How to Play Walking Blues Bass Lines

The twelve-bar blues form is one of the most commonly used progressions in popular music. Three chords go a long way, but how do blues bassists give those three chords some movement? One of the simplest techniques for a blues bass player to learn is the walking blues bass line. Here you'll find an easy explanation to turn I-IV-V into a progression with some flow.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• Bass guitar
• Warmed-up hands

A simple walking blues bass line.

1. Make sure that your hands are warmed up. Get out that bass and get ready to move.

2. We'll use a twelve-bar progression in E. Each chord in the progression will have a different waling line underneath it. If you don't know what the twelve-bar progression is, then here's a brief explanation. Start on the I chord, in this case E. The E will be played for four bars. Next, move to the IV (A) chord for two bars. Move back to the I chord for two more bars, then up to the V (B)chord for one bar, down to the IV (A) chord for one bar, then to the I (E) chord for two bars.

3. This is the tab for the first four bars of a walking blues bass line in E:G---------------------------------------------------------------D---------------------------------------------------------------A-------2-4-5-4-2---------2-4-5-4-2----------------------E--0-4--------------4-0-4---------------4-0------------------

4. Then the chord shifts to A for two bars, as does the bass line:G--------------------------------------------------------------------D-------2-4-5-4-2-----------------------------------------------------A--0-4---------------4-0----------------------------------------------------E----------------------------------------------------------------------------

5. Back to the E for two bars:G-------------------------D-------------------------A-------2-4-5-4-2------E--0-4--------------4-0-

6. Now for the next two bars, which are under the B and A chords:G---------2------------------------------------------------------D----1-4----------2-5-----------------------------------------------A--2----------0-4--------------------------------E-----------------------------------------------------

7. Ending with two bars on E:G--------------------------D--------------------------A-------2-4-5-4-2-------E--0-4--------------4-0--

8. This is just a basic explanation of a walking blues bass line in E. This progression can be transposed up or down and played essentially the same way. It's a simple trick that you'll hear on many blues and early rock and roll recordings.

Tips & Warnings

• You may find it easier to play the fifth fret as the next open string. If your hands aren't used to the stretch, try it out. It gives a different tonality to the notes.