hey guys ive been playing bass for 5 years almost 6 and ive just decided to learn to play scales etc ( i know i should already know this) i just really want to play bass solos along with backing tracks etc but i dont know the notes that will go on the same key any help on this?

for example if i was in the key of G and i wanted to do a solo what are all my options for notes to play?

thanks for the help guys this is just really confusing me!

Wow… I am curious about what you’ve been playing for 5 years… Check out some of the instructional bass videos at the link below. Good luck!

Ok so i just started learning bass guitar I’m learning scales and about music key, Key of G, D etc. And well I don’t know if what I read was wrong or if there was a mistake in my resource so I’d appreciate some help.

what I read said whatever key a song is in your limited to the notes within that scale. If in G the scale would be G A B C D E F# G. Apparently anything out side that would sound bad

I got confused when I looked at one of the songs in a rock school book. it was in the key of G yet it was a note outside of this scale C#

Thanks. alot to read i know. please keep it responses simple because like i said i just started

There are different scales. You are learning the major scale, which is the most "important" one, but there are many others.. minor, pentatonic, blues, modes, arabic, etc….

you will probably only need a good understanding of three of them for bass guitar, however. That’s the major, minor and blues scales. Minor is more "sad" sounding, it has a flattened third and seventh. The blues scale is a simple scale used in most rock songs, and it has lots of flat/sharp notes you can bend to for bluesy effects.

Also, melodies often include notes that fall outside of the song’s key. These can be used for effect, as passing notes to other notes in the key, and just for drama. Once you know the rules, you can bend them a bit. The important thing is making the song sound good.

I’ve just worked my way through my first book on bass guitar and have learned scales and a couple of simple tunes.
I’d really like to learn a few simple bass lines from songs to help build up my confidence and playing ability.
Any suggestions?

Police or Sting. Pretty simple mostly, cause he has to sing at the same time. A lot of beatles songs have really simple and easy to hear bass lines, to.

I’m just learning how to play bass and i’m trying to get in my buddies metal band. I’m wandering is it a good bass?

Most of the big guitar maker’s make a low end starter model bass guitar such as the Ibanez GSRM20. I play the bass and I have an Ibanez SR605 5-String Bass Guitar. I love this bass. So, Ibanez makes easy to play very good sounding bass guitars however, the low end bass guitars from any company were produced to get one of there guitars in your hands knowing that before long you would want a much better bass and hopefully would by another Ibanez because you are already familiar with it. You are not going to be happy with any Bass for under $500. They are just not that good. The hardware and the pickups and the bridge are all much cheaper versions and after only a few months when you’re tired of having to tune it all the time and are realizing your unhappy with that bass for lots of other reasons, you won’t get you money back out of it and you’ll be wishing you waited until you could afford a better instrument. In my opinion, this is the bass you really should start out with http://www.guitarcenter.com/Ibanez-SR500-Soundgear-4-String-Bass-102550159-i1148507.gc It is just made better and it has a better variety of sounds and if you put it together with a Behringer ULTRABASS BXL3000 300W 1×15" Bass Combo amplifier it will last you for many years before you really need to trade up. http://www.guitarcenter.com/Behringer-ULTRABASS-BXL3000-300W-1×15–Bass-Combo-481097-i1145513.gc When you do decide to trade up, that bass and amplifier will still have a good resale value. When it comes to playing bass the amplifier is way more important than the guitar itself, so if you’re really strapped for cash buy the less expensive bass guitar but, you need that Behringer 300 watt amplifier. You won’t find a better bass amp for that price. It also blows away many more expensive bass amplifiers. I bought one for my grandson for Christmas one year and it sound so good and has so much power that his big brother has been borrowing it every time his band has a gig because it’s way better than the expensive bass amp their bass player has.

Welcome aboard! The world needs more bass players. Their easy to learn to play and it’s easier to find a job playing bass than it is playing guitar. I play guitar also but, usually end up playing bass because the demand for a really good bass player is much greater.

Im learning the Bass Guitar and could use these Scales. Put them in the Key of G please I can move them around myself.

The only difference between the standard (diatonic) scale and the pentatonic scales is the lack of half steps in the pentatonic scales.
The major and relative minor scales are one in the same, they share the same notes.
Here are the notes for G major; G A B C D E F# G. Here are the notes for E minor; E F# G A B C D E. Notice that they share the same notes.
The same Idea applies to the pentatonic scales.
Here are the notes for G major pentatonic; G A B D E G. Here is E minor pentatonic; E G A B D E.
Notice that the pentatonic scales simply lack two of the notes of the diatonic scales (in this case C and F#)
The bass clef starts on the note G (lowest line of the bass clef) You should be able to figure out the rest.
I strongly suggest that you take lessons with a good qualified local instructor to help you learn all of the positions of the pentatonic and diatonic scales as well as the correct fingerings.

Ok i play rhythem guitar and learnt my self, so i only really know Chords, I know i should learn scales but its been too hard to find the time, but our bassist as left the band, and we want to be a 3 piece and i want to know, how easy it would be for me learn bass, for example, Is there anywebsites that show Bass Chords, and Bass scales or are they the same with Guitar scales, also, How would i put a bass line with a guitar playing with me, so if the guitar is playing for e.g C, Amin and Fmaj7, would i as a bassist play a c scale??? – I hope you understand me, and all questions welcome

Bass play of 6 and 1/2 years here.

