Here’s an incredibly common scenario: You get handed a chord chart or a lyric sheet to a song you’ve never played or even heard before. Without any time to prepare or listen to the song, you’re expected to play something that not only sounds good by itself, but also works with what the rest of […]
Basslines From Scales: Why It’s NOT A Great Idea…
Bass players love scales! In fact, I love them myself! They’re unbelievably useful in all kinds of situations. You can use them to: Create melodies Improve your technique Understand music at a deeper level However, there’s one area where scales aren’t nearly as useful: Making bass lines. Scales are good for lots of things, but […]
5 ‘Secret’ Ingredients Of Great Basslines
Have you ever wondered what makes a bass line good or not? Now that is a question worth asking! It’s easy to go and play a ton of great basslines without really knowing what makes them great. But as bass players, the more we know about why great basslines work, the better we can make […]
Six Rhythmic Formulas For Killer Basslines: Basslines From Scratch 3/9
When it comes to writing your own basslines, sometimes you barely have to worry about the notes, right? They’re pretty much taken care of. It’s common for bass players to be given a chord chart or a lyric sheet that basically tells them what notes are going to work the best. This is great if you’re not […]
4 Different Methods To Create The Perfect Bass Line: BLFS 2/9
Imagine this: You’ve just been pulled up on stage at a jam session to play a song on bass. Except you don’t know the song that’s being played. That doesn’t seem to matter to anyone else though. They’re still expecting you to create a bass line that works. This kind of thing happens all the […]
How To Write A Bassline: Basslines From Scratch (Lesson 1/9)
Do you know how to write a bassline? As a bass player, making basslines is one of the most important things you’ll do. Sure, sometimes bass players will be crafting fills, playing melodies or even improvising, but for probably 95% of the time, we’re playing basslines. The very best bass players don’t just know how […]
