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Welcome to Carol's Playing Tips
-------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Many of you have asked about the availability of my books, tapes, videos, and other teaching aides. Click the 'Catalog' button at right to go to pages that describe these self-help tutorials. You will also find complete pricing and ordering information there. Enjoy - Carol Kaye
Since these tips are gleaned from the message board I will retain that format. The difference is, you will not be able to reply directly to what you read here.
tip 50 Yes, I do teach note-scales to a very limited degree but only *after* many times of chordal scale fingerings and exerises so the student gets their ears (and finger coordination) trained to intervals, and the actual chordal notes they will be creating and playing. I think you have one missing finger there for the note-scale: 2-4-1-2-4-1-3-4, and yes I teach the 3rd finger for all the arpeggios, chordal exercises and even some for the heavy-duty rock playing (like jumping down on the same fret for the 4th finger say on G to 3rd finger on D and a couple of other situations), otherwise it's 1-2-4-4 the rest of the time and that chromatic exercise is fine for most of the chromatic situations, if necessary. Playing on the elec. bass is dictated by frets, the styles of music (patterns), the physical hand movements, than on string bass, a very different animal. The role is the same of course. The confusion lies (I think) when an elec. bassist tries to think of it as a "bass-guitar" because of the frets -- even having been a studio guitar player, I immediately noticed the difference in hand techniques and planning than any guitar -- the big frets, big strings, length of neck, shape of neck, way of playing etc. all dictate that. I believe if you acquired the pivoting way of playing, plus some chordal exercise patterns (found in all my books, all the boogaloo, a name for funk early on) you would quickly acquire this great way of thinking and shifting of your hand on the neck. No, not like the established shiftings on the string bass for the aforementioned reasons, according to what I've learned teaching this animal for a generation or so now. If you plan your fingerings chordally, that's most of the answer. And to postpone your shiftings (don't anticipate by pre-shifting so much like on string bass, which has its own special physical problems), you use rests, whole notes, gaps like that between the patterns to shift. As you play up the neck, you should be dragging your thumb back towards the nut about 2 almost 3 frets in back of your index finger. The secret is using it as a pivot, not using the 3rd finger in place of the 4th but certainly using it a lot in jazz playing, soloing etc., but in heavy rock, times when you're playing hard, the 1-2-4-4 fingerings work the best, to eliminate any physical problems over-use of the 3rd finger can start up (CTS, tendonitis etc.) -- the twist of the wrist is the critical component there. As for finding your place in the music, we all occasionally have to look down to the neck, mentally CIRCLE where you are in the music, lood down, and then your eyes help you find the mentally "circled" place in your music again. The rest is practicing to get your thumb pivot working (this requires picking UP the index finger, not leaving it laying down on the fingerboard once you've used it too, the old string bass method again that is totally unnecessary on the elec. bass), taking your fingers with you as a group as you move around, not spreading them much (occasionally, according to fast tempos is fine), but keeping your fingers mainly together and totally relaxed at all times, using the left thumb as a pivot is "the way" that you can easily move around on the neck, find your notes and lock into the chords with your fingerings. If this is too confusing, please email me, will be glad to help you. You never need to lose your place on the neck, it's easy to grasp the LH techniques to get around comfortably and accurately. Thanks for posting. Carol Submitted at: 9:30 on Wednesday, August 12, 1998
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Remember to practice a little every day -- that's crucial. Keeping the continuity of playing a little bit everyday is a lot better than going for 2-3-4 days and then practicing "a lot". It's best not to practice over 2 hours at a time, the mind (believe it or not) tends to shut down after that and you get sort of robotic in your playing. While it's great for the fingers to play a lot here and there, the creative mind (the thing you have to please) needs a rest inbetween. Listen to the kind of music you want to sound like, and learn a little bit of that style every day, especially any of the ear-training intervals, chordal-wise. Sometimes being a bass player, you need to make it a habit to practice the chordal arpeggios every day (or get a good chordal player to play chords for you all the time) - this keeps the ears refresed to what chords sound like. Your ear picks it up constantly. For players just coming back into playing bass after some years hiatus, take your time. No matter what age you are when you get back into playing, your ear has always "learned" and you'll find out that you will play better than ever once you get the callouses back on your finger-tips. It may take you a little while to get the chops back, just put the ear plugs on for awhile as you won't be able to stand your own playing (knowing how good you used to be) and within a few days, voila, you're on your way. Remember to practice chordal materials -- note-scales ruin your ears and train your fingers only to play those awful things. Study both the rock-funk-blues lines and if you're interested in playing with some pop bands, then some theory study is needed to be able to read chord charts, walk well, and understand chordal progressions, easier than you think. When you first play a job again, be sure to practice every night before the job and then don't play one note the day of the job, leave your mind fresh and clear all day, then it will feel "great" that night, very fresh. Don't beat the music to "death" by over-practicing, but rather practice 1 hour every day (if you can, and even a 1/2 hour is better than nothing), the consistency is what is important. It will snow-ball and you'll be surprised how good you play whether you're 20, 40, or 60, it doesn't matter, music is music and keeps you young and happy. Carol Submitted at: 13:08 on Tuesday, August 4, 1998
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Steve, the exercise you had privately emailed me about was slightly wrong, these are the correct notes you want, and it's OK to post this from me, it's the major chord exercise that is so common in jazz, going around each chordal note of G, the R 3rd 5th R and 10th (high 3rd): A G F# G C B A# B E D C# D (higher) A G F# G (higher) C B A# B -- this all is on the bass, but you get the general idea for guitar, starts up one scale tone, and goes down 1/2 tone. For the minor in the chordal scales, it's the same relative notes, you don't keep within the key it's apparently in, every minor is treated the same way, as a "ii" chord: Am -- B A G# A D C B C F# E D# E B A G# A, this is still keeping within the key of G, but for Bm, notice that you are still treating Bm like the "ii" chord it really is and going out of the key of G then: Bm is: C# B A# B E D C# D G# F# F F# and so on however long you want to take it. This is one of the most common jazz patterns since the 50s and is a good ear training pattern also. Oooh, all those sharps, but G is a "sharp" key, in jazz and certainly in pop these days that has been mostly influenced by jazz chordal thinking, you play in mostly flat keys: F Bb Eb Ab Db and even Gb, the only sharp keys that are popular in pop is G and maybe D (some bossas are in the key of D), the rest are mainly country song and hard rock keys (for the open strings on guitars): A & E. And there again, maybe some bossas in the keys of A and E, but rarely. Most of the standards are written in the keys of C, F, Bb, Eb, Ab, Db, and G. You usually keep the flats and sharps according to chordal structure. When I see people use a C# in an Eb7 chord for example, it's apparent that they are illiterate and don't know that flats go with the flat chords and sharps with the sharp chord: G has D# in its augmented chord, not a "flat 6" which I see sometimes, it's a D#, a #5th. Conversely, G7b5b9 has a b5th, Db, not C#, altho' you can have a Gaug11th, then that does have the C# (aug.11th). Brian Wilson wrote some in odd keys, like the key of B, and so in some people's interpretation, there is a mixture of flat chords and sharp chords, this is very confusing, but understanding when considering the key, you don't want to list a chord as a "double-sharp" chord, but certainly if you have a VI chord in the key of B, it should be F#, not Gb (Gb is not in the key of B) etc. When you write single notes in any key, one hs to take into consideration the reader, and not make a line more difficult to play, but also you should think of the chordal structure and not change the chords like diminishes to sharp notes, a little common sense is needed when writing out lines. You should try to stay within the chordal structure as much as you can without writing a lot of sharps or flats and resulting naturals, just think of how you'd like to read what you wrote, that will make it easier to decide then. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 10:30 on Saturday, August 1, 1998
