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Beginning Bass
- Thread starter BHorton97
- Start date
Hi and welcome to Talk bass. 
The first thing I would advise is not to become too dependent on tabs. Develop your ear by playing along to songs and try to work things out yourself.
Some things to get you started :
Learn good right and left hand technique. Search You Tube.
Learn where all the notes are on the fretboard.
For a start, learn the major, minor and pentatonic scales. Learn about chord tones as these are what the bassist plays most of the time.
"Study Bass" is one of the best sites for learning bass. It covers all the above. Here is a link to the lessons. Start at the beginning and work your way through them. Try not to skip ahead in the lessons, as this will cause gaps in the learning process, and make progress slower in the long run.
http://www.studybass.com/study-guide/
Other recommended sites :
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Right here on "Talk Bass"
Start playing with other people as soon as you feel confident enough. The sooner the better.
Finally, be patient with yourself. Take things in small steps. If you take on too much too soon you may get bogged down, become frustrated and want to give up. The most important thing is to have fun. That's what it is all about in the end.
Best of luck with it.
The first thing I would advise is not to become too dependent on tabs. Develop your ear by playing along to songs and try to work things out yourself.
Some things to get you started :
Learn good right and left hand technique. Search You Tube.
Learn where all the notes are on the fretboard.
For a start, learn the major, minor and pentatonic scales. Learn about chord tones as these are what the bassist plays most of the time.
"Study Bass" is one of the best sites for learning bass. It covers all the above. Here is a link to the lessons. Start at the beginning and work your way through them. Try not to skip ahead in the lessons, as this will cause gaps in the learning process, and make progress slower in the long run.
http://www.studybass.com/study-guide/
Other recommended sites :
[Invalid or Expired Link Removed]
Right here on "Talk Bass"
Start playing with other people as soon as you feel confident enough. The sooner the better.
Finally, be patient with yourself. Take things in small steps. If you take on too much too soon you may get bogged down, become frustrated and want to give up. The most important thing is to have fun. That's what it is all about in the end.
Best of luck with it.
I second you not getting into tabs, i.e. with tabs you only learn how to play this specific song. I recommend you play from standard notation, fake chord or Nashville numbers. I found the following sums up what I would have liked to have known when I first started out. Too much to remember, copy and put it somewhere you can get to it later. Pull it out and read it several times - like once a week. Things that went over your head today will make since next week - or the week after that.......
Have fun, it is a journey that could take the rest of your life. Spend time with www.studybass.com, the book Bass Guitar for Dummies, any of Ed Friedland's books and any of Scott Devine's videos.
Learn where the notes are on your fretboard. Right at first just the notes on the 3rd and 4th string. Later on you can get to the top two strings. Why? Well let's see......
Major Scale Box.
Code:: G|---2---|-------|---3---|---4---| 1st string D|---6---|-------|---7---|---8---| A|---3---|---4---|-------|---5---| E|-------|---R---|-------|---2---|4th string
Most chord progressions - and yes follow the chords in a song, makes everything else much easier - will revolve around the I-IV-V chord progression. Song in the key of C. Find a C note on your 3rd string. Where is the IV or F root note? Yep right above the C note. Where is the V or G note? Right below the C. Now that was my first WOW. Song in D find a D on the 3rd string. Where is the G and A note. Yep right where they are supposed to be. Need a 3rd, its above the R and back a fret. Need a 6? It's right above the 3. The 5 will be right below the R or up a string and over two frets. The 7 is up two strings from the R and over a fret. The b7 is right over the 4. Yep you kinda need to put that to memory same way you memorized that 9+8=17 and 9+5=14. Adding 9 to something; bring the something into your answer less 1 number. Adding 8 to something; bring the something into your answer less 2. Piece of cake after you learn the rules. Bass is like that. Music is an art form, i.e. the rules are guidelines, if you go outside the rules and it sounds good, then it is good. Kinda helps to know the rules first.....
I found Online Bass Lessons at StudyBass.com and Ed's book "Building Walking Bass Lines" to be on track and both have great value. There is one more bass line book I would recommend, "Bass lines in minutes" by Kris Berg. "Bass Guitar for Dummies" is a good refresher book, as it has a little bit of everything you will be using. Your public library will probably have a copy.
