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Scott LaFaro - “Autumn Leaves” https://youtu.be/r-Z8KuwI7Gc?si=Ly0ybcQAUYvJdKLC&t=134
Walter Page - “Lady Be Good” https://youtu.be/7RFrKVSJ0i8?si=1jAO8RmP4GIZDprj&t=20
Butch Warren - “Evidence” https://youtu.be/TLnU-GyBaQI?si=GT9aOyMWyB9blyIi&t=10
Ray Brown - “Worksong” https://youtu.be/cetQtUEsToI?si=vbYK0PTErZCwkJ30&t=88
Oscar Pettiford - “Tricotism” https://youtu.be/iK5fgbbWj9k?si=ztPo9iDwK3S8hdfC&t=61
Paul Chambers - “Giant Steps” https://youtu.be/KwIC6B_dvW4?si=x1sksY1kq9Jw4-xn&t=67
Oscar Pettiford - “Juicy Fruit” https://youtu.be/T8iFY2SKON4?si=3CUiwXTXOG6OTygn&t=497
Doug Watkins - “Tune Up” https://youtu.be/0qAnsW5-uxs?si=TmX-HoOHbbi5t2zN&t=250

00:00 Intro
00:11 Welcome and overview
01:00 Myth 1
05:13 Myth 2
08:25 Myth 3
13:56 Myth 4
18:19 Myth 5
22:00 Closing thoughts

Thing is, you don't want it to sound too chordy, or too scaley, or too riffy, or too random. But then again, you want it to sound all those things, at the same time. Walking bass is a conundrum.

Once I was chastised by a very high level jazz player for playing repeated notes in my lines. He said "jazz is supposed to be a conversation, so why would you keep saying 'hello, hello, hello' over and over?" 🤣

Another player once said to me "you know all that stuff you play between the notes in your lines? Just hear that in your head but don't actually play it!"

Embellishments are effective in inverse proportion to the frequency of their use.

I will happily repeat the root note three times in a row.

Most important video i ever saw-because after years of playing, i felt i played wrong. But these examples show i don't, that there is just a stigma to triads, or repetitive notes or lines not being "hip" enough. And one gets crammed with so much theory that you feel like you have to use, but you don't. I think (while it might be a little boring), that if a teacher had spent a good 3 or 6 months just having us perfect the basics into smoothness, it would have paid off in the long run, and not be bogged down with having to throw the upper tensions in to get away from the norm. So kudos to you, i probably never complimented another bass player in my entire life.

Playing the same phrase (bass line) on the last 2 or 4 bars of a chorus (while varying the content otherwise) is a wonderful way of delineating the form for the audience and band mates, and give some strong structure to our walking bass accompaniment.

When playing jazz walking bass lines I have a tendency of keeping it simple and interesting while trying not to do too much even if it means repeating notes and ideas sometimes. As you mentioned as bassists its mainly all about supporting the musicians around us and outlining/supporting the harmony/chord progression of a tune. Great instructional video by the way!

I sure wish I learned this years ago.


Sadly, as a self taught bassist using various online resources I found that even the better teachers would first teach walking with triads, chromatics, whatever, then almost immediately "warn" us about how bad you'll sound if you'll sound if you continuous;y do them.  That's allot of pressure on a student just learning.  I agree with what another poster wrote that working on simple as long as needed to get it smooth is better than rushing to get it complicated or "sophisticated."

Thanks for this great video!

13:45
"Two amazing 'master bass' players"😂
say that 5 times quickly without without blushing 😅

Great to see this video Matt. We played a duo gig years ago (out east, there was an emergency cancelation and somehow I got the call on trumpet) and it was such a blast playing with you. Duo bass and trumpet gigs are not exactly common, but I didn't miss the chordal player. Everything you discussed here is evident in how you play, and it's much appreciated. Also, as a Composer, this is super useful. Thanks for breaking this stuff down so clearly - definitely food for thought when writing out specific lines either for thru-composed sections or for young players.

Awesome video!

Damn this channel needs to be bigger.  Amazing production quality and information on your videos

Great lesson. Superb presentation. Absolutely musical. Favourite tip? The last one: warm up your feel by playing along with recordings. Thank you.

So good, helpful and appreciated Matt. thanks

Cool

Thank you for your excellent tutorial!

Good video. This is the first thing I've heard or seen from you and yes, I just subscribed. Thanks for taking on the daunting task that all music teachers have to deal with, that being trying to describe what a melody is, and how to make one without limiting the students choices. Keep up the great work.

As a trumpeter, i just started learning the bass and the myths that you touched on was gold. I think all these years I been mystified  thinking the greats were playing more than they actually do. Not so scary now. What a great time to live and play music, thanks for the info.

Great video, very clearly thought through and presented- thank you!