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The technique of focusing on where the notes are rhythmically in relationship to the beat. It is this that is critical to learn, and then like swimming, you have it the rest of your life. Sometimes one has to pat their left-foot and the right hand together (in the "cross-crawl") -- opposite if you're left-handed, and you start feeling the differences between down-beat and up-beat notes, that is what potential-readers have to learn, NEVER pat the pattern, you're trying to find the ups and downs in rhythms. It all has to come from the voice, that's the seat of creativity, you're speaking through your instrument. BTW, spoke with someone about Frank Zappa, what a great guy he was to work for, so talented and he was true-blue to his words too. He was a good guy to work for, I only played elec. 12-string guitar (he hired some of us studio cats to augment his own bass player and drummer), Tommy Tedesco and Dennis Budimer were the other guitarists. Dennis and I loved the music, Tommy did too, but he sure got a kick out of some of the gals who would visit the dates, sometimes in the middle of winter wearing bathing suits. Oh well, you know. Frank was something tho', he wrote some great stuff and had to have excellent musicians also to go on the road with him, his music was hard, but challenging. He was a pretty good guitar player too. I miss him, used to get a "hello" from him thorugh mutual friends. He was a straight guy, a genius and compassionate for people and music. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 15:29 on Friday, July 31, 1998
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Wanted to add, with this system, you acquire the technique very fast of sightreading -- there are only 17-18 different combinations of rhythm (the fastest learned btw), and saying the rhythm, playing through the note sequence, connects the eye with the sound with the beat, while aiming for the downbeats, then you take the slashes away and they are reading just fine. During the time they are practicing the technique, and before they get to the "memory" place, they have gone further through the learning process, learned to focus, learned to aim for down-beats, learned to find the 1/2 bar divisions, learned not to look (or think) backwards, learned to look ahead to find the right fingerings (a very big part of sightreading), and learned not to say "A, C, Eb" or whatever the note is. The trick is to bypass the mouth then, and let the eye and the hands connect with sight-reading, and this always works. The ear then learns what the sound "looks like" on paper too, there is an ear connection. But really, I train my student-musicians other things to have develop their ear with intervals, chordal tones, arpeggios, chordal exercises to connect the ear to the fingers, another technique that has been honed through the years, and it all works fine, listening for and anticipating chordal progressions. Later on, I don't care if they pat their foot or not, they are coordinated with their reading, and then I make sure they are coordinated with their ear too. It's fascinating to see this work over and over, but of course they can't quite get it all in 2-3 times, it's a few lessons down the road but they do get it very fast. There's no need to take lessons for "years", but for a few months worth and they've got it fine, the functioning very well in music, both with reading and creating. Carol Submitted at: 23:08 on Thursday, July 30, 1998
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Bob, yes, it took me years of learning what worked and what didn't work when it came to teaching people how to easily sightread music. I also used to believe in saying the 1-e-an-as, that doesn't work either, so discared them early on (as I did note-scales which also don't work). You speak from the vocal centers of your brain as you play - your hands etc. are just for playing, so it's important to go through the process of saying the rhythms, practicing the notes out of time, saying the rhythms again and then putting it all together. You do have to have the student "spot-practice" some special difficult spots in the music by repeating that bar (or 2 bars) over and over in a loop-like rhythmical effect, both on saying the rhythms and then playing the the line. They will eventually memorize a short pattern so don't dwell on it too much, and just have them keep their eyes on the downbeats. Most who have ordered the 2-video "Music Reading Practice" have learned sight-reading very quickly according to my mail and hearsay about this. Carol Submitted at: 20:04 on Thursday, July 30, 1998
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Hi Steve. Knowing some good jazz patterns will help with that, majors and minors. For the majors, you can think of them as the iii (3 minor) and play licks in that chord, or the vi (6 minor) and ditto. You can play triads up the scale or down the scale, you can play a number of fine patterns around each of the chordal notes, Joe Pass loved to include the lick from the 3rd to 5th, and travel around on the major chord. For the minors, you can use it ii iii IV V in triads (or reverse), or stack your triads, or play patterns coming down from the high octave: 8 5 b3 R 7 5 b3 R b7 5 b3 R 6, any numbeer of patterns based around the minor chord. You can use your back-cyle augmented (Dm = A+, Cm = B+, Fm = C+ etc.), you can play a minor pattern, backcyle it to the its 7thb9 (Am - E7b9 - Am Fm - C7b9 - Fm), putting movement into the minor, a number of things like that. I'd suggest to you to go over a tune, and practice just playing the chordal tones of every chord. Then try some of the subs (like the dim. for the 7th chords, the iii for the major, the stacked triads for the minors), overlaying them here and there. Keep it simple at first by using only a few of the patterns, don't try to do too many. You need some practice at all this first, you can't do it by just sitting down and playing them. You have to do it step by step, just going through the chordal notes to familiarize yourself with the sounds of the chords, and finding the chordal notes, then trying a few patterns here and there, going back - trying some more, doing this with only a couple of standards at first. Then repeating the proces with a couple of more standards (very different ones), etc. Am writing a "Jazz Improv" book describing this process, but it will be for bass players. The Jazz Guitar Tape & Guide helps you with this tho', is sort of in that process thing, learning the patterns, how to use them, etc., without this kind of tutor, you're sort of flying blind, having to rely on your ear to catch how the jazz musicians are using their patterns. You still will use the b3rds for starting notes also in the minor chords: Dm, use Fmaj7 Gm, use Bbmj7 Cm, use Ebmaj7 and of course you use the maj7ths for the 7ths too: G7 use Fmaj7, C7 use Bbmaj7, Eb7 use Dbmaj7 etc. Carol Submitted at: 22:22 on Wednesday, July 29, 1998
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Bob, just writing the 8th note downbeat lines underneath the notes so there's either a down-beat or an up-beat note, the only two choices. I always have them pat their foot on the down-beat markings, and say the rhythm of the notes 4x, (never patting the rhythms but saying them orally, you play from "speaking" on the instrument, aiming for the downbeat notes). Then go through and play the pattern out of time, with no beat, just playing the sequence of the notes 2x, then saying the rhythm again 2x, then playing in time (at a slow pace) 4x. This is a system I've honed through the years and it always works. You do have to explain the dotted notes, the ties (how to make your eyes go from the 1st tied note over to the next untied note, skipping the 2nd tied note), and notating only a few of the notes so the student-musician gets used to finding the adjacent notes just fine. This rhythm reading always works and is featured at great length also on my "Music Reading Practice" 2-video set (see website). It never fails and people are so amazed that within 2-3 lessons they have it (some get it well in 1 lesson). You don't have to know the tune to easily read 16-note rhythms. But make the student-musician get used to the system with quarters and 8ths at first -- then quickly get them into the 16th note patterns, patting the foot double-time (8 down-beats to the bar, 8 slash down-beat markings to the bar). It is important to make sure that they understand the odd-looking beamed 16th 8th 16th notes, tho' so making them practice that separately builds up their self-confidence quickly. They love to say the rhythms (you practice the rhythms, practice the notes, practice the rhythms and then put them both together), it's like "rapping". I love the look on everyone's faces when they find they are reading (and not "memorizing" which you can quickly do on the 2-bar phrases, I just tell them then to keep their eyes on the paper anyway -- they're aiming for the down-beats) -- it's fun and they enjoy it, and especially when they get proof that they're really reading, and how easily they can grasp it. Carol Submitted at: 23:28 on Tuesday, July 28, 1998