This isn’t too hard.

Transition from rhythm guitar to bass isn’t nearly as difficult as lead guitar to bass. At least with rhythm guitar you have some knowledge of chords and rhythm.

If the guitar is playing a C chord, you will play the root of that chord on the bass, C.

So instead of playing the C chord on the bass, just play the note C. The guitar should be higher, not only in pitch but also in tone because the guitar has the chords. The bass connects the rhythm guitar and drum line together.

Get a basic beat going with your drummer, say 4/4 for simplicity’s sake.

Normally, you would take the bass and have it lead up with chords before a guitar part is written, but you don’t have enough experience with bass, so we’ll change that out for your guitar. It will all sound the same when you throw it together, so don’t worry.

Once you’ve got your drummer continuously following a 4/4 beat, synchronize the chords and rhythm you’ve got with your guitar to the beat of the drum.

Now, take the bass, and play just the notes of the chords you’re using on your guitar. Play them at the same time as your guitar is playing the chords.

Now, as you’ve got that written down, go back to your guitar and do it again, only this time try to add a bit of something to the guitar part. Instead of strumming a chord, do an arpeggio with it, and then go back to playing again. Something like that to give it a little variation.

The bass line will stay the same, your rhythm guitar will follow with it, and occasionally your rhythm guitar should fluctuate a little bit for flashy lead purposes. Just a little though, not a whole lot or it’ll ruin it. A very small amount.

There you go. That’s the bassics. (pun intended).

There are more technical aspects to writing, such as fills, solos, etc. but you don’t need to get into that quite yet.

Just take your time, it will all come to you with practice and thought. Have patience. If you don’t have patience while writing you won’t write anything good. Don’t force the sound. If you’re not feeling creative, just put it down for a bit, and come back to it later.

i’m after a short scale acoustic bass guitar for my 8 y.o. son. does anyone know of a company making this? I’m based in London UK

i’m sure a guitar/music shop would have one, if not know of one and where to get one. maybe they could order one in for you. try asking around all the music shops.

So.. I really do not understand scales. I have read about scales from quite a few resources but I am still utterly lost. So please tell me everything you know about scales. Thank you so much

Dr X’s answer is correct but maybe you need to understand the theory more. A scale is the path you take through an octave (like from a C to a high C). Start from any note; if you go up just one fret, that’s a half-step (like C to C#, 3rd to 4th fret on your A string). If you go up two frets, it’s a whole step (like C to D, 3rd to 5th fret on your A string).

With "w" for whole steps and "h" for half steps, a major scale goes wwhwwwh. A minor scale goes whwwwhw. Try doing that on just one string to start, say your E string:

E major will look like this:
E – 0 – 2 – 4 – 5 – 7 – 9 – 11 – 12

E minor will look like this:
E – 0 – 2 – 3 – 5 – 7 – 9 – 10 – 12

So far so good? Now, as you probably know, the fifth fret on one string is the same as the next string up, played open. That means you can go up the scale without constantly having to slide your hand up the neck.

So you can play your E major scale like this:
G – ——————————-
D – ————————-1 – 2
A – ———— 0 – 2 – 4 ——-
E – 0 – 2 – 4 ——————–

Or the pattern Dr. X showed you. Use www.studybass.com, or get a book of bass scales (they’re only $10 or so) and it will show you lots of patterns to follow. Once you’re comfortable with major and minor scales, you can move on into more complex things like modes and things like mixolydian scales, etc.

i’m after a short scale acoustic bass guitar for my 8 y.o. son. does anyone know of a company making this? I’m based in London UK

i’m sure a guitar/music shop would have one, if not know of one and where to get one. maybe they could order one in for you. try asking around all the music shops.

Anybody know of a good webite that has exercises to learn bass guitar scales or chords. I basically just play tabs of songs I know but I want to learn more. Any tips?

check these out-

http://www.tabit.net

http://www.looknohands.com/chordhouse/

from my personal experiences, these sites below works wonder for those learning to play guitar as extensive instructional lessons are provided free-

http://www.freelicks.net

http://www.fretplay.com/guitar-lessons.shtml

http://www.guitarmasterclass.net

http://www.fenderplayersclub.com/artists_lounge/featured_artists/wolf.htm

http://www.sickguitar.com

http://www.freeguitarvideos.com/guitar_lessons_beginner.html

http://www.guitaralliance.com

http://www.ultimateguitar.com/gm/gmWelcome.htm

http://youtube.com/results?search_query=guitar+lessons

if you are willing to spend some more time, no harm checking these sites as well-

http://www.shredaholic.com

http://www.guitarshredshow.com/

http://www.guitarjamdaily.com

http://guitar.about.com/library/blguitarlessonarchive.htm

http://www.cyberfret.com/

http://www.onlineguitarlessons.co.uk/

http://www.guitarnoise.com

http://www.jamoramaacoustic.com/?hop=maple626

http://www.jamorama.com/?hop=astronut

http://www.e-chords.com/videos.asp

http://www.guitartabbooks.com/freeles

http://www.guitarlessonsonvideo.com

http://www.freeguitarvideos.com/guitar_lessons_beginner.html

http://guitarsmadeeasy.com/?hop=pradipdk

http://www.gootar.com/folder/guitar.html

http://www.activebass.com

http://www.harmony-central.com/

http://www.reviewsnest.com/GuitarLessons/

Good luck!