The 10 Rules of Bass Playing (That Pros Break)
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- Опубліковано 5 чер 2021
- 👉 My full beginner bass course: yeah.bassbuzz.com/10rules
Are rules meant to be broken? Here are 10 commonly taught “bass rules” - let’s see why the pros break ‘em, and if you should too.
According to Teacher Josh’s “proper” bass rules -
* Geddy Lee is plucking too hard
* James Jamerson doesn’t use enough fingers
* Chris Squire doesn’t either, but on the other hand
* Louis Johnson’s hand is all wrong
* Rocco Prestia’s fretting technique is a mess
* Robert Trujillo’s bass is too many miles from his head
* Peter Hook should be penalized by the FAA for flying that high
* Victor Wooten’s tone doesn’t count as “bass tone”
* Billy Sheehan don’t know enough theory to play that good
* Sting is missing the most important beat in his bass lines
Check out @TheArtofGuitar Mike's “Rules Pro Guitarists Break” video - • 10 "Proper" Rules That...
As you may suspect... I disagree!
In this lesson I’ll explain in detail why these legendary bassists are “breaking the rules,” and how it can improve (or hurt) your playing to follow their lead.
And at the end, I’ll challenge Teacher Josh to see if he can actually play the bass...
Click here to subscribe - how can ye have any pudding if ye don’t eat yer meat? yeah.bassbuzz.com/subscribe
#BassRules #TeacherJoshApproved
Just got a letter from Teacher Josh… I’ve been expelled. 🎓🔨💔
Timestamps for this lesson:
0:29 - Rule #1
1:35 - Rule #2
2:36 - Rule #3
3:37 - Rule #4
4:29 - Rule #5
5:35 - Rule #6
6:46 - Rule #7
7:47 - Rule #8
9:20 - Rule #9
10:12 - Rule #10
You're an awesome person lol
You forget 1 rule that bring so many debates...play with close and tight finger space....not spreading fingers like spider legs
@@XVENDETTA100 the struggle is real.lol .that is one of the biggest challenges for me right now as a beginner bass player🙉
Wait how was this comment made a week ago?
@@debbypetersen8421 everyone has different hand size..narrower hand has difficulty to react in time to reach the fret...and yet the rule is same.....play with close fingering as close as possible..and yet sometime we asked to play with "1 finger per fret" style...
while we are struggling to make it tight and close....we also struggling to see the tutorial or playthrough from youtube with close fingering guys and keep predicting....what fret that he pushed ..actually ?
I believe John Frusciante said: "You learn the rules so that when you break them, you do it with finesse"
Ah yes, my favorite bassist
No srsly I love Frusciante lmao great quote
That's way too coherent for John Frusciante.
If you don't know the rules, you break them because you don't know any better.
If you DO know the rules, you break them because you KNOW what's better.
A professional knows the rules and why they exist so they can be broken intentionally.
An amateur has no idea what the rules are so even good ideas sound terrible.
Same way with driving you learn all the rules. To later in life fallow along in the way you think works for the situation. So you can’t just jump in a car and not care about rules because you don’t know ….
Geddy Lee: I attack the bass.
DM: Roll for initiative.
He gets mad bonuses ;)
And when Sheehan doesn't know the notes he's playing, it just means he min-maxxed into Str and Con and left the Int and Wis skills for the bard in the band.
@@kahwigulum You are awesome! :D
"It's a crit"
Yeah pretty sure they had to do away with dice when Geddy was rolling because to fit a big enough number on the dice it just looked like a ball
I think that he has a course from beginner to badass that he wants to share with us.
Oh yeah, I've heard of that course, I hear it's good. :P
It’s only 200 bucks for tons of content. Not a bad deal. If he keeps bringing it up in his videos I might just get it soon
Do it! It's a great course and resource!
@@Sin00b imagine having 200 bucks lol
It actually is good. It is a slow progression so if you are already fairly far into being self taught but really just go through the motions even if it’s stuff you already know.
As a 70 year old novice, I’m learning a lot from this channel. My current goal is to become semi competent before I snuff it.
