11th February 2023

How To Get Started on Bass Guitar

It's actually fairly easy to get started on the bass guitar. You need to have a basic knowledge of where the notes are, and you need to have a few rhythms up your sleeve.

The following information is a straight copy of the instructions in my previous Blog, of 30th August 2022: 

A standard bass guitar has four strings and these are tuned to the same notes as the bottom four strings (strings 3, 4, 5 and 6) of a regular guitar, except they are an octave lower. So the strings are:

1st string (nearest the floor!)        G

2nd string                                      D

3rd string                                       A

4th string (nearest the ceiling!)    E

As with the guitar, as you move up each string fret-by-fret, the notes become the same as the next open string at the 5th fret. So playing the 5th fret of the fourth string gives you an A – the same note as the open 3rd string. And so on….

Other than that it’s a matter of knowing the chromatic scale. Starting from bottom E, that is:

E, F, F#, G, G#, A, A#, B, C, C#, D, D#, E … and so on. 

Or for a key with flats:

E, F, Gb, G, Ab, A, Bb, B, C, Db, D, Eb, E

Although a lot of bass guitarists don't like to use 'open' strings (usually because they don't like their more 'twangy' tone, or because they are slightly harder to mute when you don't want them to ring on), for a beginner 'open' strings are a great starting point. Just to be clear, 'open' strings are the four strings on the bass guitar, played without using your fretting hand (left hand, for a right-handed player). So the open strings are G, D, A and E. A lot of rock, pop and country music is written in keys that use these notes, and you can sometimes play a whole song using just open strings and a good rhythm! 

However, even as a beginner you are going to need to learn a few 'fretted' notes (notes you have to use both hands to play).

Let's start with identifying a simple way of playing each of the 'natural' notes you will come across. (Natural notes are simply the notes that are not sharps or flats - so A, B, C, D, E, F and G).

This table shows where you can find these notes in the first 4 frets of the neck:

Open string 1st fret 2nd fret 3rd fret 4th fret

G A B

D E F

A B C

E F G

Here's a picture that shows the same thing:

If you need to know where the sharps and flat notes go, well they are in between the natural notes! 

Sharps are one fret above the natural notes - so F# will be after F, for example in the second fret of the 4th (E) string, and also in the 4th fret of the 2nd string. 

Flats are one fret below the natural notes - Bb will be before B, for example in the 1st fret of the 3rd (A) string, or in the 3rd fret of the 1st string.

But I suggest you start by learning the positions of the natural notes.

Some rhythms to get started with

The bass guitar will often be playing a repeated rhythmic pattern, usually working with the drummer to create the underlying groove.

Here are four commonly used rhythms that sound great if you use them in the right songs: 

Examples of these rhythms in well-known songs:

8 to the bar - "With or Without You" (U2); "Rolling In The Deep" (Adele); anything by Status Quo!

Country Pop - "Take It Easy" (Eagles); "Wichita Lineman" (Glen Campbell); "Ben" (Michael Jackson); 

Country Pop 'Plus' - "Suspicious Minds" (Elvis Presley); "It Started With A Kiss" (Hot Chocolate). Sections with this rhythm can also be inserted into songs using the basic Country Pop rhythm to add a bit of extra momentum (e.g. in a chorus).

Rhythmic Rock - "Live Forever" (Oasis); "If It Makes You Happy" (Sheryl Crow); "My Girl" (Temptations). Lots of songs by Radiohead!

I haven't included any 'shuffle' rhythms here, although all of these can be adapted to fit a shuffle-type song, and you would probably do it naturally without really thinking about it. For instance "8 to the bar" played as a shuffle would be played with a 'skip', as for example in "Lido Shuffle" (Boz Skaggs) - give it a listen, you can hear the bass clearly on its own in the introduction. Also "Waterfront" by Simple Minds.

So you're ready to go - now form a band.