many times. Loud is good.
2) plug in your bass and play along. Over and over.

Of course there are other tunes like this, but this one is really cool.

Creating Jazz Basslines by Ron Carter, good luck!

Thing is, he is mostly right. No book will teach you how to play around the beat and how to lock-in with a drummer: might teach you about syncopation and different time figures/signatures, but feel comes with experience. Only metronome work and playing with great drummers will help.

That's why I love the Vitti books - they are not lessons per se, they are studies that come with real drum tracks on CD, and have been formulated to highlight difficult playing concepts. Sometimes it's difficult fingering, sometimes difficult syncopation, sometimes they are just really really fast 16th note studies.

He's got a couple of books for funk, one for hip hop, one for slap and another for slap solos, and a sight reading one.

They are all very technically challenging ...

... and they all groove like muthas!!

Grab Vic's book.
http://www.harmony-central.com/ProductImages/Medium/000034421.jpg

This book isn't a...lesson per se. It's a story.

Perspective on Music is a big thing in the World. This will change yours.

I know all the techniques of tapping, slap etc but i jsut cant seem to groove things together. I want to become an over all better bassist. Whats a good bass book to cure my problems. Something by Jaco? Sheehan?

Thanks

This may seem a little harsh, but consider this...

You're not an advanced bassist if you can't groove.