I've been playing for 50+ years and describe myself as 'merely adequate'.
"My current goal is to become semi competent before I snuff it."
Poetry.
love that, keep going man
Chris Squire was 6' 4"
Tall guy = big hands = wide reach = infrequent pinky use.
I'm 5' 9". I use my pinky all the time.
5'7 and I think I might overuse my pinky!
6'3" = frequent four finger/OFPF use.
5'4- Same. My hands are TINY.
I'm 6'7" and I use my pinky all the time!
@@BassBuzz know the rules, then break them, as others in the comments suggest?)
my preferred example for overplucking is Geezer Butler. He really fucking goes for the strings
I think a big part of his is he played guitar first. He plays bass for black sabbath because the already has a guitarist so he just grabbed a bass and started playing.
I’d say either him or Steve Harris, but he learned it from Geezer anyway.
@@lukebrogan6913 Steve Harris doesn't pluck that hard, he has a very low action and that gives him the sound he has.
I love how at 5:41 James Hetfield tells the sound engineer to turn Trujillo up. And Justice for All must have caught up to him! Haha
Teacher Josh: "Keep your bass above the waist"
Every metal/punk bassist ever: "No."
hell no
That one isn't just about looking cool, although that's the greater part of it. I've talked to a couple guys who do almost Trujillo low strap and they both explained there was a physical reason for it: by doing it this way your left (fretting) hand does not extend as far out from your body, which, for these two, was an energy savings. The only problem with this is your technique has to be specifically tailored to that strap height. It's not something you can just change from one day to the next expecting no issues.
I used to play my bass pretty low... but as I wanted to improve and play more advanced parts, it was just easier to become a nipple rider.
@@jasongall7634 it's a matter of choice my friend
If I was physically playing the way Victor Wooten is, I might be wearing my bass where he does. But I basically never slap and tap like he does, instead I play with a pick or with classical guitar technique, so I wear my bass a lot lower.
Thanks for giving Hooky some love, he pioneered "lead bass"
And he plays his bass waaaaaayyyy below the waist. So does Simon Gallup.
BTW New Order without him are just another synth band. He gave them an edge and an ID.
@@GVike Absolutely! If you listen to his Revenge and Monaco work, you can hear how integral he was to the sound of NO and JD!
And lets be honest, he has more personality and stage presence that the rest of NO combined. (Though Morris can be pretty funny)
Killer content, killer explanation, killer humour.
I'd like to say this exceeds my expectations, but this is BassBuzz, so it's quite the standard here.
❤️
Thanks Edoardo!
I love the reference to system of a down: "disorder, disooorder"
You forgot to mention the Lemmy Exception to bass playing: Break ALL of the bass rules, and play like you want to.
great take , RIP lemmy. FACT 1: guitar has been around since the 1600's, FACT 2: Bass guitar has only been around since the 1950's. that's 400 years of people making the rules for guitar... i'd say the true "rules" are still being written for bass guitar. which is why i have a love-hate relationship with this topic (bass rules). i wouldn't call any of these "Rules" maybe guidelines. but i hate calling any thing bass guitar related a set in stone rule. The instrument is just too damn young to say any thing is set in stone.
I learned this from photography, know the rules then break them.
Same with my art teacher lol
Same
Yes, it's because you understand what the rules are for that you know when and how to break them.
Geddy Lee - “I don’t do soft picking.”
You had me at hello, Mr. Lee.
Dynamics are the worst. Couldn't agree more.
Rule 6: keep your bass above your waist UNLESS you wanna play like Krist Novoselic
Or Paul Gray
Rule 6 Corollary: Keep your bass under your head UNLESS you wanna get whacked like Krist Novoselic
While music theory isn’t needed, you should always try to learn as much of it as you can do you can improvise better, improve your technique, and communicate with other musicians. Learning the theory is an amazing tool that will always improve your playing. Don’t skip out on it. Billy Sheehan’s musical sense of mechanics is what gives him his patterns. He plays scale patterns a lot and that comes from the mechanics of his fretting hand more than anything.
