The riff EVERY bass player gets wrong (even Pino and Jaco)
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- Опубліковано 9 вер 2024
- Hey groovehacker, Scott here...
What would you say if I told you that there's a riff that pretty much every bass and guitar player plays wrongly... even Pino and Jaco!
In this lesson you're going to learn what the riff is, hear and see examples of people playing it incorrectly, and then I'm going to show you where they're going wrong and how to play it correctly...
Oh... and this riff is SUPER funky!
Also... before you check out the lesson...
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As always, see you in the shed...
Scott.
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The Meters knew how to use S P A C E better than nearly any other band. Required playing for every drummer and bassist.
Pino actually plays it correctly in that video you reference. John Mayer playing with him plays it wrong, but Pino is playing it dead on.
This happens with ALOT of basslines. They are almost always simpler than they sound, but the interlocking patterns of the groove make you imagine more notes.
I can't believe I ALWAYS play it right! My bass teacher always tells me play it wrong HAHAAH
Same here, I learned it the right way by ear but I guess I assumed I had it wrong because everyone I know plays it the wrong way. Strength in numbers!
Same! Then I watched an instructional video and learned it the wrong way!
Same. I don't even think it's that hard to hear, but I guess it's possible that some of those legends haven't actually sat down and properly listened to the track. (Can't expect them to know every single good/funky/amazing song in ridiculous detail.) I can easily imagine a situation where one band member (John Mayer, for instance) says, "guys, I really want to do Chicken Strut tonight. If you don't know it, it goes like this..." and then they just jam over the "wrong" groove.
In other words, I have a hard time believing that if you sat someone like Pino down and told him to listen and play it exactly as on the recording, that he would make those two mistakes.
Same, we must be better than Pino and Jaco
I want to meet the dog that can play this riff. Even if he plays it wrong that dog would be the coolest dog in the world.
I'll bet there's somebody nicknamed "Dawg" out there that plays it
Rick W, in my case it's close. Had a band leader that used to call me Jungledog.
Its a BASSett Hound
Yeah it's usually cats that play funk.
Dawg (Dave Grisman) singed one of my basses...I'm sure he's played it a number of times...kinda funny a mandolin player signing a bass
Watched a video a few weeks ago of the man himself saying that so many people get it wrong, and showing the right way. I think everyone just expects that note to be there. Love playing along to this tune. 👌
This is the ONE TIME I will come on here and tout myself as an ear player. I knew this because I listened closely to the original track and when we cover this tune, I play it right (even if those around me often don't). Three other famous bass lines I bet a lot of other people play wrong would be: The John Paul Jones line: Whole Lotta Love, Louis Johnson's line: Billie Jean, Bakithi Kumalo's line: Boy in the Bubble.
Evan J been ages since I covered any Billy Joel but I think it's Piano Man that we vary, along with the keyboard players
Louis* Johnson
Kennet -- edited, thanks. Just like me type the wrong "Lewis" but no trouble with Bakithi Kumalo. I'm more likely to screw up easy bass lines as well.
Add Roundabout bass line to that list!!
Good point! Musicianship 101! This is what always happens when musicians take certain songs for granted. In this case, the "bass" part is usually mistaken and copied from the "guitar" part because the guitar is cutting through the recording a great deal more because of it's percussive attack and higher range. The bass in actuality is playing "a few less" notes than the guitar while anchoring the groove if you dissect through all the instrumentation and carefully listen. It's crucial to know the song's DNA. Everyone be careful out there..
Yes! My band mates wouldn't believe me that they were playing it wrong and adding notes- but now I have proof!!!
Thank you!
This video made me so happy, because Cissy Strut is exactly what I've been working on - and I've been playing it right, and as soon as I heard the opening examples I knew what was wrong. I've been working on some Meters stuff, and recently transposed a Lee Dorsey funk tune from the 70s that also probably has George Porter Jr/Meters backing, though I haven't found written confirmation of that, but here is my sneaking suspicion about George Porter Jr. baselines - it's always fewer notes than you want to think he's playing! That's my theory about that guy. I'm going to be working on more of his stuff and I'll see if that holds water. I think that maybe among all bass players, he really knows how to use space to maximize the funk.
Hey, that's great! If you wanna check out another great tune by The Meters check out "Look-ka Py Py... it's a great groove!
