Free Bass Transcriptions

[philparker]

Yes, it is - thanks!

[TKenrick]

One of many things that I've stolen from the great saxophonist Bob Reynolds:

 

[stewblack]

As a result of this post I ended up meandering down a YouTube rabbit hole, watched a classical trained pianist trying to learn jazz, a documentary on the birth of bebop and a film about the 1967 Monterey Pop Festival. 

So thanks to you I've had a fascinating, informative and entertaining afternoon and evening! 

Oh and learned a bit more about good practice practice. 

[TKenrick]

It's been slow going for the past year or so, but I'm finally getting some new charts out and correcting mistakes in the old ones...

New transcription features Aston Barrett playing some great notes, even the 'wrong' ones:

Chart here: Bob Marley & The Wailers - 'Is This Love'

[stewblack]

35 minutes ago, TKenrick said:

It's been slow going for the past year or so, but I'm finally getting some new charts out and correcting mistakes in the old ones...

New transcription features Aston Barrett playing some great notes, even the 'wrong' ones

 

Thank you!

Those C naturals! Weird!

[TKenrick]

New video/blog post. We're going on a deep dive into triads, as this is a fundamental area that I find almost all of my students are lacking in:

 

 

Detailed notation/explanation in the blog post here: https://freebasstranscriptions.com/five-must-know-triad-types/

[Kevsy71]

Excellent explanation and runthrough Tom!

[TKenrick]

I've been tidying up some charts following the discovery of some very embarrassing errors. These have all been made more accurate and had layouts improved for people trying to turn pages on a gig:

 

ABBA - Waterloo

ABBA - Honey, Honey

ABBA - Mamma Mia

Killers - Mr Brightside

 

From now until 1st December you can also get my Better Bass Practice ebook at 30% off

[TKenrick]

I was taking a student though this chart last week and realised that it was woefully inaccurate; here's another stab at Donny's excellent Fender Rhodes part:

 

Donny Hathaway - 'This Christmas'

[stewblack]

6 hours ago, TKenrick said:

I was taking a student though this chart last week and realised that it was woefully inaccurate; here's another stab at Donny's excellent Fender Rhodes part:

 

Donny Hathaway - 'This Christmas'

Well this came a month too late 😬🤦

Not that I played any of the Christmas gigs. Stupid covid.

[TKenrick]

15 hours ago, stewblack said:

Well this came a month too late 😬🤦

Not that I played any of the Christmas gigs. Stupid covid.

If only this was the sort of Christmas tune that I got to play at gigs, it's always bloody Slade or Wizzard...

[stewblack]

1 hour ago, TKenrick said:

If only this was the sort of Christmas tune that I got to play at gigs, it's always bloody Slade or Wizzard...

Keys player flat out refused any Xmas tunes except this one

[dodge_bass]

On 23/12/2021 at 14:19, TKenrick said:

I was taking a student though this chart last week and realised that it was woefully inaccurate; here's another stab at Donny's excellent Fender Rhodes part:

 

Donny Hathaway - 'This Christmas'

Looks great - without being an derrière though how can you get muted notes (x heads on your part) on a synth? 

[TKenrick]

On 24/12/2021 at 23:36, dodge_bass said:

Looks great - without being an derrière though how can you get muted notes (x heads on your part) on a synth? 

 

You can hit the key softly enough and bury it in the mix to such a degree that I can't really be certain what the note is 😉 the ghost notes are a best guess.

[dodge_bass]

40 minutes ago, TKenrick said:

 

You can hit the key softly enough and bury it in the mix to such a degree that I can't really be certain what the note is 😉 the ghost notes are a best guess.

Ah yeah….fair enough….nice way of notating that uncertainty!

[TKenrick]

I've been very slack on the transcription front for the last year or so, hoping to make up for it in 2022...

 

Here's an old Vulfpeck tune with a nice little solo from Monsieur Dart:

 

Vulfpeck - 'Adrienne & Adrianne' bass transcription

[stewblack]

1 hour ago, TKenrick said:

I've been very slack on the transcription front for the last year or so, hoping to make up for it in 2022...

 

Here's an old Vulfpeck tune with a nice little solo from Monsieur Dart:

 

Vulfpeck - 'Adrienne & Adrianne' bass transcription

Very slack. Tut tut 

[stewblack]

Hey Tom.. what's all this business?

[Bunion]

Quarter rest + double dots If I’m right (still doing music theory on my fingers and toes 😂🤣) 

A rest for 7/16 

 

if I’m wrong please educate I’m new at this part of music 

Edited April 10, 2022 by Bunion

[stewblack]

21 minutes ago, Bunion said:

Quarter rest + double dots If I’m right (still doing music theory on my fingers and toes 😂🤣) 

A rest for 7/16 

 

if I’m wrong please educate I’m new at this part of music 

Thank you, that makes sense. But why the two dots?

 

[Bunion]

One dot after a note or rest is half the amount of the original the second dot is half the amount of the first dot 

 

so 1/4 + 1/8 + 1/16 = 7/16

Edited April 10, 2022 by Bunion

[stewblack]

Just now, Bunion said:

One dot after a note or rest is half the amount of the original the second dot is half the amount of the first dot 

Brilliant, thank you

[TKenrick]

Three new charts added to the archive, all from last minute dep gigs where I didn't have the time (or inclination) to memorise everything:

 

Dua Lipa - Don't Start Now

 

Dua Lipa - Levitating

 

Dolly Parton - Jolene

[TKenrick]

Transcriptions/videos etc have been a bit thin on the ground over the past year or so because...

 

I've been doing a lot of Zoom teaching and most of my students want to improve their reading, but find that they struggle with the rhythmic aspect of things. I started writing exercises for students to help them overcome specific stumbling blocks and once I started, I found it difficult to stop.

 

The result is not one, but TWO books dedicated to demystifying the rhythmic aspect of notation; I used the Louis Bellson book when I was learning to read, but found that it didn't really explain anything - I wanted to break everything down so that even the most novice reader could start to make progress and hopefully put TAB in the bin forever.

 

 

Rhythm Reading Bootcamp Volume 1 covers the basics of rhythm reading and has more than 40 exercises to help develop your skills:

 

• Basic notation symbols

• Whole, half, quarter, and eighth notes

• Rests

• How to alter basic note and rest values

• Tied notes

 

 

Volume 2 breaks down 16th-note rhythms in a structured, logical way, allowing you to master complex syncopation with ease.

 

The book covers the following elements along with more than 80 exercises to test your rhythm reading skills:

 

• How to subdivide 16th-note phrases

• 16th, dotted eighth, and double dotted quarter notes

• 16th-note and dotted eighth-note rests

• How to alter basic note and rest values

• Tied 16th-note rhythms

 

I also made a whole lot of free videos to accompany the books, so those who feel nauseous at the thought of paying for their music education are still catered to:

 

Season 1: Rhythmic Fundamentals

 

 

 

Season 2: The 16th-note Language

 

 

[TKenrick]

Even though I transcribe a lot of music I always feel like my ears aren't as good as I want them to be. These are the best ways that I've found to get them in shape without spending any money: