wes-ninja250 Posted April 12, 2005 Share Posted April 12, 2005 Ever had something just "CLICK" in your head which made your playing easier and better, almost instantly? I just had one of those. My realization? Walking bass lines aren't scales. They are chords with extra notes in them. Man, that was great. I think I'm gonna ride this high for about week. Wes Only 10% of music is written on the sheet Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dreamer Posted April 12, 2005 Share Posted April 12, 2005 Congratulations! I know the feel! BTW, I have seen that you live in Kingston: I was there once and really enjoyed the place and also the 1000 island cruise, to the point that I did it twice: once from Kingston and once from Gananoque. Korg PA3X Pro 76 and Kronos 61, Roland G-70, Integra 7 and BK7-m, Casio PX-5S, Fender Stratocaster with Fralin pickups, Fender Stratocaster with Kinman pickups, 1965 Gibson SG Standard Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shniggens Posted April 12, 2005 Share Posted April 12, 2005 So, which notes are you adding? Amateur Hack Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
burningbusch Posted April 12, 2005 Share Posted April 12, 2005 Yes, I understand what you're saying but please go into more detail as to how this way of thinking has helped you. Busch. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Immo Posted April 12, 2005 Share Posted April 12, 2005 And where can I learn about walking bass lines, any resources you recommend online? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dave Horne Posted April 12, 2005 Share Posted April 12, 2005 Originally posted by Immordino: And where can I learn about walking bass lines, any resources you recommend online? I can't recommend any online resources. (I'm also guessing that the better players did not learn bass lines from a book.) Why not just listen to some CDs of first rate bass players and analyse what they are playing. Ray Brown is always a good choice of player to listen to. When you play swing music, for example, you usually have four notes to the bar. Comp some chords in your right hand and see what you can come up with in your left hand. (This isn't rocket science - the chords will give you a few notes from which to think about, spaces in between those chord tones might have to be filled - all that, plus there are only 12 notes in an octave to begin with. Start simple - use your ears and play what sounds good. Also, the more you know about chords and scales (plus ear training), the better your bass lines will be. No guitarists were harmed during the making of this message. In general, harmonic complexity is inversely proportional to the ratio between chording and non-chording instruments. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
coyote Posted April 12, 2005 Share Posted April 12, 2005 I try to think of walking bass not in terms of the chord I'm on but in terms of the next chord. Run a standard 12-bar blues: ||: F7 / / /| F7 / / /| F7 / / /| F7 / / /| Bb7 / / /| Bb7 / / /| F7 / / /| F7 / / /| G-7 / / /| C7 / / /| F7 / / / | C7 / / / :|| I consider each set of 2 bars a 'phrase'. My first two 'bars' of bass might look like: ||: F Ab A Bb | C Db D Eb || Note that ending the 1st bar on Bb and beginning the second on C implies chords in the progression, and make you feel a IV V I within those two bars thereby giving a sense of movement. Or instead of that final Eb, I might go back down and play the Gb that implies a bII7 leading back to the root. In the 5th & 6th bars I might play a simple chromatic descending line: || Bb A Ab G | Gb G Ab Gb || suggesting a series of II- V turns and again anticipating a bII7 resolving to the I chord. Note that none of those things are actually happening; my right hand just keeps comping the Bb7 (IV chord). It's often effective to keep that chord simple and to use voice-leading to choose the notes (F7 chord = A C Eb, Bb7 chord = Ab Bb D. Always careful to get that tritone in there.) - and in a way walking bass is all about voice-leading! So once I've hit a chord tone (usually a root) to start a phrase, the rest of the phrase is about leading the way to the next phrase. I used to think I was Libertarian. Until I saw their platform; now I know I'm no more Libertarian than I am RepubliCrat or neoCON or Liberal or Socialist. This ain't no track meet; this is football. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tom Fiala Posted April 12, 2005 Share Posted April 12, 2005 Wes: Enjoy the "eureka moment"! I'd agree with Dave's suggestion about learning by listening to pro players you like.... Ah, Kingston. I went to med school at Queen's (class of 88) - and have lots of nostalgic Kingston memories. It's a great place - especially in summer & fall. Tom F. "It is what it is." Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Trill Posted April 13, 2005 Share Posted April 13, 2005 I love eureka moments. Dave , I have been using your method of listening and playing lines from bass players. I have always tried to get a sound like a band when I play. My left hand is my funky bass player and my right is a lead instrument or comping instrument. I think thats why I love the keys so much. You can do a lot more with them than a guitar. Wes ,I don't know if you like Dr.John. But he does a lot of neat things with the basslines. He has a video by Homestead, but you better be a good reader,because he doesn't explain what or how he does it very well. I like to work on different boogie lines, I think they help a lot with developing strength an coordination in the left hand. Then on chording in the left hand and playing jazz or blues lines in the right hand. I hope you really have fun with your new paradigm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
platypus Posted April 13, 2005 Share Posted April 13, 2005 I don't have anything to contribute, but paradigm is one of my favorite words. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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