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greghagger

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Everything posted by greghagger

  1. greghagger
    Recently I had a really interesting online chat with American bassist, Jeff Ganz who has played bass for many artists including Johnny Winter, Roy Buchanan, John Lee Hooker, and Chuck Berry, just to name a few. Seeing as he is American and has played with lots of top Blues musicians, I thought Jeff might throw out some interesting perspectives on British Blues - the topic of the month at Greg's Bass Shed. He certainly did that, along with a ton of other gems about bass playing and how he approaches music in general. We really had a great time on the call and spent well over an hour exchanging stories from our experiences as pro bass players I’ve put the interview on YouTube and in it you can find out Jeff's perspective on British Blues and hear some great advice about what you need to do to develop the types of skills you need to play great Blues bass. I hope you enjoy it! https://youtu.be/S3ENhhErsdU
  2. greghagger
    Stupidly, when I decided to make a lesson this week on the Badge bass line, I thought it might be a quick and simple lesson. But of course, Jack Bruce is involved which means there will be some tasty fills and licks and the bass line will be anything but simple! Again, I'll admit that I always used to play a much simpler version of this bass line when I played it live. I learnt the main riff and played that along with the odd variation thrown in for good measure! The opening riff is pretty simple but later on in the bass line there are some pretty fast runs. I've spent some time this week getting the exact Jack Bruce bass line down on paper and I've also drawn up a simplified version so this lesson is very approachable whatever level you are at. This is a real Cream classic and the band are on form throughout. It's another hit from the 'British Blues Explosion' era which I'll look at in more detail in the GBS British Blues Week. Find out more in my latest YouTube lesson. Free transcription under the video. https://youtu.be/9aHjw-BgJLg
  3. greghagger
    Glad it’s useful @stevie 👍
  4. greghagger
    There are so many great Rolling Stones hits but there is one tune that they have played the most frequently at their live gigs - Jumpin' Jack Flash. This is another one of those songs where the bass line is rarely played like the original when covered by bands. I think this is in part due to confusion with the different guitar riffs and the fact that the bass part is 'buried in the mix' for a lot of the song. I can still remember years ago getting up and 'blagging' this bass line at a mate's gig after a few beers. I definitely didn't play the original bass line but whatever I played, it seemed to work! So, to continue with the British Blues theme from last week, I've made a lesson on the Jumpin' Jack Flash bass line and written a full transcription, which is as close to the original bass line as I could get it. Find out more in my latest YouTube lesson where you can also download the transcription. Watch out for my Jumpin' Jack Flash play-though video on Tuesday where you can see me jamming with the original song, this time playing the actual bass line! https://youtu.be/2ss49qoiJhE
  5. greghagger
    'Oh Well' by Fleetwood Mac is such a classic British Blues tune from the Peter Green era. But, if you've played it before then you’ll know that the unison lick at the end of each chorus can cause problems! I must admit to struggling with this when I use to play it with my Blues band back in the early 90's. On the original recording it’s sometimes hard to hear the bass clearly and the lick actually changes from chorus to chorus. It's a good idea to work this lick out with the guitarist beforehand if you are going to play ‘Oh Well’ at a gig because quite frankly it sounds rubbish if you are both playing different things! This week I finally sat down and transcribed the whole bass line note for note, including the licks and discovered some interesting new lines from John McVie. I’ve made a lesson on the bass line and you can get the free transcription in standard notation or Tab under the video. Enjoy this classic. It certainly gets the fingers moving! https://youtu.be/QZaNtLPz3_w
  6. greghagger
    Brown Eyed Girl can certainly raises a few groans when it's spotted on a setlist but considering the fact that I've performed it a lot, I still actually really enjoy playing this bass line. I must confess that up to now I've never played it correctly note-for-note from the original bass line though! So it was fun to sit down and spent time transcribing it accurately and I discovered some interesting variations on the basic riff, especially in the outro. Out of all the bass lines out there, this is the one where I've heard the most hilarious things played in the bass feature, from slap to jazz fills! I prefer playing the basic groove here as it is in the original bass line. What about you? Leave me a comment and let me know what you’ve played here or heard someone else play. The full transcription in standard notation and Tab is under the video. Enjoy this classic!
  7. greghagger
    There's no better time than at the beginning of a year to take stock of where you are with your playing and make the changes you need to really achieve what you have dreamt of with your bass playing. It's so easy to keep doing the same thing, whether that's running the same bass lines you always play, not sorting out technical issues or simply not moving forward for another year. So to kick the year off, I’ve created a short and simple YouTube lesson to help you to quickly set up a bass plan for 2023. The lesson is 6 minutes long and I reckon that you can watch that and fill out the plan in under an hour! But this will give you a roadmap for this year and help propel you forward. Who knows, this could be the year when you start a band, play at a jam night for the first time or manage to play that bass line which is currently out of touch. I've made up some handy PDF sheets which you can use to help you with your plan. Let me know how you get on in the comment. I hope you find this useful. https://youtu.be/C6PMu3hOiYo
  8. greghagger