Thank you - I'll go there next! :D
Funny how I went through the exact same process as the video when I was playing this song with a band at some time. I found the original part played here on UA-cam and as Scott points out it was much more simple than everyone played it. I actually smiled when I heard him play it at the beginning of the video :D
i will pat myself on the back for actually playing both parts correctly. I know a lot of players that rely on others to teach them songs but from the day i started i play along to the recordings. Great lesson man
Less is more is the birth of that concept for me. Well done, thx 4 sharing this etude.
I like how Danny's left hand works like a trombone to get that solid muted staccato tone 😁🎶
It must have killed Scott to play less notes for once in his life. LOL
Nah... I just switched off the camera and then BLAZED, lol! ;)
That should be 'fewer notes'. The word 'less' is applied to a singular noun, 'fewer' when using a plural noun. #GrammarNazi.
I saw this and thought naah not me.. Turns out I've been playing the A section wrong (what you said) but the B section actually right. Cool, I'm only half wrong! Things are looking up 😂.
Cheers Scott. As always.
Awesome Si! :)
almost right is completely wrong (my dad, whenever I "almost" got something right ;-)
Hey Scott! Growing up, the meters were a big influence on my playing. In fact, the members of the meters are family friends! Zigaboo (the drummer, for those of you that don't know) had by far the biggest effect on the way I play. Cool video, man!
As a guitarist who tries his damndest to play songs exactly like the originals played it and cringes when my ears tell me I've found incorrect tabs, which I don't use often thank ya kindly ;), I RESPECT you taking the time to set the record straight on how this funky classic is supposed to be played. Keep it funky Scott!
ur right, it does sound cooler when it's played the right way. thanx 4 the lesson.
I knew what song this would be during the intro talk before Scott ever named it. Go listen to the original group, people! 😉 It's great schooling in groove.
This is important to understand. The difference is an education in itself.
as TM stevens Once said "its not what you play its what you don't play" MIND BLOWEN when i heard that!!
This riff is so simple it's really doesn't matter if it's playing wrong of in a other style.
The other thing that everyone seems to get wrong is they play a Bb instead of an A at the end of the first riff. (b7 instead of 6) Thank you for playing that correctly. :-)
Too funny Scott. I wore that one out trying to keep it simple! Thanks.
I ve always played it correctly, thanks. Just listen to the record guys
wow. that's cool. so I played it right all the years. thanks a lot. I am happy now😊
Love your stuff, Scott, and I KNOW that, instead of saying, "...playing it WRONG...." what you really MEAN to say is are not playing the riff the same way that the original version was played. Jaco, Pino, et al, were playing their own interpretations of the riff, but I'm always careful to say, "Here's the way the original was played.", as opposed to, "That's WRONG.", as artists ought not to be shamed for putting their own artistic bent on a song/riff/lick.
Thank you. There is a terrible tendency on UA-cam in particular to suggest that a cover should somehow be exactly the same as the original (I've seen lots of references to how 'Enter Sandman' should be played ever since a particular video went up), which to my mind is missing the point of playing music in the first place.
There's two terms, isn't there-"cover" and "soundalike"? I get, though, that mostly it seems "cover" is used for both. But, making the distinction, a cover is _supposed_ to be different; it's the _soundalike_ that's meant to be the same? Maybe this is too nitpicky; maybe the distinction is silly to make.
Cissy Strut is just one of those songs you never should add your own interpretation. The song is absolutely bad ass.
Yeah, but it's not a proper UA-cam video unless you add a clickbait-y title to rile people up. Who do you think he is, Adam Neely?
I played this song wrong at literally hundreds of gigs, and I had no idea until now.
Thanks for this! A true public service indeed! Also on a side note, got my sbl strap a couple of months ago and it is wonderful!!
Awesome Russ!
There is a very short rest and ghost note everyone is missing and they add a fretted note in to cover it... I see that now! Amazing, thanks!
Nice,,I've been playing bass since I was 12.. great for beginners but myself I play arpeggios, guitar modes aeolian phrygian locrian Dorian and scales are the true way connect the notes and progress in understanding the fret board.
Small but important details. Like you said, space creates the funk!
One of the funkiest joints EVER! Almost 50 years old and grooves harder than most of the shit on radio today!!!
Somehow I knew the tune would be Cissy Strut !!! I noticed that when people play this cover tune it always seemed a tad busy. Thanks for setting the record straight Scott!!!!
