Ed Friedland books

[ics1974]

I have building walking basslines and like the book except I prefer to have the tablature to look at instead of notation.

My question is regarding the following 3 books. Is it all notation or is it tab as well?
bass grooves
Building Rock Bass Lines
Pentatonic Scales For Bass

[MalcolmAmos]

I only have Building Walking Bass Lines, so can not help on the other books. However, I wanted to point out. Ed was the first to call to my attention the scale degrees R-3-5-8, etc. Look at page 9 then 15. Hook that with the major scale box pattern, and I kissed tabs good-bye. Offered for what it is worth.

Bass patterns based upon the Major Scale box.

Major Scale Box. 

G|---2---|-------|---3---|---4---| 1st string
D|---6---|-------|---7---|---8---|
A|---3---|---4---|-------|---5---|
E|-------|---R---|-------|---2---|4th string
C chord coming up, place the box's R on a C note - 4th string 8th fret
and play the R-3-5 - those are the chord tones of the C chord.  Next chord
coming up in the song is the F chord, move the box up to the F on the
3rd string 8th fret and play it's R-3-5.  Yep the G chord is waiting for you at 
the 3rd string 10th fret....

Basic Chords
• Major Triad = R-3-5
• Minor Triad = R-b3-5
• Diminished Chord = R-b3-b5

7th Chords
• Maj7 = R-3-5-7
• Minor 7 = R-b3-5-b7
• Dominant 7 = R-3-5-b7
• ½ diminished = R-b3-b5-b7
• Full diminished = R-b3-b5-bb7

See a chord and play it's chord tones. As every key will have three major, three minor and one diminished chord it's a good idea to get your major, minor and diminished bass line chord tones into muscle memory so when you see a chord your fingers just know what will work. Now the song may only give you enough room for the root, or root five - adapt and get as many chord tones into your bass line as needed. Root on 1 and a steady groove from the other chord tones plus something to call attention to the chord change is what we do.

After that sunk in I kissed tab good-bye.

Be interesting to see if Ed continued showing chord tones (R-3-5-8) in the other books.

[ics1974]

ah I see it now. That's why I wanted tab to figure out the scale degrees R-3-5-8 ect. in relation to the chord but now I understand it with notation as well. I must have skipped over page 9. Thanks!

[ics1974]

The one thing I don't like about notation is you have to see every note as a note name. I am used to seeing only the chord root note name and every note surrounding it is just a interval.

[BassChuck]

Originally Posted by ics1974

The one thing I don't like about notation is you have to see every note as a note name. I am used to seeing only the chord root note name and every note surrounding it is just a interval.

Well, I read notation and I see intervals all the time. In fact I rarely think of note names.

As for Ed's books. Get all of them. He is a master teacher, in other words, he has the genius to explain complex ideas easily. Well worth the money, if you have to learn notation to enter into his world of knowledge, so much the better. You will thank him.

[edfriedland]

Thanks Chuck! Based on your avatar, I guess you know the difference between sh*% and Shinola! Me? I don't know my brass from my oboe.

Pentatonic Scales For Bass does have tab, but Building Rock Bass Lines takes a different approach and has the lines written in standard notation, and has fingerboard grids that accompany the exercises showing you where the note choices lay on the fingerboard.

[ics1974]

Thanks Ed. I will check out your books.

[ics1974]

Just ordered all 3 books from Amazon. Good deal

[PrietoBass]

Ed is the man!!!

[Mushroo]

Originally Posted by ics1974

The one thing I don't like about notation is you have to see every note as a note name. I am used to seeing only the chord root note name and every note surrounding it is just a interval.

Same line/space is unison interval; 1 line/space is a 2nd; 2 lines/spaces is a 3rd, 3 lines/spaces is a 4th, etc.

[Philonius]

I started the Walking Bass book recently. One of the best things about it IMO is that it (yes) forced me to start learning to read. I still pretty much suck, but I think that skill is going to be the tool that leads to my becoming a good musician some day. I hope.

[ics1974]

What I meant by you need to know the note names is this. Example look at the D Dorian scale written in notation. If you didn't know it was Dorian but only knew it was on a D chord how would you see the b3 and b7 intervals without thinking note names?

[ics1974]

Here is D Dorian in notation
http://www.scalerator.com/cgi-bin/sd...pattern=dorian

[Mushroo]

Originally Posted by ics1974

What I meant by you need to know the note names is this. Example look at the D Dorian scale written in notation. If you didn't know it was Dorian but only knew it was on a D chord how would you see the b3 and b7 intervals without thinking note names?

It's tough for me to answer this in the hypothetical, since I read music and strongly encourage you to learn to do the same. One approach, I suppose, would be to look at the C Major key signature (no sharps and no flats) and use your knowledge of the modes to know Dorian is the mode built on D. Another approach, if you are an aural learner, is to practice playing both natural and flat 3rds, and use your ear to hear which one sounds right. Perhaps one of the non-readers on the forums will have better insight into your question.

Anyway I don't want to derail this thread too much; we should all be talking about how awesome Ed is.

[ics1974]

I hear what you are saying. I just like to keep it simple and if its a D chord I want to easily see the b3 or b7 or what ever interval because when the chord of the moment is D all i ever think is the intervals surrounding the D. I don't ever think what note name it is. When the chord changes to F I only see the intervals around F not note names and so on. Tab seems much easier when it comes to this.

[Mushroo]

If the chord symbol is D (and not Dmin or D-) then it is always a major 3rd (F#). If the chord symbol if F then it is major 3rd (A). You're over-thinking it.

[ics1974]

Yes but In blues you can play a b3 or b5 over a major chord to create that blues sound so you can't always assume. In notation how do you see these intervals without thinking note names?

[Mushroo]

If the song is notated in a major key, there will be an accidental (natural, flat, or double flat depending on the key signature) to indicate the "blue note."

It's hard to describe the thought process of competently reading music to someone who isn't quite there yet. It's like asking "how do you know whether to write 'there,' 'their,' or 'they're'?"---once you've internalized the grammar, you don't really have to think about it.

I don't read TAB very well, so I could reverse the question and say "how do I look at the number 8 on one line and the number 6 on another line, and know that is a minor 3rd interval, without visualizing the bass fretboard?"

[ics1974]

Your right I have to visualize the fretboard with tab. I guess I am so used to it now its very easy to do. I will give notation a honest try and hopefully it will be as easy as tab.

[colcifer]

Originally Posted by ics1974

The one thing I don't like about notation is you have to see every note as a note name. I am used to seeing only the chord root note name and every note surrounding it is just a interval.

If you know what the root is, it's easy to see the intervals. All you have to do is count the lines and spaces between the notes.