How Pro Bassists Learn Literally THOUSANDS Of Songs (It’s Simpler Than You Think)

►► FREE: Get the practice tracks and chord progression diagrams for all the progressions in this lesson → becomeabassist.com/common-cho...
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The best bassists in the world can’t only play a handful of songs. They can play hundreds or even thousands of them.
How do they do it?
Do they just have better memories and bigger brains and total recall?
Personally, I don’t think so!
Why?
Because if I tallied up all the songs I could play without looking at sheet music, tabs, charts or lyric sheets, then it would easily be in the hundreds - more likely the thousands.
And I don’t have a superhuman memory or anything like that.
What I (and what tons of other musicians) have memorized is the ‘right’ things and one of the big ones is common chord progressions.
These are the kinds of progressions that show up over and over and over - the kind that you’ve heard thousands of times. You’ve probably played all of these at some point, even if you didn’t realize.
Learn what these chord progressions are, where they lay on your bass and what they sound like, and any time that progression pops up, you won’t even have to think about it - you can just plug that progression into your bass.
But it does require you to think slightly differently and that’s what we’ll be covering in today’s video. You’ll learn:
► How it’s easier to learn songs when you stop trying to learn the individual notes and frets
► The ‘geometry’ of the progressions that let you play them all over your bass and in any key
► The 5 chord progressions that let you play 1,601 songs
Where does the 1,601 number come from? Well, there’s a site called Hook Theory and one of the features is that you can plug in a chord progression and it’ll show you a ton of real songs that use it. It’s a super cool tool. (Check it out here: hooktheory.com/trends )
I plugged 4 of the common chord progressions into Hook Theory and it spit out 1,101 songs, which is a lot! In reality though, there will be tons more that use the progressions, but this is still a ton of tunes.
Then, for the (spoiler alert) blues, I added 500, although I was being very conservative. After all, there aren’t just 500 blues songs out there - there are heaps more.
The real number of songs you can play with these progressions is likely way higher than 1,601, but still - if you could play 1,601 songs, that’s pretty awesome.
Of course, you’ll still need to figure out the geometry of these progressions and practice them, and if you need help with that, then make sure to download the tracks and PDF with all the geometry diagrams to help you out. It’s all free and you can get it right here:
becomeabassist.com/common-cho...
Just fill out the form on that page and I’ll send everything straight to you.
Now if you’re looking to memorize these progressions, learning the chords inside them and where they lay on your bass is a great first step.
But if you want to be able to instantly recognize the progressions when they pop up in the wild, you need to go one step further, and activate your ears.
This can be as simple as singing the roots of the progressions as you play along with them. You’ll actually see me doing this as I go through the examples in the video.
It’s one thing to know the progressions intellectually, but if you can learn the sound of them on a gut/ear level, then any time these chord sequences show up in a song you’re trying to learn, you’ll instantly know what it is and how to find the roots on your bass.
If you need help with getting started with your ear, I have an older video about that as well. You can find it here.
• How To Get STARTED Pla...
If you can do both of these things - recognize the common chord progressions with your ear and then apply them to your bass, you’ll be unstoppable!
Good luck with the lesson and happy playing!
Cheers,
Luke
P.S. Here’s the link to get the free practice tracks and chord progression diagrams
becomeabassist.com/common-cho...
[Chapters]
0:00 Intro
1:10 The Number System
2:37 Chord Sequence 1: 12 Bar Blues
6:14 Chord Sequence 2: 1-5-6-4
9:46 Chord Sequence 3: 6-4-1-5
11:29 Chord Sequence 4: 1-6-4-5
14:07 Chord Sequence 5: The 2-5-1
#becomeabassist #basslesson

[@kryptonian5539]

I joined a cover band back in 2001. They have me 2 weeks to learn 40 songs. The tough part was that there were not a lot of old standards in his list. And they had a female singer sot here were a lot of songs they did that catered to that. I pulled it off. I am still not sure how I did it. Lots of learning by ear, tabs, and improv. I hated being in a cover band but I was proud of that feat I pulled off.

[@jacobpullen6949]

i feel your pain in that situation. i was given 2 days for a 4 hour, about 40 song gig and didn’t have time to practice basically at all beforehand, so i listened to each of them about halfway through each on the drive over, picking out the chords and trying to remember which song was which, and pulled it off pretty convincingly. At least well enough to get hired again😂

[@Prentach]

I cant imagine doing it. Its taking me days of practice to play a basic song

[@b4nd41ds5]

hey luke! ive been watching your videos for a while. ive been admiring the bass since i was 7 years old. i never told anyone because i knew i was too small to play. but at around 9 i had a really big growth spurt! im now 12 years old and its christmas time. i was doing laundry one day and i found a big box labeled “bass guitar” on the side. im so excited because i have been BEGGING for a bass since i was 10. ive learned alot from you and i cant wait to play!

