5 Beginner-Friendly JAZZ Bass Lines (Guaranteed To Impress)

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Jazz bass lines can be intimidating, right?

You see these incredible bassists creating incredible bass lines out of thin air and improvise like there’s no tomorrow - it can be super inspiring.

But then you hear them talk about things like ‘double chromatic approach tones’ or using the ‘Superlocrian mode’ over altered dominant chords or using the 4th mode of the melodic minor scale… It’s so easy to get discouraged and think,

“That’s too complicated...”

I’d actually agree a lot of the time! But just because jazz bass lines can be complicated, doesn’t mean you can’t dip your toe in the water with some beginner-friendly jazz bass lines instead, and that’s exactly what I want to share with you today.

By the way - this is NOT about creating walking bass lines. I’m talking about ‘bass line’ bass lines that stay the same pretty much every time they’re played, which means you don’t need to get bogged down in the theory weeds just to get through a bass line.

You can just play!

4 of these bass lines you’ve more than likely heard before, and 1 bass line, only the real die-hard jazz fans will know (but it was too good to leave out)

Even if you don’t actually want to get into playing jazz ‘for real’, these bass lines are a great way to have some fun, expand your musical horizons and help you become a better, more versatile bassist.

Plus, it’s always good to have bass line #1 up your sleeve at jam sessions - it’s a favorite of singers that gets called every once in a while.

If you want to get all the tabs, notation and practice tracks from this video (including the slowed down versions of the tracks to make practicing even easier) then just go to this page:

Fill out the form and I’ll send you everything from this lesson - it’s all totally free.

Good luck with the lesson and happy playing!

Cheers,

Luke

P.S. The best way to master these bass lines is through practice, and to make practicing these bass lines as easy as possible for you, I’ve put together all the tabs, notation and practice tracks I used in this video and put it all up as a free download. To get it all, just go here:

Fill out the form on that page and I’ll send you everything from the lesson. (I’ve even included the slowed-down versions of the practice tracks so you can start slow and gradually work your way up to performance tempo.

[Chapters]
00:00 Intro
0:55 Beginner Jazz Bass Line #1
2:53 Beginner Jazz Bass Line #2
5:23 Beginner Jazz Bass Line #3
6:52 Beginner Jazz Bass Line #4
9:20 Beginner Jazz Bass Line #5

#jazzbass #jazzbasslines #becomeabassist

[nomad]

I'm a beginner and these are by far the coolest bass lines to start practicing! Great video.

[joeysisk]

I came for the bass instruction, but stayed for the cute dog walking around the background.

[DiegoVansante]

Very nice Luke, thank you for being there for all us beginners, and others.

[onthesunonthesun]

This lesson is a lot of fun for me personally, Thank you!!

[gargameljones]

The bass line translation of the So What melody is greatly appreciated and your dog popping up throughout is life.

[christophercharles]

Nice material to get bassists thinking in a jazz mindset. Playing even just cursory amount of jazz is great because it really builds some great skills - being able to read/play over different chords all over the instrument; being able to think about "composing" on the instrument in the moment; thinking melodically (among much else) - even if the player isn't going to play jazz as a main focus. I might add that one can really help oneself out by learning to read standard notation. I know!!! It sounds like a pain and a chore, and it is a bit, but once you can do it, it makes a huge difference. Imagine all the things you wouldn't know if you couldn't read & write in English - from being able to operate an appliance instead of taking days to figure it out first hand, to having an idea of distant lands you've never been to...and everything in between. It really does open up a world of ideas that might take you decades to absorb otherwise. That said, there's a great transcription of the Mingus solo on Haitian Fight Song in "Mingus: A Critical Biography" by Brian Priestly. (Actually a bunch of amazing stuff - not including the great biography of one of the greatest bassists/composers out there!)

[j.c.turner]

I so appreciate you sharing your artistry; thanks so much!

[michalkbass]

An excellent lesson. Thanks Luke. We need more beginners' level jazz! :D

[michael_caz_nyc]

This was really great. Very simple and easy-to-understand. I am a rock/r&b guitar player who wants to learn Jazz (on guitar and bass) and this was fantastic.

[elithetallguy]

This is a perfect video! I’ve been trying to get into Jazz and this is a great start. Also love the cute dog in the background :)

[koba]

Ngl the “no walking” part caught my eye

[powerforward]

Outstanding, Luke. I especially like the Miles Davis piece...I’m really practicing it so that my notes are clear and precise. ...your little dog is your co-star.... BTW, great looking bass. Be well.

[mikhail_roberts]

Hearings So What, and Song for My Father brought me right back to my Jazz Combo days.

[alexarrese]

Great explanation of Mingus's bass line! And I so LOVE your :-))))

[florentdemeyere]

Song for My Father is one of my favourite jazz songs to play on the piano. I'm excited to play it on bass ass well!

[threshold]

Fantastic. Been working on some of these recently as just bought another fender this time fretless Jazz

[hopemorales]

I am learning and is because you, thank you.

[pickbassguitar]

Thanks brother, always love these videos

[fonzerellie]

Cool video, love it when the tabs are on the screen when teaching ...

[tomsabatino]

A Banana Bass! Thanks, this lesson helped a lot.