3 Easy Beatles Bass Lines
Hey there, bass players!
There’s no doubt that Paul McCartney is at the top of the bass player pantheon and for good reason—his style integrates everything from blues patterns to melodic lines to raunchy rock’n’roll moves. Given his work with The Beatles, Wings, and his solo efforts, it can be quite daunting to know where to begin. Thankfully, as your resident McCartney fan, I’ve handpicked a few iconic and easy Beatles bass lines so that you can begin your journey. We’ll start by exploring the blues box pattern used for “Taxman,” then move on to a walking bass line in “Eight Days A Week” and finally touch on the Abbey Road classic, “Come Together” to explore slide technique and register changes.
The Blues Box Meets The Beatles
First up, let’s chat about the tune “Taxman.” This is perfect for beginners because it mostly stays in one position on the fretboard and utilizes what we know as the “blues box.” When we refer to this blues box pattern, it usually means that we find a small section of the fretboard that spans three frets (3rd to 5th, 5th to 7th, 7th to 9th, etc.). Instead of using our regular “4 fret span” of one finger per fret, we can hunker down into a contracted position of just 3 frets and use our index, middle, and pinky fingers.
If we start with our index finger on the root, we can play across the fretboard using just our index and pinky. In doing so, we realize that many of the notes in the chord and scale fall perfectly under our fingers. More specifically, we can easily play the root, 2nd, 4th, 5th, flat or minor 7th, and octave. By sticking simply to the root, 5th, flat 7th, and octave, we also adhere to the notes in both a dominant chord (D7) and a minor seventh chord (Dm7). This unique pattern is often used to create blues, rock, and R&B bass lines.
To begin playing “Taxman,” we’ll be working in the key of D, so our box will be from the 5th to the 7th fret. Magically, if we start with our index finger on the root note, our box pattern will be easy to find as we move across the fretboard. As we change chords throughout the song, we’ll move this pattern and start it on the root note of every chord. Check out the video below for the full lesson.
Eight Days A Week
Now that we’ve played a box pattern bass line, let’s move on to some walking bass! Believe it or not, walking bass lines are not exclusive to jazz and can actually be found hidden in plenty of pop tunes. “Eight Days A Week” happens to be the perfect example of a walking bass line in pop music. It features all of the classic elements of a walking bass line, including:
Quarter notes for the rhythmic feel
Smart voice leading by connecting notes that are either a whole or half step away
Changing directions
One major difference between a jazz walking bass line and a pop walking bass line is the notion of improvisation vs. composition. Usually, jazz lines are fully improvised, so the player is making choices in real time as they move through the chord progression. In most pop walking bass lines, the line is composed in a walking style but then played consistently. The good news is that if you’re just getting started with walking bass, it’s ideal to have a crafted or composed bass line that you can learn and then repeat. Thanks, Sir Paul!
As we play through this song, we’ll discover how McCartney strings together the chords using the above mentioned elements. Also in the key of D, he follows the chord progression and uses triad patterns played root-third-fifth-third to outline the harmony. Check out the full lesson here:
Come Together
And finally, one of the all time greatest classic rock tunes, we’ve got the bass line to “Come Together.” Coincidentally, this song is also in the key of D! To play this line, it’s important to focus on two things: recognizing intervals in different places on the fretboard and learning how to slide up and down the bass neck.
This bass line outlines a D minor chord by playing the root note on the 5th fret of the A string, sliding up the string, and then finding the minor third an octave higher—the F played on the 10th fret of the G string. Then, we hit the high D on the 12th fret before sliding back down to restart the line. As you practice the slides, know that it’s all about feel. You want your slides to sound natural and smooth, so be mindful of how you attack—or simply slide to—the target notes in the bass line.
And In The End…
If you work through all of the lessons in this blog, you’ll discover one thing: they’re all in the key of D. “Taxman” has a bluesy element to it, “Eight Days A Week” is clearly in D Major and walks through the chord progression, and “Come Together” takes on D minor. Long story short, it’s a great way to familiarize yourself with three different interpretations of how to play in this key and of how to maneuver around on the fretboard.
Having flexibility across musical genres, knowing your bass neck, and realizing how to play with different techniques and articulation will certainly make you a better bass player, so get these lessons under your fingers and keep it groovy!