Wordplay

This is another tune from my girlfriend’s ipod moment. It’s a great pop song with a nice swung semiquaver feel in the verses and just enough variation in the bassline to keep it interesting. There are some nice fills in the chorus that follow the vocal (one of my favourite tricks too) and tasty melodic playing in the breakdown before the final chorus with some cool inversions. Make sure to hit all the ghost notes as they are important to the feel and keep this semiquaver pushes swung!

This was recorded on my custom built 5 String with Aguilar DCB pickups and an Aguilar OBP-3 preamp. I had both pickups on full and a slight boost on both the treble and mids. I went into my Markbass Compressore with my standard settings (see pic) and then into my Diamond BCP-1 with a little more compression and a slight EQ bump in the 900 mode. I boosted around 1k by 4db in Logic.

Thanks for reading. If you like the song, make your own video and tag me on social media, @jproudbass on twitter and instagram.

Till next week.

Click here to download PDF transcription

Staying in love

(I strained a tendon while rock climbing so have been playing bass only when absolutely neccessary. I’ve been keeping up with transcriptions so prepare for a deluge!)

Raphael Saadiq is one of my favourite bass players. He’s always so firmly in the pocket that it hurts. I urge you to check out his back catalogue as soon as possible. This is one is super influenced by the great James Jamerson (again). Plenty of syncopation and root-fifth-root rakedowns going. Get stuck in!

I recorded this on my Fender 50s Precision Bass with Ernie Ball Slinky Flatwounds and a Badass II bridge. Volume and Tone fully up. I stuffed a whole load of foam under the bridge to get that 60s muted bass sound. I went into my Markbass Compressore set so every note was compressed when i was playing at normal volume. I DI’d out of my Tech21 VT BASS DI with the character knob at around 11 and the drive at around 10. I boosted the highs slightly.

Thanks for reading. If you like the song, make your own video and tag me on social media, @jproudbass on twitter and instagram.

Click here to download PDF transcription

 You’re All I Need To Get By

I heard this tune in a cafe the other day and loved the bass playing. I had to transcribe it! I’ve done some digging around online and have come to the conclusion that it’s either Jerry Jemmot or Chuck Rainey laying down the bass on this one. Whoever it is, they’re doing a great James Jamerson impression.

This tune is a great example of pedal point playing and chord inversion. The verse has the bass playing an A while the rest of the band changes chord. It’s a classic chord progression,

I     IIx (sub for IIm)  IVm (sub for V)   I

The chorus starts with a A/E (2nd inversion) which to me has an unsettled but uplifting sound. Try it out on a gig, stick the 5th over the I chord. Sounds glorious when done in the right place, use your ears as always. A lot of the fills follow the classic bass secret formula: root, third, sixth (and then a myriad of options, often fourth or fifth). Once you’ve clocked this one you’ll start hearing it everywhere. It’s used heavily in Raphael Saadiq’s bassline on L.O.V.E. Bar 3 is the first example.

I recorded this on my Fender 50s Precision Bass with Ernie Ball Slinky Flatwounds and a Badass II bridge. Volume and Tone fully up. I stuffed a whole load of foam under the bridge to get that 60s muted bass sound. I’m sure there are more elegant ways of doing it! I went into my Markbass Compressore set so every note was compressed when i was playing at normal volume. I DI’d out of my Tech21 VT BASS DI with the character knob at around 1 o’clock and the drive and bass dialed back a little.  I added a little compression in Logic to tie it altogether with the vintage FET setting. I also boosted around 1k by about 3 dB.

Thanks for reading. If you like the song, make your own video and tag me on social media, @jproudbass on twitter and instagram.

Click here to download PDF transcription

Have You Ever Seen The Rain?

I have, it’s chucking it down in the north east of england! I don’t know if that inspired me to do this song but it’s a hell of a coincidence. I also wanted an excuse to play my Epiphone Jack Casady bass. I love this bass. Best old school precision bass sound I’ve ever heard other than a genuine old school precision bass, and who can afford one of those?

I play a lot of weddings as part of my session work as a full time musician, this one was requested at a gig and I’d never actually heard it before. I loved the simple, for the song bass line and the unison piano/bass fills. The line does develop slightly towards the end, not much but it adds a little extra to the last choruses.

I recorded this using a Dunlop 2mm Delrin pick (the purple one) near the pickup on my Epiphone Jack Casady signature bass, strung with D’addario Chromes(with the pickup set to 500hz). I added compression with my Markbass Compressore and DI’d out of my Tech 21 VT Bass DI with a B15 sound with the drive dialed back.

Thanks for reading. If you like the song, make your own video and tag me on social media, @jproudbass on twitter and instagram.

Click here to download PDF transcription

The Ballad of Little Girl Dancer

This is a little extra transcription for a bit of fun. I’m trying to improve my fretless playing this year. I’ll be putting more of these up as the year goes on, mainly jazz tunes with written fretless bass lines. Expect Weather Report, Jaco Pastorius, Christian McBride etc

I recorded this on my home constructed fretless bass with Seymour Duncan Steve Bailey pickups and Thomastik-Infeld flatwounds. I added compression with my Diamond Bass Comp and a bit of reverb with my Mooer Shimverb. I DI’d out of my Tech 21 VT BASS DI with a mid boost and a general SVT sound. I added more compression in Logoc using the studio FET setting with the ratio at around 3:1.

Thanks for reading. If you like the song, make your own video and tag me on social media, @jproudbass on twitter and instagram.

Till next week.

Click here to download PDF transcription

H-Gang

This week’s track is from Donald Fagen’s (Steely Dan) solo album Morph the Cat. This is another late night gem I discovered on my girlfriend’s music device while driving home from a gig. Although the band is absolutely grooving the real reason I’m doing this one is that the backing vocals in the choruses are amazing. Who has BV’s that dense and right up in the mix?! I love it.

The bass line itself is a very precise affair. At first listen it can seem sterile and uninspired but upon close inspection it develops nicely throughout the song and is full of little improvised gems. Compare Choruses 1 & 2. The quaver pickups on beat 2 in bars 2,4,6, and 8 of chorus 2 really help the chorus kick along. There are more, investigate the score, see what you can find. It’s a great example of a session bassist (Freddie Washington Jr.) enhancing the written part while staying true to the spirit of the line.

This was recorded on my custom built 5 String with Aguilar DCB pickups and an Aguilar OBP-3 preamp. I had both pickups on full and about a quarter turn treble boost. I went into  my Markbass Compressore with a medium attack/release and set the threshold so most most notes were compressed. The ratio was just after 12 o’clock. I boosted 2k in Logic by about 5db with a Q of .57

Thanks for reading. If you like the song, make your own video and tag me on social media, @jproudbass on twitter and instagram.

Till next week.

Click here to download PDF transcription

As The World Falls Down

Another Fretless tune this week, and also a trip back to the 1980s. Coincidence? This one’s from the 1985 film Labyrinth, you know the one. It’s the film where David Bowie’s leggings should have been up for a best supporting actor award. Anyway, its a cracker of a tune so grab your fretless and let’s have a look.

It’s in A major so plenty of chance to use those open strings. When playing fretless I use open strings as often as possible, it’s a trick I learned from double bass players. It allows you to check your tuning/intonation and to skip any difficult position changes. This tune features a lot of slides up to and down from notes. It adds a lot of character to the part so try to get them in if you can. T

I recorded this on my home constructed fretless bass with Seymour Duncan Steve Bailey pickups and Thomastik-Infeld flatwounds. I went into my Diamond Bass Compressor with a good whack of compression and EQ knob at around 2:45 on the 900 setting. I added some spring reverb with my Mooer Shimverb. I Di’d out of my Tech 21 VT BASS DI with the character knob more towards the B15 setting, the drive at around 10 o’clock and a decent treble boost. I added some compression in Logic for any peaks using the vintage FET setting.

Thanks for reading. If you like the song, make your own video and tag me on social media, @jproudbass on twitter and instagram.

Till next week.

Click here to download PDF transcription

50 Ways To Leave Your Lover

Another one of my teenage favourites! I seem to be exploring my youth in this series. For me, this was the perfect album to listen to on a sunny afternoon in the garden with a few beers. Rhythm section of Anthony Johnson and Steve Gadd? Dream combo. Not that I had any idea at the time!