[@joekrim6557]

Cool. So how's the playing going?

[@rogermckinney6433]

I want to learn how to play the bass real real good easy way if there is such a thing

[@richardjames323]

I play by ear and typically improvise everything I do. Learn how to read music by all means if you want, but if you truly want to be free, if you learn where the notes and patterns are on the fretboard, you will be able to jam along with any song in the world. Enjoy!

[@michaelgoldstein8516]

There are short scale basses. I am 38 and play a short scale bass because I have smaller hands. You’re never too small for BASS!

[@Targoon_Music]

@@rogermckinney6433 there is no such thing as easy way in bass the journey is hard and full of pain. first you lose your soft finger tips and your nails (if they are long) start to break then you start building six packs on your fingers and just when you think everything is over and decide to start slapping burning blisters come. for you to be really really good constant practice over the years is needed and every break you take in the way will set you back more than you think. in other words you gotta dedicate yourself to it

[@CantWords]

It always puts a smile on my face when someone unexpectedly start to sing and they are unexpectedly good at it :)

[@davideaton2141]

Brilliant lesson as always Luke so easy to follow thank you for sharing

[@BecomeABassist]

CORRECTION: There is a typo on the 1-5-6-4 progression. The Roman numerals read I-V-iv-IV, when is *should* be I-V-vi-V. My mistake and thanks to @Ned Shaneberger for picking it up and letting me know.

[@mms-sj8pu]

2nd typo? I - V - vi - IV

[@InGuyFawkesWeTrust1605]

the numbers system is a game changer for learning where to go on the fretboard. i couldn't live without it, i improved leaps and bounds since i started using it

[@timsterkhim653]

Great lessons Luke I really appreciate it how you put the pattern on the screen it help allot thank you!

[@kwt7667g]

Revisiting this video after taking your Level Up Your Ear course. It really crystalizes things. So important to sing those notes! It helps bake things in. I've downloaded the tracks and I will play with these. Fun!

[@BrannonSG]

Great lesson. Learning the Nashville numbering system opened up the world of music for my bass playing a few years ago. No more worries about key. Go ahead bandmates… change the key. I can play it!

[@kwt7667g]

I really appreciate the vocal reinforcement; it help!

[@kirksmith6683]

Luke, of all the videos of yours I've watched to date, this one is the absolute most important and best one for us advanced beginners. I had little knowledge of reading music or cords before picking up the bass late in my life. I've always heard us bassists need to eventually create our own bass lines and only concentrate on memorizing lines for those iconic riffs. This video is the absolute best lesson to move us in that direction. Thank you sir!

[@mythrilsilver]

Agreed :-)

[@1rocknroy]

A picture is worth a thousand words. Excellent diagrams. Thank You.

[@woah6958]

The most useful music lesson I've ever seen. Thankyou.

[@BecomeABassist]

Know any songs that use the chord progressions in this video? I’m certain you know at least a few. What are they?

[@un-dos-tres-mambo]

6-4-1-5 Audioslave - Be Yourself // i'm not certain but it sounds similar // excellent relaxed lesson.... thanks Luke !!!!! ッ⧝⧮⧗⧤⧲⦿⧖⧰⧞⦼⧒⦪⧃⧨⦾ 🛸

[@mickavoidant4780]

1 5 6 4. Another Girl Another Planet by The Only Ones. I've written songs with it.

[@jermpick]

Great lesson! You are a great teacher for sure for the Bass.

[@nathanwahl9224]

I'd just like to add that besides traditional notes compared to using the Nashvile numbering system, many of us are more visual learners and use the visual patterns you're showing. It works equally as well if that's your preferred learning method. Edit: the really nice part about that (which you mentioned in passing) is that within limits, key is irrelevant! Just slide up or down to the appropriate one (1) and use the same pattern! And heck, throw in a couple of the "box progressions" (they make a box-shaped pattern; more precisely, the four corners of a box played in an hourglass pattern) and you're batting about 90% of modern music! Most of the '95-'15 years, perhaps!!!

[@harryr.washington9565]

You're a marvelous and gracious teacher and person as well.

[@jacklast6393]

Amazing tutorial! Thank you.

[@carlomarchiori9856]

Grazie! Soooo clear!

[@tjcolatrella943]

Always good lessons Luke..

[@frankvozak7280]

Thanks for presenting this important concept

[@MobiusMinded]

Been preaching this for years. Not just bass. It’s pretty much how all session musicians i ever worked with, work.

[@catothecensor]

Amazing lesson!!