My old standby chart of generic bass lines using the major scale box as a Rosetta stone may help:
Quote:
Bass Patterns based upon the Major Scale box.
Major Scale Box.
Basic ChordsCode:: G|---2---|-------|---3---|---4---| 1st string D|---6---|-------|---7---|---8---| A|---3---|---4---|-------|---5---| E|-------|---R---|-------|---2---|4th string C chord coming up. Find a C note on your fretboard and place the R over that C note and play the R-3-5-3 scale degrees within the box - you just played an acceptable bass line for a C major chord. Read on....
• 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 90% of what we do.
Scales
• Major Scale = R-2-3-4-5-6-7 Home base
• Major Pentatonic = R-2-3-5-6 Leave out the 4 & 7
• Natural Minor Scale = R-2-b3-4-5-b6-b7 Major scale with the 3, 6 & 7 flatted.
• Minor Pentatonic = R-b3-4-5-b7 Leave out the 2 & 6.
• Blues = R-b3-4-b5-5-b7 Minor pentatonic with the blue note b5 added.
• Harmonic Minor Scale = R-2-b3-4-5-b6-7 Natural minor with a natural 7.
• Melodic Minor Scale = R-2-b3-4-5-6-7 Major scale with a b3.
Let the major scale be your home base then change a few notes and you have something different. No need to memorize a zillion patterns. Let the major scale pattern be your go to pattern - then adapt/adjust from there.
Major modes Home base for all major modes is the major scale. What I talk about below is the Parallel method of making modes. There is also the Relative method of making modes. Relative is easier to teach, Parallel is easier to use. Use which ever one you like best. But, until you know more save yourself some time and go with the Parallel method.
• Ionian same as the Major Scale. R-2-3-4-5-6-7
• Lydian use the major scale and sharp the 4 - yes, it’s that simple. R-2-3-#4-5-6-7
• Mixolydian use the major scale and flat the 7. Change one note..... R-2-3-4-5-6-b7
Minor Modes Home base for all minor modes is the natural minor scale.
• Aeolian same as the Natural Minor scale. R-2-b3-4-5-b6-b7
• Dorian use the Natural Minor scale and sharp the b6 back to a natural 6. Change one note.
• Phrygian use the Natural Minor scale and flat the 2. Again change one note.
• Locrian use the Natural Minor scale and flat the 2 and the 5. OK here you have to change two notes. And end up with R-b2-b3-4-b5-b6-b7.
Modal Harmony - the rest of the story.
• If you play your modes over a chord progression you will probably only hear the tonal center of your progression.
• However, if you play your modes over a modal vamp the vamp will sustain the modal mood long enough for the modal mood (sound) to be heard. The modal vamp droning effect will sustain the modal mood. Where with a chord progression the chords change so quickly that the modal mood does not have time to develop. Modal vamps of one to two chords let the modal mood be heard. http://www.riddleworks.com/modalharm3.html
Scales and modes are for the melody - your solo. Chord tones are for your accompaniment bass line. Of course that's IMHO. To solo let the melody be your guide. Yep, melody has to be in there some place. Counting on running a scale or a mode and letting that be your lead solo - good luck. The song's tune is the foundation for your solo or your improvisation of that tune. Let the melody be your guide. OK easy said, hard to do. As the melody and the chord line to harmonize must share some of the same notes at the same time in the song -- and as the songwriter has already taken all that into account - inserting the harmonizing chord where needed - it makes since to play the chord's pentatonic scale over the chord - as that scale will have three chord tones and two safe passing notes in it's makeup. Play the chord's pentatonic scale notes over the chord changes as your melody solo right at first. Major chord - major pentatonic R-2-3-5-6 and minor chord - minor pentatonic R-b3-4-5-b7. Mix the notes up, no need to just run them in scale order.
Think generic licks made from pentatonic notes and move those licks around with the chord changes.
Generic Notes - for your bass line.
• The root, five and eight are generic and fit most any chord. Remember the diminished has a flatted 5.
• The 3 is generic to all major chords. So R-3-5-3 will fit under any major chord.
• The b3 is generic to all minor chords. And R-b3-5-8 will fit under any minor chord. Why the 8? Well the 8 is just another root in the next octave.
• The 7 is generic to all maj7 chords. Yep, R-3-5-7 fits nicely.
