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Double Thumbing – Part 1

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The double thumbing technique is a relatively recent addition to the slap bassist’s arsenal. Although several bassists such as French Canadian virtuoso Alain Caron were using it in the mid-eighties, it really grabbed the attention of bassists everywhere in the nineties, largely thanks to Victor Wooten.

Through his work with Béla Fleck & The Flecktones, Victor has been wowing audiences since 1990 with his dazzling technique. Fast building a reputation for his technical prowess, Victor stunned the bass world in 1996 with the release of his debut album A Show Of Hands. This seminal work has since become one of the most important bass player albums of all time, with Victor proving that it is possible for a bassist to possess truly ridiculous chops while retaining their musical sensibilities and a strong command of the groove. Compositions such as ‘You Can’t Hold No Groove’, ‘Classical Thump’ and the ultra funky ‘Me & My Bass Guitar’ have inspired countless other bassists to explore the exciting possibilities of double thumbing. As a result, many other great players have since stepped forward to make their own contributions to the technique.

1 – INTRODUCTION

In this video we’ll be looking at the basic mechanics of double thumbing. We’ll also be talking about how best to set up your bass for the technique, and how using a ‘ramp’ can make the technique a lot simpler to perform.

2 – EXERCISE #1

In this video we'll be playing through a basic exercise that's designed to get you double thumbing on all four strings of the bass.

3 – EXERCISE #2

In this lesson we’ll be using the double thumbing technique to play the major scale. In order to avoid any awkward string crossing, we’ll be doubling each note in the scale.

4 – EXERCISE #3

This exercise is a funk workout in G. You will see that as well as down and up strokes, this exercise also makes use of some ghost notes.

5 – EXERCISE #4

This exercise is a slightly more complex funk groove and features a lot of ghost notes.

6 – EXERCISE #5

This is a continuous sixteenth note line that requires some stamina and is a good illustration of how to use the double thumbing technique in a more melodic way, accenting chord tones from the chord progression.

7 - EXERCISE #6

Here’s a typical bass part for a funky 12-bar blues. Although it’s unlikely that you’ll ever use the double thumbing technique to play a blues, playing through a longer structure such as this will help you develop consistency in your playing.