[@Brutusque]

Thank you for this extremely helpful video, as someone who learned to play primarily from listening to and playing along with minor pentatonic blues rock music (where most the chord structure is based on notes in the minor pentatonic scale), it has actually been difficult for me to play along to a lot pop and other kinds of music with more of a Major tonality, but this definitely helped me with that. I wanted to also ask if there are also common chord progressions to follow that would accompany these that happen in the bridge or chorus of a song, because using this technique I've noticed that's the moment the song slips out of these progression. Thanks again!

[@garethevans2650]

Hard to answer because middle sections are often intended to be different to main part. Jazz standards often change key for them using a 2 5 1 into and out of the new key. Common turnarounds may be a good topic to study for this.

[@rickrobie4]

Great lesson Luke! Thank you!!

[@BecomeABassist]

My pleasure @Rick Robie

[@dwirth77]

Luke, thank you so much for your vids

[@wmkennard]

That is cool your a cool teacher n good Bass player. Thank you very much 👍

[@davidjohnlewis2472]

Great lesson Luke , love from Liverpool

[@michaelwhiteley-lw9ys]

Thank you. Thats help me lots thanks

[@alandoran5428]

Thank you so much for a great video…… you explain things so well …. Even for a 67yr old who is keen to learn. Thank you from Scotland

[@stuartmoore6310]

Scottish Rain by The Silencers is a great song!

[@thomasfioriglio]

Another fantastic lesson Luke! Two years ago I wouldn't have had any idea what you were talking about. But watching you over the past year and half, I've realized how much I have learned. Lol, I now sound like a musician when I talk about 3rds and 5ths 😂

[@BecomeABassist]

That's so cool to hear Thomas! It sounds like you've been collecting mini-epiphanies for the last little while, possibly without realizing. Haha!

[@emericrunningbasse821]

So interesting !!! Thanks.

[@bimalrai21]

Simple, yet very helpful and interesting.

[@onesaltyzombie]

This was educational!! Thank you

[@BecomeABassist]

You're very welcome @David Havard

[@keithtressel8174]

Thanks so much for sharing!! Great lesson! Quick question..who makes your bass? Love it! Thanks..

[@neilbarnett3046]

Ah, that's why practising at home to rock music is so much easier than playing choruses and hymns in church. The hymns, especially, often don't use these patterns, and where rock chords last a bar, hymn chords can change on or even between the beats. And the keys move around a bit, often swapping between the key in the signature and its relative minor for just one line.

[@zachjoseph8042]

Thank you so much, this is insanely helpful I am so blessed to have help with bass. (I’m super new)

[@robertosinglemalt]

That! Insanely Helpful!

[@BecomeABassist]

Glad I can help @Zach Joseph!

[@junmayo7402]

Luke, quick question. How do you remove the bass line in a music, only drums and guitar playing without the bass? Thank you.

[@pickbassguitar2802]

Thanks bro!

[@unclemick-synths]

Good video 👍. I really ought to put more effort into studying the chord progressions of songs I play!

[@davidjoyner3982]

Awesome,great bassist

[@dominicnicholson8261]

Axis Of Awesome reference...you sir, are a legend!

[@josephreinhart8712]

Veeeeery interesting! Went here by accident...stayed because of choice, Liked and subscribed because...that is some very important material! 1000 songs following roughly the same patterns. I can use that information.

[@knuckles5863]

Thanks Luke!

[@saxpete]

Last week I got my first bass and also my first ever bass lesson...after playing saxophone on and off for 20yrs, my goal or approach this time is not to use the letter name system...I will use the numbering only and not looking at staff lines in the first half yr.....thats more musical and grooving than my past experiences

[@Soy_Uz]

Still memorize the note names for the first 1or2 strings atleast so you know where to anchor triads and other shapes

[@saxpete]

@@Soy_Uz yes will memorise those fretboard location as indications....it is so cool and versatile by using the numbers

[@andyoaf]

First time I've seen a video that explains this In a way I understand

[@vinceo885]

Thanks for another very useful lesson and audio links.

[@rossco420]

Great lesson 🙏🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿🏴󠁧󠁢󠁳󠁣󠁴󠁿

[@DualynGonzalez]

Very very good brother wao.🙏🏾🙏🏾🙏🏾

[@orehc]

Excelent!

[@frankvozak7280]

It is so interesting that you are the only person teaching Nashvilee Note System which my band uses exclusively

[@BecomeABassist]

I'm sure I'm not the *only* person teaching the Nashville system, but it does make the most sense to me. That's why I use it for sure.

[@quakers200]

Many songs don't have a base part . Some obviously have bass as central to the song but in general the bass reinforces the drums and the rhythm guitar or piano.

[@davidjoyner3982]

Great singer too!

[@BecomeABassist]

Haha! Questionable at best!

