Chords for Reggae Bass Lesson

[N] _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ [Bb] _ _ _ _ [Gm] _
_ _ _ _ [F] _ _ [Bb] _ _
_ _ _ _ _ [F] _ _ _
_ _ [Gm] _ _ _ _ _ [F] _
_ [Bb] _ _ _ [Gm] _ Who _
_ [F] _ is [Gm] _ _ _ _
_ _ [Bb] _ that guy?
[F] _ Hi folks, Ed [Bb] Friedland here _ with a little discussion about reggae bass.
Reggae [F] bass _ [Bb] is a very [Fm] large catch-all phrase [F] because reggae [Bb] is a [Db] lot of stylistic subsets that [F] fall under the category of reggae.
That first [Fm] track was from the early ska period.
It [Db] was very similar to one of Bob [Bb] Marley and the Wailers' first hits called Simmer Down.
[Fm] You might have noticed that the bass line was pretty much just a walking bass [Ab] line like jazz.
_ [B] _ [F] Back in that time period, most of the ska bass was recorded with upright bass.
To really get the authentic sound, [A] _ _ [F] we do this technique called the palm mute.
You take your [E] palm, the fleshy part here, and we put [Fm] it against [A] these strings [F] down by the bridge.
Get that fleshy part there, and then we play with the [Bb] thumb.
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ [C] _ _ _ _ [F] _
Which is what gives you that real [Bb] acoustic bass type of [Db]
texture.
The next style of [F] music that became popular in Jamaica was called rock steady.
The legend has it [Fm] that the summer of 66 was extremely hot in [Bb] Jamaica, and the [F] dancers were complaining that the [Db] ska was too fast.
It was too hot for them to dance to that.
So, _ [F]
producers [Eb] and musicians started [E] recording slower [Bbm] tempo music, and they called it rock steady.
This bass line [F] sounds a lot like the staple singers' I'll Take You There.
[A] You'll notice the bass line is very similar to that.
[C] Check it out.
[F] _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ [Bb] _ _ _
_ _ _ [F] _ _ _ _ _
[Bb] _ _ _ _ _ _ _ [F] _
_ _ _ [Bb] _ _ _ _ _
_ _ [F] _ _ _ _ _ [Bb] _
_ _ _ _ _ [F] _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ [Bb] _
_ [F] _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ [Bb] _ _ _ _ _ [F] _
_ That's the [Bb] classic bass line from I'll Take You There.
[F]
Very similar.
After the rock steady period, the music transitioned into what they [Bbm] now call the [Bb] reggae period.
_ [F] Reggae, of course, became synonymous with all Jamaican [Bb] music.
It's not exactly accurate, [F] because it's like saying jazz, which could mean anything from Louis [B] Armstrong to Kenny [Bb] G.
One of the significant things was [A] when the skank on the guitar [Fm] that_
_ _ _ [G] _ _ _ _
[E] _changed,
and they [F] started to play more of a double [Bb] skank, and they called it [Bbm] reggae.
_ _ _ [Db] _
_ And the bass [F] lines started to get more active and much [Bb] more prominent in the mix, and that kind [Db] of left the drummer free [Bm] to start doing some crazy stuff.
This [Bb] next bass line is similar [F] to a reggae tune called [Bb] Throw Me Corn.
You'll [F] notice that I play with my fingers kind [Bb] of up here [F] at the [Bb] end of the fingerboard.
The [F] tone you get out of [Bbm] your bass is [Fm] much darker, [Bb] and the [F] strings are looser.
The articulation isn't quite as precise, which [Eb] is an important [Bb] factor to remember when you're playing reggae bass lines.
Sometimes the [F] bass lines are very busy, but at the same time, they have to have a [Bb] laid-back feel.
[Bm] So [Eb] this line goes like this.
_ _ [E] _ _ Now _ [A] _
you wouldn't want to play it down here.
[E] _ _ _
_ _ [A] _ _ It's a very tight [Eb] and precise sound, so instead we play it up here.
[E] _ _ _
_ _ [A] _ _ _ _ [E] _ _
_ _ [A] _ _ Check it out. _
[E] _ _ _ _ _ [A] _ _ _
[E] _ _ _ _ _ [A] _ _ _
[E] _ _ _ [A] _ _ _ _ [E] _
_ _ _ _ [A] _ _ [E] _ _
_ _ [A] _ _ _ _ _ [E] _
_ _ _ [A] _ _ _ [E] _ _
_ [A] _ _ _ _ [E] _ _ _
_ [A] _ _ _ _ [E] _ [Eb] The next [Bb] stylistic period in the reggae [F] world was [Bb] called the Roots Period.
_ _ What started [F] happening was the spiritual beliefs of Rastafarianism started [Bm] influencing the [F] lyrics and [A] the music.
[Bm] _ _ _ _ _ _ [E] _
_ _ _ _ [G] _ _ _ _
_ [Gbm] _ _ _ _ [Bm] _ _ _
_ _ [E] _ _ _ _ _ [G] _
_ _ _ [Gbm] _ _ _ _ _
[Bm] _ _ _ _ _ [E] _ _ _
_ _ [G] _ _ _ _ [Gbm] _ _
_ _ _ [Bm] _ _ _ _ _
[E] _ _ _ _ [G] _ _ _ _
_ [Gbm] _ _ _ _ _ [Bm] _
One important [F] thing to note [Bb] about reggae bass playing in general is [E] it's got this [Fm] loose, relaxed feel to it.
The 16th [F] notes are not like tight, jacko [Bb] 16th notes, and the shuffle, like that last track, is this big, wide, loose, open shuffle.
_ [Bbm] To get there, [F] you have to imagine what [Bbm] it's like to play a 16th note.
You have to imagine what it's like to play when it's 95 degrees [F] and 95% humidity.
_ And then imagine [D] you just smoked a joint and rolled up into [F] Sunday [Bb] noon.
_ [G] _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
[F] Of course, ska is one of the more popular styles of music that came out of Jamaica.
What happened later in the [Bb] 70s, _ _ [F] British bands and punk rockers started listening to those old records and getting inspired by the music.
They decided to create their own _ subset of the ska. _
It was called English Beat or Two [A]-Tone.
[F] Bands like The Specials, [Bbm] The Selector, _ [Bm] [Bbm] UB40, [F] and English Beat are all [A] _ _ examples of that [Fm] second wave of ska.
_ _ The thing you'll notice [Bb] is the tempos are [F] way up.
_ [A] _ _ [D] _ _
_ _ [G] _ _ [C] _ _ [D] _ _
_ _ [G] _ _ _ _ [D] _ _
_ _ [G] _ _ _ _ [D] _ _
_ _ [G] _ _ [C] _ _ [D] _ _
_ _ [G] _ _ _ _ [D] _ _
_ _ [G] _ _ [C] _ _ [D] _ _
_ _ [G] _ _ _ _ [D] _ _
_ _ [G] _ _ _ _ [D] _ _
[C] Anyway, I hope you've [G] enjoyed this little short reggae bass lesson.
Of [D] course, my ultimate [Gm] goal is that you'll go out, _ _ buy my [G] book, Reggae Bass.
[E] [D] Go to edfriedland [Gm].com on the books page, and there's a link there.
[D] $13, you [G] get 47 tracks to play along with.
You've heard some of them in this lesson.
_ _ No machines, and all 100% live, human reggae musicians on these tracks.
_ [D] _
[G] I hope you check it out.
[E] Thanks, and we'll see you soon.
[G] _ _ _ _ _ _ [D] _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _
_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _