Blues walking bass line pdf

Walking bass and chords on a bb blues jazz guitar lesson walking bass and chords is one of the greatest ways to comp if you are the only one playing behind a soloist like a horn or a singer. Apr 26, 2017 our basic method for bass line construction is pretty straightforward. A walking bass line is a more creative form of bass playing than the other swing styles because you choose new notes each time you play the same song. Chords and walking bass part 1 in this lesson ill demonstrate how i approach playing walking bass lines and chords at the same time. A walking bass line is simply a melodic bass line found mainly in jazz and blues styles in which you walk around in quarter notes connecting the chords we can create a walking bass line over the following twelvebar blues chord progression instead of having a few different things to try in this lesson, we are going to learn a written bass line.

Music notation is a great system, but it isnt the most modern, or best system for learn modern bass guitar songs. At first, ill focus completely on how a walking bass line is formed. This is intended to give the reader an understanding of what would be considered in the analysis of mitchells bass lines that could be affected by the change in tuning systems. Nothing too difficult, just make sure you are stamping your foot two times per second and that you are counting from 1 to 4 in time with your foot beat. Here is the basic bass pattern you will play over the e7 chord. To support practising of this material i created pdf files containing tab and notation to illustrate. In part three of our walking bass series, we are looking at the final changes for the 12 bar blues. These blues bass lines are like having a one chorus lick that you can rely on to always sound good when you play it. Notice that in bar 2 the line moves ab a bb instead of fully outlining the eb7. When creating walking bass lines, its important to outline the root and 5th of the chord. Bass line grammar that discusses the conventions used by jazz bassists in the creation of a walking line. While walking bass in a band is generally played by the bass guitar or double bass player, being able to play walking bass lines is an essential skill for. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading walking bass for jazz and blues.

Constructing walking jazz bass lines book i the blues in 12 keys new 2hr mp3 playalong free download featuring all chord progressions in 12 keys from part ii of the book available from website. So what walking bass line the complete bass player. I think this chord movement gives the music a feeling of flowing downhill. Walking bass lines are a fascinating part of jazz, as they support and mark the harmony underneath the chords and melody.

In this example, the bass line consists of simple arpeggiations of each chord, giving the overall effect of a simple blues bass line. Looking forward to hearing your walking bass lines over autumn leaves. Print and download in pdf or midi walkin the blues line. Bass lessons beginners guide to walking bass lines bass tab standard string tuning g,d,a,e recommended 1. Incorporating the 3rd of the chord will also give your bass line a stronger harmonic foundation. The possible noterange of a walking bass can reach from subcontra. Its a system that takes weeks or even months to learn the basics, while guitar tab can be learned in a matter.

If youre amazingly extra awesome, youll be able to sing the melody and make a bass line at the same time. Feb 14, 2018 walking blues 12 bar blues scale bass tab by lessons scales. I am introducing to you a complete course on how to create walking bass lines from scratch. The complete walking bass method kindle edition by clark, nick, alexander, joseph. Adhere to this basic rule and you can even tackle the approach notes in a similar fashion, creating the effect of walking to the new chord in onefret steps. A bassline is a melody line played in the bass by a lowpitched instrument such as the piano, double bass, electric bass, tuba, etc. The majority of the presentation will focus on walking bass lines in a 44. Walking blues 12 bar blues scale bass tab by lessons scales. I have included your bass lines in here so see if you can find your line as you play through these. Jazz bass line construction thelonious monk institute of jazz online jazz handbook. Its made up of the root, 3rd, 5th and 6th degrees of an e major scale for all of you music theory buffs out there. A simple 12 bar blues progression in g major for piano played over a walking bass line. The conference brought middle and high school teachers from all over idaho to the college of southern idaho for three days of seminars and workshops. So far we have patterns for each chord change in the 12bar blues except for one, moving from v to iv i.