[@book3100]

Ooooh! Ok! I didn't know wth people were talking about .. the 1.4.5 then turnaround.. so it's Nashville number system! So learn the scales and memorize that, then it's easy. Why I never got that before I don't know. Dude thanks

[@kevinbrianjohnsonmusic]

Love that bass!! What brand is that? I'm new to the bass and in a year or so I'm wanting to buy a really good one.

[@mark-stefaniw]

@kevinbrianjohnsonmusic it's a Spector bass. It's a nice bass, and I have an old Q4 myself with EMG soap bars. But my advice to most beginners is to get a legit Fender P-bass. Best value, IMO, are the Classic 50's MIM P-basses. I have the 2017 black lacquer model, and it is stunning. Out of my bass collection, this P-bass is the one that I reach for for most gigs and session work I do.

[@onkelpool]

Great fingering charts. In order to play them exactly like that, I got myself an instrument with a really short neck.😳

[@arthurindenbaum4329]

I've been using the Nashville method since the late 1970s, it's the ONLY way to go. I had training in Solfege and learned to hear intervals and identify them numerically. A C to an A I learned as a 6th, etc. I've always imagined the 'method' to be called the Nashville because..... imagine going into the recording studio with Elvis and hearing a song he wanted to cover, but in 'his' key. Or a song demo with 10 different vocalists and each vocalist needing to sing in 'their' key. Having to transpose for every vocalist is ridiculous, and seriously time consuming, in a recording studio that's money...could be lots of money. Thus a method is born...

[@nicacrush]

How do you know to go up or down from the root note?

[@nathanwahl9224]

Listen! Look up Ear Training, it's a great way to discover exactly what you're asking. If you think about it, two songs can be the same chord pattern, but by going up vs down it changes the characteristics of the two so that they sound entirely different.

[@stupidhandles]

Why wouldn't you play the same shape c 1 4 5 on A string as on E string? Why are you saying it has to be inverted?

[@areyes501]

The number system is fine, but to become a substitute bass player, every song has a certain noticeable main bass pattern. So how does one get away with that? does this mean learning every bands song list? That is thousands of songs. Or is there another way/ Please help.

[@skimaned4291]

The rythem of the bass often corresponds to the rythem of the kick.

[@targuscinco]

Holy shit, 1-5-6-4 is the close encounters jingle. Mind blown! Its never aliens. Just the dang major scale again. 😔

[@jobair46]

Great

[@harryr.washington9565]

can you break down "I wanna dance with someone" by Whitney Houston

[@joekrim6557]

I agree. I see patterns all the time. For example killing me softly and dont speak very similar

[@lowstringc]

The direction from the A string to the E string is “down”, why would musicians use spatial terminology to describe the sounds they are making? We don’t argue about “up” or “down” the neck, even though the nut is almost always spatially higher - but calling it that would create a cognitive dissonance when the brain says “move higher in sound” but the brain also has coded the spatial direction as “lower”. Same with moving from string to string. I believe that it comes from many decades of “you put your finger here” teachers that use spatial directions as a shortcut to get a passable result while actually handicapping their students’ musical understanding.

[@BecomeABassist]

Different peoples’ minds work differently I guess @lowstringc.

[@lowstringc]

@@BecomeABassist - absolutely true. I guess my point was that your mind works based on the scaffolding you build for it, and using language opposite of the musical result is very counterproductive. As a musician our vocabulary should encode the actual musical/pitch result. I’ve been teaching Orchestra for decades, and this is a common thing we need to fix in order to make the sound/movement connection in students’ minds, otherwise when they’re trying to tune their finger positions they always go the wrong direction (if the pitch is flat, they’d move toward the nut to try and correct it because their brain hears the pitch needs to ascend, and they’ve also taught their brain that “up” is the spatial movement toward the nut, which it isn’t. This confuses so very many kids, and once we fix that they do SO much better at those automatic intonation adjustments..). The goal is to be able to (or to teach students to be able to) function naturally in the world of creating sound, so using internal vocabulary that I’d directly opposite of that goal is at the very least “counterproductive”. The spatial proprioception then builds off of that, not the other way around (patterns are great, but not when you are calling up “down and down “up”). “Up” and “Down” are core fundamentals in music, why would we ever, for any reason call them the opposite thing? Let alone teach others to do so? I do agree that different minds work differently, and I absolutely teach that way, but on this particular issue I don’t see any support in the literature on brain science, aural theory, or anything else that could support, in an entirely aural art/practice, calling directions by the opposite names and the appropriate names simultaneously as “different minds are different” instead of “incorrect” and detrimental to learning and making music. Think about this in the context the statement came up in the video: a teacher directing a student to “go to the next note ‘up’ by moving ‘down’ a string. That statement doesn’t make any sense, but it is frequently used. I’m not trying to be a jerk with these observations. I have read a ton on this, and have struggled with it with my students for a long time, and without exception have found in the lit, as well as a mountain of anecdotal evidence from my teaching that this is the case, and it is something I feel strongly that we would be hurting our students by using the incorrect vocabulary as we set their fundamental understandings about music and their instruments.