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FINE SENSE OF TIME. Remember to be sure to practice with the elec. metronome quite a bit at first on licks you already know to obtain a "fine" sense of time. Just playing along with it successfully doesn't mean your time is good, you must knuckle down to practice initially quite a few hours and days on many different tempos, many different styles, many different bass patterns and you will know it when you finally lock in with great time -- it will feel like you can do "no wrong", you're so solid you can play for hours (it feels like) without getting off a hair. Then you know you have a fine sense of time. Take it at super slow tempos at first and just do 1-note 8th notes for about 1/2 hour, mostly without stopping (change a note), just boring 8th-notes on one note and you will notice your waver from time to time, keep going for at least a 1/2 hour. Next vary the pattern, still at super slow speeds, to probably 8th quarter 8th, 8th quarter 8th, same note for another 1/2 to 1 hour. Then start to vary the speeds a bit and vary the patterns, but nothing very fast at all. Then on days 2 and 3, you can try a slow shuffle, a simple easy pattern, and other easy patterns in stright 8ths (w/16ths), and gradually ease the tempo up to faster tempos. Like Ray Charles used to tell me on our record dates together: "anyone can play fast, but the real groovers can play at any tempo, and especially groove at very super-slow tempos too". Until you can groove at slow triplet 8th-note gospel tempos, you're not a total groover good time-sense player. There's a huge different between keeping "up with the metronome" and really learning how to "groove with it" for long periods. Never try to get your time-sense together with the elec. metronome while trying other techniques, like reading music, etc. at first. It's OK to read music with the elec. metronome, but only while it's like a drummer playing with you, putting the elec. metronome on either every beat or usually on beats 2 and 4. When you're trying to get your 16th note patterns together, you should use it on every 8th-note down-beat for awhile (8 beats per bar) to grasp your inside metre very well, then only on every regular down-beat, 4 beats per bar, and finally on beats 2 and 4. When you can, it is probably a good idea to put it on every up-beat of every beat too in 16ths, the "an" of every beat: (1) AN (2) AN (3) AN (4) AN, while patting your left foot on 1-2-3-4, then you get the true nature of those double-time 8/8 types of patterns very well. Remember to always pat your left foot (if you're right-handed). The reason why I stress great time like this (and it takes someone quite a few days before you start feeling what I'm talking about, it doesn't happen quickly at all), is because you are the foundation of the band, the lowest note of the chordal structure, and the synthesis between the drummer and the rest of the band. Some drummers think that "they" are responsible for the time, such is NOT the case, you do it together and in fact, I believe the bass player is more the keeper of the flame when it comes to great time -- drummers get busy with their tom-tom fills, and their independence in drumming sometimes, it's up the bassist to "smooth things over" when tempo may vary. And to put aside the myths, no-one is "born" with good time, I've seen the "best" screw this up. You either acquire it early on (some are more natural about good time than others) in life, or sit down and practice it until you've gotten the feel of it and gotten the snags worked out. If you don't have a great sense of time as a bass player, and want to play in a band, then you're not a bass player until you do have your time sense well-together. It happens the fastest and best the way I describe here. And you usually don't have to do it so much again, but sometimes it's best to come back and practice a little with the metronome, especially after a gig or so with a bad drummer or with someone with bad time. You've worked hard with those kinds of musicians to keep the groove going, and this throws your center of good time off just a little, so a little "brush-up" is good then. Carol Submitted at: 9:05 on Tuesday, July 28, 1998
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Ideas for creating good rock-funk-soul lines: The basic theory for rock-funk-Motown-soul-blues etc. lines is to make sure you play mostly the R 5th and 6ths for the major chords, the R 5th and b7s for the minor and the 7th chords. The 3rd is only appropo for passing, remember to make it b3rd always for minor chords and sometimes a lot in 7th chords (blues notes are usually R b3 4 #4 (or b5 coming down) 5th b7 8). The most common pattern run is 3-4-#4-5 for major and 7th chords (the 7th is a major chord classification but is notated separately because of the blues and jazz later theories). You can lead into the Roots coming from 2 frets lower, i.e. b7 7 to R 4 #4 to 5th but not so much coming into the b7th, can be done but use it sparingly. Get a bunch of fills handy to play on every 8th bar of a tune (and sometimes every 4th bar too). Try to formulate a 2-bar pattern, something like a statement-answer 2-part pattern, both melodically and rhythmically. It can be sparse or subtle, it's up to you. Sometimes if the drummer is playing too much (and maybe rushing and/or dragging the beat), you the bass player can control the groove a little more by playing very sparsely, leaving holes for the drummer to fill. He won't rush or drag if he feels like he's playing alone. If he still does that, then kind of go with him, play a few more notes in your 2-part patterns, and then deliberately slow down toward the end of the pattern just a touch. Sometimes a drummer gets distracted with playing a lot of tom-tom fills, you kind of have to go with him a little on his usual rush in his fills, and then keep the beat more even after he finishes his fills, and then starts to slow down more, you have to smooth that over, rush with him just a little bit (you don't want "2 bands), then speed him up when he starts to slow down at the end of his fills. For rhythmic ideas, listen to the great Latin rhythm sections, the congas, the timbales, all the different rhythmic patterns, that's where most of Motown (both Detroit and LA) comes from as well as a ton of rock, soul, and blues recordings bass lines of the 60s-70s eras and a little past that. Listen to how the bass can wait on the down beat (or the an) of 4 and hold it over into the next bar, continuing the pattern either from the an of 1 of the next bar of 2 or an of 2 even, it works, giving space like that in that spot. Remember to get your time sense together with the elec. metronome beating on 1-2-3-4 just at first (in different tempos, different styles of bass lines). Then quickly switch over so it only beats on beats 2 and 4. Don't read music much with the metronome on, it's enough just to get the reading done, only use the metronome to jump-start your good sense of time, then don't use it much. But if you work with some musicians who have bad time, then jump back on it to restore both your sanity and your good sense of time -- you've spent a night pushing and pulling these bad-time people trying to make the band groove as a bassist, so your own sense of time can suffer from that, so take a quick brush-up on your own fine time-sense with the elec. metronome. And another tip, don't practice too much right before a gig, don't play at all (if you can help it) the day of the gig, practice a lot a few days before, and up to 24-30 hours before the gig, don't listen to music, nor practice the day of the gig. This tip was passed to me by the finest jazz musicians, you'll be fresh then, and not only play more creatively but with more energy and sparkle. Remember to be on time, and look nice, be a good guy, no ego, take care of business, no long breaks, take care of the job by playing fine, you'll have the fun when you get paid and know you did a good job. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 20:29 on Friday, July 24, 1998
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PRACTICING. Set aside a quiet time, about 1 hour day if you can, (or at least 1/2 hour consistently every day). Go over the chordal structures a lot, do your arpeggios, then delve into the groove by practicing with the elec. metronome a little (not all the time but it's important to connect with the groove). When you hit a "snag" of a line that seems to elude you, slow the tempo way down (or maybe just play the notes, making sure you have good fingerings without a lot of unnecessary jumps etc., remember to use your thumb as a pivot, let it stay there, while your fingers move as a hand group, don't lay that 1st finger down on a fret after you've used it to play a note etc.). Try going over a difficult pattern at slow tempos, and put a "loop" on it, play it over and over and over (spot practicing a certain part of the line) until it feels comfortable for you. Make your practice time a fun time by mixing up the various things you have to do, and do them first before allowing yourself some "jam" time -- remember you always have a choice of what to practice -- do the necessary stuff first. Tho' you might not feel like practicing, not in the mood, have tensions of many things on your mind, tell yourself: "this is my time away from everyone and everything, I deserve this time to myself" and make yourself get on the instrument. By focusing in on the music and practicing, your fingers will thank you, your brain will relax and you'll get some good work done to help you play better -- no better feeling than this, even if it's just 45 min. a day, it's "your time", a little of this, a little of that, and you're playing better and better, then "jam". Carol Kaye Submitted at: 14:09 on Friday, July 3, 1998
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Sorry, that should have been the 6th 7th and 8th bars (not the 5th,6th & 7th) for the F#m7// B7// Em7//// A7//// I get going too fast sometimes. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 19:59 on Wednesday, June 24, 1998
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BASSIC JAZZ BLUES CHORD CHANGES. Good for all bassists (and guitar players):
Note:
you can substitute F#m7// B7// Em7//// A9//// for the 5th-6th-&
