Category: Bass Guitar

This video features 9 string extended range bassist Gregory Greg Bruce Campbell.

In 1965 British rock group, The Who released a song called My Generation. Apart from its claim to fame as a rock anthem it also contains the most instantly recognizable bass guitar solo in rock and roll. This iconic solo by John Entwistle is typical of the bass solo modeled on similar solo breaks played on double bass and bass guitar in jazz music. This type of bass guitar solo is in the form of a question and answer sequence often found in blues music. The Who’s solo also imitates jazz bass solos in that it is played without other instruments behind it. In jazz such solos are played unaccompanied because other instruments tend to drown out the bass.

There have been many bass solos included in rock, funk and jazz but only in pop music has the bass guitar solo stood alone as a piece of music. The first pop musician in England to own and play an electric bass guitar was Jet Harris. He found fame and fortune with The Shadows, Cliff Richard’s backing group who were trying to make their own way in pop music as a vocal and instrumental group. Harris played on the band’s early instrumental hits featuring the lead guitar of Hank Marvin but decided to try to make it as a soloist like America’s Duane Eddy.

Jet Harris’ first big hit as a solo guitarist was in 1962 with his rendition of the 1940 song Besame Mucho. The throbbing notes of the six string bass turned a poignant love song into an instrumental work full of menace. Probably inspired by their former band member’s success, The Shadows released another six string bass solo called Stingray as a single in 1965.

These days the bass guitar is an important part of any band. It was actually born in the nineteen thirties but met with very little success until it was adopted by the early rock and roll groups of the nineteen fifties. The bass guitar is of course descended from the double bass which has always been a solo instrument in orchestral music and was often used for solo work in jazz.

If you want to play bass guitar, you might want to consider learning to play a regular guitar first. It is not absolutely necessary to become a lead or rhythm guitarist before playing bass but it seems to be the way that bass guitar players come into the world. To begin your career as a bass guitarist you can try playing through the bass tabs available on the internet. There are also some lessons available for free plus you can view heaps of bass solos and bass guitar lessons on the various video sites.

Here is a link to some free bass lessons

Once you have some practice on the bass guitar under your belt there is blinding variety of bass guitar techniques to try before you begin seriously to play solos. You can employ a wide range of plectrums or choose from the many techniques which involve plucking, popping and slapping the bass with the fingers. To some people this might sound like hard work but hopefully you will regard it as a labor of love.

Here is a video lesson on bass technique by Victor Wooten.

Technorati Tags: The Who, My Generation, bass guitar solo, Jet Harris, Besame Mucho

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Bass tab has become a very popular method of writing bass guitar music. With this tool you can learn bass music fast without getting bogged down in a lot of unnecessary theoretical stuff.
The bass player’s role is just to keep time. This is done by playing a ‘bassline’ which is usually a rhythmic’ sequence of notes. The bass player unites the rhythmic playing of the drummer with the chords and melodies played by the lead guitar.
The bass guitar tab gives the guitarist written directions on what to play to give the bass line to a piece of music. Tablature is a written representation of the strings of the guitar using numbers to show the frets.
If you want to learn the bass guitar quickly tab is the way to go. It is easy to pick up and to remember, and it enables you to learn very quickly the riffs and phrases you need to give your group’s music that something extra.
A bass guitar tab is a picture of the fretboard which can be drawn using Notepad on your computer or by hand. The frets are numbered on lines representing the guitar strings. If you have a four string bass, the upper string is the G string, next the D string, the A string, and the E string. The numbers below the lines are the frets where the notes are played. If there is zero below the line ti means the open string is palyed. A chord is represented in bass gutiar tabs by.two numbers, one above the other. Most bass guitar tabs contain a legend which explains any unfamiliar terms. The internet is by far the best source for bass gutiar tabs. Just do a Google search and you will have more material than you will ever need. All you have to do is learn and practice.
Now to tell you about a great website for bass guitar players. ActiveBass features customizable music playback of all examples on the site to help you learn faster. At ActiveBass you can create a bass line and show it in a lesson with tab and music, you can build an on-line jam track and e-mail it to your friends or write a review of a CD you’ve been listening to.

Technorati Tags: bass guitar music, bass guitar tab

Some people think that if you want to change the world you don’t become a bass guitar player, but go into something more challenging and stimulating like the Post Office. But does this myth portray how bass players really are? Let’s step back from our habitual way of seeing bass guitar players. Sure, we acknowledge the fine contribution they make to their bands by supplying the bass lines, but do they actually do anything really creative? This brief listing of some prominent men (and woman) of bass will allow you to see that this apparently self effacing member of a musical group could be the creative powerhouse.
Suzi Quatro is a vocalist and bass player who had a bunch of hits in Australia and Europe in the early seventies. Her popularity in the USA stemmed from her role as Leather Tuscadero in Happy Days.
John Entwistle pioneered the use of the electric bass guitar as an instrument for soloists. His aggressive approach to the bass guitar influenced many other bassists.
Flea of The Red Hot Chili Peppers impressed a lot of musicians with his popping and slapping technique which was originally invented by Larry Graham of Sly And The Family Stone. Flea’s innovative use of effects pedals has also influenced many bass players.
Jack Bruce wrote most of supergroup Cream’s hit songs. Among his other achievements are fighting constantly with Cream’s drummer, Ginger Baker and surviving a liver transplant.
Greg Lake is another artist of the early seventies who played with a number of innovators from the glam rock era. Lake is best known for his vocals, bass and guitar work with Emerson, Lake and Palmer.
Rob Bailey is a bassist who plays loud and aggressive. His bass playing is an important element in the music of AC/DC.
Benny Rietveld, a Dutch musician who went to college in Hawaii, is admired for his musical and individualistic style of playing. He worked with Barney Kessell, Sheila E, Huey Lewis and Miles Davis. He has also made an album featuring Carlos Santana. Talk about diverse.
Paul McCartney played bass with The Beatles. Many bass players say he’s quite good, but he changed the world with his romantic song lyrics.
Considered by some to be the king of bass players, Stanley Clarke employs a variation of the pop and slap bass technique to produce some truly innovative bass guitar music. His 1976 album, School Days, is acclaimed by many critics as one of the greatest bass albums ever.
Billy Sheehan A true bass lead guitar player, Billy has won Guitar Player Magazine’s “Best Rock Bass Player” readers’ poll five times.
So if you are not familiar with bass guitar players I hope this article has whetted your appetite. Why not spend your next rainy Sunday watching some of their work on YouTube?

Technorati Tags: bass guitar player, Suzi Quatro, John Entwistle, Flea, Larry Graham, Jack Bruce, Greg Lake, Rob Bailey, Benny Rietveld, Paul McCartney, Stanley Clarke, pop and slap bass technique, Billy Sheehan