[@BecomeABassist]

It sounds like you’ve thought and read a lot about this @lowstringc, which is pretty awesome. If you had any links to research or anything about this, I’d love to see it. I can tell you how I approach things with my students (who, for context are almost always older learners - majority retirement age). Personally, when I talk about going from the A string to the É string, I think about it in terms of going down, because that is the direction it would be aurally. However, a lot of my students think about it in the opposite way. As they’re playing the bass, the E-string is closer to the sky then the A-string, so they think about it in terms of going ‘up’. My goal with all my students, is to get them playing better, regardless of how they are thinking about things. If their mental scaffolding tells them that going in that direction is up, then I will speak to them in those terms. If they think like me, again, I’ll use their own terminology rather than trying to get them to change how they’re thinking, which may hinder more than help. It may not be ‘correct’, but it removes a barrier that can hinder progress, and in my opinion, that’s more useful than being technically correct. Funnily enough, I’ve also had students who describe going towards the bridge as going ‘down’ and going towards the nut as going ‘up’. Again, the opposite to how I personally think about it, but I still use their terminology rather than mine. Like I said, if you had links to research about this stuff , I’d be super interested in reading it.

[@markbass354]

YAY UNCLE LUKE IS BACK

[@1234drums]

I probably already told you, but nevermind... just to make sure you know you're an awesome teacher

[@BecomeABassist]

That's super kind of you @1234 DRUMS - I really appreciate it! :D

[@swimfindiver]

is that a 80's Specter EU?

[@gsx1400k3]

I'm a bit confused by your calling out "Zombie" by the Cranberries around the 10:20 mark as a 6-4-1-5. The bass line for Zombie starts with E, then C, then G, and finally F#. If it was a 6-4-1-5 in G, the sequence would be E (6), C (4), G (1), *D* (5). So Zombie is actually a 6-4-1-7 in the key of G major, right?

[@BecomeABassist]

Not quite @James G. The final chord in that progression isn't a 7-chord (which would be F# diminished. Instead it's a D major chord (the 5-chord) but with the 3rd of that chord - the F# being played in the bass. If you were to write it out, it'd look like this: Em - C - G - D/F#. So while the F# *_is_* in the bass line, the chord itself is a D, which makes it the 5-chord. It can be a little confusing, but if you have any questions, I'm happy to help out.

[@gsx1400k3]

@@BecomeABassist Ah, okay, so the 4th chord is played as an inversion (we play the 3rd of D major). Got it. That makes sense! Thanks!

[@rickipp4089]

When I moved to Nashville from LA I worked with some Nashville session guys they sit there and charge the song after listen to it two or three times with this Nashville number system I'd already memorized it and played it just as good as they do I'm not really impressed with the national number system I'm a rock and roll player I think it depend too much on it and lose feel and soul

[@nedshaneberger9533]

Why is the Roman numeral notation of the 6 in the 1-5-6-4 progression showing up as iv instead of vi? It currently shows as I-V-iv-IV.

[@BecomeABassist]

Whoops - definitely a typo. My bad!

[@nedshaneberger9533]

@@BecomeABassist Thanks Luke. I wasn't trying to play "gotcha" with my question. This musical theory stuff comes hard to me, so I want to make sure that I get it!

[@BecomeABassist]

No worries at all @Ned Shaneberger - I didn't think you were playing 'gotcha' at all. I can't change the video itself, but I've pinned a comment explaining the correction. Thanks for picking it up!

[@frankvozak7280]

For whatever reason, the creators of the Nashville Numbering System decided to use roman numerals

[@BecomeABassist]

I'm just speculating @Frank Vozak, but my guess about why Roman numerals get used is so you can tell the basic quality of a chord by whether it's upper case or lower case. Upper case for major chords and lower case for minors. Yes - you could just use regular numbers, but if there's a minor 4-chord, for example, I guess you could write '4-' or '4m' or '4min', but just writing 'iv' instead of 'IV' is a very elegant solution to the problem.

[@joshuacunningham1015]

As I get more comfortable using the whole neck of my bass, I find I get more puzzled about which part of the neck to use. Watching your video and seeing you demonstrate the different places these progressions can be played has me wondering about what conventions or best practices exist. It seems obvious that, unless a bass player is soloing, they're not going to spend a lot of time up around the 12th fret, and it kind of seems like traditional blues players usually stay at the low end, but when would it be a good choice, or a bad choice, to use the middle of the neck? What factors would affect that choice?