You can do this same exercise with any of the patterns. Bessies blues is a very simple blues and i really find it amazing how many little nuances there are in such a simple piece. The essence of a walking bass line is created by playing four to the bar, which means playing four 14 notes per measure. All lessons are applied to all 12 keys with written out bass lines and 333 mp3 backing tracks applied to 10 jazz and bebop standard chord progressions with over 150 choruses of written out bass line examples. An example of four common chord progressions found in jazz, including a blues, minor blues, modal song form and rhythm changes.

Bassists can learn to read music notation, chord lyrics charts, or bass tablature. Here we have a walking bass line on the blues in f. Simple walking bass line for jazz beginners talkingbass. Use these lines to get you going the right direction when you start playing a blues.

When starting out with walking bass lines, i would recommend that you always target the root when changing chords. The walking bass line was developed by upright bassists like ray brown, milt hinton, paul chambers, and ron carter, but now its. Walking bass lines always sound cool in any style of music, but are essential to jazz blues and. The function of the bass is to provide the foundation.

Its a jazz staple, youve got to be able to walk a line on the blues if you want to play jazz bass. Walking bass line theory basicspart 1by chris fitzgerald. Players of all levels like to stretch out on the blues. Walking bass is so instrinsic to the blues that you would be hard pressed to find a better example. Chord tones root, 3rd, 5th, 7th are the most powerful choice you can make when creating your walking lines. The bass line is solid yet some rhythmical choices and note approaches make it very interesting on many levels. Therefore, the bass is played by the left hand on the lower part of the keyboard of the piano. Play through the progression using only root notes if it is new to you. As im sure you have heard before, practice makes perfect.

This is a a way of playing that i use really a lot in situations where theres no bass player, so mostly duo settings with a. It is technically demanding, harmonically advanced, and extremely interactive. A walking bass line simply walks through the appropriate scale of each chord, one note per beat, hitting every beat of each measure. Jazz bass line construction thelonious monk institute of jazz. In this series of lessons, well take a look at constructing walking basslines over some common chord progressions that we encounter in the blues. Jazz is an incredibly difficult music to play in many ways. In this lesson im providing you with a simple walking bass line through a 12 bar blues progression in a jazz blues style. Lessons scales walking blues 12 bar blues scale bass. Walking the ii v i in combo, youll learn that the ii v i is one of the most important chord progressions in jazz. If you know how to create a walking bass line, you can be more creative in your jazz playing. The notes above are all natural however any of this notes can be raised or lowered a half. Pretty much anything in the real book is a good candidate for a walking line. A jazz blues progression written in all twelve keys. A slightly embellished version of this kind of line would also be typical of a basic boogie woogie type bass line, as in the following example.

This printable pdf method provides 101 dominant arpeggio exercises with tab, theory and standard notation for the jazz, blues and rock guitarist. Walking bass line theory basics pdf file chris fitzgerald. The symbol of the bass clef is derived from the old german way of writing f. Here is an example of walking a line by switching between 1231 and 53. Finally, create your own bass lines by mixing up the root patterns. In this lesson i am going to go over a walking bass comp on a 12 bar bb jazz blues and how you play it on guitar. Here are some tips to aid you in mastering these bass blues licks.

The most common chord movement in the blues not to mention jazz, rock, pop and countryfollows the circle of 5ths, where chords descend in intervals of perfect 5ths, for example from d to g to c. Here is the bass lines for autumn leaves that everyone contributed to last week. My favorite artists are louis jordan, wynonie harris, louis prima, and cab calloway. Alright, this is just a warmup, good to stretch your fingers out with.

If you are playing the blues on your own, using this kind of bass line can also break things up a bit. Walking bass line piano tutorial walking bass jazz piano. A twobeat and walking bass line on the changes of the tune beautiful love 2. Beginners guide to walking bass lines bass tabs bass. Instead of having a few different things to try in this lesson, we are going to learn a written. I really liked all of the lines that you guys wrote and hope you enjoy playing through this line as well. Free bass tabs printable, downloadable pdf bass tabs. After browsing our selection of free bass tab pdf, view our video lessons to help you get started learning your favorite songs from start to finish. Dedicate at least 3060 minutes each day to playing the bass. Walking bass lines lesson 1 the jazz blues progression. Walking bass noterange usually the bass lies in the lower sound range of the music. To help you with learning this material, i have included pdf files with standard notation and tablature to illustrate each lesson. Below is the bass tablature for the basic blues in e bass line.

