This exercise is a rock bassline that’s played with a plectrum. The blues scale is put to good use here and you should find that this line makes for a great workout for your picking technique. In the first bar of this exercise, all of the notes are played on the A-string. As this bar […]

This exercise is a slap and pop groove written in the style of Level 42 bassist Mark King. As well as conventional slap technique, this line makes use of fretting hand slaps and double stop tenth chords. The first bar of this exercise opens with two notes played together: an open E-string and the D […]

This week’s exercise is a fingerstyle funk line that features double stops and some challenging phrases that use open strings. The first bar of this exercise is a lick that uses the G blues scale (G, Bb, C, Db, D, F). When playing this, it’s important to play all hammer-ons, pull-offs and slides as written, […]

This exercise is a funk groove that sounds great when played with a muted plectrum technique. Before playing this exercise, it’s worth reminding yourself of the correct application of the plectrum technique, particularly with regard to playing semiquavers. A group of four semiquavers (one beat), should be played with a down-up-down-up picking sequence. Sticking to […]

This exercise is a percussive line that’s played with the palm muting technique and unusually, includes some fretting hand slaps. One of the most important parts of this line to master is the percussive element. A strong backbeat is required, so you’ll need to accent beats two and four of each bar. When playing beat […]

This exercise is a slow tempo groove in E minor with some harmonic chords sustained across the top. To play the bass note and harmonics at the beginning of each bar, I recommend plucking the E-string with your thumb, and the D and G-strings with your first and second finger. After plucking these notes you’ll […]

This week’s exercise is a slap and pop groove written in the style of Marcus Miller. The main idea behind this lick is sliding root and octave figures around the fingerboard, which is something that Marcus often does during his basslines and solos. After slapping the E in the first bar, pop the octave and […]

This week’s exercise is a semiquaver-based groove that’s played with the plectrum. When playing lines with the plectrum – particularly if they are based on a semiquaver pulse – it’s crucial that you maintain a consistent down-up-down-up picking motion. This was covered in detail back in the notes for Bass Lick #1, so refer to […]

This week’s exercise is a heavily syncopated fingerstyle funk groove that works over a D7 chord. After playing the two D’s on the A-string at the beginning of the first bar, you’ll be descending the G-string using the octave, the minor seventh (C), the major sixth (B), the minor sixth (Bb) and the fifth (A). […]

This week’s exercise is a slap and pop groove that incorporates some strummed chords and is played over a shuffle feel. This track features strummed power chords in the first two bars. To play these, strum downwards with the fingers of your picking hand, allowing the nails to strike the strings. This will give your […]