If you read last weeks instalment you’ll have seen that I said “not all basslines need fills every 4 bars”. In the chorus of this tune Anthony plays a fill every 4 bars! Check out how he locks with drums on some phrases and the horns with others, listening to the whole band is so important if you want a cohesive, solid ensemble sound. Also note the subtle change to the main groove in the outro/solo section. That little quaver-quaver rhythm on  beat 1 of the 1st bar of every 4 bar sequence really helps propel the section along. Small, simple ideas can have a big impact if used judiciously.

This was recorded on my 2001 Fender Jazz Bass with Aguilar 60s pickups and Badass III bridge. Both pickups and tone were on full. I went into my Diamond Bass Compressor and set it so just the loudest notes were compressed. I DI’d out of my Tech 21 VT BASS DI with a slight mid bump, a good treble bump, and a general SVT ish sound.

Thanks for reading. If you like the song, make your own video and tag me on social media, @jproudbass on twitter and instagram.

Till next week.

Click here to download PDF transcription

Love is Stronger Than Justice

Another plectrum/pick tune this week, from Mr Sting himself. This track is from one of my favourite albums growing up. I was listening to this before I had any idea what a bass guitar was. Turns out I had great taste! Let’s have a look at it.

This is one of those harder to play than it sounds tunes, keeping the main riff consistent should be your greatest concern. I played it in open position but there are a few different ways to play it. Experiment and find out what works best for you.

It’s based around an A blues sound in the verse, not quite minor or major, somewhere in between, where the blues lives. The chorus is all C Major and a classic example of a 3 chord trick. Sting uses a few nice approach notes and runs to keep it moving along, he’s a master of ‘playing for the song’, not all basslines need fills every 4 bars! Use this lesson wisely in your own playing. Your bandmates will thank you for it.

I recorded this using a Dunlop 2mm Delrin pick (the purple one) on my 2001 Fender Jazz Bass with Aguilar 60s pickups and Badass III bridge. Both pickups and tone were on full. I went into my Mark Bass compressore set so every note I played was compressed, the ratio was at 12 o’clock. I DI’d out of my Tech 21 VT BASS DI with a slight mid bump and a rough Ampeg B12 sound. I added a tiny bit of compression in logic and a little EQ bump at 200hz.

Thanks for reading. If you like the song, make your own video and tag me on social media, @jproudbass on twitter and instagram.

Till next week.

Click here to download PDF transcription

The Birdwatcher

(Got this one just in time! I cut my 1st finger on my left hand right where it contacts the string when playing. Outside of gigs I haven’t fancied playing this week, however, a commitment has been made. On with the show.)

Continuing on with the influenced by James Jamerson theme, this tune is JJ on speed/caffeine/energy drink (delete as appropriate). I don’t know a lot about American band Vulfpeck but this tune caught my ear a few years ago and I’ve just got round to looking at it. It’s played in a very precise, articulate style that I’ve done my best to emulate. I’m no Joe Dart however. This one is a challenge, there are no drums to rely on for your timing and it’s full of semiquaver pushes and odd phrasing. The middle section is a welcome break! Take your time and learn each 8 bar section individually. There are very few repeated bars so really dig into the transcription and make sure you’re getting all the intricacies. A good whack of compression will help with getting the right sound.

(When learning this tune, pan to the left and you’ll hear just the bass, with the keys on the right.)

I recorded this on my 2000 American Standard Jazz Bass, upgraded with Aguilar 60s pickups and a Badass III bridge. Both pickups at full and tone rolled off by about 60-70%. I went into my my Markbass Compressore and set the threshold very low so all notes were compressed. I set the ratio at around 1:30. Super squishy. I DI’d out from my Tech21 VTbass DI with a SVT ish sound a bump up in the mids. I added compression using the vintage FET setting in Logic so just the peaks were compressed with a fairly low ratio and bumped the EQ at around 200hz.

Thanks for reading. If you like the song, make your own video and tag me on social media, @jproudbass on twitter and instagram.

Till next week.

Click here to download PDF transcription