    With a few days to spare I've tackled a Christmas bass line to get you into the festive spirit! In my latest lesson I look at the bass line from the Eagles version of 'Please Come Home For Christmas'. Timothy B. Schmit is on bass duties for this song, his first ever recording with The Eagles. This is a fun bass line to learn and not too tricky so I hope you enjoy it. There is a full bass line transcription in standard notation and Tab available in a free PDF which you can find the link for under the video. If you also want to check out a video of me playing along with the original track then click here and you will be directed to a lesson page on the GBS website. Have fun and seasons greetings to you for the festive period. https://youtu.be/iyJak5-VIOg
  9. greghagger
    If you don't know the song 'Soulshine' by the Allman Brothers then check it out! It's one of those feel-good Southern Rock tunes and it has a great bass line that you can learn a lot from. It's got a nice bass groove, muted notes, slides and pentatonic fills. I tackle this epic bass line in my latest lesson but as the song is nearly 7 minutes long, I just show you the main sections. The bass line constantly changes throughout the song, so some of you may find it tricky to learn. But I've made up a simplified version that still sounds great and you can see that towards the end of the video. There’s a free PDF download with the bass line written note for note in standard notation and Tab. You’ll find that under the video. Enjoy! https://youtu.be/NhcwQpGEXZg
  10. greghagger
    Boogie Blues is a really fun style to play and it's also great to study as lots of classic Blues bass lines come from the left hand of solo Boogie-woogie piano tunes. This style of Blues originated in the Barrelhouses of Texas and eventually evolved into a heavy electrified Blues played by artists such as Stevie Ray Vaughan. In my latest lesson I show you five Boogie Blues bass riffs and also how to plug them into the 12-Bar Blues progression. It's great to have these riff at your fingertips for Blues jams and these riffs are dual purpose in that you can also use them for Rock n Roll Blues. That require a simple rhythmic change from shuffle feel to straight feel. Find out more in my latest GBS video lesson. The free PDF link is under the YouTube video. Have fun! https://youtu.be/8ya6AooPzHQ
  11. greghagger
    Off the back of my lesson on 'La Grange' a few weeks ago I've had a request to look at ‘Blue Jeans Blues’, also by ZZ Top. I wasn't really aware of this great ZZ Top tune, although I'm sure I must have heard it at some point. If you don’t know it then check it out and you might be as surprised as me that ZZ Top played such a 'pure' Blues tune. It's such classic Blues but the ‘ZZ Top sound’ is also unmistakably in there too. This is a very accessible bass line for all levels but after mastering the notes, the challenge is then where you place the notes in relation to the beat. If you haven't thought about playing behind the beat before, you'll benefit from the end part of this lesson. Throughout my professional career as a bass player, being able to play the notes correctly is always a given, but 'feel' is what we frequently discuss and work on. You don't always have to play right on the beat. Find out more in the latest YouTube lesson. Enjoy! https://youtu.be/zIadbiAVmYU
  12. greghagger
    I’ve been on a bit of a roll with classic bass lines lately! This week I look at the bass line from 'The Joker' by the Steve Miller Band. This is instantly recognisable and is one of those bass lines that really defines the song. It's actually more tricky to play in places than you might think and varies a lot during the song. I love how the bass line is a sort of mix of Reggae and Motown. I've transcribed the whole bass line and have also written a simplified version which works over the whole song. You can see that at the end of the video lesson and on the PDF which is under the video in the description. Have fun with this one! https://youtu.be/dG-pYdzqZ_I
  13. greghagger
    Ever since I played I'd Rather Go blind at a gig around 15 years ago, I've always loved this bass line. It's so simple but works so perfectly. I'm talking about the original Etta James version recorded in 1967. But there have been a lot of covers since then by artists such as Beth Hart, Christine McVie and most recently, Dua Lipa. In the latest GBS YouTube lesson I show you how to play the Etta James bass line and also go through some key features of the Beth Hart/Bonamassa bass line. You can get a free PDF of the bass lines in standard notation and Tab under the video lesson. Enjoy!
  14. greghagger
    One of ZZ Top's most well-known tunes has to be 'La Grange' which you'll hear being covered at many a jam night. The main riff is straightforward to play but the bridge tends to cause problems. It's actually very simple once you know to ignore the rhythm of the guitar part in that section. This is a great Southern Rock tune and although it's not too technical to play, you need to really lock into a solid Boogie Blues bass groove and maintain it for pretty much the whole tune. Full transcription in standard notation and Tab under the video lesson. Enjoy! https://youtu.be/lKwmpQ8R46Y
  15. greghagger
    I brought a preamp directly from Michalik who makes the preamps for Spector. https://michalik.cz/index
  16. greghagger
    Hey there, I started this thread. I fitted my Spector with Bartolini pickups for the same reason as you. I just couldn’t find the sound I wanted out of the EMG’s. I thought the Barts worked really well.
  17. greghagger
    I’ve made a new video lesson on classic Rock bass lines. The lesson features bands such as, Deep Purple, AC/DC and Toto. I wonder what you think of my 5th bass line in the video. I think it’s classic rock but some of you might disagree! It was very hard to choose which bass lines to use as there are so many great classic Rock bass lines. So there's bound to be a follow-up lesson on this topic! I'd love to hear some of your favourite classic Rock bass lines I could use in another lesson, so leave me a comment under the Youtube lesson and let me know. I hope you enjoy the video. https://youtu.be/07zbf4X6_L4
  18. greghagger

