How Important Are Scales?

[MVE]

Getting back to the OP’s question though, I can see someone getting by just fine in a cover band learning their set songs by ear or via tabs and learning originals strictly by ear and getting by.
But you would be severely handicapped in your ability to communicate with other musicians.
Someone trying to teach you a song would have to play it over and over or give you a recording to work from as opposed to just saying, “Cm, F7, Bb” or 2-5-1.
So, I think that is the actual answer to your question.

EDIT: Also, without an agreed upon framework of chords, any attempts at improvisation with other musicians would likely result in the proverbial CF.

 

[Charlzm]

For musical knowledge, they are important. Not as important as chords. As Jeff Berlin puts it,



This is why a popular study book is Chord Studies for Electric Bass

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One of my favorite stories about this:

In 1990, I was sitting in a tiny room at Musicians Institute with three or four other students, having my mind blown by Jeff Berlin's awesome ability to just solo melodically over any chord progression he chose from the Real Book.

When I finally asked him during a break how he just knew what to do without thinking about it, he replied, "To play like that, learn every scale in every position until you know them inside-out."

Best advice I have ever heard in regards to music, except possibly this, also from Jeff Berlin: "Name ten bands that have an irreplaceable bass player."

 

[MVE]

One of my favorite stories about this:

In 1990, I was sitting in a tiny room at Musicians Institute with three or four other students, having my mind blown by Jeff Berlin's awesome ability to just solo melodically over any chord progression he chose from the Real Book.

When I finally asked him during a break how he just knew what to do without thinking about it, he replied, "To play like that, learn every scale in every position until you know them inside-out."

Best advice I have ever heard in regards to music, except possibly this, also from Jeff Berlin: "Name ten bands that have an irreplaceable bass player."

Dude, I can’t think of ten bands where the bass player wasn’t irreplaceable.

 

[MDBass]

I'm serious, how important for a bass player is scales?

Any good videos that break them done or book or etc? I know there is many but what is the best ones to follow?

Understanding theory and chord structure is exponentially more important to a bass player than just knowing a bunch of scales.

 

[Rebel Bass]

I'm serious, how important for a bass player is scales?

Any good videos that break them done or book or etc? I know there is many but what is the best ones to follow?

Lots of guys never learn scales, but still manage great careers. The ear tells you what notes work. But if you want to speed up the process and expand your playing, take the time to learn them, then don't worry about them anymore.
The scales to learn are:
Major, with all of it's modes, chords, pents and blues, relative to it. This will help with most chord progression too.
Melodic Minor and harmonic Minor, with all of it's modes, chords, pents and blues, relative to it. This will fill in some of the jazz harmony, plus give you some exotic sounds.
8 Not Diminished and 8 Note Dominant
Whole Tone
Pentatonics and Blues
For starters...
If you just work on one octave, through the cycle of fifths, you can get all of this, including the chords, memorized within a year or less. Then explore and develop. Don't forget rhythm study.
Have fun!

 

[Dave Leighton]

You’ll never know how much that bass weighs without a scale.

It’s the first question people ask.

Some of the snarky or smart a$$ answers on this site tend to irritate me a bit.

This one made me spit beer across the room in explosive laughter. Thank you. I needed that

 

[Swingin]

Knowing scales made learning to play walking bass very natural and easy. It also helps with soloing.

 

[dbsfgyd1]

I'm serious, how important for a bass player is scales?

Any good videos that break them done or book or etc? I know there is many but what is the best ones to follow?

Start with the major and minor scales, them build from there.

 

[mambo4]

I'm serious, how important for a bass player is scales?
Any good videos that break them done or book or etc? I know there is many but what is the best ones to follow?

The question is vague, and the vague answer is "very important".

I assume the OP is trying to ask how important leaning all the scales is.
and perhaps which ones are most useful / important.

The most important scale to know is the major scale, hands down, no question.
Why? because it's the measure against which all scales, intervals, chords, and most music theory are described.

Beginners tend believe they "know" the major scale far too soon -like after mastering a 4 fret box pattern.
I have been playing for 30 years and I have yet to exhaust ways to practice and understand the major scale

It is a bottomless well of knowledge to explore.
Lear the major scale
learn it in in all keys across the entire neck
learn the half step /whole step pattern of the major scale
learn the 7 intervals of the major scale
learn the 5 chromatic intervals (which we describe relative to one of the above 7)
learn the triads and 7th chords built on the harmonized major scale
learn the secondary dominants of those chords
learn the diatonic modes that are based on the major scale

it never ends

there are other scales that are fun and useful to know
but they ultimately all are most usefully understood in relation to the major scale.

 

[lauregami]

As someone who is still a beginner player, learning scales has made me a lot more familiar and comfortable with working the fretboard and the relationships between the notes. Focusing on scales has been very fruitful for me.

 

[EatS1stBassist]

I'm serious, how important for a bass player is scales?

Any good videos that break them done or book or etc? I know there is many but what is the best ones to follow?