7th bars. C//// Bm7b5//E7// Am7// Abm7// Gm7// C9// F9//// Fm7//Bb7// Eb//// Ebm7 Ab7// Db//// D9//Db9// Cmaj7// Ebmaj7// Ab13// Dbmaj7// (C). Sometimes even jazz musicians do not necessarily make that F#o change in the 1st version but stay on F7 in the 6th bar (or do the F#m7 to B7 to Em7 changes). There are many different modifications but this is pretty standard for the two different kinds of blues changes all jazz musicians use to play on. When you walk bass, memorize these chord changes so you can play in all keys by using the I (solfeggio) system. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 18:18 on Wednesday, June 24, 1998
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SOLOING. Yes, you do follow the chord changes, but there is much about interpretation of the chords (like Dm7// G7// Dm7// G7// changed to: Dm7//// G7//// or just 2 bars of stacked Dm triads, or Abo for 2 bars, etc.) that are important. Fine jazz musicians never play a "scale" over "certain chords", they only function in chords themselves and the associated patterns, etc. in those chords whether they be subs, stacked triads, pivotal b5 patterns, whatever, it's all chordal function, that's why it's important to get the chordal tones together. The chordal theory for rock-funk-blues etc. is much different on bass than the jazz theory, it's a different role. When I first began teaching elec. bass in 1969, I never taught theory as it was not necessary -- they simply got the necessary theory through all the bass lines that were in my books I wrote from 1969-1973 -- those lines had all the best examples you could get (and are still the "best"). I never started teaching the appropriate jazz theory (for walking and soloing) until in the 80s. It was more important in the 70s to get the lines together that the pros needed to play with and it all worked for them. I still keep meeting some fine players who studied out of my books coming from all parts of the world, something very rewarding to me and heartfelt. So glad they took my lines the way I meant them, as a tool for their musical creativeness and good value for professionalism. People ask me "doesn't it feel good to see your name on your books?" And while it is an honor, that was not the purpose -- as some of you may know, I put other people's names on the books, i.e. Bob Bain, the Johnny Carson TV guitarist as he helped me with some of the wording of my first book. But after a few years he said, "Carol, it's enough, I didn't do much, and you paid me too much for that" etc. -- he's one of the most-recorded musicians and still a valued dear friend of mine (plus he loved the Russian oud I gave him too!). The most value I get is when someone walks up and says "thank-you, your books made my musical career happen, they were tough but made me read and play well and earned a good living playing music" etc., how can you beat that? I am rich with fine students. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 23:57 on Saturday, June 20, 1998
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FINGER EXERCISES: The one that Stu Hamm has on his video is from my teacher Horace Hatchett who used to give this exercise as a test to see if someone had enough coordination to be able to learn guitar. I find that it's good to teach bass players too and is sort of a good warm-up exercise also. On your left hand, with the thumb pointing away from your hand, curl all your fingers into your palm and try to raise fingers 1 and 3 together while keeping 2 and 4 down (don't assist with your thumb now). You'll barely be able to raise that 3rd finger up much but if you get it up fairly high, good. Now do the same with 2 and 4 while keeping 1 and 3 down (again, do not assist with your thumb and try not to dig your fingers into your palm for extra help, don't cheat!). Do this back and forth as fast as you can for about 7-8x maybe twice a day, will help with the finger coordination and dexterity. There's a reason why that 3rd finger won't come up high -- it shares a ligament with the 4th finger and is the reason why I say not to use it in place of the 4th finger while fingering on rock-soul-hard playing stuff. You can use it in jazz, but still bear in mind that it should never be used in place of the 4th finger, this is what causes CTS (as welll as the claw-stretched fingers of a stretched hand, keep fingers relaxed!) -- you have to turn your wrist slightly to accomodate fingering with the 3rd finger all the time -- that's what causes CTS, so don't do it, get a better system of fingering, namely 1-2-4-4. You can use the 3rd finger in some situtations and of course while playing arpeggios, exercises (you're playing lightly) and jazz soloing etc., the light ways of playing, but never in rock, blues, funk, those kinds of hard-playing situations where you're pressing your fingers down hard. Another good warm-up exercise I used (while driving 80 mph to get over the hill from No. Hollywood to all the studios) is the press each individual finger with your thumb about 5 seconds each, keep doing this and voila, your hands and fingers are warmed up ready to play. Cold weather tho' calls for other things -- maybe warming your hands in hot water, clutching something warm before playing etc. No jokes now guys! Carol Kaye Submitted at: 10:34 on Monday, June 15, 1998
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SOLOING. Well really, the patterns are there for you to pick up and use, good for your improved soloing. Just make sure to play a phrase, take a breath (lay out), play another phrase - rest. Playing good jazz improv is like talking, and you talk and answer yourself about a subject. Scale notes are like sort of like connective tissue sometimes, traveling notes between the chordal tone melodic phrase notes if you want them -- very boring, scales are so you have to be selective (tons of patterns made out of these notes are in my "Pro's Jazz Phrases" books and in the Oliver Nelson Sax Patterns book, plus the Joe Pass Guitar Style and Tape. I like Joe the best as he uses enourmous continuity in his playing tying the phrases and patterns together like no-one else can, but you have to read well to use his guitar book. Will be coming out with a Jazz Improv book with some of his ideas in it too for continuity practice, after the ideas I write down for getting your phrasings together. Try out just a few phrases at first, like the dominant 7ths, use the stacked minor triads from Dm on for G7, or any other dominant chord (always starting with its 5 minor chord). Next try Joe's favorite, using the Fmaj7 for G7 (starting on the b7 of G), try these on other dominants. Then try the dim. chord for the 7ths, G7 use the Abo patterns (all of them), etc. even the b5 triads: G Db G Db. Just do a few pet licks for the dominant this way until your fingers and ears get it together (remember, you got nothing to do with this, it is NOT intellectualizing at all, has not much to do with the "memory", just get the fingers and the ear working together). Then use the minor licks back-cycling to the minor chord dom. Am then E7b9, then Am. Pattern: up A C E down A for Am then for E7b9 going up G# (see you use the 3rd of E7) B D F down on Am E C do this in cycles, get used to the back-cycling phrases like this, you'll do a ton of them in good jazz improv. Many more simple ideas like this but you get the picture. You should have that book with all kinds of fine bebop jazz phrasings so you have a chordal-tone vocabulary -- you can make up your own once you work through these and start to use them. You'll hear them on all the finer jazz recordings anyway and hear how they are used. Once you wean off of scale notes, the door is wide open, it's a lot of work at first -- not much if you've had the training without having to unlearn some bad scale fingering habits tho' (getting over the hump of the new thinking "chordally") but then all you do is go through all the patterns and you never think then. Only what key the tune is in, and what's the first chord. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 20:08 on Sunday, June 14, 1998
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Yes, Fender had that in their tailpieces but it wasn't adequate. The mute thing is so tricky, too much and you have that "plunk" sound that you don't want, you want the strings to ring. And they couldn't ever get it so that every string was muted about the same -- just wasn't that useful. I loved that tailpiece tho', it held the piece of doubled-up felt just great if you stuck a pick or two in between the tailpiece and the body, using them as shims to it kept the tailpiece up to let the strings ring but the felt sat on top of the strings just right. I just use some masking tape and tape the felt on top of the strings right next to the bridges, and that works just fine (altho' it might not look that great, sure gets a lot of questions and others have followed suit who use a pick). It has to be *on top* of the strings when using a pick. For finger players, it has to be *underneath* the strings and NOT felt, has to be foam rubber. The foam doesn't work that well for the pick sounds, just a nice piece of doubled-up felt (buy it cheap at any sewing center, even at Target, etc.). This is so critical to get a good clarified sound that will project through from either a combo or a big band. Works every time, and is a critical necessity also for recording. I believe that bassists have over-bought all kinds of gear trying to define their sounds when all it takes is a mute (the accessory gear manufacturers will hate me). Carol Kaye Submitted at: 13:24 on Friday, June 12, 1998
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Let me re-write the notes, I made a mistake on a "B" it should have been a Bb: Go up on D F A C down on B Ab G F up on Eb G Bb D (Cm9) up on C# E A G (A7 in place of the F7 which resolves nicely to Dm7 again), down on F Eb D C (a "scale") down on B Ab G up to B up to but then down on D C G Eb (Cm9) up to but then down on Gbm9: Ab Gb Db A (4 16ths) Ab Gb (2 8ths), resolving to F, the 5th of the Bb chord. This last chord is the pivotal b5 chord of F7 = Db7, Gbm is used for the Db7, the ii V7. It can resolve to either a Bb major chord (Bbmaj7, Bbmaj9, Bb6, Bb7, Bb9, Bb11, Bb13) of any kind or any minor chords: Bbm7, Bbm9, Bbm11, etc. The notes all being 8th notes except the noted group of 16ths. Just because you have chords to play notes on, doesn't mean that you're constantly playing notes. You play some notes, rest for a bar (taking a "breath"), play another phrase, rest, etc. like that. Some fine jazz musicians like to use constant notes because they have a "lot" to say, and it's fun to hook one chord into another. Hope this comes out right, I did check it, been running today. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 15:38 on Wednesday, June 10, 1998
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The changes to "I Got Rhythm" are turn-around changes and it's a good idea to get some cliche pattern going anyway for these fast changes: Dm7// G7(b9)// Cm7// F7(b9// (or really use A7 here which then feeds back into the Dm7 which is the chord you use in place of the Bbmaj7), etc. with the final F7b9 resolving into the Bb7: going up on D F A C down on B Ab G F Eb G Bb D (Cm9) C# E A G (A7) down F Eb D C keep going down on: B Ab G B up on C Eb G B up to (but down on then) D C G Eb in 4 16ths and 2 8ths: down from Ab Gb Db A Ab Gb which resolves to F, 5th of the Bb chord. This will keep you busy for awhile, note that they are the notes of the chords plus the b9th. 3rds and b9ths are important in the dom. 7th chords. This is from general music theory that is important for a good foundation for jazz, thinking of triads and 4-voice chordal notes. But also knowing the chord substitutes for your patterns like G7 is really Abo (same notes as G7b9) etc. Studying this for awhile will get you away from the non-workable scale notes -- you "never" play scales to "work over the chords" but the actual chordal notes themselves. Doing anything else is self-defeating, this always works and is easier than you think once you break away from the crutch of playing scales just to play "something". Get the chordal notes together and you're 1/2-way there. Bass players need to do this too, good jazz improv is the same, no matter what instrument you're playing. However, the theory is much different when playing funky patterns, funky lines, fills and funky solos (note solos). Carol Kaye Submitted at: 15:14 on Wednesday, June 10, 1998
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AUGMENTED CHORD. The augmented chord (+, like G+ or G+7) is comprised of Root, 3rd, and #5th, and these combinations of chordal tones repeat every 4 frets (vs. the diminished which repeats every 3 frets). It is a natural chord "substitution" for the dominant chord (7th). You can always substitute G+ (remember to sharp the 5th on the bass) for G7, but the G7 MUST be reolving to some kind of C chord for the augmented chord to be effective and useful -- it's a tighter dominant chord that way, it MUST resolve to C: G7 = G+ to C Eb7 = Eb+ to Ab A7 = A+ to Dm Db7 = Db+ to Db7 it can resolve to a major, a minor, or a 7th chord -- it has to resolve to the next cycle chord. The passing tones of the augmented chord are the notes 2 frets inbetween the augmented chordal tones: G (B) A (C#) D# (F) G yes, it's the whole-tone scale, and you play patterns around these notes when you're improvising in jazz. With jazz soloing, you do not have to resolve the augmented chord, just play the aug. pattern on a 7th chord, works every time. There's a way you can back-cycle on a minor chord solo-wise (go backwards on the cycle) and play the dom. 7th chord for the chord you're really playing and use the augmented patterns on that chord: Am (play E+) Normally when you have a lot of beats, you will back-cycle on the E7b9 (same notes as Fo, see you can use this diminish as a "movement" on the Am chord, play Am pattern, then Fo pattern, then Am pattern again) anyway for Am, now there's another option: E+. Guitarists playing jazz move whole chords (no matter what the are, 13ths, majors, minors, etc.) every 2 frets for motion (augmented chord style) or every 3 frets for motion (diminished style) -- sounds like they're doing a lot, but really using the same chord, just moving it every 2 frets (augmented) or 3 frets (diminished), according to the "tightness" they want. Jazz soloists do the same thing sometimes, move the m9 downward pattern every 3 frets for 3x, and voila, they can resolve just fine to the major chord of the ii9 V7 I "troika" chord pattern 3-some. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 19:35 on Monday, June 8, 1998
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DIMINISHED CHORDS. The diminished chord is written with a zero indicating the chord: Co or (same thing) Co7. Sometimes a note outside the chord is added, i.e. Co9 (diminished with an added 9th), this however is fleeting and bass players only play the notes of the chord which are: Root b3rd b5th and bb7 (same as 6th), which repeat every minor 3rd (every 3 frets). When walking, you don't have to play "all" the notes of the chord, it depend on how many beats you have to play the notes. Even the root is not that all-important, however, in the "normal" jazz blues (I say normal as there are very many different versions of chords used for blues in jazz), the diminished chord typically used in the 6th bar of the blues, in the key of C is named F#o (it could be named Co and sometimes is, or Ao or Ebo, all the same notes), but it is called F#o for it's conventional to move from the IV chord of F7 to F#o. The diminished chord is a movement chord, and sometimes is used in place of the 7th chord. For instance, in the tune, "It Could Happen To You", the 2nd chord in the key of F, is F#o but solo-wise you think of D7 which then resolves to the next chord (cycically) Gm7, but it's common for the F#o (same as Ebo which is the same as D7b9, hence the D7 chord for soloing) which dictates the movement of the bass note going from F to F# to G etc. The next chord change being Abo which is E7b9 solo-wise. E7b9 which is also the same as Fo, Bo, and Do, then resolves to Am moving up to Cm7 to F7b9 to Bb -- typical cycle movements in tunes. Carol Kaye USA Submitted at: 21:58 on Saturday, June 6, 1998
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BUYING A BASS. What you want to look for in a bass you buy: does it play without buzzing on the frets? One buzz or so can be adjusted (probably) as long as the neck is not warped too badly, that's the main thing -- that the neck isn't ready to shoot arrows. You can have a buzz or two, frets can be filed (dressed, it's called) a little, but a lot of buzzing indicates (a) a bowed neck, don't buy altho' give the store/person a chance to straighten the neck by turning the rod, (b) bridges out of adjustment, raise the strings a little to see if that stops the buzzing, (c) the nut is worn down too much on the neck, or (d) maybe the buzz isn't from the strings but a short in the wiring (?). It should play in tune up through the 14th fret, not go sharp (or flat) as you go up the neck. Does the body feel comfortable? Is the balance good (the neck doesn't point to the ground)? Does the bass sound good (no twanginess you can't adjust to make it sound like a bass)? You can always change the strings if the strings are dead (or use a little jewelry cleaner to wash off some gunk/age on the strings). The pickups should work without distorting (don't buy if they don't), the bass should weigh too much (no, most of your sound is in the pickups, a little from the fretboard wood -- imo). Does the neck play evenly up and down the neck (all strings) with no "dead spots" (notes hardly sounding) on the neck? Necks, neck action, sound of the bass, condition of the nut, the bridges (make sure the threads are not stripped, but there again, if the bridges and nuts are "bad", negotiate to have these replaced), no surprises with a warped or semi-warped neck (yes you can replace the neck, but why? that's one of the reasons why you're buying the bass, is the response and feel of the neck). Make sure the neck isn't too "big" (unless you have giant-sized hands), nor too slim too (most slim necks are just too thin and will cramp your hand, altho' some slim necks are a gas, like my Aria Pro II Steve Bailey model, perfectly shaped and small in circumferance, good thing too, I have very small hands). I've recommended Fenders, Yamahas, and some Ibanez basses for beginning basses. Some of the more expensive basses play too much like "guitars" in my opinion, you can't dig in with them, they flatten right out, so be careful, keep your initial outlay within the first $1000 range when deciding on a bass. You can try out the "more expensive" ones later when you know more about basses. Good luck. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 17:12 on Saturday, June 6, 1998
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SPECIAL OFFER: There are many notes you can use to get your walking chops together, many nice lines (see "Playing Tips" page for my posts about this) and I have a 2-sided sheet of Autumn Leaves and the jazz Blues with some great ideas for good walking lines available. It normally comes withe both of my DVD course tutorials, but will offer it here free for just you sending in 2 stamps, will get it right in the mail to anyone who wants it. Most people do not know how to teach these good lines (or even know them themselves) and they're not hard to learn. Just the exposure to them is all you need to help yourself create better more interesting lines for walking in standards, blues, all kinds of jazz and jazz-pop things. The are the same lines that the greats like Ray Brown etc. all use and in this way too. So just send me 2 stamps and your address and will make sure this sheet is sent out to you by return mail: Carol Kaye, 25852 McBean Pkwy #200, Valencia, CA 91355. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 12:58 on Thursday, June 4, 1998