[@scottkretsch4887]

Much of it depends on the tone you want. A B C D played on the E string sounds different than if played on the A string. Also, parts of songs specifically call for using the higher/lower register at times to compliment the melody and the arrangement. Again, mostly to emphasize tone and feel (ebb & flow) of the song.

[@BecomeABassist]

This is a great question @Joshua Cunningham and there are a ton of factors that affect that choice. @Scott Kretsch has outlined one already - the tone. Try this - play the open G-string, then the G on the D-string (5th fret) G on the A-string (10th fret) and G on the E-string (15th fret). They're al the same note, but have very different tones. The open G will be the brightest and 'twangiest' and they'll get progressively darker and 'woofier' as you get to the E-string. The other thing to think about is playing 'positionally'. Sometimes it just makes more sense to play something around the 8th fret on the E-string rather than the 3rd fret on the A-string. Maybe the line goes a little higher, so playing in the middle of the neck gives you the option to play everything in one position. You'll see 5-string players do this a lot - play up higher on the bass, but use their B-string to play the same stuff. Another thing to think about is the weight of all the notes. Basically, the lower you go down in range, the 'heavier' the notes will feel. Most of the time we want something nice and solid and heavy to 'ground' the bass line so we use the lowest version of all the notes. Sometimes though, if you want something delicate-sounding, you can play up higher on the neck. I'm thinking of the bass line to 50 Ways To Leave Your Lover. The verses are all up high and very delicate, but when the chorus comes, it's nothing but the lowest versions of all the root notes. It feels way heavier and drives the music forward. There are definitely other things that I'm probably missing here, but these are all things to think about. Hope it helps!

[@YTiswoke]

Do what sounds good to you.

[@MusiMasterJam]

Two things. First, a minor one: the Nashville Numbering system is just a simplified version of the system that classical musicians have been using for more than 200 years. Second, and much more importantly, these are not chord "sequences". There are several words that have been used to describe them, including chord changes, progressions, and loops, and in general, I tend to support the idea that any word that the listener will understand is a correct word, but in this case, it is important not to use the word "sequence" because this word already has a very specific and useful meaning, and most chord progressions are not sequences. A sequence is a succession of harmonies that can be broken up into smaller units in which the chords within each unit relate to one another in a consistent pattern, and are voiced according to this relationship, so that each new unit represents a consistent transposition of the previous. For a good example, the first six chords of the Pachelbel Canon chord progression (D - A - Bm - F♯m - G - D - G - A) are a sequence: [ Ⅰ - Ⅴ ] - [ ⅵ - ⅲ ] - [ Ⅳ - Ⅰ ] - Ⅳ - Ⅴ . If we put this in Arabic numerals and treat the first 1 as 8 (the octave of 1), it will be a bit easier to see the relationship: [ 8 - 5 ] - [ 6 - 3 ] - [ 4 - 1 ] - 4 - 5. In each unit, the second chord is three notes lower than the first (8 - 5 = 3; 6 - 3 = 3, etc.), and each unit is two notes lower than the previous (so, looking at the first chord of each, 8 - 6 = 2, and 6 - 4 = 2). It is also important to note that traditionally, these only count as a sequence if the musicians recognize and follow the pattern in the way that they "voice" the chords. To simplify a bit, from a bassist's perspective, it is important here that the first note must be 8 and not 1, even though 8 and 1 have the same note name and are equally roots of the same chord, because fundamentally, the unit of this particular sequence is a descending unit, and an ascent from 1 rather than a descent from 8 would break the pattern.

[@MusiMasterJam]

Another example of a sequence in a well-known song would be Hotel California. It is, in fact, very similar to the Pachelbel canon, except that it is in a minor key and the units are only transposed down one step, instead of two. The Eagles do not actually voice it as a sequence, because they choose to have more variety in the inversions and suspensions on each chord. But underneath all that, the chords are [ ⅰ - Ⅴ ] - [ Ⅶ - Ⅳ ] - [ Ⅵ - Ⅲ ] - Ⅳ - Ⅴ. Also, in a true sequence, from a bassist's perspective, if you choose to play a more complex part than just playing the chord roots, you should copy that more complex pattern in every unit as well. A great example of this is the instrumental break in Jimi Hendrix's "Hey, Joe". The chords are [ Ⅵ - Ⅲ ] - [ Ⅶ - Ⅳ ] - Ⅰ (kind of the opposite of Hotel California). But more importantly, he fills the space between chord roots with chromatic bass runs / approach tones, and he does so in the same pattern for each pair of chords.

[@tikvision]

So what's the difference between remembering notes or numbers

[@hirsutebodkin6888]

I was thinking exactly that! My brain is useless at remembering both so this system doesnt work for me at all, I have to rely on patterns

[@martinmills135]

The numbers I-vi-IV-V allow you to see that C-Am-F-G7 is relatively the same as A-F#m-D-E7 and ten other chord progressions. Of course, on the bass you can just memorise patterns, but numbers allow you to communicate with otter musicians.

