THE BASS HANDBOOK, A Complete Guide for Mastering the Bass Guitar. Adrian Ashton. CD TABLATURE

THE BASS HANDBOOK, A Complete Guide for Mastering the Bass Guitar. Adrian Ashton. CD TABLATURE

The Bass Handbook A Complete Guide for Mastering the Bass Guitar
Series: Book
Publisher: Backbeat Books
Format: Softcover with CD
Author: Adrian Ashton

EVERYTHING YOU NEED TO KNOW ABOUT THE ELECTRIC BASS

LEARN TO PLAY - FROM THE BASICS TO ADVANCED MUSICIANSHIP

GET TO KNOW THE HISTORY OF THE BASS AND ITS GREATEST PLAYERS

UNDERSTAND AMPS, SPEAKERS, STRINGS, PICKUPS, AND CABLES

DISCOVER HOW TO BUY A GOOD BASS AND MAINTAIN IT PROPERLY

ACCOMPANYING CD INCLUDES 80 TRACKS OF EXERCISES AND EXAMPLES

BOOK DESIGNED TO OPEN FLAT FOR EASE OF USE

This indispensable handbook helps players of all levels produce better, more creative, and more varied bass lines. Divided into two sections – Playing Your Bass and Knowing Your Bass – it covers everything from tuning, reading music, scales and chords, and advanced techniques to tips on buying and upgrading a budget bass and troubleshooting. Along with a list of suggested listening and a reference guide, this book provides an unrivaled digest of bass information that might otherwise take an entire career to amass.

Inventory #HL 00331295
ISBN: 9780879308728
UPC: 073999936247
Publisher Code: 0879308729
Width: 9.0"
Length: 11.0"
256 pages

The world of the electric bass guitar; what a wonderful place to be. It means so many things to so many people, myself included. Firstly,it is,as Jethro Tull bassist Jonathan Noyce put it,"our secret weapon". Why secret? Many people forget that the bass can carry the rhythm and the melody, something rare amongst musical instruments. Furthermore it can influence the harmony, whether the other harmonious voices like it or not. So, like all weapons, it needs to be handled with care. Then there's the image; electric bass is so adaptable. Bassists can be shy and retiring. using their skill and musical delicacy to drive a band forward with purpose. With a wry smile and a deep inward glow you can be crucial to the success of a musical act, and noone else need know. Bassists like Led Zeppelin's John Paul Jones or The Who's John Entwistle spring to mind; magicians of the electric bass, they conjured up electrifying basslines but with very few stage moves. Entwistle decided to sport all-white suits just so someone would notice him on the stage alongside Pete Townshend's windmill guitar strums and Roger Daltrey's flying microphones. Bassists can be shrinking violets, whereas singers and lead guitarists can not. But bass players can also take centre stage. Flea, for instance, is equal in stage presence to any of his fellow Chili Peppers. Virtuoso bassist Victor Wooten has been known to throw in a back-flip during breathtaking live-performance displays of fluid bass soloing. Or you can command the arena by adding some vocals to your bass work: Sting, Jack Bruce, Paul McCartney anyone? Then there's the gear. Let's get the downside out of the way To go really deep on the bass we need strings, instruments and amplification that tend to be a little more expensive and bulky than the gear of most other instrumentalists. This is an acceptable situation, given the advantages, and even this downside has created interesting bass-related adventures. For a start, bass players tend to have bigger ears and wider eyes when it comes to new ideas and creations. Graphite basses, neodymium speakers and extended range instruments have all been widely accepted by bassists over the years, in contrast to the "let's stick with what we know approach" adopted by others. The result is a colourful, diverse and stimulating equipment industry that caters for the wide-ranging characters in the bass community. That's the best reason to embrace the bass guitar the people. Many players talk about the brotherhood of bass, the sense of community and camaraderie amongst bassists. I feel it too, although we should remember that we are almost always part of a group of musicians, a larger unit with messages to deliver to our complex world. Every player I've known has taught me something, from the professionals I've learned from or interviewed to my own students. I hope, in return, that The Boss Handbook reflects the mutual respect amongst bass players and helps to maintain the great bass tradition.

HISTORY - Leo Fender's masterpieces: a 1957 Precision Bass (left) and a Jazz Bass from 1960.

ABOUT THIS BOOK

The Boss Handbook has something to offer bass players at all levels, but it is specifically aimed at new arrivals and intermediate players. The advanced player will be able to explore the history of the bass, amplification and effects while also dipping into new areas of study. such as sight reading. The new or intermediate bassist will find this book a pleasure to use, with its spiral-bound pages and a chapter by chapter analysis of the most important questions that are asked about the bass. As a tutor and author on the bass, I know that there are key questions students need to ask their studies. You'll find all the answers in The Boss Handbook. Finally, The Boss Handbook makes the perfect companion for the many bass teachers out there. Students have a study method, with backing tracks, in a layout that doesn't falloff a music stand. And you can refresh your memory (secretly of course) of how to work out Ohm's Law for cabinets of unequal impedance when your student asks, "Can I connect my 4 x 10" cab to my 2 x 10"? " Just in time for next week's lesson. 

BASS HISTORY

Leo Fender produced the first widely available bass guitar in 1951 - and got much of the design right first time. Fender, a radio repairman in California who had turned to making guitars and amps, developed the bass guitar at a time when the bassist in a band would be stuck with a large and often barely audible instrument, the double bass - what Leo called "the doghouse". He realised that bass players would welcome a louder, more portable instrument that offered precise pitching of notes. Precision Bass In 1951 Leo provided bassists with the aptly named Fender Precision Bass, for $195.50/00, a sum that equates to something like $1,400/£800 now. Many of its features were based on his already successful and equally astounding solid six-string electric guitar, the Telecaster. (The Stratocaster would arrive three years later.)  Paul McCartney and his Hofner 500/I 'violin' bass

The electric bass guitar is central to modern music, playing a key role in melody, harmony, and rhythm. This book and CD package will help you master the instrument and make it your own. It includes:

- a step-by-step guide to playing, from tuning-up to advanced harmony

- practical guidance on reading both tab and standard notation

- instruction in modern techniques including slapping and harmonics

- advice on playing a range of genres and styles, from rock blues through to jazz, funk, and metal

- a CD of the books's key musical exercises and examples

- a history of the instrument and its makers

- a guide to the great bassists, plus recommendations for listening, reading, and viewing

- help with buying and maintaining your bass

- advice on amps, speakers, strings, pickups, and cables

Author Adrian Ashton has 20 years of exeperience as a player, teacher, and writter. A graduate of the Bass Institute of Technology in Los Angeles, he was the founding editor of the UK's Bass Guitar Magazine.

This Book is essential equipment for any bassist, whether you are just starting out or hoping to take your skills to a higher level.

FOREWORD by JOHN PAUL JONES

INTRODUCTION

BASS HISTORY (with TONY BACON)

HARDWARE

INSIDE THE BASS

FRETLESS BASSSTRINGS & MAINTENANCE

BUYING A BASS

AMPS, SPEAKERS, EFFECTS, & CABLES

TECHNIQUE

THE PLAYERS (with TIM TUCKER)

TUTORIAL

REFERENCE

RECOMMENDED LISTENING

RECOMMENDED BOOKS & VIDEO

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

INDEX