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BEGINNING PICK PLAYING EXERCISES. Start playing just quarter notes for awhile. Pat your left foot, and just play downbeat notes at a medium tempo. Then play down and upbeat notes, 8th notes, get used to that feel, always on the same note while patting your foot. Now slow the tempo down a little and play an 8th-note blues pattern, skipping around the strings: RR high RR b7 b7 55, playing lightly on the downbeats, letting gravity do the work, but you have to work a little hard at the upbeat notes (going against gravity), keep it soft for a long time until your hand gets used to this action. Then play other patterns you know, being careful that you play DOWN on the downbeat notes, and UP on the upbeat notes. Keep the tempo slow to medium for awhile, then a little later, you can play harder and harder, and speed up the tempos. Don't try to start at fast tempos at all, just keep it slow to medium at first until you get used to playing the correct pick strokes with the pick. Triplets (OK, now this is going to scare you at first, just play slowly for awhile) are: DOWN UP UP, and at first accent the DOWN beat -- 8th note triplets are 3 notes to each beat. Just play on 2 or 3 different notes at first to get used to the DOWN-up-up at first. Then mix them up with the dotted 8ths and 16th notes, it's actually swing you're playing (all jazz walking is in triplet form believe it or not, but of course you rarely play triplets except a few here and there). There is a tempo break as it gets faster in tempo that you physically cannot play DOWN-up-up for triplets, you have to play DOWN-up-down UP-down-up, alternating down and up like a tremolo, that's fine then, it's a tremolo and you won't play them long. But that's a pretty fast tempo, past 130 or so on the metronome. Once you get your picking together and start tackling triplets and get those down, there's nothing you cannot execute in great metrical time and accuracy. You can play this way all day and night and never get tired. But of course like I've always said the last 20 years or so, it's not required to play with a pick anymore -- fingers works well on bass too. But if you're going to play with a pick (I've never played with fingers, never had to), then do it "right", get it so it's easy to do, and fun to do and it'll sound so good, you'll love it. Or you'll be frustrated, and that's counter-productive. Good luck, once you got the feeling of the pickstokes, and the left-hand fingering and shiftings, and the vocabulary of tons of great lines, you're on your way! Carol Kaye Submitted at: 10:40 on Thursday, June 4, 1998
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HOLDING & PLAYING WITH THE PICK. You need to hold the pick between thumb (with the thumb bent in to your fingers and stationary, it does not move at all) and the pick is held between your thumb and index finger, with the point sticking out so it can strike the strings with the full width that is sticking out. You lightly hold the pick until you strike the string, it automatically hardens up once you got the feeling of the flattened wrist propelling the movement of the hand (which lays down on the strings, is not up in the air at all). Tim and Todd, it ALL comes from the wrist, the arm might move a fraction of an inch sideways, but all hard thrusts come from the movement of the wrist. Play light on the down-beats at first, let gravity do the work, and you will move your wrist to get the up-beat strokes then. This works a little-used muscle above the wrist in the area of the pinkie finger and it will be sore for about 2 days and completely go away. The bottom of your thumb muscle will graze against the string that is lower than the one you're playing on. When you play on the E string your hand lifts over and off as if you had a 5th string there, so you temporarily lose your "home base" (which is your thumb muscle laying on and grazing the string below the one you're hitting). Your right-hand fingers should be curled inward, not tightly like a fist but just curled in so you're not waving them around in the air (not good aerodynamically to wave that weight around, cuts down in speed and accuracy). Your hand "hops" over a string to play the next string sometimes (depending on the pickstrokes which go with the pattern you're playing: down on the downbeats and up on the upbeats). Once in awhile, your arm will move when you're playing a pattern going from a very low string to a very high string, but mostly, your arm doesn't move. Make sure you do not lay your pinkie on the instrument (like the bad habits of a guitar player), keep the pinkie curled inward too with the pinkie part of your right hand tilted up a little -- which forces the bottom of your thumb muscle to lay on the string then -- the correct pose of the right hand. The reason why a pick may slip out of your hand is because you're holding it too tightly -- just practice playing very lightly at first until you get the idea of the motion of the right hand -- your technique will harden up very fast once you get that wrist used to moving it's good side-ways motion. The power comes from the wrist, not from the arm, the wrist has the strength and power to play as hard as you want and as accurate as you want too, make sure the thumb is stationary, not moving around. You want the broadest part of the pick to strike the strings. Yes, the had tear-drop shape pick (I find) is the best pick for everyone except giant-sized hands. The triangle pick is clumsy, and anything softer than my pick simply does not get the right sounds on the elec. bass. Remember to pat your left foot on the downbeats so both the left foot and the right wrist move up and down together at the same time -- those are the correct pickstrokes which work with the meter of the pattern then, and give you the speed and accuracy and metric feel you're looking for. Once in a great while I've cut a record using all down strokes like on the simple "Indian Reservation" which had a boring 8th note line -- the rest of the time it was always down and up with the beat and once you get the hang of it, no-one can tell the difference between the power of the down and up strokes, the wrist is so great. Needless to say anything about the great metrical time you play with -- no rushing or dragging the notes then, your right hand is like a drummer. Remember to keep that right wrist flat and keep more bass turned on with your bass - playing with a pick adds a lot of high end to your sounds. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 10:28 on Thursday, June 4, 1998
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Ariel, some people would say that, but I always took it to mean (speaking of being around the professionals now) that it was a different chord that was used for that chord i.e.: Dm7 for G7 (some notes the same others not), Abo same as G7 (actually if you change the Gs to Abs, you have G7b9, an altered G7, same notes). I'd say as a teacher, no, if it's the "same notes", but usually people mean any "different chord name" is a substitute. You can move in a chord (playing walking lines and/or soloing) by back-cycling, that is play Am - E7b9 - Am for just Am, this is done all the time and is not considered a substitute, but chordal movement. Like when you have 2 or more bars of a major chord, you can walk up the scale and down the scale: C// Dm// Em/ Dm/ C// or C// F// Em/ Dm/ C// again, not considered substituting but just chordal movement within the chord of C (note you're using that chordal scale, with other chords say "F", then it would be the F chordal scale, etc.). What I would consider a "real" substitute is using say, the b5 sub of the chord like Db9 for G7 (Db is the b5 of G, and in fact the altered Db is G7 = Db7b5b9 has the same notes (without the Db) as G7 and you can then use the ii of the Db9, Abm (really Abm9) as the substitute for G7 -- again this is so close but that is what I would consider a real substitute, not the Dm7 for G7 -- you usually think of Dm7 and G7 as one and the same chord in walking and soloing, using one for the other too. Now if this is clear as "mud" (just kidding) please ask another question. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 23:57 on Tuesday, June 2, 1998
