@@WartornNOR I get that he needs to finance his bass life by selling lessons, and I am willing to pay for stuff that is useful to me. But if I go to COSTCO I also don't have to pull out my credit card for every food stand cooking up something to entice me to buy more at the store. Just take a bite and if you like it you will buy a dozen (because it is COSTCO, so you don't buy one 😀). Just saying.
Geezer Butler, Steve Harris and Geddy Lee were my initiation to the bass as an instrument with its own distinct voice in an ensemble. After them I really started to get into John Taylor and Mick Karn of Duran Duran and Japan, respectively. These 5 are some HEAVY HITTERS and with a topping of Tony Franklin I was hooked.
Hey Charles Idk if you'll see my comment but I'm a huge huge fan of you , I've been watching bass content for almost 3 years and last year I bought my very first bass after some help from my guitarist friends I've been taking guitar lessons from various teachers and this channel in particular has helped a lot I hope to be as great as you one day maybe even jam with you in the future
I played in a Maiden tribute band years ago and yes Run To The Hills is brutal. We also had a tendency to play about 10 bpm faster live and I could not wait to be finished that song!!!
Something that really helped me with my technique was playing Godzilla by blue oyster cult. one time I had a jam session with my uncle and he gave me that song to learn and ofc I learned it but I was adding some cool fancy licks that only made the song more complicated. I was obsessed with playing super complicated basslines and being the spotlight but my uncle told me something that changed my playing which was that nobody cares about how fancy I am and the only thing i should worry about is getting the gig which would help me realize that the bass can be as complicated as you want as long as you keep a solid foundation. up until that point, I took a melodic approach to bass but then after I jammed with my uncle I realized that i needed to chill and I began to be more rhythmic and now I play in a church band where I stick to rhythm and people are always complimenting my ability to hold that foundation.
I shouldn't name names but I think they can take it... Paul McCartney, John Entwistle, Bruce Thomas and Graham Maby absolutely ruined me as a bass player for years and years because I wanted to do what they were doing. I thought I could and should run before I could walk, so to speak.
@@timtoado106really, those are your examples of guys who play superfluous bass lines? Maybe Entwhistle, but Paul McCartney? Bruce Thomas? Oh wait a minute, you must be British. Fair enough.
The same for me. In many songs, like Flight Of The Icarus, I was induced to believe that Harris used three fingers and the third noted was longer to give him time to restart the three notes burst. There was no youtube, no MP3, no Soundforge and even VCR's (for most people) in the 80's. I wasted years trying to play Rush songs using three fingers; only decades after I discovered he used to push and pull using his finger like a guitar pick. I didn't like Iron Maiden anyway. I believe steve harris plays with three fingers. Am I right? I won't check with google... who cares?
Dude… Flea’s crazy fast finger style playing really throws me off as well. The string skipping in “Right on Time” really gave me fits when I first learned it.
i've been racking notes without even thinking of it for a while and i instantly got a more sexy sound as soon as i forced myself to play correct alternate fingerstyle, thank you man !
The Gallop on Caught Somewhere In Time is the hardest because the song is very long, and if i didn't practice Maiden regularly I will need to simplify with half notes or I cramp. Killers, Only The Good Die Young are slightly harder than Run To The Hills. River People by Jaco is a technic fixer i think.
What most people don't realize is that 10000 practice means 10000 hours of conscious, analytical, intentional practice where you try to understand the full aspect of what you're doing. Not just mindlessly playing the same thing over and over. Your videos really instill that which is awesome
Both can work. You'll make more gains with the right proactive learning, but if you're setting your bar too high, you might not do as well as just trying stuff until you nail it.
I just use 3 fingers for fast gallops. Index always on the first downbeat then I "rake" through the next 3 notes starting with the ring finger. Makes the whole thing into a single wave-like movement, rather than having to pick each note separately.
@@johalareewi if you mean mid-three: that’s wicked :) If you mean three on one - skip - another: I deal with it by always playing the “starter one” with ring. Since it comes 1st - it’s free to skip to another string by the time mid-index are done
…I see what you mean! It’s always mid-3 :) Yeah… Well - skipping is anyway part of my tech/speed drills, ever since I realized that it’s what’s likely to trip me up most of time
Took me a few tries, but I was able to play the basslines to completion. I love both your channels, you are very inspiring! I am very thankful for this BassCamp channel, I love that you get straight to the point with the exercises/transcriptions. I started on the tapping one and Classical Thump not too long ago, they have been super helpful in refining my technique. I'll be adding this as well to clean up and speed up my fingerstyle. Thank you so much for what you do, Charles!
*While it isn't the traditional two finger technique, (as derived from playing vertically orientated acoustic upright Double-Bass Viols), that Steve Harris uses..., for that Maidenesque style triplet gallop rhythm, I've always just used the three finger style that players such as Billy Sheehan and John Myung are noted for. For a very fast gallop triplet like that, it's just more efficient, with the work and speed of the three fingers used evenly distributed three ways. When only using two fingers, even if you only use alternate picking the entire time, alternating the downbeat back and forth between the two fingers, then each of the two fingers will have to do 50% of the overall work and speed instead of only 33.33% of it. And if you do it **_"Steve Harris two finger style",_** as displayed in the video, then one finger will have to do twice the work and speed of the other, with one finger doing 66.66% of the work and speed, and the other only doing 33.33%.* *Don't get me wrong... Who am I to argue with the greatness that is Steve Harris? Back in the 80's, it was bands like Maiden, Priest, Sabbath, RUSH, etc..., that made me want to play guitar and bass in the first place... So..., I guess the best approach is to go ahead and woodshed on the original techniques used by these truly great original artists..., but to also use their amazing music to work on other techniques as well. A great example of this is to not only play using fingerstyle, but to also be able to play with a pick. I remember an interview once with John Paul Jones, and he mentioned that while fingerstyle was generally his preference when playing bass, if either he or the producer felt that that the dynamics and timbre of a pick suited a composition better, then he would use a pick. He then mentioned the Zeppelin tune **_D'yer Mak'er_** as a good example of that.*
I was surprised at Charles’ warning about raking. I thought the answer is to have your alternate plucking proficiency good enough for that whether the lead finger is 1 or 2 that you are consistent. Rather than avoiding raking which is honestly economy of movement, I’m trying to get good at leading from whichever finger will “land and lead” for the next alternate plucking run
Absolutely agree. Raking isn’t a “cop-out.” It can be an integral technique to use, to increase speed. (I’ve even heard other instructors call it “economy picking,” which gives it a loftier label than saying you’re “raking.”)
I picked up some good guidelines for when to rake and when to alternate from BassBuzz: -If string-crossing with even-numbered groups of notes like 2's or 4's, alternate; an even number of notes matches your even number of picking fingers -If string-crossing with odd-numbered groups of notes like 1's or 3's, it's often best to rake -Sometimes a bass line will require a mix of strict alternating for some passages and raking for others
Good call. If you can't play those 16ths evenly, it ain't gonna groove! Not to mention the skips up to D and C# can get a lil sloppay at the end of the night!
I've been practicing Billy Sheehan style 3 finger technique. For 16th note spam Ive been doing Billy idol white wedding. For endurance I've been doing Sade hang on to your love and for gallops I've been practicing heart barracuda in both alternate finger and 3 finger styles... We have similar approaches which is cool
Lighten up with the fingers hitting the strings and play with an amp/headphones. Practice 15-30 minutes a day for 2-3 weeks. It'll happen. After that, endurance building. 3 finger is the same. Then you can play extremely fast, but crossing over strings is harder with 3. 2 it is much easier.
If your working out a song that is complex and fast. I find it a massive help to explore all the fingering possibility. I made the mistake of working out Donna Lee without doing this and now I have to reprogram my muscle memory. I find this topic hardly ever covered. And yes including the plucking hand too.
Love your music and thanks for these informative technique videos! For the "Gallup" technique, why not use 3 fingers? What advantage or disadvantage would there be?
For those who want more advanced bass lines to work what Charles shows in the video : - Stamina and fast fingerstyle practice : Dean town - Vulfpeck - Fast octaves : River people - Jaco Pastorius
I have a word to describe this selection: merciful! I spent years trying to play with three fingers. One day I moved to two and after another few years I noted I am almost 100% talentless!!! My 30 years old integral necked Ladessa is on its case since... 2020, waiting to be inherited. Double thumb, my last challenge, makes my thumb become red, purple, green and black everytime I try to do it for more than two weeks.
I’ll definitely consider becoming a paid member after I finish the lessons I bought from another TH-camr. I’ve wanted to learn exercises using songs I can hear and play normally. This is the exact format I’ve been looking for. I used to think that maybe your exercises might be too advanced, but maybe they’re starting to become within reach. Thanks for the great lessons!
I am pushing myself to go through the Run to the Hills section at 85% speed... Imagine Steve is in his 60s and can still do it for hours and at the speed that I cannot even match yet! WHAT A LEGEND!! p.s. whats helping me to beat the speed barriers is trying to be as relaxed as possible.
You should have talked also about that one bridge in run to the hills where the bass goes a little bit in flamenco mode at the speed of light after having played the rest of the song until that point🥲 That's a killer lick
My top 4 fingerstyle workout basslines : - Vulfpeck - Dean Town - Weather Report - river people - ToP - what is hip ? - Muse - Hysteria If you can play these 4 tracks clean, at tempo, in a row, you can say your fingerstyle game is on point and you got serious stamina my friend (to this day, I can’t). Thx for the Steve Harris lead, as a funk/ soul bassist I never really listened to big rock basslines, I should give it a try
I'd be super interested to see your take on Clawhammer/Banjo style in non-Bluegrass styles like Nikko Whitworth used on Awakening by Unleash the Archers.
That’s a great video with great information. As a beginner I struggle with my finger style and basic fundamentals. I travel for work a lot so my practice schedule sucks. When I come home after a week or two of traveling I fell like I’m starting all over again and it’s frustrating. Lessons like this really help to get me back on track with my practice. Thank you for the video.
I am so happy you picked "cmon girl" that song helped me a shit ton get my right hand in shape. Before that song came out it was the song "right on time" that helped me, but you get more of a break in that one lol
When I gallop, is employ my ring finger, and sweep those 3 fingers across the string, I find it easy to keep and even pace with the notes, and it's less exhausting.
