Customer Reviews

Bass Grooves: Develop Your Groove and Play Like the Pros in Any Style Book/CD (Softcover)

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This book is one of the best books out there for the budding bassist, in my opinion. Ed Friedland, an experienced instructor and seasoned studio bassist, really lays down a solid foundation for understanding the role of the bass and how to fit in with the band.
Some definate pro's would be Ed's lively writing style and clear descriptions of the examples being played. Instead of pulling random grooves out of nowhere, he really gives solid insights on the music. And the examples are clearly first rate and give good bredth within different genres. He also gives very good ideas simply on becoming comfortable playing the instrument, which I've found is one of the biggest concerns for beginners.
The book does not go without a few cautionary bits, however. Ed Friedland highly recommends getting a drum machine to jam along with (he even writes out the drum parts). This naturally, is great advice if used, but without a drum machine (or, better yet, a real live drummer!), the book really can't be enjoyed to the same extent. So if you don't have a drum machine and have absolutely no interest in getting one ever, this book might not be the best option. Also, one should note that though this book covers many different genres, it doesn't go into real depth concerning any particular one. So, if, for example you dig motown, heavy metal, or whatever, try getting a book that focuses specifically on that style in addition to this book. Concerning just pure insight and ecclectic examples, this book rocks, but this shouldn't be the only book in your bass library if you are interested in diving deep into a specific genre.

After attending Bass at the Beach 2005, I came away knowing how important time and groove is to a bass player. My whole goal was to become a solid groove player once I came back. If you have any questions or difficulties about rhythm or keeping a strong groove than this book is the answer. I have never felt super solid about reading syncopated rhythms even though I have read numerous books and been told countless ways to try and learn them. This book has answered that problem for me. A drum machine is highly recommended as the book dissects the drum parts that should be programmed in to play each bass groove over. This is the first book that I've come across that really explains "feel" from many different angles. I could go on and on about it but the basic gist is that this book has me thinking about rhythm in a whole new way and it is helping my bass playing more than anything else that I've read. This will be my Bass Bible for years to come...Thanks Ed!

This is not a typical book with bunch of licks without explenation. Here everything is explained in detail - how drums (should) work with bass in different styles. Great musical examples although it would be much better if music was split into seperate channels for bass and drums. Great book worth money.

If you are a soon-to-be-famous rock star with your own group playing just your own music, this book is going to broaden your musical horizon and give you lots of new ideas for your own bass lines. But if you want to be a serious bass player, versatile stylistically and firm in many different musical situations, this book is IT! And if you like to gain some deeper knowlegde and understanding, get Ed Friedland's "The Working Bassist's Tool Kit" as well.

I am very impressed with the layout and exercises of this book. I made the mistake of buying it on Kindle. The tab is unreadable, and there is no audio as far as I can tell. I'm contemplating biting the bullet and ordering the print edition. Waste of ten dollars!

This book will give you the basic facts and insight required to build a solid groove. It provides some technical stuff, that's for sure. But the main thing is, you can develop a feeling of the groove in yourself (not your guitar only) and start to understand what it really means "to groove".

However, advanced / pro players trusting their groove may consider alternative books.

If you're a guitarist and picked up the bass to do demos and home recording like I did, I highly recommend this book along with Barrett Tagliarino's Rythmic Lead Guitar Rhythmic Lead Guitar: Solo Phrasing, Groove and Timing for All Styles.

I've jammed for years and always ascribed whether the groove worked or meshing with other musicians to "chemistry" and working it out by ear...and it is, but now you can be the chemist and control the outcome. Having been deprived of anybody to jam with as well as having a computer studio like everyone else these days, I was determined to learn how to break out of stale grooves and be able to articulate why some riffs worked and some didn't so well playing as a one man band against myself. Learning to groove on the bass from this book was a huge eye opener. I'd always kidded my bass players as being just four string root note/chord tone players. Now I know better and it's also freed up the way I play solos knowing how different grooves work. I'm diggin' playing the bass now, and the sheer amount of styles to be learned really opens up your imagination's palette for writing songs and breaking out of ruts. On top of this, all my playing is much more tight and in the pocket and a great deal of it is thanks to this book.

I'm looking forward to getting other bass books by Ed F. His teaching style is very easy to understand, articulate and clear. You just have to work the chapters.

Also recommended for home musicians: The Drummer's Bible The Drummer's Bible: How to Play Every Drum Style from Afro-Cuban to Zydeco

Absolutely brilliant. Being a percussionist with piano skills, who has been playing bass lines his whole life... on the piano, and who has been meddling with some classic guitar playing recently, I adore the way this book is "constructed". The very firm link Mr. Friedman has established between drums and bass is very important too: the very first chapter is not about bass playing, but about programming a drum computer in order to provide the missing part of any groove. The bass player and the drummer are twins, no doubt, and in this book that aspect is really glueing together the whole thing. That being said, the comments, and of course the choice of styles are excellent as well, as is the double notes/tab notation. An absolute must for anybody wishing to extend his or her knowledge of harmony, bass lines and accompaniment to this instrument, and probably for the regular bass guitar student as well (clearly, I'm not that regular, coming from a different background). Together with this book, I also ordered Friedman's Blues Bass - A Guide to the Essential Styles and Techniques: Hal Leonard Bass Method Stylistic Supplement (Book & CD), which I'm playing through right now, and his Building Walking Bass Lines (Bass Instruction). Great stuff. Love it. AND the instrument, too.

I first want to say that I am a senior drummer (61) who has played drums since I was 14 and recentley I was asked to play bass in a church praise band and I needed some help to get my bass groove on so I bought this book.This is absolutley the best book for young players and old to lurn all the grooves from the50's/ 60's to the present.You realy should study this book and it will defenatley help you to where you want to be.Let's face it rock realy came from the blues and a mix of music from the 40's and 50's swingstyles and everything in between so, what I am saying is evolution in music comes from the past towards the future. So get this book and you realy don't get boggled down with the drumm lessons/machine you just a good memory (brain) of how to play the grooves on the CD and read the tabs also.There is a lot of great dialog from the wrighter that is also very good.Buy it and get your groove on.