• The b7 is generic to all dominant seventh and minor seventh chords. G7 = R-3-5-b7 or Gm7 = R-b3-5-b7.
• The 6 is neutral and adds color, help yourself to 6’s. Love the sound of R-3-5-6 with a major chord.
• The 2 and 4 make good passing notes. Don’t linger on them or stop on them, keep them passing.
• In making your bass line help yourself to those notes, just use them correctly.
• Roots, fives, eights and the correct 3 & 7 will play a lot of bass.
Have fun, it is a journey that could take the rest of your life. Spend time with www.studybass.com, the book Bass Guitar for Dummies, any of Ed Friedland's books and any of Scott Devine's videos.
Youtube is wicked mate, though for me personally it can get too fast / confusing, even with me stopping and replaying the vid at every point!
Past couple of weeks I've used Songsterr bass tabs - I'm only learning to play some Alice in Chains riffs this way, so I'm not sure that it'll help you A LOT. For me though being able to accompany my bro on guitar is fuelling the fire and getting my hands to work better every day.
As per the posts above, there's better (proper?) resources to be used - it all put me right off at the start though so be aware there's these options too.
Past couple of weeks I've used Songsterr bass tabs - I'm only learning to play some Alice in Chains riffs this way, so I'm not sure that it'll help you A LOT. For me though being able to accompany my bro on guitar is fuelling the fire and getting my hands to work better every day.
As per the posts above, there's better (proper?) resources to be used - it all put me right off at the start though so be aware there's these options too.
I think the book Bass Guitar for Dummies is an excellent resource too.I bought it when I first took up bass again, and it covers the basics very well. All the other resources suggested already are great too.
As mentioned, don't be too reliant on tabs, but start working with your ear and developing that skill. Get your basics down solid, before getting tricky. Seems obvious, but many do try to gloss over that to get right to the "good stuff". That will only hurt you in the end.
Play with others as soon as you can/feel ready. Nothing teaches like experience.
Another good way to train your ear and practice improv skills is play along with songs you know the chord progression to. At first, all you have to do is get the root notes and changes. Just play the root notes over and over, changing as the chords change. It won't be THE bassline to the song, but it will be a working bassline for it. This will help your timing and your ability to listen while playing. Your ear will definitely tell you when you are wrong. As you learn your scales, chord tones, and more about how bass and music work, you can start playing around with adding more than just the root notes. As long as you are hitting the root notes of the chords on the changes, you are free to play around between the roots, vary your rhythms and patterns, etc... Kind of a free form way of exercising your knowledge by using something you know as a backing track.
As mentioned, don't be too reliant on tabs, but start working with your ear and developing that skill. Get your basics down solid, before getting tricky. Seems obvious, but many do try to gloss over that to get right to the "good stuff". That will only hurt you in the end.
Play with others as soon as you can/feel ready. Nothing teaches like experience.
Another good way to train your ear and practice improv skills is play along with songs you know the chord progression to. At first, all you have to do is get the root notes and changes. Just play the root notes over and over, changing as the chords change. It won't be THE bassline to the song, but it will be a working bassline for it. This will help your timing and your ability to listen while playing. Your ear will definitely tell you when you are wrong. As you learn your scales, chord tones, and more about how bass and music work, you can start playing around with adding more than just the root notes. As long as you are hitting the root notes of the chords on the changes, you are free to play around between the roots, vary your rhythms and patterns, etc... Kind of a free form way of exercising your knowledge by using something you know as a backing track.
Use your ear as much as possible to figure out the basslines. You will develop your acoustic understanding of intervals (and maybe even of the notes themselves, allowing you to develop perfect pitch, or get very close to it), and you will find easier and easier to hear the bass even in records that are not all that forgiving in that sense (i.e. where the bass is kind of buried in the mix). If you can, try to learn reading standard notation... but a good musical ear will take you plenty of places by itself.
Plus, you should use only the chord progression of the songs (instead of tabs) to figure the basslines out. The chords are only a harmonic guide for you to find the individual notes, and it doesn't give out the whole line the way a tab does. And online tabs are often wrong, so take them with a grain of salt or just use them for particularly tricky sections but not for the whole song. I learned plenty of songs with tabs when I started, and I keep finding more and more mistakes in the way I used to play them so I have to correct my playing according to the song itself.