Great examples dude. I'd just add one more, for an expert higher level, it's a line a play at least once a week, which is Kuru Speak Like a Child by the great John Francis Anthony Pastorius the 3rd. Cheers n peace!
Jamiroquai - Canned Heat (Live in Verona) -> working through that really pushed my abilities up, what makes it workable is that each groove is highly repetive, you do not have to struggle with tiny variations
Thanks for the video Charles. I try using the three finger picking style but all of your points still apply, the odd timing is just a bit more challenging.
Great examples, gonna try practicing these later. Donna Lee was what personally made me improve my fingerstyle the most (so far), especially trying to get the phrasing right at higher tempos.
"With great power comes great responsibility" - CB is leaps and bounds beyond MANY professionals and the fact that he teaches proves he has more to him than his talent. I could never say enough about him. Simply incredible!
Accenting Iron Maiden gallop with third finger vs index finder will give you that more lopey, percussive attach. 121, 121, 121, is fine, def a smoother, more consistent tone, but 323, 323, 323 is gives you a more accented attack.. He's playing two finger, but the ring finger is sort of along for the ride with middle finger (kind of a flipper style) , I think this is what gives you some additional mass/momentum that helps with the attack, and gives it that lumpy, galloping feel!
Whenever I've felt my stamina start slipping, I always come back to Iron Maiden's Powerslave album - if I can play it straight through in one go, I know I'm back in shape and ready to play. :)
Great selections to improve or refine fingerstyle technique, whether you're starting out or dusting off the cobwebs and jumping back in. "C'mon Girl" is a good one I'll incorporate into my warmup routine. Another song I think is good to help fix, improve, or refine fingerstyle technique, increase speed/dexterity is "Root" by The Deftones. (RIP Chi Cheng). I felt so accomplished as a teen starting out when I could finally play it without slipping. 30 years later, and I still use it as part of my warmup routine. That song is a big reason my technique got cleaner and less sloppy.
Yep, three fingers is gold for a gallop, for triplets, and for 6/8. CB's approach is awesome as a training exercise, and it will certainly build your skills, but... I don't think it's the most efficient.
Thanks Charles -- bucking up and sticking to alternating fingers (no raking) really is helping me nail down a sixteenth-heavy song that I've been working on. Cheers!
Two lines that dramatically improved my fingerstyle technique were - Soul with a capital S (Tower of Power) - Power (Helloween) Maintaining consistency after 5 minutes playing 16th notes swapping strings non-stop is not as easy as it may seem. Great video👍🏻👍🏻
Three finger gallop!!!! First of all thank you; you are possibly the best bassist ever. I had similar music path but diverged toward guitar and song writing. Steve Harris was always a hero - and from him I learned to pluck with 3 fingers (and 4, but that is nearly impossible and never sounds good). I’m impressed you can even DO Harris with 2 fingers but it sounds weak and wrong. Has to be a strong 3 finger roll!!!
Great video, just as always! I just want to point out that the tabs for "Run To The Hills" are often off from what you are playing. It's not a big deal and I'm not sure if it's important to fix it, the video is amazing regardless, I just thought it might be helpful to tell you. Anyways, I love your content, you're one of my favourite musicians and also one of my main role models who inspired me to play bass.
Next level: "Come on come over" by Jaco Pastorius! Also: many bass lines by Joe Dart of Vulfpeck and Francis Rocco Prestia from Tower of Power (What is Hip, f.i.).
PLEASE show more of what and how you are doing w your left hand; like barring vs fretting individual, using one finger shifting to 2 strings on same fret vs two fingers one on each string, etc. Apparently all utub bass teachers seem to think we know this, but we dont!
As for me the biggest stamina effort was always IM - Losfer Words (Big 'Orra). One thing is that the tempo is insane, another is that bass plays all the time, no pauses almost, also it get a "solo" so to say at the and. Everything is so crazy in this instrumental piece...
Yep, Come On Girl is overlooked as demonstrating some pretty impressive right hand technique from Flea. (There's another tune where he showcases quick fingering in the right hand but the title escapes me. Anyone?)
Thanks for the great exercices, I'm stuggling a bit on canned heat to jump back on the lower string after the double octaves but it's fun and I'll eventually get there. Run to the hills is still too fast for me at the moment, I'd recommend Knights of sidonia by Muse to have kind of the same exercice but simpler and slower, I believe it's played with a pick but fingerstyle works too. Love your videos, keep on the great work!
Thank you a lot. Raking is so good until you want to really grow speed. I'm working on my alternate fingering, and the Peppers's line is easy in itself, but the trick is beating years of raking to change strings. Eternally grateful.
Playing Run to the Hills sitting down makes my hand fatigue since the wrist is bent. Standing up…lots better! Have fun while playing that followed by Caught Somewhere in Time….brutal!!!!🥵
Canned heat, is such a great bassline. I played it everyday, along with some other jamiroquai basslines. And I noticed that after abit, I was able to play the bassline without my hand cramping up alot like it used too, and now I've noticed that I've gotten faster at playing other songs. I think it's Definitely helped alot!
