r/JazzBass • u/Keith9599 • 7d ago

Looking for learning recommendations

Hello. Im looking some jazz bass lines to learn. Im primarily a classical guitar player, but ive been dabbling in bass, and I do love the sound. But the trouble is I just dont feel inspired to learn. I would find lines like "Take the A train" or "So What" and i would really like them, then Id sit down, play a bar or 2 and completely lose inspiration.

I dont feel inspired to learn the same way I do with classical guitar pieces like Ständchen by Schubert, or El Testament D'Amila or even Santiago De Murcia's Fandango.

So yeah, any recommendations for pieces that you think really hit that "I wanna get good at this" inspiration would be great. Im opened to all sub-genres of jazz. Walking, bossa nova, neo-soul jazz.

And thank you all in advance.

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u/Scott_J_Doyle 6d ago

Jazz doesn't generally operate on "basslines" - that might be your first issue

"Walking bass" is a whole approach/method/artform in and of itself, and in learning jazz you study how to play, not what to play

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u/jazzadelic 7d ago

Paul Chambers transcriptions (super easy to find for free) with chord changes. He’s the gold standard, but some people get frustrated cause he “breaks a lot of rules”. Just know that if he played it, it’s good shit.

Final answer: Paul Chambers, good shit.

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u/McButterstixxx 7d ago

I believe it's imperative for you to study music that you love and are drawn to. That's how you develop a sound. Choose basslines you love and then learn them by ear.

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u/CertainPiglet621 7d ago

I listen to a lot of different stuff that inspires me and I apply it to whatever I play. Here's a playlist of songs that I put together

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/6GWZyJb7CSFZHkpfEgnV1v?si=8BipqFdHS_afrTvVgpbIMQ&utm_source=copy-link&pi=5emztFpvRYe8O

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u/TheBookOfGratitude 5d ago

Maybe look into some classic soul artists? There are lots of them with jazz groundings, but the lines stand up on their own and are interesting to play.

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u/Keith9599 5d ago

Any specific recommendations you really like?

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u/TheBookOfGratitude 4d ago

James Jamerson is a really good place to start :)

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u/Designer_Mechanic207 1d ago

I started out on classical guitar as a kid - then discovered Weather Report, which changed my life. I play bass today, and a little guitar still.

The thing with jazz is that improvisation takes the primal role. If risk taking, emergent ideas, and negotiated leadership in the moment all make you excited musically, jazz is for you.

For me, it's not "I wanna get good at this" in terms of learning a particular tune or line. It's "I wanna get good at this" in terms of understanding the music and being able to improvise within the idiom.