    Jazz bass parts

    greghagger replied to Roxy's topic in Jazz

    It’s usual to only have chord charts as the bass player will usually improvise their own walking bass line. There are books out there that have Jazz bass line transcriptions at the end of them like The Improviser’s Bass Method by Chuck Sher.
  19. greghagger
    Yes these are the ‘proper Bart’s’!
  20. greghagger
    My Youtube lesson last week on the Noel Redding bass lines from Red House went down really well. Since then I've had some requests to compare these bass lines with the Billy Cox bass line from Red House live at Woodstock. If you're unaware of Billy Cox, he was Jimi Hendrix's long time friend who joined him in the band after Noel Redding left. The version of Red House at Woodstock is really iconic and it's interesting to see what Billy Cox played after I’ve looked at Noel Redding's bass lines. The two bass players are very different, not least because Noel Redding was first and foremost a guitarist. But personally, I see merits in both of their bass lines and enjoy all the contrasting versions of Red House. I’ve made a full transcription of Billy Cox’s bass line and you’ll find this under the video lesson. It’s in standard notation and Tab. Enjoy, and it would be interesting to hear which version of Red House you prefer. https://youtu.be/Et4vV7Vpnqo
  21. greghagger
    I’ve had quite a few requests lately to make a lesson on the Red House bass line, specifically the original bass line played by Noel Redding. I can understand why as this is a real Blues classic. The bass line is sometimes hard to hear in the mix and when I first started playing bass I just use to do my own thing when playing Red House at gigs. But I wanted to find out exactly what Noel Redding was playing so I started researching it. I found out something very interesting in a letter online from Noel Redding - he didn’t actually play bass on the original version of Red House! How had it taken me so long to find this out? It all makes sense when you listen carefully to what Noel is playing. I reveal all in my latest Youtube lesson and also show you two very different Noel Redding bass lines that you can use when playing Red House at a gig or jam night. The free PDF is under the video lesson. Have fun! https://youtu.be/9t_fiCQ7i6w
  22. greghagger
    Sometimes when at a gig or jam night we can run out of ideas of riffs to use in our bass lines while jamming a 12-bar Blues. So I've put a YouTube lesson together to give you five Blues bass riffs that are very easy to play and plug into the 12-bar progression. In the lesson I also talk about the main difference between the shuffle and straight feel and what this means for us bass players when we are playing Blues. It's important to get this right because you're gonna clash with the drummer if you play the opposite feel to him or her. In the lesson you'll also get plenty of practice playing through the 12-Bar Blues sequence which you should know back to front if you want to play at a Blues jam night. The five bass riffs are on a free PDF with standard notation and Tab. You’ll find the link to that under the video. Enjoy! https://youtu.be/NJ62_CXc1XM
  23. greghagger
    I’ve recently been looking at the music of the 'Godfather Of Soul' James Brown. And you can't look at James Brown without the funkiest of all Funk bassists, Bootsy Collins cropping up! Bootsy is on a lot of JB hits from the early 1970's and if you enjoy playing Funk then this is the bassist to check out. What a character he is, who lives Funk! In my latest YouTube lesson I show you the main grooves from five James Brown tunes. These all have great bass lines and some of them are trickier to play than you might think. All five grooves are really fun and you can learn a lot about the role of bass in Soul and Funk by studying them. As Bootsy would say - "you playing bass now, you are the foundation of the song." You can pick up a free PDF under the video of all five bass grooves in standard notation and Tab. https://youtu.be/qjNWnBYi9g0
  24. greghagger
    Hi @Dusty I use Sibelius to notate music and Tab. It’s pretty expensive but I need powerful software as I use it every day. There are free options out there for notation software that works on the iPad. Usually you have the option to write Tab as well as notation on these programs. Maybe someone on here knows of some free or cheaper options?
  25. greghagger
    Yet again Tommy Shannon is getting the business done in the studio version of Texas Flood. This whole album was recorded in three days which is hard to believe with albums taking months, even years to get finished nowadays! Without any overdubs, the album has a really nice live feel to it. The song Texas Flood is in 12/8 time and if you want to become an accomplished Blues bass player then you need to be comfortable playing in the 12/8 Blues feel as it's often used for slow Blues tunes. I spend time at the beginning of this YouTube lesson explaining exactly how 12/8 time works so definitely check out the lesson if you need help with this. There are particular lines that just 'work' when playing in this style of Blues and Tommy Shannon is a great player to learn these from. He really lays the groove down but also has an intuitive sense of when to 'let rip' and add some variety to his lines. In the lesson I show you how to play the first chorus of Texas Flood and then break down the rest of the bass line and talk through some of the variations Tommy plays. You’ll find a full transcription of the bass line in Tab and standard notation under the video. https://youtu.be/qMcGhUysokM
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