[@martinmills135]

*other musicians. Otters will not be particularly interested in these numbers.

[@josemotta9560]

Relevante.

[@sandrabecht4489]

Vielen Dank👍🇩🇪

[@henryporvaznik9288]

Greatest doo wop 1-6-4-5 is Two Silhouettes on the Shade

[@josemotta9560]

Interessante.

[@snowlily5540]

I wish you explained why you go onto lower notes on the E string when you started on the A string

[@BecomeABassist]

It’s because usually, when you’re in ‘bass line mode’, you often will want to play the lowest ‘version’ of the root notes as possible. Sometimes playing your roots on the D and G strings and sound a little bit thin, but the low notes on the E sound super fat. of course, this is a very broad generalisation, but that was the reasoning @Snowlily

[@snowlily5540]

@@BecomeABassist thank you!!

[@alanwann9318]

Generally if playing along with gtr/keyboard they will move up , you root the chord by moving down .it makes a fat chord . By the way this video is correct there are only 3 or 4 chord sequences overall , I play rhythm gtr in 2 bands by memory using this, learning 100 songs last year pop songs use recognisable sequences The songs of the 40 ,s use 1 2 5 . Circle of fifths. 50,s 1645 . 125

[@ronalsonmarak21]

I liked to play the guitar, can you help me?

[@victordemelofernandes1815]

Among matthew, Mark and John, Luke you preach and practice the best.

[@BecomeABassist]

Bahaha! Now if I only had *actual* gospel chops...

[@mysteriousplankton]

Yup.

[@BecomeABassist]

Yup.

[@wesshepard]

Nashville number system?!?… bro it’s called scale degrees and it been around for at least 4 hundred years!

[@BecomeABassist]

Ok

[@davidreichert9392]

Everything recorded between 1954 and 1964 is either 12BB or 1-6-4-5

[@GregSB1]

The 2-5-1 is screaming for the 6 to join.

[@ivan_osorio]

This is a good lesson, but for someone who is trying to teach a system that is about abstraction from the absolute pitch class to a relative relationship between notes, you speak the names of the notes A LOT when you could just be saying "the 1 is here, the 4 is here and the 5 is here" then you switch keys and you also switch note names, which is correct, but not helpful to the system you are trying to teach. Just a thought, in case you ever revisit this topic. Good video though! Thanks!

[@BecomeABassist]

Thanks for the feedback @Ivan Osorio, but that was a very intentional choice I made when making this video. The more experienced bassists (which it sounds like you are) would have no issue if I changed keys or never mentioned the note names at all. However, a less-experienced bassist may not yet be at the level where they could follow along if I never told the note names - or kept calling something the '1' even when I changed keys. I understand what you're saying about 'abstracting' from the actual notes, but there are many who aren't quite ready for that yet, although hopefully this video could help push them in the right direction.

[@ivan_osorio]

@@BecomeABassist Fair enough. I respect the "design decision" of teaching it this way, hahaha. You have your reasons. Despite being a somewhat proficient instrumentalist, I enjoy checking out beginner videos to see how things are being taught, so I can also teach my students better. The studying never stops for any of us :) All the best!

[@rexsojo]

Why do some of his notes sound flat?

[@Thomash1968]

I don't speak English but I think I understand what you mean 🤔😉👍

[@rickipp4089]

How was the song right there for 20 years with a major publishing company and I will tell you the record company's hire the same producers they have the same musicians and that's why all the songs are the same

[@jonlenaway]

Luke, not from Become a Vocalist 😆

[@BecomeABassist]

That is for damn sure. Lol

[@Firedancer100]

Ethereum 🎸

[@rickmayer4002]

Basic but good for beginners

[@BecomeABassist]

The basics usually are @Rick Mayer :)

[@rickmayer4002]

@@BecomeABassist I'm a horrible teacher.

[@rickmayer4002]

@@BecomeABassist Too basic for I mean I was hoping to learn something but it's only good for a beginner.

[@BecomeABassist]

Absolutely @Rick Mayer - my focus is on helping beginner bassists, so I’m glad you think it’s good for beginners.

[@rickmayer4002]

@@BecomeABassist I wish I had You Tube 30 years ago

[@squirrel7t7]

Its a Bass.. You just have to look at a bass and it plays itself..

[@Nico_Aslanidis]

Am i the only one here who finds this lesson bad? For example, at 8:20, why play 6 (B) at A string, forcing your 4 fingers to stretch on 5 frets distance and not play the 6 (B) at D string 9th fret?

