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greghagger

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Everything posted by greghagger

  1. A few weeks ago I made a lesson on the Meters classic, 'It Ain't No Use'. This week I've got a second classic Meters bass line, this time from 'Fire On The Bayou'. This is another funky bass line by Funk Meister, George Porter Jr and this one is a lot easier to play than the last one. If you want a very approachable Funk bass line to practice 'playing in the pocket' with then this one is for you. There is a three-note groove that is repeated throughout, along with some funky variations. Find out more in my latest YouTube lesson.
  2. 😂 I’d never thought of the pinky as a literal colour. I think I might just use ‘little’ in future! 😀 Generally bass players who have come over from guitar have better control over their fingers although I have seen sone guitarists with out of control fingers!
  3. It’s not so much not using the little finger but many players finding it harder to control. Definitely for beginners, it’s the little finger that moves away from the fretboard the most.
  4. One of the most difficult technical aspects to bass playing is keeping your fingers close to the fretboard. But if you want to play faster bass lines with better accuracy, you have to minimise movement and learn to be more ergonomic. The little finger of the fretting hand is the hardest finger to control and a particularly erratic pinky is sometimes referred to as a 'flying pinky'! If you want to get your pinky under control or improve on your fretting hand technique then you'll definitely benefit from my new 'flying pinky' lesson. In the lesson I go over the main aspects of correct fretting hand technique which is very important as there could be a part of your technique that is stopping you from efficient bass playing. Find out more in my latest YouTube.
  5. Usually I gravitate towards bass lines with less notes and more groove, especially for Blues. But I instantly loved Andy Fraser's bass line from 'Goin' Down Slow' by Free. It's busy and hectic with a lot of notes but works so well. This song is from their debut album, 'Tons Of Sobs' released in 1969 and is a million miles away from their best known tune, 'Alright Now'. When this album was released, none of the band were yet 20 and Andy Fraser was 16 which is pretty incredible! I featured this bass line in my recent bass course, 'The Birth Of British Blues' and the backing track has some superb piano and guitar solos on it. For the course, I transcribed Andy Fraser's bass line and then created a shortened version using lots of his actual runs and licks. I'm now sharing this in a YouTube video as it really showcases what an excellent bassist Andy Fraser was. Find out more in my latest YouTube video where there is also a downloadable PDF of the bass line in the video description. Enjoy!
  6. I was confusing the SGT level dial too as it’s a bit counterintuitive from the level dial on the left!
  7. I tried it straight into the PA at a loud gig in a Symphony Hall last Friday and it sounded great! Works great that way. Yet to try it at a gig in front of my amp.
  8. ‘Many Rivers To Cross’ is a classic by Reggae artist Jimmy Cliff. It's been covered many times and you might be more familiar with the UB40 version. t's not strictly a Reggae song but more more Gospel I suppose. Whatever style you want to call it, it's a great song! The bass line is not too tricky to play and is all about feel. This one works well played right at the back of the beat. Find out more in my latest YouTube with free downloadable PDF transcription of the bass line.
  9. Many students have come to me asking how to create bass line from a chord chart or progression. Some have said that they are completely stuck if they are asked to deviate from the set bass line or improvise a bass line on the spot. My advice is to just start and experiment. Use your ears to play what YOU think sounds good. Use ideas and concepts from your favourite bassists. I know this is easier said than done and there are some common building blocks you need to know that you can use as a framework in which to create bass lines from. So, I've put a video together showing you my process when presented with just a chord progression and asked to make up my own bass line. This lesson is easy to follow and you're bound to pick up some ideas that you can put into practice straight away. Find out more in the YouTube video. Free PDF download in the video description.
  10. Agreed. I always put pre-amp pedals at the end of the chain so I can DI everything like you said.
  11. Cheers! You know that I instantly thought Reggae too when I hit that particular setting! 😀
  12. I'm not one for buying bass gear all the time. I've pretty much accrued everything that I need. But every now and then someone brings out a new piece of kit that catches my eye. In this case it was the new Ampeg SGT-DI pedal. I've always wanted to have an old-school Ampeg amp and cabs but I just haven't got the room to store them and my osteopath bill would likely go up after carrying that weight to a few gigs! So when this new Ampeg pedal was released, I jumped at the chance to try out. This latest offering from Ampeg is a preamp pedal with EQ, cab simulation, grit and of course it contains the classic SVT and B-15 tones. Find out what I think of the pedal and whether it ticks all the right boxes in my latest YouTube video review.
  13. Thanks so much. Glad you liked it! I try to keep things easygoing in the lessons!
  14. Ah, didn’t know that. That’s why that bass line is awesome then!
  15. Yeah, saw that. Probably means I’ve been playing it wrong for years too! Still, not bad being in the company of Pino!
  16. Definitely! Good choices as well. Been meaning to make a lesson on Cissy Strut for ages now.
  17. I can't believe that I haven't yet made a lesson on a George Porter Jr. bass line. One of my students has been banging on about him for ages! If you don't know who he is, he's the bassist from The Meters who are one of the pioneer bands of the early Funk scene. George Porter Jr. is still active now with various projects and you can see him on YouTube in lots of collaborations with other artists like Tedeschi Trucks and Warren Haynes. In this latest GBS YouTube lesson I breakdown the bass line from 'It AIn't No Use', a Meters classic and this bass line is guaranteed to raise your Funk levels! Also check out my play-through video of this tune on YouTube this coming Monday. Enjoy!
  18. I recently got a message from a bass player I coach, asking how to play a particularly fast bass line: "Hey Greg have you tried that riff in Messin' With The Kid?? The 16th notes on beat 3 are killer at 150bpm. I can get it pretty good at about 85% tempo but at 100% my fingers give up!" So I gave the riff a listen and yes, there was a 16th note pattern that was very fast! This is a live version by Johnny Winter by the way and I’ve put a link to that under the video lesson. It’s a really good question and a great bass line so I decided to make a YouTube lesson explaining how to play faster on the bass. The bass player in the video was using a pick which can make playing certain fast bass lines easier but there are aspects of your playing that you can work on to develop finger-style speed. Find out more in the latest GBS video, and watch me just managing to pull off this bass line! I’ve also put three exercises in the lesson to help you with finger speed. Also be great if you share any other particularly fast bass lines that you have tried to play with finger-style.
  19. A couple of weeks ago I released a funky YouTube short demonstrating how to play hammer-ons. Since then I've had quite a few requests to break that riff down and explain how I'm using the muted notes (sometimes called 'ghost notes') in the riff. So I thought I'd make a lesson on this riff as muted notes are such an important technique for us bass players. If you want your bass lines and riffs to sound more rhythmic, classy and with an extra helping of funk, then you need to know exactly how to utilise muted notes. Find out how to play and use muted notes in my latest YouTube lesson.
  20. Ah thanks! They edited their message after I replied I think. The second part wasn’t there when I replied!
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