This great song by the John Mayer Trio features the one and only Pino Palladino on bass. Pino shines in this minimalist band setting (with guitarist/singer Mayer and drummer Steve Jordan), supporting the song with a supple, bluesy line that he played on a Fender Precision bass. Pino makes extensive use of the major and […]

‘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 jazz pianist Herbie Hancock’s best-known compositions. Originally written for his 1962 Takin’ Off album, it was revisited in 1973 by Herbie and his jazz-funk group The Headhunters for the album of the same name. This version of the song – covered in this course – features an inventive bass part […]

‘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 […]

This study piece was written as a resource for working on the chordal fingerstyle technique, where the strings are played with the thumb and fingers in a similar way to that of a classical guitarist. As you’ll find out when working on this piece, it’s a technique that translates really well onto the bass guitar. […]

‘King for a Day’ was written to represent Mark King’s bass work with Level 42, with a particular focus on the instrumental jazz-funk that the band played in the early eighties. The bass part features many common elements of his playing style, such as continuous sixteenth note-based slap grooves, fingerstyle funk lines, and the use […]

The sixties were an experimental time for musicians, none more so than The Beatles in the UK, and The Beach Boys over in the U.S. Although The Beach Boys began life as a surf rock band, under the stewardship of chief songwriter Brian Wilson they evolved into a far more sophisticated outfit during the mid-late […]

This piece of music was originally written and performed on the acoustic guitar by Extreme’s Nuno Bettencourt. I’ve always loved it and have spent many years figuring out the best way to translate it onto the bass. Fortunately, it works well on the instrument, although as you’ll see from the video, it is a very […]

This video course will demonstrate how to play a solo bass arrangement of the Cantina Band Theme from the original Star Wars film. This piece is performed using several different playing techniques, making it a very challenging study piece. For bassists who wish to learn the piece but require additional assistance with some of the […]

This study piece is a 12-bar blues in the key of E. The bass plays a walking line throughout much of the piece, albeit one with a lot of variations to get your teeth into. There’s also a short bass solo, which is full of blues licks; these will be useful to know when it […]