[@BecomeABassist]

Why do you think I did it that way @Nico Aslanidis? It was definitely a conscious choice.

[@Nico_Aslanidis]

@@BecomeABassist You ask me? My best guess is that your teacher taught you wrong. Second guess is that you might be trolling, but you don't look like a troll, you look professional

[@BecomeABassist]

I did it that way for a few reasons. You might have noticed that I didn’t use the D or G-strings at all in this lesson. That’s because in general - they’re not always - if I’m in bass line mode, those are the strings that I’m using most of the time to make everything sound as thick and fat as possible. If I start playing bass lines on the D string, I run the risk of the bottom falling out of whatever song I’m playing. Is that example you mentioned the most ‘practical’? Probably not - the previous way of playing it I show at the 7:46 mark makes a lot more sense. That’s why I went through that one first. I included the other version as well because the point of the lesson was to show how each progression worked beginning on both the E and A-strings and _only_ using those strings. This particular shape would work best for the keys of E, F, F# and possibly G, but changing the key for one example means I wouldn’t be comparing apples to apples. Does this one thing make this lesson ‘bad’? I don’t think so, but you’re entitled to think it does. And trying to legitimately answer my own questions from a place of curiosity (rather than me being dismissive) has helped me a lot in the past. That’s why I asked you, although it seems you didn’t quite take it that way.

[@bettyswart4798]

Hi, I'm sure the explanation is great, however.... WHY ARE THE SUBTITLES projected on top of the hands???? You cannot see what he is doing! And hearing the chords is not enough for a beginner...

[@BecomeABassist]

The subtitles are there because you put them on at some point. You can turn them off though: smallbusiness.chron.com/rid-subtitles-youtube-49431.html

[@jamiecoxe7327]

Could barely hear the bass. Voice audio was very high

[@BecomeABassist]

What are you watching on @Jamie Coxe?

[@jamiecoxe7327]

@@BecomeABassist Samsung Note 10

[@BecomeABassist]

Right @Jamie Coxe - you might want to try using some headphones or connecting to some speakers. Phones and tablets are pretty much designed to reproduce speech the best; not low-end bass frequencies. I talk about that in depth in this video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/sGfdp5mijpyNbZI

[@martinheath5947]

I disagree. Most popular songs don't just require chord memory but need specific, often iconic, bass lines, grooves and phrasing. Simply knowing your way around a chord progression for a song is not enough for an audience when it comes to performing it. Learning a song does mean learning the most popular version and the actual bass part

[@BecomeABassist]

I agree, and for me, knowing the chord progression makes it *infinitely* easier to learn and memorize the iconic phrases, grooves and bass lines.

[@Brutusque]

Luke is absolutely right, while learning the chord structure at first may only lead you to play root notes, once you get a good grip on it you'll be able to improvise all kinds grooves and licks that follow in the chord structure and of course also make learning the actual note for note bass part a lot easier. Approaching it like this is a lot more rewarding for your playing ability than just following tabs note for note

[@rickipp4089]

I meant they chart the song I'm not really impressed with the Nashville number system Nashville session guys are more interested in Booking their next gig on their cell phones then playing the one they're playing I find very little soul and feeling in their performances. That's why all the Nashville songs sound the same same guys the A-Team same demo singers same songs just redone again and again

[@BecomeABassist]

Hey @Ric Kipp - I'm not 100% sure, but it seems like you may be conflating the Nashville number system with the music that comes out of Nashville, but using the number system isn't limited to Nashville country/pop. It's just a tool, the same way a bass is a tool. By itself, it doesn't have 'soul' - it takes a person to to make music out of it.

[@ghosttownreview1531]

Hi Ric - the number system has been used in classical music for centuries. Not sure the number system has anything to do with the sound. I think it has more to do with selling songs. If one song sells really well then make 10 more that sound just like it!

[@rickipp4089]

Sorry using voice did you get the idea

[@justinmanser7525]

Where do you go shopping?😇

[@BecomeABassist]

Mostly Woolies. You?

[@justinmanser7525]

You mean Woolworths? Nah,I just asked because you said you forget to lock your car...but I have no idea how to find you....not to steal anything, just to wait in your car and in a Yogi Bear costume, talk with you about the Illuminati and of course if Les Playcool has indeed turned to the dark side of the pork... Tuesday is good?

[@BecomeABassist]

Still waiting on this to happen @justinmanser7525...

[@justinmanser7525]

@@BecomeABassist It did, I erased any recollection of our meeting with an electro bio-mechanical neural transmitting zero synapse repositioner....you may have experienced a craving for pizza and a few more sparrows in your general proximity, but asides from that the lethal effects take at least 60 years to surface...so don't go planning any deep space travel and you should be fine.

[@BecomeABassist]

How very Star Trek of you lol