I’ve just discovered your channel and you’re my hero! I quitted bass guitar 15 yrs ago - basically for lack of self-esteem (considering my family tree, I’m the only “musical person” in the house who didn’t make it/graduate in classical music) and because of a new dimension in life (young adult work schedule). But lately, somehow, something happened and I took the chance of brushing upon my bass practice. I’m not going to lie, I was moved - sooo surprised! - when I realized I was not that bad... your content is so well-structured and fun and passionate that I’m starting again. Can’t wait... Thank you so much, to me it’s like a breath of fresh air! Ciao from Milan, Italy 🤍
You're welcome Angie, ciao!
One advantage of learning music theory seldom gets much press. You can acquire new material much quicker. With four days, I played an audition with eight new songs for a band this afternoon. There'd be no way to remember that much new music if I couldn't read.
Yes! Also helps chunk the information mentally better when memorizing.
Yeah, but you can learn it even faster if you have good relative pitch.
@@aprilkurtz1589 Ear training is key to learning songs off the record. Yes.
That's how I started ear training, then, though I didn't think of it as ear training, I was just learning bass by listening to and playing along with the radio. I don't know how to read, or read tab, and I don't know theory, so if I must learn covers, I play along with YT vids.
@@aprilkurtz1589 It’s ear training alright. If it was a merit badge, you’d have earned it after a half dozen songs. Don’t be weirded-out by terms like music theory and ear training. They’re all the words we have for this stuff.
❤️ for mentioning Chris Squire
Just sitting here - without my Bass - ABSORBING Bass Knowledge. I like videos like that occasionally. Since I started watching your awesome channel two years ago my whole Bass Dream came alive again. I played my first set in front of a live audience on July 4th. My Daughter is excited about her Guitar again and my Son just bought a sweet keyboard. We’re learning to play Green Onions together. You and your teaching style and format made ALL THE DIFFERENCE, Josh.
Yeah, as soon as you said "don't pluck too hard" I thought of Geddy Lee. And a second later he appears in the video...😁
That guy _really_ manhandles his bass! 🙂
I had no idea how hard I played until I had a new bass set up. The tech was really proud about the setup.
Me: rattle clatter rattle clatter - can you raise it a bit?
Him: um yeah, I guess (makes some adjustments)
Me: rattle clatter rattle clatter - maybe a bit more?
Him: (more adjustments)
Me: some good solid notes with a little clatter - maybe a bit more?
Him: (sigh) dude, seriously?
I ended up with a spectacular setup, but we were both surprised at what it took 🧐
@@chadward And you're able to fret the notes comfortably?😁
Learned it from the OG John Entwistle. Dude banged his fingers on the strings.
Rule 1, I beat the shit out of the strings.
Rule 2 , I use 3 fingers, not 2
Rule 4, Thumb peaks over the neck for a look sometimes.
Rule 6, neck is just below waist level
Rule 7, Why have 24 frets if you are not going to use them?
Rule 8, Some highs, mostly lows, almost zero midrange
Rule 9, Playing since 1984. Started learning basic theory 3 years ago.
So I break 7 rules
Observe the rules so you know when you can break them and not look like a noob
Watching this video after just finishing the Roxanne lesson in Beginner to Badass today, I was waiting for the comment about wanting to sound like Sting and there it was
Finally! More bass buzz! Watching this channel and practicing is probably my favourite past time
Thank you!
In 30+ years playing bass, predominantly metal, but also a lot of rock, funk, jazz, blues, and progressive, I never thought of single finger plucking as a desirable technique. 3 finger is something I've been doing more frequently in recent years (abandoned using pinky to pluck).
Thank you josh for putting so much effort in your videos. What I most like about these is that every second of the video is entertaining and so learning is much more fun.
Thank you!
