Bass Lessons

Tim Fletcher is back with his seventh entry of the “Unsung U.S. Bassists” series. Check out his bass transcription and analysis for Ronnie Baker's line on "Bad Luck" by Harold Melvin and the Bluenotes

Here’s another “Chromatic Acrobatic Phantasy” for you to shed your technique. Chromatic approaches sound exciting and driving. How can you use them in your grooves? Can you pull off the fast version while staying relaxed? Have a go at it, it’s worth it.

Tim Fletcher is back with his sixth entry of the “Unsung U.S. Bassists” series. Check out his transcription and analysis for Chris Ethridge’s bass line on “Hot Burrito #2” by The Flying Burrito Brothers.

That riff from Chick Corea’s “Spain,” played between the solos and as part of the head, is as catchy as it is tricky. Ari gets frequent requests for help on that section, so she breaks it down, step by step, in this new episode of “Talking Technique”

Tim Fletcher’s fifth entry of the “Unsung U.S. Bassists” series is here. Check out Tim’s transcription and analysis of Karl Alvarez’s Bass Line on “I’m The One” by The Descendents.

Episode 61 of Talking Technique is all about using chromatic approaches to liven up a bass line. Ari also covers how to use different fingerings to come up with these sorts of situations in your playing.

Tim Fletcher’s fourth entry of the “Unsung US Bassists” bass transcription series focuses on Jean Millington's Bass Line on “Ain’t That Peculiar” by Fanny.

In episode #60 of Talking Technique, Ariane Cap breaks down how Geddy Lee uses power chords in Rush’s “Dreamline,” with a quick harmonic run down, tips for fingering, technical execution, and practice.

Phil Upchurch has played on over two hundred albums, and is highly regarded for his guitar work. He is less well-known as a bass player, but he’s contributed some excellent work as well. Check out Tim Fletcher’s transcription and analysis of Upchurch’s line on Donny Hathaway’s “Misty”

In this lesson, Lorin Cohen illustrates how to use one minor pentatonic scale over five chord types. In this case, using the B minor pentatonic scale to play over a progression. This illustrates what Lorin calls a “vertical” approach to soloing, where we create lines that move swiftly up and across the fingerboard.