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Ben Wright plays bass for the New York City rock band Wu Li, and has toured and recorded with Jupiter One.

What Does it all Mean? Building Bass Lines Using Chord Tones.
By Ben Wright
Posted: February 07, 2008
Skill level: Novice / intermediate

What does it all mean? Building bass lines using chord tones.

Now that you are a master of arpeggios in the key of C major (see
Expanding Your Mind with Arpeggios) it's time to put those chord tones
to use. By the way, playing arpeggios in the key of C major is not
enough. You'll find at the end of this lesson a chart containing
chord symbols for all 12 major keys. (see FIG. 8) Practice the
arpeggio shapes and structures that you used for C major in all 12
keys!

In this lesson, we'll use a standard blues progression to illustrate a
few ways to build bass lines using chord tones. Start by playing
just the roots in 4/4 time. (see FIG. 1)

FIG. 1 blues in G, roots, whole notes

Consider the chord qualities for this progression. G major (G-B-D),
C major (C-E-G), and D major (D-F#-A). Play through each arpeggio,
across the entire neck, until you are comfortable. Now let's add one
note to each measure by playing half notes instead of whole notes.
This is called a "two-feel". Remember that you can only use chord
tones! (see FIG. 2)

FIG. 2 Two-feel, 2 choruses

In the next example, I've added some minor chords to the progression.
A minor (A-C-E), B minor (B-D-F#), and E minor (E-G-B). Make sure to
familiarize yourself with the arpeggios before playing through the
changes. Play the lines provided and then create your own following
the same chord progression. (see FIG. 3)

FIG. 3 Two-feel, 2 choruses

Here's a nice example of a walking bass line using quarter notes.
Play through this line a few times and then create your own. Chord
tones only! (see FIG. 4)

FIG. 4 walking line, 2 choruses

Check out these examples of chord-tone-only bass lines in a few
different styles. (see FIG. 5-7)

FIG. 5 Rock (Mystery Man bridge)

FIG. 6 R&B (Let's get it On simile)

FIG. 7 Latin (Pinata bass line)

Remember that any and all of these examples can be played in all 12
keys. Play on!

FIG 8. Major Keys chart

Copyright © 2007-2008 Ben Wright