Talented and smoking hot bass wizard thanks for fixing this for me
I played it wrong too. Fascinating video thanks
Excellent!!!!!!! Thank you!! I ve played the song many times and never realized that.
Totally agree. I play it the correct way as well, but I listened to this for hours years ago to get it perfect. Sounds way better (in any tune) when you play LESS>. Let your brain fill in the blanks.
Cheers.
I'm getting really into classic funk music, because of this video. Thanks Scott 👍
Yay! I have not been playing it wrong!! I may not play it well, but it's not wrong LOL
The best old funk players have always created the impression of notes they never played. The more I listen to Al Jackson Jr, the less he plays:^)
Ha nice one. I've played bass with Zigaboo Modeliste for many years and every time someone sits in - horn, guitar, keys, whatever they always add them extra notes. I won't post video but there's searchable (wink) video of us playing that tune and a couple of us looking at each other hoping to "will" the other cats into playing the "right" way. I think you mentioned it though that the extra bits have just seeped into everyone's conciousness. I, however, always play it like George played it. Ziggy told me early on "learn what George did first, then put yo' own s$%% on it". Peace man, great stuff.
Scott's Bass Lessons haha. Still is :-) been playing with Ziggy since 2012. He really is a beast still.
Scott's Bass Lessons he also has great stories. Greeeeeaaaat stories that also include meeting Jaco and Jaco being so excited to meet HIM.
How can you tell the difference whether they're playing it wrong or playing it their own way? For example I don't add the extra notes but I play the whole groove in the Gm pentatonic scale.
"wrong" is just a word used to say "that's not how it was originally played". I think that the extra bits came from Schofield and have just stuck into people's pshyci
Interesting. But what do you do when Zigaboo plays his own part differently like he did on the live recording of Cissy Strut from the album 'Uptown rulers: The meters live on the Queen Mary'?
I had it right along thank you. Such a clear musical conversation.
You are good man, and clear explanation !! Tumb UPPPP !!!!!(hugs from cold Berlin !!)
I've noticed in addition to the rhythmic departure people tend to play on the A section, a lot of people tend to replace the note A with a Bb. pretty much everyone i've ever heard play it plays it that way, and even if they don't play the rhythmic thing you noted they still play a Bb in place of an A.
Naaa bruh I never got it wrong lol. It's super chill. No fancy stuff, till you start jamming 🌟💚
I've always played this right, thanks to a guitar player who showed me the song for the first time.
George a Porter, Jr. Plays every Monday night at the Maple Leaf Bar in New Orleans. He spoke about it once, and I think the groove of the whole band is so tight on the original recording that it makes people think there are extra notes in the bass riff.
It's weird so many people got it wrong, I learnt it by ear and I play it the exact way you said it should be played, I don't know where people got those extra notes from you can't hear them, also when you consider the feel of the song the bass is trying to leave as much space for the drums as possible so it'd make sense to play less
I am very pleased that Mike O'Cull taught me this correctly - look him up!
The spaces (rests) in the original are beautifully linked to the drum part. People think that more notes = better playing. But rests set up the power of the notes that follow. That's partly why shredding, despite the skill involved, can be so colossally boring.
vKarl71 hey yeah, I totally agree with where you're coming from. Sometimes Yngwie sounds like the fastest kid in typing class. I like shredders but they need to
MAN! What a tune!
Good choice! This is a tricky little riff. I tried to decode it before I heard you here, and got partway there. For instance, I noticed that near the end of the first riff it uses the sixth, not the seventh (like Mayer and others do). But I also played the extra notes in both parts. :) It is hard to get it exact, especially when it sounds pretty OK with the small details messed up, and people naturally falling into their accustomed fingering patterns. And as you say, if we learn it from someone, we get their version (plus our own special mistakes). Classic oral tradition.
Hi Scott, the other performances of this recording aren't necessarily wrong, they're merely other artists' arrangements. As a professional bass player myself, I can say with confidence that many of the bass lines I play aren't the original lines, but what I have personally concocted for the track. Call it artistic interpretation if you will. Of course, many change eight notes or more to circumvent copyright issues in any given piece of music.
Keep up the good work! :)
With a line this simple and deciptively subtle there certainly is a right and a wrong version (exactly because its power is in the elegant simplicity)!
it is actually those skipped notes that you do expect that give the line its special quality
Right. Leave space for others...you are so right! And do the song justice and try and play it how it was written.
Josh Fossgreen dealt with all this in his usual stylish way October 2015.
He points out that the added notes in the first riff comes from the bass part to Jackie Wilson's 'Higher and Higher'.
It’s hard to care when Scofield or Jaco play it differently. Even George Porter Jr (who did an album with Scofield) would probably say WTF. A great groove either way.
Amazingly, I've been playing it right.
Nice vid I'm glad you mentioned that leaving the space makes it funkier. Those other versions always sounded less funky.
Your great player Scott. but what you got most wrong is it doesn't matter, just play it. lol great break down, thx.
Omg I guessed it right! Was jamming on this with a couple of friends yesterday, crazy coincidence!
Learned it from the original song and turns out I play it correctly :D
Wrong is relative. The original key is more for piano. Jaco in NY on that CD, (I purchased it in 1990, now unlisted due to litigation) yes the Trio put it in a guitar key (tho’ off 440 a tad) and omg what a performance during the middle solo with Hiram. I saw the video where the Meters bassist is in his home, reminded us how everyone got the line “wrong”. Point taken.
As soon as I saw the title "The riff EVERY bass player gets wrong" I made a bet with myself it was Cissy Strut. Nobody believes me when I say they're not playing it as per the original :)
that bass sounds awesome man!
Great observations of space n time! One day Ill nail it! Bring on the beer.
Your videos are so cool and addictive. Your personality is so infectious and you're so incredibly likable! And it's so clear that you absolutely love what you do...so much passion! Keep groovin'!
Totally opposite for me and I can't stand that accent!
He did bait me in to see what Jaco did soo wrong and of course even though Jaco added notes, it was still tasty and Jaco style. Meanwhile Scott even makes mistakes playing the part he's showing on this video. You didn't notice he had to start over?
Firstly, they might not be playing it “wrong”, they might be altering it to suit their taste or to do own spin on it (ex: Scofield’s version). Secondly, I think its such an immature thing to say “possibly the best drum part ever”. Sounds like an inexperienced 17 year old’s point of view.
Thirdly Scott, I love what you do & all the wonderful things you bring to the electric bass community...thank you!
Now show us clips of George Porter Jr playing his own bassline "wrong". Does it really matter? Nope, it's all still funky.
But I get your point, Scott. I've done it a lot myself, obsessed to learn the actual recorded version of basslines rather than what my ears & fingers want to turn it into. Then there's reinturpreting a bassline for yourself. Both are great excercises.
This is almost exactly the type of error I can't figure out when I'm trying to transcribe bass line by ear and its sitting in a loud mix.
Kind of like looking at a square with parts of the lines missing, the brain just fills in the rest in a way that seems most convenient.
Danny Mo is a Bass God!
I'll never forget this one jam night where we decided to play this song first and all three instruments played it from a different starting note. The fender rhodes played from C, the guitar played from A and the bass played from E…..it was fucking crazy…i actually would love to hear that done again
Hahaha as soon as I saw the title I suspected it would be Cissy Strut 😂
I played this song wrong my whole life, just like you said everyone does it. Then, earlier this month, I had a fat tuesday gig and I thought it'd be fun to pull this tune out. When I relistened to it after all these years I realized exactly what this video is about!! So true...It made me laugh to know I'd been playing it wrong (and everyone else too). Good video. Way funkier the right way.
Play this song all the time. Learned it the wrong way (extra notes) and have played it that was FOR YEARS! 😂
Yay, my original bass teacher taught me this right. Though the Meters actually used to play a lot around here.
Pretty cool, but I dont think if it works, it is necessarily wrong. Everyone interprets what they hear a little differently. I am amazed when I jam how many people play stuff differently. 99% of the time, it sounds great.
I appreciate the attention to detail. Although I don't play the bass
The brake's incredibly smooth too
That is so awesome! Thanks for calling mofos out.
Boy, that Chambers / Scofield VHS takes me back, I love the live version of Loud Jazz!
Whoda thunkit! I actually was playing the first part right. I was, however, adding the extra note into the 2nd part. Thanks Scott!
OMG. When i was a youngin' back in the late 90s i thought i was going crazy because i learned to play this by playing along with the Meters. Bass Player magazine printed the the transcription and i was absolutely certain they got it wrong. Dozens of years later and not only did you give me a flashback to the 90s, but you reminded me of this conflict and now i think i was right and the mag was wrong! I must have been ahead of my time. :ob
Man I've been searching for this song forever but I could never remember the song name or the band. Thank you so much!
