Bass playing suggestions needed please

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RockerRocker Frets: 4942
edited April 2016 in Bass
As a new bass player, I know that a 12 bar blues in the key of G, can sound OK if I use the notes G, C and D. Some songs need the note A as well. What extra notes will work in that key. Could anyone suggest a few notes for the turnaround. Thanks
Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. [Albert Einstein]

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Comments

  • Winny_PoohWinny_Pooh Frets: 7730
    You can use all the "regular" notes in the key of G? (Am I missing something?)

    You can also use chromatics very easily or the blues scale's flat 5th.
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  • UnclePsychosisUnclePsychosis Frets: 12879
    "Obvious" notes to pick are the root, third,fifth, and 7th of each chord. In a typical major blues progression then G,B,D, and F over G7, C,E,G and Bb over C7, and D,F#,A,C over D7. Sticking tothe root and fifth of achord nearly always sounds good as far as blues/rock goes. Whether the3rd and 7th workas nicely will depend oneverything else thats going on.
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  • If you're new to Bass playing I'd totally recommend you check out Scott's Bass Lessons- it's an excellent resource of bass stuff. The lessons are great and easy to follow too.

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  • EricTheWearyEricTheWeary Frets: 16253
    My son plays bass about ten minutes a day but has made amazing progress in that space just with Scott's and Cover Solutions.
    Tipton is a small fishing village in the borough of Sandwell. 
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  • EricTheWearyEricTheWeary Frets: 16253
    edited April 2016
    Just whilst I'm here - a lot of blues bass lines use root, octave, fifth and dominant seventh with no third. That way it's ambiguous if it's minor or major and then a soloist can mess around with that ambiguity. So, root, octave, 7th, 5th for example.*Then just move that shape around the chords.
    Tipton is a small fishing village in the borough of Sandwell. 
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  • EricTheWearyEricTheWeary Frets: 16253
    edited April 2016
    This was the last bass line I learned, not a 12 bar blues but the chords are G C and D. The bass line is easily heard after the drum intro. All based on root, third, fifth.**What makes it a bass line rather than someone going plod, plod, plod on root, third, fifth is the rhythm with little rests. The point being that you can make perfectly good bass lines out of very few notes if the rhythm is right. I remember Bruce Thomas ( bassist with the Attractions) saying he first learned bass by copying the rhythm patterns of his favourite bassists ( like James Jamerson) and worried about the notes later.
    Tipton is a small fishing village in the borough of Sandwell. 
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  • EricTheWearyEricTheWeary Frets: 16253


    * So over the G chord G the dominant seventh is F and the fifth is D. Over the C chord that's Bb and G. Over the D chord that's C and A. **This will hurt my brain to do without a guitar in front of me, but...so root, third, fifth for the G chord is G, B, D. For the C chord C, E, G. For the D chord D, F#, A. But the pattern on the fingerboard will be the same just moved around ( well, depending on how you approach it). I'm sure a lot of people will play these type of bass lines as patterns rather than knowing what the notes are.
    Tipton is a small fishing village in the borough of Sandwell. 
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  • RockerRocker Frets: 4942
    Thanks again guys, just the sort of knowledge that I needed to know. Some of these I had figured out myself, it is reassuring to know that I am on the right track.
    Insanity: doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. [Albert Einstein]

    Nil Satis Nisi Optimum

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  • do you subscribe to the Scott's thing or just do the free lessons?
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  • BigLicks67BigLicks67 Frets: 766
    Here's a good example of mixing in chromatics in with the scale patterns and chords, the main riff also does this, in key of E but easy to transpose these ideas to G.

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  • EricTheWearyEricTheWeary Frets: 16253
    strumjoughlamps;1046515" said:
    do you subscribe to the Scott's thing or just do the free lessons?
    My son just does the free lessons, I think he spends more time on Cover Solutions though. Occasionally he will ask me stuff but I don't always give him the answer he wants, he can't get his head around the idea there can be multiple places to play the same note, there's only what they tell you to play on YouTube in his world. I think the last thing I showed him was how to adjust the length of the strap, never occurred to him he could do that.

    Tipton is a small fishing village in the borough of Sandwell. 
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