I'll give this stuff a try later when I have time. As a huge fan of Steve Harris I've been trying to master "The Trooper" for years, as it was in a tab book I bought when I first picked up a bass. I cannot QUITE get the tempo, or that intro.
Trying to learn the horn/bass section on Sir Duke really messed up my technique because I rake and it switched my fingers like you mentioned here, just ends up melting my brain and I've been stuck on it for ages. Pretty timely lesson for me
awesóme video, love all songs.. i play rtth's gallopping with three fingers always starting with ringfinger and the fast quadrupel part i play even with four fingers, which took me long to practise, but it sounds better than ripping through with two.. i also never start with the indexfinger, i play my fingers right to left..
Thanks Charles. I am working on the Chilli Peppers song right now. Listening to your intro enabled me to see a flaw in my finger picking. My fingers trip over each other at times and I never realized why. It is swearingly frustrating to arrest and redirect the anarchy of said fingers and this is eye and ear opening. l love your playing and am going to do some of your other vids. Cheers. PS. Definitely cutting back on raking. Unless OK.
As a teen metal head my bassists favourite bassist was Steve Harris and we would run through Maiden song after Maiden song. Now that I play bass instead of drums, my respect for my former bassist has grown immensely. Not that it was lacking before, he was incredible!
The trooper from iron maiden is one I keep coming back to personally to get my technique back, it's been years since I touched my instrument but I'm getting back in the saddle and my god picking that song back up is painful hahaha
On Canned Heat what do you think about playing octaves with thumb /index ? It's easier for me to accentuate and groove and i Can do the sixteenth with intex-middle. Good idea or not ?
But is there really a reason? I can read music, but it hasn't been useful on like 30 years. The benefits do not outweigh how time and mind consuming it is to learn to do it. That's my humble opinion, anyway.
The greatest challenge for me was is and probably will be for the foreseeable future, fast octave triplets (the classic "disco" bass). Can't make them sound right.
Nice lesson. Thank you! Nevertheless, I don't agree with what you say about raking. Maybe is not for every situation, but it's definitely not a crutch.
galopping style is more easier to play with a 3-finger technic in direction 1-3-2 (index-ring-middlefinger) fast songs like run to the hills or the trooper from maiden are easy to play with this technic. direction can also be changed to 1-3-2-1-2-3 e.g. a little practice everyday and it works
![ลองสุ่มไอโฟน 990 โกงมั้ย? [ โกงมั้ยครับ ep.101 ] | DOM](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/bfsWe0j492k/mqdefault.jpg)
Get the FREE ultimate 5-minute fingerstyle workout here: www.patreon.com/posts/93-1-5-minute-98605814
This is not honest: its free only if you sign up for Patreon and give them your credit card details. Sorry, but I'll pass then.
@@BX2ABT Ah, so that's what he means by free... A free 7-day "trial". Not a free workout.
@@WartornNOR I get that he needs to finance his bass life by selling lessons, and I am willing to pay for stuff that is useful to me. But if I go to COSTCO I also don't have to pull out my credit card for every food stand cooking up something to entice me to buy more at the store. Just take a bite and if you like it you will buy a dozen (because it is COSTCO, so you don't buy one 😀). Just saying.
Absolute joke. Shame on you. How many people have you put off buying products and genuinely wanting to support you by this blatant lie.
These are the EXACT same bass lines that fixed my fingerstyle technique too 🤯
Wow what a coincidence 😮
Guys i'm starting to think that the mastermind behind bass camp MIGHT be Danny Sapko
Never get tired of the Charles' Alter Ego system
Oh my god. I LOL’ed AGAIN.
You two should bass battle.
C'mon Girl is actually a really underrated song, glad to it getting some recognition
Geezer Butler, Steve Harris and Geddy Lee were my initiation to the bass as an instrument with its own distinct voice in an ensemble. After them I really started to get into John Taylor and Mick Karn of Duran Duran and Japan, respectively. These 5 are some HEAVY HITTERS and with a topping of Tony Franklin I was hooked.
You enjoy Iron Maiden ? Listen to the basslines on this album ; th-cam.com/video/_8ejVn-uN7E/w-d-xo.html
Duran Duran's basslines are so underappreciated. The bass is practically mixed out of a lot of their albums, too.
There are so many others but your list of favorites is good
Hey Charles Idk if you'll see my comment but I'm a huge huge fan of you , I've been watching bass content for almost 3 years and last year I bought my very first bass after some help from my guitarist friends I've been taking guitar lessons from various teachers and this channel in particular has helped a lot I hope to be as great as you one day maybe even jam with you in the future
That's awesome to hear and congrats on getting your first bass!! 🔥🔥
I played in a Maiden tribute band years ago and yes Run To The Hills is brutal. We also had a tendency to play about 10 bpm faster live and I could not wait to be finished that song!!!
