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greghagger

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Everything posted by greghagger

  1. greghagger
    Cheers @Geek99 - Duck is so great isn’t he. I learn a new thing every time I listen to him.
  2. greghagger
    I'm guessing you have seen Duck Dunn's awesome rendition of 'Sweet Home Chicago' in the Blues Brothers film. This is the scene where Jake and Elwood escape from the police and the song goes on for a good seven or eight minutes! Duck Dunn is playing all over the fretboard but still manages to hold down the bottom end and stay locked in with the shuffle groove. I have made a Youtube video where I pull apart some of Duck Dunn's bass line and extract the riffs and techniques that you can use in your own Blues bass lines. I have resisted a simple 'teach yourself to play Sweet Home Chicago lesson' as there are loads of those already on YouTube. But I try to distill the essence of Duck's bass line and give you something tangible to take away. If you are wanting to get ideas to help make your shuffle Blues bass lines more interesting then check out the video. You can also transfer some of the walking lines to your jazz bass lines too.
  3. greghagger
    Definitely agree that identifying shapes on the fretboard and developing your ear are vital skills. But to really open doors you need the whole package - great ear, good reading skills, a good understanding of how music works. I’m not sure how you feel about this but each important element of being a musician work together and enhance the other parts. Just because you use patterns on the fretboard, this doesn’t mean you can’t understand why these patterns work and how to apply them.
  4. greghagger
    Everyone has to start somewhere. Even with knowing one note first of all! just go for it and you will very quickly learn more.
  5. greghagger
    Definitely agree with this. 60-70% of my work involves reading.
  6. greghagger
    Hi @Reggaebass I recently saw a live lesson with Don Chandler and it was awesome and so informative. He really is the best Reggae teacher that I have seen on YouTube.
  7. greghagger
    Cheers @SumOne
  8. greghagger
    I have made a video lesson to help anyone wanting to learn 7th arpeggios. Arpeggios provide you with chord tones which are the essential 'building blocks' for bass lines. The notes of the arpeggio are chord tones. It is that simple! This lesson will give you five positions in which to play the maj7 arpeggio, getting you to play in different areas of the neck. You can apply these five positions to other types of arpeggios too and use them to start on any root note. The possibilities are endless and this is just what you need if you want to play exciting bass lines and get into playing walking bass.
  9. greghagger
    Nice tunes!
  10. greghagger
    Great, it is so useful and has pretty much every jazz standard you would ever need! Yes, you will do yourself a massive favour in the long run if you start working with chord names rather than fret diagrams. You can also make up setlists and write your own chord sequences too. Enjoy it!
  11. greghagger
    Nice one! Yeah I do a similar thing with arpeggios and chords. You can also think about it as continuous 2-5-1’s. I often play a major 2-5-1 then change the ‘1’ to a minor chord and carry on with that being the ‘2’ of the next 2-5-1. The i-real app is so great isn’t it. I highly recommend it to anyone who hasn’t got it.
  12. greghagger
    The Circle of Fifths does need to be explained careful, not least because in the Jazz world it is called the Circle of Fourths! But it is very helpful when learning about keys and chord progressions. But I get your point, that is not an area that sone people are particularly interested in learning about.
  13. greghagger
    You can learn the theory behind music which leads to understanding, but also learn patterns. You then have the best of both worlds.
  14. greghagger
    That’s great @Doddy good illustration of the modes. Thanks for that. Personally I see no problem in learning shapes and patterns on the fretboard. It’s can be very useful to learn the shapes of the modes and Pentatonics, etc. But learning the theory behind music is also very important as @Geek99 mentioned. The two aren’t mutually exclusive though. The modes aren’t actually useful at all though when learning to sight read. An understanding of key centres, where the notes are written and how rhythm works is what is necessary. You don’t have to go near modes for this area. Chord tones (arpeggios) are much more important in the real world for bass players. Modes do have their role though if you are soloing.
  15. greghagger
    That’s definitely a useful system for learning the modes @Reggaebass If we are talking purely for sight reading purposes then learning key centres and the sharps and flats in each key is more useful. Just for this particular situation though. An understanding of the modes and the different patterns will of course help with other areas of playing though.
  16. greghagger
    That’s a common issue. Start playing exercises in G Major and then move onto D Major, etc. and then do the same in the flat keys starting on F Major. Over time you will become more confident with different keys. Also remember that a sharp or flat (and natural) sign lasts for a whole bar.
  17. greghagger
    It’s to open up options. For example you can use substitutions to get smoother and more interesting walking lines or give more options for the soloists.
  18. greghagger
    Interesting, good to hear your story about your limitations... You are totally correct, none of it is rocket science, even technique or ear training. It is just knuckling down to some hard work and practice. But all elements of music improve you as a musician. Knowing music theory can be a brilliant aid to help train your ear too! Think of interval training for example. But it sounds like you’ve got the music theory covered so good for you!
  19. greghagger
    I love his background on the video and it’s a nice lesson. I agree that Blues is a great style to use to learn bass. It has a lot of transferable musical ideas and techniques.
  20. greghagger
    Ah cheers, didn’t know Roscoe had an instructional video. That will be interesting to look at. I think we have similar tastes. Tommy’s feel is just so on the money!
  21. greghagger
    Great, they are both particular favourites of mine too. Saw Roscoe Back with the Blue Line back in the late 90’s and I was blown away by his tone and lines. As for Tommy Shannon, he’s such a powerhouse and love his ‘Texas Shuffle’ line on ‘Pride and Joy’! Solid suggestion to study the playing styles of Blues bass players 👍
  22. greghagger
    I highly recommend an Xtender and have put them on a couple of my basses. You’ll have fun getting use to fretting the E string though when you have an Eb or D selected! It does make a 4-string much more versatile in certain situations and can save you having to lug a 5-string out for a few low D’s or Eb’s. Bass looks great by the way.
  23. greghagger
    Hey Bass-chatters, If you could have any resource to help you to learn how to improve your Blues bass playing, what would it be? For example, backing tracks, video instructional course, coaching, etc. Also what is your preference with styles of Blues? American or British Blues? Or do you just love it all like me?
  24. greghagger
    Out of interest, do you have an area of music theory that you particularly struggle to understand? Do you feel that it is holding you back in developing as a bass player too?
  25. greghagger
    Brilliant article and I wasn’t aware of the ‘Notes with Attachment’ album. Just ordered it and very interested in giving it a listen.
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