Jazz bass lines can be intimidating, right? You see these incredible bassists creating incredible bass lines out of thin air and improvise like there’s no tomorrow – it can be super inspiring. But then you hear them talk about things like ‘double chromatic approach tones’ or using the ‘Superlocrian mode’ over altered dominant chords or […]
Mode Mapping On Bass [2 Part Formula For Bass Lines/Fills/Solos]
Have you ever come across a chord progression ‘in the wild’ and been completely stumped as to what you could play over it? Sure – you might be able to scrape by if you just stuck to root notes, but what if you needed to come up with a more creative bass line, or your […]
How To Learn Your First Song On Bass
These days, I don’t do a lot of in-person teaching anymore, but when I did, I’d get a lot of day-1 beginners coming to me keen and excited about playing bass but they didn’t have a clue where to begin. They may have searched Google or YouTube for ‘bass lessons’ and seen the ever-expanding buffet […]
5 Beginner Funk Bass Lines – Guaranteed To Impress
Funk bass lines: If there’s anything more fun than laying down some of these, I’m not sure what it is. But if someone demands: “Play me something funky!” What do you do? Have you got some killer funk bass lines you can launch into at the drop of a hat and fill a dancefloor? If […]
3-Finger Plucking Technique On Bass
I remember the very first time I was gobsmacked by someone’s bass playing. I was still a skinny teenager and somehow got my hands on this DVD: During Steve Vai’s set, the absolute MONSTER of a bass player – Billy Sheehan – takes an absolutely ripping bass solo, full of huge bends, technical acrobatics and […]
Playing Bass With A Pick [3 Levels]
Playing bass with a pick – on one hand, it can be a whole TON of fun. Some of the most fun bands had bass players who played with a pick. On the other hand though, some people simply lose their minds if you play bass with a pick – and not in a good […]