I think Fortunes of War is more brutal than Run to the Hiils
I always sucked at playing it until I discovered playing lightly. My mind was blown
Flubbed it
this is exactly what i need! ive been practicing yyz a lot and ive just kinda been doing everything at 50% to get better lmao! thanks a lot ❤❤❤❤❤❤❤❤
That's another great fingerstyle workout 🔥
Something that really helped me with my technique was playing Godzilla by blue oyster cult. one time I had a jam session with my uncle and he gave me that song to learn and ofc I learned it but I was adding some cool fancy licks that only made the song more complicated. I was obsessed with playing super complicated basslines and being the spotlight but my uncle told me something that changed my playing which was that nobody cares about how fancy I am and the only thing i should worry about is getting the gig which would help me realize that the bass can be as complicated as you want as long as you keep a solid foundation. up until that point, I took a melodic approach to bass but then after I jammed with my uncle I realized that i needed to chill and I began to be more rhythmic and now I play in a church band where I stick to rhythm and people are always complimenting my ability to hold that foundation.
I shouldn't name names but I think they can take it... Paul McCartney, John Entwistle, Bruce Thomas and Graham Maby absolutely ruined me as a bass player for years and years because I wanted to do what they were doing. I thought I could and should run before I could walk, so to speak.
You are such a liar, how could you be jamming with your uncle and on Law's crew at the same time, uh, Bepo?
@@vicenteraira it was a long time ago. Before my life of piracy
@@timtoado106really, those are your examples of guys who play superfluous bass lines? Maybe Entwhistle, but Paul McCartney? Bruce Thomas? Oh wait a minute, you must be British. Fair enough.
Another Flea bassline that's similar to Cmon Girl is the chorus of Right On Time
For gallops I always use three fingers, for me it's way more comfortable and sounds sick too
The same for me. In many songs, like Flight Of The Icarus, I was induced to believe that Harris used three fingers and the third noted was longer to give him time to restart the three notes burst. There was no youtube, no MP3, no Soundforge and even VCR's (for most people) in the 80's. I wasted years trying to play Rush songs using three fingers; only decades after I discovered he used to push and pull using his finger like a guitar pick. I didn't like Iron Maiden anyway. I believe steve harris plays with three fingers. Am I right? I won't check with google... who cares?
Dude… Flea’s crazy fast finger style playing really throws me off as well. The string skipping in “Right on Time” really gave me fits when I first learned it.
i've been racking notes without even thinking of it for a while and i instantly got a more sexy sound as soon as i forced myself to play correct alternate fingerstyle, thank you man !
The Gallop on Caught Somewhere In Time is the hardest because the song is very long, and if i didn't practice Maiden regularly I will need to simplify with half notes or I cramp.
Killers, Only The Good Die Young are slightly harder than Run To The Hills.
River People by Jaco is a technic fixer i think.
What most people don't realize is that 10000 practice means 10000 hours of conscious, analytical, intentional practice where you try to understand the full aspect of what you're doing. Not just mindlessly playing the same thing over and over. Your videos really instill that which is awesome
if you play 10,000 hours of gigs, you can get really good...all without practicing.
Both can work. You'll make more gains with the right proactive learning, but if you're setting your bar too high, you might not do as well as just trying stuff until you nail it.
@@gssong7111 thats definitely NOT true
"Play" is an integral part of the learning process for most adult learner styles. For some it is absolutely essential.
@@gssong7111 but what do i do if im fourteeeen :(
I just use 3 fingers for fast gallops. Index always on the first downbeat then I "rake" through the next 3 notes starting with the ring finger. Makes the whole thing into a single wave-like movement, rather than having to pick each note separately.
Same here. Rarely use all three; but gallop-wave is when I find it most useful
It's much simpler and more comfortable this way...
Me too. Athough it gets more interesting when you have to change string mid gallop.
@@johalareewi if you mean mid-three: that’s wicked :) If you mean three on one - skip - another: I deal with it by always playing the “starter one” with ring. Since it comes 1st - it’s free to skip to another string by the time mid-index are done
…I see what you mean! It’s always mid-3 :) Yeah… Well - skipping is anyway part of my tech/speed drills, ever since I realized that it’s what’s likely to trip me up most of time
Took me a few tries, but I was able to play the basslines to completion. I love both your channels, you are very inspiring! I am very thankful for this BassCamp channel, I love that you get straight to the point with the exercises/transcriptions. I started on the tapping one and Classical Thump not too long ago, they have been super helpful in refining my technique. I'll be adding this as well to clean up and speed up my fingerstyle. Thank you so much for what you do, Charles!
*While it isn't the traditional two finger technique, (as derived from playing vertically orientated acoustic upright Double-Bass Viols), that Steve Harris uses..., for that Maidenesque style triplet gallop rhythm, I've always just used the three finger style that players such as Billy Sheehan and John Myung are noted for. For a very fast gallop triplet like that, it's just more efficient, with the work and speed of the three fingers used evenly distributed three ways. When only using two fingers, even if you only use alternate picking the entire time, alternating the downbeat back and forth between the two fingers, then each of the two fingers will have to do 50% of the overall work and speed instead of only 33.33% of it. And if you do it **_"Steve Harris two finger style",_** as displayed in the video, then one finger will have to do twice the work and speed of the other, with one finger doing 66.66% of the work and speed, and the other only doing 33.33%.*
*Don't get me wrong... Who am I to argue with the greatness that is Steve Harris? Back in the 80's, it was bands like Maiden, Priest, Sabbath, RUSH, etc..., that made me want to play guitar and bass in the first place... So..., I guess the best approach is to go ahead and woodshed on the original techniques used by these truly great original artists..., but to also use their amazing music to work on other techniques as well. A great example of this is to not only play using fingerstyle, but to also be able to play with a pick. I remember an interview once with John Paul Jones, and he mentioned that while fingerstyle was generally his preference when playing bass, if either he or the producer felt that that the dynamics and timbre of a pick suited a composition better, then he would use a pick. He then mentioned the Zeppelin tune **_D'yer Mak'er_** as a good example of that.*
I was surprised at Charles’ warning about raking.
