Mustang Sally – Why every bassist plays it WRONG!! (tabs and tutorial)

Today we’re going to look at that old chestnut Mustang Sally. Yup, pretty much every bass player gets to play this one at some point. If you play bars or any kind of function or wedding gig, this one is going to come up and with good reason.

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Timestamps:

0:00 Intro
1:31 The wrong way
2:07 Why we get it wrong
2:21 Isolating the bass line
3:24 The actual bass line
4:27 Full performance
5:32 Bass Line Breakdown
10:40 Tone Tips
11:18 Theory Tips

#mustangsally #wilsonpickett #bassline
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Bass Gear:
► Fender Precision
► DR bass strings
► Levy Leathers Bass Strap
► GRBass Bass Amps

[michaelokane]

Really hope you've planned a whole series of these "pub standards"! Great stuff as always Mark, cheers

[mrnelsonius]

This is such a funky bassline for a simple blues progression. The rhythmic placement of everything is *chefs kiss* 👌

[davesrvchannel]

At 53 years old I’ve never heard this song one time on the radio. I had a music store for 4 years and never sold a copy. I’m intrigued by the fascination with bands playing this song in clubs. I honestly don’t get it. Played in bands in my youth, and this song was never requested. Yet every time I go see a live band, the song is always played. Glad there’s a tutorial to get it right.

[georgecovetskie]

Thank you for posting that. Wow, Mustang Sally. Yea, I been playing bass since 1974 and I remember that song being brought up so, so many times. I did it, well we did it and no matter how off to the left or the right we did the tune, it mostly went over due to the condition of the listeners at that point.
Well, one day when I was home practicing new tunes that our band was doing, I remember we discussed that It would be a good idea to actually get the dam song Mustang Sally down right, as best we can.
Let me tell ya, Im talking the year 2001 when technology was just not what it was today. So, I had to do this the hard way.
I sat back and just listened to the dam song over and over until I had to pick up the bass and try. I am a very good " pick up by ear " bassist but Dam, I could not get the lick perfect. I had to try different headphones, studio monitors and equalize until I thought I had it right.
When I finally got it ( that same thing you just showed us on your video ) I sat there trying to sink in the riff and I thought to myself, No No, this aint the dam lick! So I started playing along with the record like I did at the start. Holy Crap! It took me 4 hours to get the Mustang Sally lick!
I felt stupid and satisfied at the same time.
Thank you for sharing that. Helps me even more to believe I got that dam song down right.
Now, it's actually more fun to play!

[JB]

I probably never got the notes right, but nearly every time I’ve played that song it was the Buddy Guy version, which just murders the beautiful syncopation of the WP version. Drove me to the brink of despair some nights!

[jonmccravy]

The real reason bassists get this wrong is because we can't be bothered to actually learn it. You know you get the song list and this one always gets pushed to the "it's just a 1-4-5 with a groove" pile.

Well now I know it, so thanks!
I might still play it wrong on purpose though. I like to do like a funky shout chorus under it.

[TheMusicianTom]

Legend doesn’t even begin to describe session players like Tommy Cogbill.

[TM-jowz]

Every time I play it I have to follow the guitar player as usual!
Guitar players love to play their version of the bass parts.

[lilmelvin]

A great breakdown! Nice that people study and appreciate the skills these "old-school" musicians had. They didn't "overthink" things, had some knowledge of theory but mostly used instinct from tradition. Music is Rhythm and Pulse in the foundation, with the vocals providing Melody while telling a Story. Learning how to interact and mind-meld within the Pulse is the key to being a good player, and not just an ego-tripper
Thank you!

[richshields]

As a bassist I have found that even if you play the part right, it wont sound "right" if everyone else doesn't play their part correctly. Lol

[petersanderson]

I always played BC F# G.. Never heard the A or Bb ever. Learn something new everyday.

[rick]

Oh man the memories, 1966-1970 started in high school, top 20 stuff included lots of Motown plus British Invasion .

[thelonious-dxvi]

Man, he just did not care whether those are dominant chords or what. You gotta love that.

[frankortega]

Nicely done Mark. A must know for bassists everywhere. Thank you for sharing your work.

[kenbash]

I play the same part that is on the record by Wilson Pickett. Fairly straightforward.

[taurus]

Kudos to you for isolating the authentic bass line. The only question I would have is, is that the best bass line for the song? The slide up from B to C on the first beat suits me fine, as does the slide from F# to G on the way back up. However the choice of the 6th (A) note instead of going to Bb, irks my ear a bit. I tend to think that the song works in spite of that choice, and because under all the instruments, the bass riff is murky anyway. In a perfect world I would lose that 6th and use the 7th.

[elflakeador]

The commitments is one of the greatest films ever!! 🇮🇪

[db]

This is not only instructional but very funny, Mark. I tend to do the Commitments version, but this is very interesting too!

[monmixer]

Cool, I love how he laid that in there. sounds a bit not right at first but makes perfect sense and sounds great.

[stevehazlewood]

Damn I have been playing this song wrong all these years. I even played with Eamonn Flynn, the road keyboard player for the Commitments for a few years. When I see him next and show him this riff, I am curious to his reaction.