Good point. But mishearing things and playing it a little off is how new music gets made. Otherwise everyone would sound like eachother
Well, Scott, as you can see from the responses, not EVERY bassist plays "Cissy Strut" incorrectly! I have been playing this song for decades, and I have ALWAYS been faithful to George Porter Jr's original bass line. I even sat-in with a few of the original Meters two years ago, and played this tune, and I'm pretty sure that I nailed it. Been playing bass guitar for 54 or 55 years, and I always strive to get the bass line right (as per the original, unless I am improvising or jamming on a theme based on a song).
In Brazil this tune has made famous by Racionais MC´s RAP group, in the Juri Racional track!
Jaco doesnt play it wrong he plays it how he wants to play it and in his own style! :D
I think it is an example of what else is going on in the music that you put too much of yourself into. Relax. Other, less "cool" examples would be Play that Funky Music, Get Down Tonight, Even Celebration. Bootsy will agree with me, sometimes you only have to Imply notes. Be Funky. You, the bass player are Not the groove. My all time favorite, that I studied hard at was Steely Dan's Josie. I make no claim to being a slapper, but I came to understand he was ghosting all through it, and it was hard to distinguish Chuck Rainey's bass from Bernard Purdie's kick and snare. That was Genius.
Love that tone only flats can give you....
Scott, you inmense dude. How in the name of Thor can fantastic music be played wrong…..
Brilliant video! I've been guilty of doing this for years XD
Both versions are great riffs, whether the original or the current interpretations.
Awesome, thanks, yes I’ve also played it wrong for years. In fact, I played a Bb instead of A at the end of lick 1, and many people think I have a pretty good ear :) goes to show how easy it is to play what you think should be there, vs what’s really there. Also, there are some tunes where the “wrong notes” give it all the character it’s missing if you inadvertently “clean it up.” I played the Brown Eyed Girl line wrong for years, there’s no C# in the key of G, but C# is an integral part of the verse bassline. Yes it’s just a passing tone, but a chromatic “wrong note” that just sounds good and gives that line it’s distinctive character. The guitar line from House Of the Rising sun has some “sloppy open strings” that sound good too... if you play he chords too cleanly, it sounds too sterile. Fun video... and the correct way DOES groove better, doesn’t it!
I'm a big fan of Brazil. I love your work and your style. Congratulations.
another thing that people do wrong (myself included!) is forget the A natural in the first riff!! You can hear John Mayer plays a B flat in that example
It is like Whole Lotta Love main riff. Every single guitar player get It wrong, without the quarter bend on D 5th string with the 4th string open.
I did learn it the right way. But as one got used to the line, one always - almost subconciously - start to add ones own notes to it, embellish, flourish, adding grace notes, thump, rest strokes so the string is heard just a percussive thump. But I do think it's good to point this out. The main reason one starts adding stray and uneccesary notes to this one, is that maybe your drummer doesn't play it right either. If the drummer lacks this skills, under or over-performs, there's too much space and you seem to "want badly" to fill in the spaces with your own added notes. If the drummer is not playing it right either, the interplay "funk" and "grooviness" gets lost big time if you keep to the original notes only as a bass player.
I solved it this way, that I stuck the original notes to a tee at the beginning, as to make sure to people that are anal about this, that I actually do know the original and right notes, but when the repeats cames I always vary the riff with some of my own contributions. I think I still do. It all depends on what the drummer does too. Perhaps moreso than anything else.
It would be of some merit if we could show any live clips from original Meters, say 2 different performances of them playing "Sissy Strut" and I'll bet their bass player doesn't play that riff the same way twice.
Lots of stray notes, added grace notes here at least, don't know if this is the original bass player though, it sure looks like George Porter jr though, not even Zigaboo in this line up, it seems:
ua-cam.com/video/_FBnQvd_xzs/v-deo.html
Lol Thanks man you really helped me now I know what been doing wrong all of long and keep up the good work just subscribed a month of go and your videos really helped me a lot so I won't get lost thanks dude your the best 👍👏🎸.
YAY!!! I've played it correctly all along. Probably because I LISTEN.
The bass part also changes during the organ solo and even George doesn't remember what he played there.