I thought the answer is to have your alternate plucking proficiency good enough for that whether the lead finger is 1 or 2 that you are consistent.
Rather than avoiding raking which is honestly economy of movement, I’m trying to get good at leading from whichever finger will “land and lead” for the next alternate plucking run
This is what I've been taught as well.
Absolutely agree. Raking isn’t a “cop-out.” It can be an integral technique to use, to increase speed. (I’ve even heard other instructors call it “economy picking,” which gives it a loftier label than saying you’re “raking.”)
I picked up some good guidelines for when to rake and when to alternate from BassBuzz:
-If string-crossing with even-numbered groups of notes like 2's or 4's, alternate; an even number of notes matches your even number of picking fingers
-If string-crossing with odd-numbered groups of notes like 1's or 3's, it's often best to rake
-Sometimes a bass line will require a mix of strict alternating for some passages and raking for others
Ye but taking sounds like absolute crap in a line like the one presented here or something like What is Hip or just about ANY Jaco tune, for example.
This is gold for bassists of any level … a good refreshers for advanced players too! 😊
"What Is Hip?" - Tower of Power
As long as I gets my little golden shower😇
Good call. If you can't play those 16ths evenly, it ain't gonna groove! Not to mention the skips up to D and C# can get a lil sloppay at the end of the night!
I've been practicing Billy Sheehan style 3 finger technique. For 16th note spam Ive been doing Billy idol white wedding. For endurance I've been doing Sade hang on to your love and for gallops I've been practicing heart barracuda in both alternate finger and 3 finger styles... We have similar approaches which is cool
I've been trying to play The Trooper forever! I prefer a pick, but maybe I will try more finger techniques.
Lighten up with the fingers hitting the strings and play with an amp/headphones. Practice 15-30 minutes a day for 2-3 weeks. It'll happen. After that, endurance building. 3 finger is the same. Then you can play extremely fast, but crossing over strings is harder with 3. 2 it is much easier.
If your working out a song that is complex and fast. I find it a massive help to explore all the fingering possibility. I made the mistake of working out Donna Lee without doing this and now I have to reprogram my muscle memory. I find this topic hardly ever covered. And yes including the plucking hand too.
Love your music and thanks for these informative technique videos! For the "Gallup" technique, why not use 3 fingers? What advantage or disadvantage would there be?
For those who want more advanced bass lines to work what Charles shows in the video :
- Stamina and fast fingerstyle practice : Dean town - Vulfpeck
- Fast octaves : River people - Jaco Pastorius
I have a word to describe this selection: merciful! I spent years trying to play with three fingers. One day I moved to two and after another few years I noted I am almost 100% talentless!!! My 30 years old integral necked Ladessa is on its case since... 2020, waiting to be inherited. Double thumb, my last challenge, makes my thumb become red, purple, green and black everytime I try to do it for more than two weeks.
I’ll definitely consider becoming a paid member after I finish the lessons I bought from another TH-camr.
I’ve wanted to learn exercises using songs I can hear and play normally. This is the exact format I’ve been looking for.
I used to think that maybe your exercises might be too advanced, but maybe they’re starting to become within reach. Thanks for the great lessons!
I am pushing myself to go through the Run to the Hills section at 85% speed... Imagine Steve is in his 60s and can still do it for hours and at the speed that I cannot even match yet! WHAT A LEGEND!! p.s. whats helping me to beat the speed barriers is trying to be as relaxed as possible.
Right on time was the flea tune that helped me get that octave playing down
You should have talked also about that one bridge in run to the hills where the bass goes a little bit in flamenco mode at the speed of light after having played the rest of the song until that point🥲
That's a killer lick
My top 4 fingerstyle workout basslines :
- Vulfpeck - Dean Town
- Weather Report - river people
- ToP - what is hip ?
- Muse - Hysteria
If you can play these 4 tracks clean, at tempo, in a row, you can say your fingerstyle game is on point and you got serious stamina my friend (to this day, I can’t).
Thx for the Steve Harris lead, as a funk/ soul bassist I never really listened to big rock basslines, I should give it a try
I'd be super interested to see your take on Clawhammer/Banjo style in non-Bluegrass styles like Nikko Whitworth used on Awakening by Unleash the Archers.
That’s a great video with great information. As a beginner I struggle with my finger style and basic fundamentals. I travel for work a lot so my practice schedule sucks. When I come home after a week or two of traveling I fell like I’m starting all over again and it’s frustrating. Lessons like this really help to get me back on track with my practice. Thank you for the video.