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CREATING BETTER WALKING LINES, PART 2. I guess you saw my parenthesis in the wrong place for the last paragraph of Part I, it should read: "you don't have to play the maj7, the b7, the b9, the 6th, or other alterations of the chords, but you do have to pay attention to the critical 5th of the chord, if it's flatted (like in G7b5 or m7b5 or diminished) or sharped like in augmented (G7+ G+) chords, you just don't have to play "all the notes of the chord" while you're walking. Ditto for the m7b5 (aka 1/2 diminshed, the circle with the slash through it), you do have to pay attention to the b5th, the Root and b5 as being the most important notes of that chord. The augmented chord (like G7+ or just G+) has a sharped 5th, and really with the passing notes is the whole-tone scale, played every other fret - easy enough. Still you can just play R R #5 3 or any combination of that too. Altho' it says "7th", you can ignore that, the b7th is played when you play the wholetone scale for the augmented chord. Just rememer to play up (across the neck) in sounds, and down in sounds. And then "rest" by maybe playing a pedal tone for awhile (octaves sound good with this) that will fit 2 chords or more in time, like: for C and G7, stay on the G and alternate the octaves (fits both chrods): R R 8 R R 8 R R or 8 R 8 R R 8 R R all Gs. Some ideas for the minor chord can include, for Cm: R R b7 5 b3 2 R lower 5. Or even a blues lick: R b3 5 b5 4 b3 R R in walking. So you see once you start thinking in "chords" (not note-scales) you start finding so many options available, it becomes a lot of fun. Just remember, you don't have to move with every note, you can double up notes (especially in fast tempos) ,you can just play the simple lines of R R 5 R R 5 3 R to conserve energy, a non-moving walking line (pit-stop) for awhile, then walking up and down you go again. People like Ray Brown do this all the time, and having taught this, it becomes very easily understood and put into use by everyone, it's easily learned once exposed to these ideas. You may want to get my "Standards I" to help you get the continuity (and ear-training) of all this -- an excellent item once you know the chordal scales in either the "Bass Video Course" or the preparatory "Jazz Bass Tape & Guide". Good Luck, Carol Kaye (END). Carol Kaye Submitted at: 19:14 on Saturday, May 30, 1998 -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- tip 23 CREATING BETTER WALKING LINES. So many get tongue-tied when trying to figure out how to play better walking lines. It's OK just to play the major chordal notes of R 5 3, or R2 3 5 and combinations thereof. However, there's much more than can be done. It's a matter of thinking of hills and valleys, lines going up and coming back down. You don't have to play the Root on the 1st beat of every chord. I've been asked as a teacher "do I ahve to play the maj7th in say a Cmaj7th chord?", "do I play the b9th in a G7b9?", "do I play the b5 in a 1/2 diminished (m7b5) chord?" "what do I use for the diminished chord?", "the augmented chord?", and on and on. Let me try to answer a few of these things here. The 7th chord is a major chord, so only the R 3 5 and the passing 2nd (maybe) is necessary, but you can also add the b5 on the very last beat of that chord if the next chord is cyclic (G7 to C7 Bb7 to Eb, even the minors to the 7ths or majors, Dm to G7 Fm to Bbm, as long as it's cyclic, the b5 always then is a fre higher than the chord you're going to). C7, C9 C11, C13 is essentially treated the same for all bass walking, it's a 7th chord (altho' you can use the 4th in place of the 3rd for the 11th chord, it depends), a major chord, and no need to play the b7th at all - but you can play a b9th to the Root on the 7th chord (even for the 9th and 11th and 13th chords). The reason being is that the b9 is used for the easy chordal substitute of Abo for G7(b9), those are the same notes, something that the jazz improv soloists do all the time. Sometimes the chord is written G7ALT which means either G7b9 or G7b5 or G7b5b9, take your pick. But definitely the b9 is a very strongly attracted note in walking down the chordal tones of the 7th chords, it doesn't have to say "G7b9" to use the b9th, you can usually use it on any 7th chord. The major chord is treated the same way, no matter if it says Cmaj7, or Cmaj9, or C6, or C sus 4, whichever, it's still a major chord and the R 2 3 5 and sometimes the 6th is used just fine, but not the maj7 unless you're soloing. The lines of 3 4 #4 to 5 can be used for all major chords (for minor it's b3 4 #4 5). You can use the following line for say a Dm7 (1 bar) to Gy (1 bar) to C (2bars). Dm R b3 5 high R to (G7) high 3 b9 R lower 5 to (C) R low 3 4 #4 5 #5 6 R. You can be more creative with the minor chords and use the b7 but it's not necessary to use the b7: 2 bars of Am to 2 bars of Dm7: Am R 2 b3 5 b7 7 high R 5 Dm R R b7 b7 6 b6 5 b3. It's important for the bassist to pay attention the 5th in the chord (you don't have to play the maj7), b7, b9, 6th, or other alterations, but anything to do with the critical 5th ought to send up RED ALERT, change the 5th to match the chord: Diminished (Co) you can play RR b5b5 or R b3 b5 b5 or any combination, or even the entire R b3 b5 bb7 (6th), but not necessary. You don't have to play all the notes of the chord to indicate that chord. END OF PART 1 of 2. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 19:00 on Saturday, May 30, 1998
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GETTING A GOOD SENSE OF TIME-GROOVE ON THE BASS. Much has been written about this, many theories floating around in magazines, columns, etc. As a serious teacher on elec. bass for almost 30 years, and as an experienced top-call studio bass player, let me discuss this all-important subject. I've taught about 3,000 bassists, and here is the nitty on this subject: Some of my students were practically beginners (as well as the many who were pros) -- those "beginners" who could play a few notes, yet could not function well on the bass, so I know this works for the wide-spectrum of learners out there. First of all, you must buy a reliable good loud-clicking elec. metronome (no the drum machine is not the best thing to play with, you need something that will be silent on certain beats), preferably a Franz, but if you can't find that, get a good loud-clicking electronic small one. Set the beat about 72 and begin playing 8th notes, i.e. 2 notes per beat steady. Then vary the notes and make it: dotted quarter, 8th, 1/2 note. Then play a blues tune using the same pattern over and over. Do each about 5 min. each. You won't be able to block out the click sound (like you do on guitar when you get "into time" etc.) but you can feel when your time-sense is improving -- you feel "at one" with the click. Next, vary the patterns that you play on the bass, still keeping the beat at 72 and playing on every beat. Then start varying the tempos, by pushing the tempo up to say, as high as 112. Do this for about 2-3 days, about 20 min. a day (do NOT over-practice!). Then try putting the metronome at 52 and making that click the 2 and 4 of beats 1-2-3-4, essentially making it the drummer's "back-beat", his 2 and 4. To do this, count ON the click 1-1-1-1 (two of them per beat, beats 1 and 2), then 1-1-2-3-4, and you've found the 1-2-3-4 of blank-2-blank-4, you're the "blank" and the metronome plays along with you like the drummer ordinarily would. Leaving this blank space is crucial for your good sense of space ("your" spot, your space) and good feeling-time. Even most of the finest bebop jazz musicians of the 50s practiced with the elec. metronome beating this way to get a great time-sense going, so important is the sense of good time and for rock, country, or funk it's even more critical. You don't have to practice with the metronome constantly to keep up a sense of great time, just once in awhile. Bass players need the finest sense of time to not only lock in good with drummers and maybe "help" a drummer find "his" sense of good time once in awhile too, that's your job -- we all help each other, the drummer may have to help you too. Some drummers might lose a sense of great time when they play fills, and get distracted), and you can always help provide a fine foundation of groove for the group if YOUR time is of the utmost, the key to a great band. There's no better feeling than locking in with a good drummer and having a great time-groove for the rest of the band to play on, even in the simplest music -- nothing happens without a good time-sense and the bass player, being the "connection" between the drum beats and other instruments, this is crucial regardless of the kind of music or patterns you play. It ALL happens great with great time-sense. More later on how to get your 16ths together. One last note: several of the biggest 60s Motown hits were cut with a click-track (beating 1-2-3-4, like 98% of the movie soundtracks too) -- yes, you can groove with the metronome beating on every beat, it all depends on the patterns you play, but the best way to get a great time-sense is practicing with it beating on 2 and 4. Carol Kaye USA Submitted at: 10:13 on Sunday, May 24, 1998
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Don't want to discourage you by saying "10 years playing experience". It was that way back in those years. Am sure if you get about 1-2 years good playing experience, you could be ready then and it just depends on the music styles that you will be recording. Country is traditionally very simple on the bass, altho' some borders on some nice funky rock and roll, something more complex. Just depends. It's highly important that you start playing with bands and get your good time sense together as well as patterns, lines, lots of creative ideas on the bass -- study the widest possible groupings of lines for the bass. Good luck. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 17:51 on Friday, May 22, 1998
