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Extreme – ‘Midnight Express’

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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 advanced piece to play. Your slap technique, chord strumming, and palm muting skills will also be put to the test here!

For bassists who wish to learn the piece but require additional assistance with some of the techniques required, the following courses (all included in the monthly subscription cost) should prove useful:

A backing track is available for this course. To download it, hit the Download Resources button above. To download the transcription (with TAB and without), please visit the Free Stuff page.

This course is 1 HOUR & 7 MINUTES long and contains the following videos, each of which can be selected from the video player above:

1. ‘Midnight Express’

This video is a demonstration of the piece, performed on a Mayones Viking 4-string bass strung with stainless steel Rotosound strings.

2. Course Overview

This video discusses some things you’ll need to consider before working on this piece: tuning, tempo and the backing track are all covered here.

3. A Section

This video covers the strummed intro section, broken down into four-bar chunks. This lesson covers bars 5-20 in the accompanying transcription.

4. B Section

This video demonstrates the main riff, which is performed with an acoustic guitar fingerpicking technique. This lesson covers bars 21-30.

5. C Section

This lesson covers the second main riff, which is played with the slap technique. Open strings are used extensively in this line. This lesson covers bars 31-40.

6. D Section

This video demonstrates the first part of the chord strummed section in the middle of the piece. This lesson covers bars 41-43.

7. E Section

This lesson covers the second part of the chord strummed section and focuses on bars 45-50 in the accompanying transcription.

8. F Section

This section of the piece is very similar to the line established in the D section, but with some additional accented parts. This lesson covers bars 51-58.

9. G Section

This section is based on the earlier E Section, but with some additional parts. This lesson covers bars 59-66 in the transcription.

10. H Section

This section features a new strumming part which leads back into the main riff. This lesson covers bars 67-72 in the transcription.

11. J Section

This part of the song is a variation on the chord strumming theme from back in the A section. This lesson covers bars 81-88 in the transcription.

12. K Section

The final section is predominantly based on previously used material, so there’s really only the final lick to learn. This lesson covers bars 89-106.