Members The Keester Posted January 31, 2009 Members Share Posted January 31, 2009 without getting into too much theory is there a way to write a walking bass line similar to this style? do you just stay in the scale of the whole song or do you change each scale to each individual chord being played? im pretty sure paul says he's not too much into theory but there has to be some structure to follow. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stackabones Posted January 31, 2009 Members Share Posted January 31, 2009 Learn your minor and major chord arpeggios. Also, learn some of Sir Paul's bass lines and check out what chords are going on while he's playing them. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Okieslims Posted January 31, 2009 Members Share Posted January 31, 2009 Even better guy to study is John Entwistle of the who. He did all kinds of crazy stuff with his bass lines. He was the most important person in that band imo. I know Townsend was a great song writer, but the bass line this guy was putting out there were revolutionary. I always heard that the bassist was the least important person in the group.. hell Bon Jovi said that on TV.. but then I started listening to the who and realizing just how much potential bassists have to really drive the song. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted January 31, 2009 Moderators Share Posted January 31, 2009 You know that thread about having a 2nd melody play to your main "song melody" instead of strumming out chords? That's what McCartney did/does. Arpeggios? Scales? Sure... but more importantly, he used melody. Some based on scales, some on arps, but melody. Based on the implied chord progression. Listen to the tuba in band pieces. Sousa and the like. Or rather, English band music from the turn of the century. The other century. Now mix that with what the guys were doing on Elvis and Little Richard records. That attitude with a seriously informed and intuitive musical insight. That's McCartney. Easy! / ; ^ ) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members blue2blue Posted January 31, 2009 Members Share Posted January 31, 2009 Even better guy to study is John Entwistle of the who. He did all kinds of crazy stuff with his bass lines. He was the most important person in that band imo. I know Townsend was a great song writer, but the bass line this guy was putting out there were revolutionary. I always heard that the bassist was the least important person in the group.. hell Bon Jovi said that on TV.. but then I started listening to the who and realizing just how much potential bassists have to really drive the song. When we start listening to a featherweight like Jon Bon Jovi about what's important in music, it's time to pack it in. With regard to the original question, there's no one answer. Often, particularly on songs built on a blues modulation, the bass line will be mirrored chromatically across the modulations, other times it will bend to the key... it all depends on the context and the way in which the song is harmonically constructed. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jewel Posted February 2, 2009 Members Share Posted February 2, 2009 When we start listening to a featherweight like Jon Bon Jovi about what's important in music, it's time to pack it in. With regard to the original question, there's no one answer. Often, particularly on songs built on a blues modulation, the bass line will be mirrored chromatically across the modulations, other times it will bend to the key... it all depends on the context and the way in which the song is harmonically constructed. +1 about bon jovi. he must never have listened to motown. the bass and drums are the most important things tracked in a pop/rock.metal song. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stackabones Posted February 2, 2009 Members Share Posted February 2, 2009 +1 about bon jovi. he must never have listened to motown. the bass and drums are the most important things tracked in a pop/rock.metal song. Blame the producer. Plus, I think the sound they usually go for is hair metal and power ballads, not motown. Bon Jovi's a decent writer. Not something I crave, but he knows what he's doing. Even Dylan complimented him on Dead Or Alive. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rsadasiv Posted February 2, 2009 Members Share Posted February 2, 2009 without getting into too much theory is there a way to write a walking bass line similar to this style? do you just stay in the scale of the whole song or do you change each scale to each individual chord being played?im pretty sure paul says he's not too much into theory but there has to be some structure to follow. Pretty much agree with Lee and Stackabones. McCartney plays very melodic lines - really not a walking style - don't think in terms of scales, think in terms of the melody in the lead or backing vocals. And yes, usually the melody will stay in a single key over the course of a verse/chorus/bridge section, so knowing your major and minor scales and being able to recognize the correct key will help a lot. Entwhistle is also very melodic and not really a walking style bassist, however his lines are usually independant of the vocal melody, and create their own melodic structures which are freqently much more active than the rather static vocal melodies and guitar chords. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Todzilla Posted February 2, 2009 Members Share Posted February 2, 2009 Jon Bon Jovi's advice is as relevant as his "music" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Stackabones Posted February 2, 2009 Members Share Posted February 2, 2009 Jon Bon Jovi's advice is as relevant as his "music" Don't you think that he may have had his tongue planted firmly in his cheek? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members jewel Posted February 2, 2009 Members Share Posted February 2, 2009 Blame the producer. Plus, I think the sound they usually go for is hair metal and power ballads, not motown. Bon Jovi's a decent writer. Not something I crave, but he knows what he's doing. Even Dylan complimented him on Dead Or Alive. you didn't understand what i was saying. it's ok, you may be right. his tongue may have been planted in his cheek. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Boydog Posted February 3, 2009 Members Share Posted February 3, 2009 you didn't understand what i was saying. it's ok, you may be right. his tongue may have been planted in his cheek. or between the "cheeks":eek: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Bodyguard2112 Posted February 3, 2009 Members Share Posted February 3, 2009 I've always enjoyed Van Halen's interpretation of what the bass should do. Not always walking per se, but many of their classics have specific bass riffs underlying the song. See "Jamie's Crying", for instance. Inspired by that (and other folks), I very often put active riff and walking bass parts in songs I write. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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