👍🏼Yup
Agree 💯% ✅
He’s an ace, umm no, the ♠️ Ace 🎶 bass teacher on UA-cam
And Josh actually reads his disciples’s Comments
Hey, why not?! Any uber positive feedback ie appreciative comments gotta be good for any teacher 👨🏫
BassBuzz Josh certainly doesn’t lack confidence or enthusiasm
And that enthusiasm is the 🔑 characteristic trait a standout teacher needs and shows and uses
Enthusiasm is infectious in the classroom
And I know whereof I speak as a English as a Second Language teacher at all levels from Beginner to College for the last 30 years
I'm still a beginner learner after 46 years playing, but i still enjoy, and learn something from each of these videos, even if it is only going back to basics each time, and for that i thank you.
Thanks Greg!
When you talked about keeping the bass below your waist, I immediately thought of Krist Novoselic. My personal inspiration :)
In Bass and in life you have to color outside the lines to be one of the greats, to discover new ways of doing the same ole tricks 😎
Billy Sheehan was who I thought of when you mentioned alternating between 2 fingers, he often uses 3 fingers :)
Rule #11 - "don't palm mute because it kills the fullness of the sound"
David Ellefson - "and I took that personally"
the bass above the waist thing also could’ve counted krist novoselic
True, Krist got his Bass' by the knee
Then there's John "Thunderfingers" Entwistle...then all rules go out the window through a chipper and made into particle board.
"...unless you want to sound like Geddy Lee."
Who doesn't want that?!
You are the Bestahhhh. Rule 2,5 is absolutely the best lesson any bass student needs to respect.
Thanks Sebastian!
@@BassBuzz Get on with yer work!
Re rule 8/9 heh
In the studio I just recorded "rythm bass" and "lead bass". Magic. We figure out what works best live eventually. Often my bass melodies are hooks, and the rythm guitar holds it down
Good video as always. Very cool of you to give a shout out to Mike G. I watched a lot of his lessons and I can confirm he is a excellent guitar teacher and a very chill dude.
the most entertaining bass vids on the WWW. thanks for great content!
that look Chris gave when he actually did use his pinky
I love your channel Jooshh!! I found extremely useful the way you explain everything. Using humor in the middle and nice examples.
Keep up the great work!
Thanks Matías!
Thank you for #5. It has finally settled the mystery for me how "What Is Hip?" was done. I've never been able to get a handle on that one, and I still won't be able to, but at least now i _know_ what it is I can't do.
As a metal guitarist, i only knew a few of those bassist.
(Robert Trujillo, Victor Wooten, Billy Sheehan, Sting, and Getty Lee)
Also, as a metal guitarist, Rule 3 & 5 is the way i do power chords (so does James Hetfield & Kirk Hammett.)
Great vid, Josh.
You got the right mix between teaching/ Information and a good portion of humor, i like.
Take care and keep up the great vids.
Thanks Patrick!
Another great video! Thanks Josh and Teacher Josh.
Cool video! I admit I was a little disappointed that Hooky wasn't cited for rule 6, so I was pleasantly surprised to see him in the very next one! Good job on noting to drone the lower strings, it's something some people still miss.
1:48
immediately plays "Dean Town"
JOSH FOSS
ON THE SQUIER BASS
#1: Learn the rules
#2: Know why they exist
#3: Intelligently break them for effect
My favorite one was rule #2.5. From what I can see, a lot of people here are great at it already.
Wonderful lesson Josh. Its always fun watching your videos. You give practical advice, great examples and all with some fun behind it. You're a terrific teacher.
Thanks Thomas!
Your videos are sooo good! Fun and instructive, great editions, didatics, everything. Just wanna say thank you, sir!
Thanks Richard, I appreciate that!
NIce! I really enjoyed this. I've been playing professionally and teaching bass for 40 years, this video made me smile. Great job!
Thanks Blake!
Your videos are so fun to watch. You crack me up lol. I never knew learning could be fun. Best Bass teacher.
brilliant haha cheers, loved the teacher bass songs at the end
Love your videos, Josh! Thanks for this awesome new video!!
You're welcome!
Great job, Josh! Thanks a lot!!
“Don’t play with your bass below your waist unless you want to sound like Robert Trujillo”
Or any punk bassist
"Uhh, Rob, when I told you to play as low as you can, I meant for you to play the lowest notes on your bass, not for you to go down to your ankles and play it that way!"