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Hi Tony, welcome to the Board. You're thinking of "Bassics" Magazine where I write a regular sightreading column, good magazine, thanks. There's really no "one"place to do studio work anymore, it used to be in LA, but has spread all over the USA, and is particularly still fairly heavy in Nashville altho' some are complaining about a slowdown there too. Studio musicians are the "cream of the crop", the finest musicians due to their experience mainly, altho' a few "geniuses" have been hired almost directly out of school (usually the arrangers-composers). As a wanted studio musician, you usually have to have at least 10 years playing experience out in the nightclubs, etc. before people even think of hiring you in the studios. There are a few exceptions, usually group musicians who are exceptional players, who get in due to "friends" etc. None of our group got in that way at all, it was all due to high professionalism and years of live playing experiences. We used to kid about the fact that the string players and trombonists were the only ones who had to play politics by learning the game of golf, etc. It's a tough field, and I'd say if you're interested in this, then by all means get your experiences in many different styles of music, learn to "create" parts, learn to sightread well, have some good playing years under your belt first before even thinking about studio work. You could get lucky and get a group of playing musicians who also do studio work on the side -- this would be ideal, once you get your playing chops and experience together. We all started out doing "demos", that is recordings that are played for a purpose - to get more work as a group, to sell a song, sell a singer, etc. And one thing you should think about: practically all our group of 350 or so studio musicians were either jazz musicians, big band musicians or highly-trained classical musicians (like the string players). Jazz is the toughest music style you can play (imo). Its theory and complexities make one into an all-around great musician, and you will learn so much about music arranging from playing it too. This creativeness is what we all knew when we got into the lucrative studios -- we came up with "instant arrangements" in the late 50s and early 60s to help everyone we worked for get a hit record. Believe me, the songs were just as bad then as they are now (Frank Sinatra made a remark about how bad the material is today) but we made something out of the songs, and with the licks, stacking tonal weights here and there, key-changes, robot-like patterns, montunos, break licks, key hit licks here and there, the jazz improv which the rhythm sections were good at, came to the fro and arrangers then copied our ideas (they have admitted this too) and the rock of the 60s took off. The only ones who weren't jazz but still had years of playing experieces were: Glen Campbell, Leon Russell, Al Casey, Mac Rebbenec, James Burton (he only did studio work for a short time), the rest were jazz-musicians and big-band musicians. So you see, there's a ways to go yet if you're relative new to your instrument. Start studying a lot, and I'd go for the things that are on my "books" page, as well as tutors by Rufus Reid, and the Simandl bass books. Don't fall for books out there that have "jazz" in their titles. I have seen so many of these that are just awful -- including the so-called sax books. Unless the book is by a fine music-teaching top jazz professional, avoid it like the plague. Don't waste your time on about 99% of the books out there, and that goes for the videos too. Some of the Jazz videos by Joe Pass, people like that are fine, but that's for guitar players. Elec. Bass is a "new" instrument, not even 50 years old, so be careful, and GOOD LUCK. It's not impossible to do, just be aware you have a ways to go, things do change in the recording cities too, usually within a few short years. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 17:19 on Friday, May 22, 1998
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Where to play certain patterns, runs, etc., depends always upon where you have just played on the board, as well as choices of notes that depend upon where you're going to also. Good reading also depends upon fingering choices. Normally, I don't play the Bbm run that low, the notes don't sound that good on the 1st fret (this is just contrarty to the way string bass players play, they tend to play more open strings and more on the 1st position than up where the elec. bassists can and do like to play, more in the middle of the neck where the best sounds are). Eb and Bb always sound the best in the middle of the neck, plus you have the advantage of either going up or down the neck. If you're on the 1st fret, you can only go "up" and then you're sort of stuck using the open strings which don't always sound that good in timbre and are kind of uncontrollable for the punch you want out of sounds too. I do use open strings when I'm stuck in the key of F, which, let's face it, it has that great low F on the 1st fret and then you will use the open A a lot. But normally, I don't use the Bb chord on the 1st fret at all. If I'm in the chord of C, then I'd move up to the 6th fret to get the Bb chord. Todd, hope this helps. Also, if there's an easy choice between open strings and closed notes, use the closed notes, they sound better, are "thicker" and are more controllable. I'll use open strings as "note-fillers", quick little fill-in notes no matter the key. You can't really hear the "note" (fast 16ths) and yet sound good in filling up some rhythm pattern no matter the chord you're playing. Open strings gain you time also to be able to shift up to another position, and sometimes, like with the Henry Mancini arrangements, they sound good after a long slide to an open string note on a ballad, etc. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 9:28 on Wednesday, May 20, 1998
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Good analogy Ed. I have to use a quote by Tom Scott who was amazed that they're using note-scales in teaching out here these days. Tom is the musical conductor/arranger on many TV shows, movies, as well as the famous Oscar and other awards shows. "They're using note-scales out there? Well everyone knows you can't learn music that way, it has to be taught with chorrdal tones and the scale notes are sometimes the passing notes between them -- all players think of "chords" not scale notes when they play". End of quote. Had a nice quote from Perry Botkin today about Frank Sinatra. He was totally amazed at the magnitude of "ol' blue eyes". Frank told him (upon meeting Perry who was quickly becoming one of our most endearing fine recording arrangers/writers in the early 60s): "You're doing nice work kid. Keep it up. Give my regards to your father". Perry Botkin Sr. was "the" studio guitarist, was Bing Crosby's guitarist, as well as the 1st Tonight Show sidekick for Johnny Carson. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 10:40 on Saturday, May 16, 1998 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Here's a little history regarding modes. The whole "modes" business came about in Western music because of limitations in the instruments and limitations of music notation. The need to describe music in terms of "modes" went away with the advent of "standard notation." The composers could now describe ALL of the modes by using a single "key signature." In fact, they could also go beyond modal music by including "accidentals", that is, notes outside of the key or mode. Modes didn't disappear, they just became unneccessary. When you construct a bass line, you are walking through a *chord progression*. Just because you happen to be staying within a mode doesn't mean that you are creating the line using modal techniques. Ed Meinel Reston, VA US Submitted at: 6:34 on Saturday, May 16, 1998 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Plus, I cannot emphasize enough about the ear-training that chordal tones improve. Your ears are literally hurt by all the proffered scales (which btw have made a lot of money for publishers). The experienced musicians will all tell you NOT to practice scales, that's not the way to learn to really play well, but rather get your chordal notes together. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 9:17 on Friday, May 15, 1998 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
By "opposing" I mean that too much emphasis is placed on scales and hardly none place on getting chordal tones together. And NO, you do not have to play with a pick, it was kind of required back then, but like I tell all the bassists, the pick is not "necessary", sometimes it's handy tho' like you describe. I decry the ignorant way they teach scales as "the only way", as they have not the facility to teach chordal tones, nor the teaching experience to do that. Even fine string bass teachers teach chordal tones, but hardly enough elec. bass teachers. I never teach scales until a couple later on in the lessons. They should get their chordal tones together first, not the piano way of learning "scales first" on the elec. bass which plays according to "chords", not solo work, to back up a band, or even to play some blues lines for immediate jamming. You're correct in the sense that you do learn it all, but there is literally almost nothing out there about chordal tones and the reason being is ignorance. Have had so many students who can play a million scales and cannot play with a band, as they don't know what to play and surely cannot solo. This has brought this lack of chordal tone approach way of teaching to my attention in the later years. They need more pattern work for the rock-funk too, as very few have the multitude of ideas you need to create good funky patterns (speaking of notes here, not slapping which isn't done in LA much anymore, it's sort of passe here). In just a few lessons, one can get their chordal approaches together to function very well in bands, and that is the ideal. As I get them in either funk (notes) or jazz soloing, I do give them the necessary two scales (only) that they need. The Spanish tune on the end of Side A is the Allegro part of Concierto De Aranjuez by Rodrigo. Glad you like it, thanks. Carol Kaye Submitted at: 9:13 on Friday, May 15, 1998 --------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Wanted to say some more about getting your reading together (to everyone here), that it's easy once you have the right system in place to help you aim for the down beats, saying the rhythms, then play the notes out of time in a particular piece (star |