Important! It teaches you the ability to put a musical language to phrase and gives you the ability to speak. Combining certain notes of a scale allows you to create chords. In our case arpeggios IME

 

[StatesideRambler]

Understanding theory and chord structure is exponentially more important to a bass player than just knowing a bunch of scales.

It’s common to hear that scales are separate from theory, chord structure and songs in music. Not so. If you don’t have a good grounding in scales you have no foundation for anything in music theory. Reading and writing text requires a knowledge of the letters of the alphabet that goes beyond reciting the letters; reading and writing music requires a knowledge of scales that goes far beyond simply reciting the note names.

FWIW Flea of the RHCP, after years of musical experience and success, took time out to enroll in the music department at USC to flesh out his knowledge of music. You don’t get into those classes without a good foundation. Are scales important? Nah. Not if you’re content where you are. (I am not belittling anyone here. Many people have become important, admirable musicians without much formal musical education. The great Ray Brown among them.)

 

[MDBass]

It’s common to hear that scales are separate from theory, chord structure and songs in music. Not so. If you don’t have a good grounding in scales you have no foundation for anything in music theory. Reading and writing text requires a knowledge of the letters of the alphabet that goes beyond reciting the letters; reading and writing music requires a knowledge of scales that goes far beyond simply reciting the note names.

You’re suggesting that not having a thesaurus level vocabulary means you don’t understand what “orange” is.

That’s not how language works.

Knowing how to play all the modes of the harmonic minor scale in every key is significantly less important knowledge for nearly all bass players than understanding what chord tones are and how chords are constructed.

That’s all I’m saying: it’s not that they aren’t important, there are just other things significantly more important to being a musical bass player than knowing a bunch of scales.

If you have limited practice time, running scales probably shouldn’t be the thing you’re spending the most time on.

 

[Darth_Linux]

getting major, minor, dorian, pentatonic, and mixolydian scales "under" your fingers will make figuring out and/or playing little runs and fills MUCH easier. Do it.

 

[Nephilymbass]

I'm serious, how important for a bass player is scales?

Any good videos that break them done or book or etc? I know there is many but what is the best ones to follow?

I run through few when I warm up. Because bass is tuned in 4ths across the entire instrument there are a lot of repetitive patterns when it comes to playing scales on bass. I do recommend learning at least a couple basic scales but try to also learn them in different positions. Playing the same scale in different positions is something a lot of bass players don’t do. Take c major for example. Can you play it from the low C on a 5 string? Can you play it from the 3rd fret C on the A string? Can you play it from the 8th fret C on the E string, 15th fret of the A string? Practicing that will dramatically increases your understanding of the fingerboard also. Also try to connect the dots so to speak. For example play a C major scale and then play it’s relative “A minor” scale . Do you notice what they have in common? Do you see the three fret relationship between relative keys? When you start connecting the dots as far as the repetitive patterns and relative keys you’ll see it’s a lot easier to understand your basic major and minor scales. That’s really all you need to know to play most styles of music particularly pop and rock music. There are some additional scales that are beneficial if you’re playing jazz though. F# blues scale is the key to learning like half of Rage against the machines catalog if you want to learn their stuff really fast lol.

 

[Clipped]

If you want to weigh your bass, you really need them.

 

[edro]

ANY structured technique practice is beneficial to you.

Learn the scales. You will learn the notes (# & b) in each key.

Practice them SLOOOOW for a while so you can SPEAK each note as you play with a metronome..

That will help you learn the notes on the board. Learn arpeggios too and SPEAK those notes too...

Play a scale on the E up there close to the nut, then the arpeggio without break, across to A string and do the same, then bounce up a half step on the E rinse repeat up. Then back down the same way you came up...

Great way to warm up, improve your reach, build finger strength, etc... Every time you start fretting multiple consecutive notes by jumping the index finger up and down, stop and punch yourself in face... Learn to use your fingers...

Speed is not the target. Accuracy with as little hand movement possible is the target. As my older bro beat in my head decades back when I started learning bass (not my principle instrument), "It's all about conservation of energy. Play the frets not the board....press just enough to clearly and accurately play the note. Fight the bass and you'll just get tired and cramp up... You'll never be smooth."

 

[Rebel Bass]

For musical knowledge, they are important. Not as important as chords. As Jeff Berlin puts it,



This is why a popular study book is Chord Studies for Electric Bass

View attachment 3417189

This Chord Studies book is a great book to go through. The exercises remind of Jeff Berlin. The book is actually a study of embellishments, upper neighbor, lower neighbor, and upper to lower neighbors, to chord tones. Mostly on triad and seventh chords. Not really a study of scales though. It's one of the books I always suggest to students at some point, for sure. The best book for scale practice I ever used was the Dick Grove Improvisation series, which is out of print, unfortunately.

 

[MDBass]

FWIW Flea of the RHCP, after years of musical experience and success, took time out to enroll in the music department at USC to flesh out his knowledge of music.

You’re literally arguing the opposite of your original point here, unless you’re suggesting that Flea enrolled in USC’s music school to learn scales

 

[cheechi]

learning chord notes tells you what sounds good together, but in learning the notes of a scale you learn what notes to avoid.