Brilliant video. I learnt a lot. Thanks
Duuude, i follow you since your early days on your old channel and you still got it and fresher than ever!
Thanks Ángel!
Notice on rule 2 is that Geddy Lee uses one-finger plucking both on the up and down stroke (Flamenco-style), making him crazy fast with that one finger.
Love the shout out to hooky under rated bassist
Josh, I love your videos, and as a bass teacher myself I appreciate your engaging approach.
Thanks Mark! :)
I love the fact that all you great videos are done with a bass that pretty much every one can afford to play,not some multi thousand dollar rig , makes y feel like everybody can sound great
Wow, that was just great. I've heard at least half of these when I was learning years ago and as I was finding my own sound and traits, I sometimes felt a bit guilty of breaking a few rules like the thumb and pinkie one. Besides, it's been a long time since I was able to read music, and as I'm not a pro I don't intend to go back to it. However I've always faced these little quirks as part of who I am as a bass player and how they define my sound and approach. And I'm ok with it!
you learned that when you were 16 holy crap lol. This is why, and I say this with no snarkiness, bass players are often technically better musicians than us guitarists. At that age I was just jerking around with power chords on electric with some basic "cowboy chords" for acoustic. In college I had a band where I wrote the lead guitar for me and lyrics for our singer. Our bass player (I consider him a "lead" bass player by his style) was always the one who came in and added that final ingredient with his technical licks that brought the melody into motion. I'm constantly amazed by good bass playing.
A great video and a great lesson, now, let's practice!!
Josh, keep up the amazing work!
You videos are both - informative and entertaining. I'm always watching with a smile, while learning some useful stuff.
I'm glad you've put the same approach at your "Beginner to Badass" course, which I' use daily to progress with a bass much faster! *wink*
Thanks Vladimir! :)
Glad you mentioned the straight wrist in regards to bass height. I play in a Black Metal band so a lot of 16th note blast beat riffs and I've found if my arm/wrist isn't straight with the bass around my belt I can't play cleanly at higher tempos. Guys used to rag on me for how low I keep my bass but it's biomechanical, and yea it looks cooler. Lol
Cutting out sum tone and volume then plucking hard while playing near the bridge is the best thing i discovered i can do on a bass guitar
Awesome content - thanks for your pro-level advice.
rly enjoying beginner to badass love u ashton kutcher
Dude where's my bass? :P
Thanks I learnt a lot from this 👍
Actually had no idea that Sheehan didn't know theory. That's awesome. While I do get why many bass and guitar players strongly (sometimes too strongly) encourage theory, it's always cool to learn about virtuosos that don't know any.
As far as playing on the one it's worth mentioning that a lot of latin grooves don't play the bass on the one but instead for example on the "2 and" and "4".
Thanks for the insights into Thunderthumbs and Rocco. I think Mick Karn might be an even more dramatic example of not knowing theory given the originality of his harmonic/melodic/intonation sensibilities, the complexity of his music and the sophistication of his collaborators.
i love you man :)
I am a beginner but it makes so much fun and joy that it makes so much fun :)
Thanks Hansa!
Yeah Josh! Kept sherching until finally found you with new lessons, but still enjoying BTBA course .keep up the great work.your awsome man. Thankyou so much! Sorry for typo
Loved this I have been playing for several years everything you suggested i already do. Great tips
Thanks Larry!