Very easy to learn and play for the beginning bass player. In lesson 2, we continued to build patterns for the common chord progressions we see in blues. Basic 12 bar blues in a the walking bass bass tabs bass. Our basic method for bass line construction is pretty straightforward. Simple jazz blues walking bass line breakdown youtube. The bass lines are good and one simple addition to know is that just about any chordwalking bass line, you can always use a leading tone that is, 12 step below to whatever is the next chord.

The two dots on the right of the bass clef symbol surround the line on which f pitch is written. How to write a walking bass line learn jazz standards. I am looking to compile a list of blues songs with great walking bass lines particularly in the jump blues style. This is an important concept to remember, the walking bass line is movement. This lesson for electric bass covers an easy walking style blues bass line in the key of e. Dec 01, 2011 constructing walking jazz bass lines book i the blues in 12 keys new 2hr mp3 playalong free download featuring all chord progressions in 12 keys from part ii of the book available from website. This is a a way of playing that i use really a lot in situations where theres no bass player, so mostly duo settings with a guitar player, singer or horn player.

Walkin the blues line sheet music download free in pdf. Blues bass licks like help me and what i call a lumpty dumpty are standard issue material for jam sessions. The goal of a walking bassline is to outline the chord progression but with an. The possible noterange of a walking bass can reach from subcontra a to middle c. Walking bass and chords on a bb blues jazz guitar lesson. When you can cleanly and smoothly play the bass line, add the chords. The first jazz walking bass line etude we are going to learn is over the first eight bars of giant steps.

One of the most common places to find walking bass lines is in blues music. Well take a look at different bass grooves like a rumba a boogaloo a new orleans style bass line a funk shuffle and a stroll. Walking bass lesson 3 jazz blues fundamental changes. To walk bass lines on the ii v i, all we have to do is learn three different walking patterns. Once weve covered that, ill show how to add chords here and there while playing the bass line.

In this weeks lesson were looking at a very simple walking bass line through the chord. For a young musician just beginning to dive into the art form, it can seem a daunting task. Its function is to outline the chords of the progression and provide a smooth transition from one chord to another. This just so happens to be done in the key of a but you can play this in any.

And walking basslines are a continuous sequence of quarter notes, generally played on the beat 4 notes per bar in 44 time walking basslines. Using the 12 bar blues shuffle chunka chunka style for 34 minutes can become quite tedious, so breaking into a few cycles of this 12 bar blues bass line style can add a lot of interest, although it can be a little difficult to to play if. Playing a walking jazz guitar bass line is a captivating method of comping for other musicians, and yourself. Walking bass lines always sound cool in any style of music, but are essential to jazz blues and great american songbook jazz standards. Easy walking bass lines pdf constructing walking jazz bass lines. Just like walking with your feet, tyjwalking bass line is one step after the other that takes you somewhere. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. How to play a walking bass line with chords guitar. While giant steps can be daunting to improvise over, you can create a walking bass line with only a few notes. We can create a walking bass line over the following twelvebar blues chord progression.

Dec 16, 2015 i am introducing to you a complete course on how to create walking bass lines from scratch. Basic 12 bar blues in a the walking bass bass tabs. Jazz bass line construction thelonious monk institute of. The bass lines are good and one simple addition to know is that just about any chord walking bass line, you can always use a leading tone that is, 12 step below to whatever is the next chord. A walking bass line walks through the chord progression, one note per beat. The rhythm is basic, using quarter notes and the tones of a major scale. This is the most common 12bar blues form aka iivv progression. Therefore being in control of them and becoming fluent is crucial. R 3 5 6 7 walking bass line theory basics chris fitzgerald. Sep 24, 2019 adhere to this basic rule and you can even tackle the approach notes in a similar fashion, creating the effect of walking to the new chord in onefret steps.