I am so happy you picked "cmon girl" that song helped me a shit ton get my right hand in shape. Before that song came out it was the song "right on time" that helped me, but you get more of a break in that one lol
C’mon girl and Right on Time were my go to songs for practice
another one that helped me heaps was dean town
When I gallop, is employ my ring finger, and sweep those 3 fingers across the string, I find it easy to keep and even pace with the notes, and it's less exhausting.
Great examples dude. I'd just add one more, for an expert higher level, it's a line a play at least once a week, which is Kuru Speak Like a Child by the great John Francis Anthony Pastorius the 3rd. Cheers n peace!
Recently joined, excited to elevate my bass technique!! ✨💪
Jamiroquai - Canned Heat (Live in Verona) -> working through that really pushed my abilities up, what makes it workable is that each groove is highly repetive, you do not have to struggle with tiny variations
Thanks for the video Charles. I try using the three finger picking style but all of your points still apply, the odd timing is just a bit more challenging.
Finally on my feed 4 days later. Even tho I pretty much only watch bass content... W/e 🤷🏾♂️
Great examples, gonna try practicing these later. Donna Lee was what personally made me improve my fingerstyle the most (so far), especially trying to get the phrasing right at higher tempos.
"With great power comes great responsibility" - CB is leaps and bounds beyond MANY professionals and the fact that he teaches proves he has more to him than his talent. I could never say enough about him. Simply incredible!
Accenting Iron Maiden gallop with third finger vs index finder will give you that more lopey, percussive attach. 121, 121, 121, is fine, def a smoother, more consistent tone, but 323, 323, 323 is gives you a more accented attack.. He's playing two finger, but the ring finger is sort of along for the ride with middle finger (kind of a flipper style) , I think this is what gives you some additional mass/momentum that helps with the attack, and gives it that lumpy, galloping feel!
Whenever I've felt my stamina start slipping, I always come back to Iron Maiden's Powerslave album - if I can play it straight through in one go, I know I'm back in shape and ready to play. :)
Great selections to improve or refine fingerstyle technique, whether you're starting out or dusting off the cobwebs and jumping back in. "C'mon Girl" is a good one I'll incorporate into my warmup routine.
Another song I think is good to help fix, improve, or refine fingerstyle technique, increase speed/dexterity is "Root" by The Deftones. (RIP Chi Cheng). I felt so accomplished as a teen starting out when I could finally play it without slipping. 30 years later, and I still use it as part of my warmup routine. That song is a big reason my technique got cleaner and less sloppy.
Thoughts on using three fingers for the gallop? I find it a bit easier .I use it on a lot of cliff burton riffs also.
Yep, three fingers is gold for a gallop, for triplets, and for 6/8. CB's approach is awesome as a training exercise, and it will certainly build your skills, but... I don't think it's the most efficient.
Thanks Charles -- bucking up and sticking to alternating fingers (no raking) really is helping me nail down a sixteenth-heavy song that I've been working on. Cheers!
Two lines that dramatically improved my fingerstyle technique were
- Soul with a capital S (Tower of Power)
- Power (Helloween)
Maintaining consistency after 5 minutes playing 16th notes swapping strings non-stop is not as easy as it may seem.
Great video👍🏻👍🏻
Three finger gallop!!!! First of all thank you; you are possibly the best bassist ever. I had similar music path but diverged toward guitar and song writing. Steve Harris was always a hero - and from him I learned to pluck with 3 fingers (and 4, but that is nearly impossible and never sounds good). I’m impressed you can even DO Harris with 2 fingers but it sounds weak and wrong. Has to be a strong 3 finger roll!!!
Dude, I truly love your videos and how simple you explain wicked bass techniques! Cheers
Great video, just as always! I just want to point out that the tabs for "Run To The Hills" are often off from what you are playing. It's not a big deal and I'm not sure if it's important to fix it, the video is amazing regardless, I just thought it might be helpful to tell you. Anyways, I love your content, you're one of my favourite musicians and also one of my main role models who inspired me to play bass.
I like that you seem less full of yourself now. Great video.
Thank you! You gave me more confidence and self esteem!
You are the best Charles! ❤
Next level: "Come on come over" by Jaco Pastorius! Also: many bass lines by Joe Dart of Vulfpeck and Francis Rocco Prestia from Tower of Power (What is Hip, f.i.).
PLEASE show more of what and how you are doing w your left hand; like barring vs fretting individual, using one finger shifting to 2 strings on same fret vs two fingers one on each string, etc. Apparently all utub bass teachers seem to think we know this, but we dont!
As for me the biggest stamina effort was always IM - Losfer Words (Big 'Orra). One thing is that the tempo is insane, another is that bass plays all the time, no pauses almost, also it get a "solo" so to say at the and. Everything is so crazy in this instrumental piece...
Yep, Come On Girl is overlooked as demonstrating some pretty impressive right hand technique from Flea. (There's another tune where he showcases quick fingering in the right hand but the title escapes me. Anyone?)
Thanks for the great exercices, I'm stuggling a bit on canned heat to jump back on the lower string after the double octaves but it's fun and I'll eventually get there.