I have a really great sounding bass, but the neck is so wide and thick that the deep strings were causing my pinky knuckles to lock, causing pain and maybe arthritis. I've switch to basses with narrower, thinner necks (and I play 5-string basses). My pinky barely comes up to the top knuckle on my 3rd finger. I have a couple basses with thin, narrow necks, and I have one with a 'C' neck, so I can easily slide my hand under the neck to make up the difference. And I also use the thumb on my left hand to stop the 5th string from droning. Another thing about Squire: he used a pick. I have a video from Billy Sheehan who recommends that if you practice while sitting, try to keep your bass in the same position when you stand to play so you'll know exactly where your strings and frets are from memory. I hang mine a little low, but I hang it a little low also when I sit to practice. Years ago, I hung my bass low, but I always practiced standing up. One thing I really like about 5-string basses is when I really want to plow a deep 'E' into the audience, I can pop the note on my open 4th string, and also on the 5th fret of the 5th string at the same time. It may sound like too much, but it give tone and killer sustain. I also always use stainless steel round-wound strings. I need to play very cleanly, but I love the piano-like depth. Warning: It's hard on frets and fingers. Sheehan, Geddy Lee, and when Chris Squire was with us, all used stainless steel round-wound strings. the sound is great, but slop is very easy to hear. When I went to 5-string, y fingers kept acting as if the deepest note was an E. but it was a deeper A. I practiced a video four modes on 4 string again and again, and now I instinctively know where the common 4 strings are. All modes were in C, but I practiced again and again. I can now recognize modes in other keys.
A lot more plugs in this one than in your other videos … but we will certainly not blame you. You are doing an excellent job. Thank you.
I often play my bass with Victor Wooten or Les Claypool's tones. I use thin steel strings and roll off the bass knob a lot because I do a lot of playing like those people, so I have to have a nice crispy tone to hear all the nuances. It also helps me to be able to hear my high and low tones evenly when playing solo, and just generally hear what I'm playing when I'm playing in a group. Also, the thin strings allow me to do things that would just be impractical with standard strings like full harmonic solos, full bends, bar chords, and holding cords for long periods of time. The downside is that they're not good for drop tuning, but I don't need to drop tune because I play a six string bass. The thinner strings are a little harder to mute because they resonate more easily, which if you're looking for a deeper muddy tone can sound really good as well. Warmer flat tones can be good too, but I can't tell you how many times I've tried to listen to something and couldn't hear sh!t because their damn tone was so flat. "Yo man, check out this awesome solo by Jaco Pastorius!". Then it's like when you hear people talking a few rooms over but can't understand anything they're saying.
Such an underatted channel
Pluck with 2 fingers? But Billy Sheehan taught me to use 3. Josh taught me to use my pinky. I should thank him for that. Thanks Josh!
The trick is learning theory while you study and forget everything when you play.
The Wall bit really got me
I play index finger pluck on 1st three strings (EAD) and on 1st 4 frets playing the tonic note with index finger once when the chord changes or repeats...but thats just me. Great video thank you.
As a long time bass player, what you should do is follow the rules if you have a bunch of other members, say 2 guitarists (5 piece like ACDC) But if you have less members, like one guitarist (any 3 piece like Rush or Nirvana) the bass has a lot of space to work with, and can do a lot, like breaking the rules. Also shame on Teacher Josh for not downpicking on Ramones.
11:17 I appreciate Teacher Josh's appropriately sober brown-painted P-Bass.
So, if I don’t learn music theory I can sound like Billy Sheehan? Worth it...
That's all it takes! That and 50 years of constant gigging and practice, no biggie. :P
I literally wrote "FU*K IT" on my Beginner to Badass tabs for Billie Jean after 3 days of struggling to play it. That was about 8 weeks ago and after much practice I can play it now! OR SO I THOUGHT! 😅
Haha!
Same. I still try it every day anyway... 😏
Geddy Lee likes to pluck with one finger too ... but he uses his nail and do something like flamenco style on bass and he uses his second finger to pluck up and down like a pick.
Love that Art of Guitar channel! My brother use to play the bass almost to the floor. I asked him why do you need a strap for? His was a chain.
When you can play on the 5th fret instead of an open string to get the same note, that's usually the better choice.
Great vid, thank you!
You're welcome Rick!
"Nasty tone"
*plays and a killer tone comes out
Man I remember when this channel only had 5k subs. It hasn't even been that long. Good on you.
Thank you!
Great video as always Josh! Looking forward to receiving my Beginner to Bad Ass course. Feeling a bit "plucky"! Lol cheers.
Thanks Mr. Anderson!
The only 3 styles I learned from long long ago was the Ventures, Shadows and Paul's Hofner bass playing with a Pick. Still do it now. Don't care about other styles. Anyway, thanks for the vid.
Thanks got video Josh!