This study piece will help you to incorporate several phrasing techniques into your slap bass playing. These include hammer-ons and pull-offs, trills, vibrato and slides, all of which will really help bring your lines to life. You’ll also learn how to control note length when using the slap technique. Don’t forget to hit the Download […]

This piece is a pop punk style track that is a great workout for your plectrum technique. Learning this piece will encourage you to consider the correct application of down and upstrokes. Despite the quick tempo, you’ll hopefully find this piece easier to learn than it sounds. Don’t forget to hit the Download Resources button […]

This piece is a classic rock track that is a great workout for the fingers. When working through this piece you’ll encounter riffs played in unison with the guitar, eighth note-based grooves, and a short, simple bass solo. This piece will also get you acquainted with the sound of the blues scale, meaning that there’s […]

This study piece is a solo bass composition that will get you acquainted with the chordal fingerstyle technique. This involves playing the strings of the bass using the thumb and fingers of the picking hand. Although this is a technique that is more commonly associated with the guitar, you’ll find that it works equally well […]

This study piece has a relatively slow tempo. In addition to playing conventional supportive grooves, the bass is also the featured instrument here, taking on many of the main melodic lines. Using the instrument in this way recalls the work of Marcus Miller, whose influence can be clearly heard throughout the composition. Although there are […]

This song was released in December 2001 and was a huge hit for Sophie Ellis-Bextor. It reached number two in the UK singles chart and was a top ten hit around the world. It had a significant resurgence in popularity in 2024 when it was featured in the film Saltburn. The bassline for this song […]

This great song by the John Mayer Trio features Pino Palladino on bass. Pino shines in this minimalist band setting, supporting the song with a supple, bluesy line that he played on a Fender Precision bass. Pino makes extensive use of the major and minor pentatonic scales here. As a result, his line is a […]

‘Come On, Come Over’ is the second track from Jaco Pastorius’ landmark debut album. Released in August 1976, this was an album that changed everything for bass players, proving beyond doubt that the bass guitar was a powerful vehicle for soloists as well as for groove players. This track is an R&B number featuring legendary […]

‘Watermelon Man’ is one of Herbie Hancock’s best-known compositions. Originally written for his 1962 album Takin’ Off , it was revisited in 1973 by Herbie and his group The Headhunters. This version of the song – covered in this course – features an inventive bass part built around tenths, from bassist Paul Jackson. To download […]

‘The Wicked Vicar’ is an original composition that was written to represent virtuoso bassist Victor Wooten. It is representative of his work both as a solo artist, and as a member of Béla Fleck and the Flecktones. The majority of this piece is based around a relatively simple chord progression over which slapped parts are […]