Run to the hills is still too fast for me at the moment, I'd recommend Knights of sidonia by Muse to have kind of the same exercice but simpler and slower, I believe it's played with a pick but fingerstyle works too.
Love your videos, keep on the great work!
Thank you a lot. Raking is so good until you want to really grow speed. I'm working on my alternate fingering, and the Peppers's line is easy in itself, but the trick is beating years of raking to change strings. Eternally grateful.
Playing Run to the Hills sitting down makes my hand fatigue since the wrist is bent. Standing up…lots better! Have fun while playing that followed by Caught Somewhere in Time….brutal!!!!🥵
Canned heat, is such a great bassline. I played it everyday, along with some other jamiroquai basslines. And I noticed that after abit, I was able to play the bassline without my hand cramping up alot like it used too, and now I've noticed that I've gotten faster at playing other songs. I think it's Definitely helped alot!
Love Iron Maiden! Let's goooo!
Great choices! I can also recommend the torture that is Hit Me With Your Rhythm Stick.
I'll give this stuff a try later when I have time. As a huge fan of Steve Harris I've been trying to master "The Trooper" for years, as it was in a tab book I bought when I first picked up a bass. I cannot QUITE get the tempo, or that intro.
amazing man keep like this thanks
👏🏻🥇
Trying to learn the horn/bass section on Sir Duke really messed up my technique because I rake and it switched my fingers like you mentioned here, just ends up melting my brain and I've been stuck on it for ages. Pretty timely lesson for me
This is a game changer of a post, thank you very much.
awesóme video, love all songs.. i play rtth's gallopping with three fingers always starting with ringfinger and the fast quadrupel part i play even with four fingers, which took me long to practise, but it sounds better than ripping through with two.. i also never start with the indexfinger, i play my fingers right to left..
Hey, so do I. I never realized it was unusual. I don't play with 3 fingers though, never tried it.
just what i needed in my next steps of learning bass, thanks BassCamp!
I’m so keen to learn these!
This is so helpful - thank you!
Nice to see someone giving Stuart Zender some credit his basslines with Jamiroquai were phenomenal
I’ve got one for you: the inimitable John Paul Jones, and his bassline for “Reptiles”, by Them Crooked Vultures. Excellent finger work on that song!
Thanks Charles.
I am working on the Chilli Peppers song right now. Listening to your intro enabled me to see a flaw in my finger picking. My fingers trip over each other at times and I never realized why. It is swearingly frustrating to arrest and redirect the anarchy of said fingers and this is eye and ear opening. l love your playing and am going to do some of your other vids. Cheers.
PS. Definitely cutting back on raking. Unless OK.
It's cool that you employed the greatest bassist of our modern era. I hope you're paying Charles as much as he deserves.
Always great lessons and advice
Great seing Charles doing lessons, the man's a bass beast 👍
That section around the 2 minute mark made me think of Are Friends Electric.
As a teen metal head my bassists favourite bassist was Steve Harris and we would run through Maiden song after Maiden song. Now that I play bass instead of drums, my respect for my former bassist has grown immensely. Not that it was lacking before, he was incredible!
Perfect exercise. Thanks Charles
Paint it Black, stones; but all octave eighths. Jack Bruce's counter-lead on Cream Crossroads, great for syncopation, too..
More and more impressed by Yr work over the years 🏆 Keep 'em comin' 🍀
Thank you, Sir ❤❤❤❤
Yeah; I'd like to see Victor W play Run To The Hills!
The trooper from iron maiden is one I keep coming back to personally to get my technique back, it's been years since I touched my instrument but I'm getting back in the saddle and my god picking that song back up is painful hahaha
Thanks for the video
Tubes l'un des meilleurs bassistes dans le monde je ne comprends pas l'anglais mais tes vidéo sont fantastiques depuis l'Afrique
Thanks for video ❤👍
Great Steve Harris! I wait so for this on your Channel! Thank u!
Usually I play Harris with three fingers..😳 But what was really hard when I started playing was "LA Woman" by the Doors. Give it a try...!!
On Canned Heat what do you think about playing octaves with thumb /index ? It's easier for me to accentuate and groove and i Can do the sixteenth with intex-middle. Good idea or not ?
Steve Harris in the thumbnail had me ckicking!
I just listened to the Piece of Mind album on my way into work, & now I'm going to Run to the Hills! Up the irons!
VIDEO REQUEST: a video about sheet music reading and why bassist needs them
But is there really a reason? I can read music, but it hasn't been useful on like 30 years. The benefits do not outweigh how time and mind consuming it is to learn to do it. That's my humble opinion, anyway.
The greatest challenge for me was is and probably will be for the foreseeable future, fast octave triplets (the classic "disco" bass). Can't make them sound right.
Nice lesson. Thank you!
Nevertheless, I don't agree with what you say about raking. Maybe is not for every situation, but it's definitely not a crutch.
I play RTH gallop with three fingers😎and it works perfect.cheers
Up the Irons😎
galopping style is more easier to play with a 3-finger technic in direction 1-3-2 (index-ring-middlefinger)
fast songs like run to the hills or the trooper from maiden are easy to play with this technic. direction can also be changed to 1-3-2-1-2-3 e.g. a little practice everyday and it works