“The only bass book you will need.” — Paul Jackson, bassist with Herbie Hancock
This is the most comprehensive bass method book ever published! A complete method book, over 200 pages, filled with information and exercises covering all aspects of bass playing, for both acoustic and electric bass.
The Improvisor’s Bass Method was designed to be the jazz equivalent of Simandl’s classical bass method, serving as a guide to all the components of bass playing and leaving the reader well-equipped to tackle any musical challenge.
There are complete chapters on basic music theory, scale studies, chord studies, rhythm studies, interval studies, analyzing tunes, soloing, and more.
The extensive chord and scale diagrams throughout the book show you where all the relevant notes are all over the fingerboard, and they're broken up into positions that make everywhere on the fingerboard feel like ‘home base.’
The hundreds of exercises included are designed to encourage you to create your own bass lines off each idea. This will give you a lifetime of material to practice since each exercise will result in new versions of itself as you grow!
Plus transcribed bass lines and/or solos by:
Eddie Gomez • Ron Carter • Ray Brown
Charles Mingus • James Jamerson • Paul Jackson
Scott La Faro • Marcus Miller • George Mraz
Jaco Pastorius • Paul Chambers • Alphonso Johnson
Jimmy Garrison • Stanley Clarke • And more!
Spiral-bound, 218 pages, Table of Contents.
Sample Pages: Page 35, Page 37, Page 58, Page 67, Page 180.
Endorsements:
“Chuck Sher has put together a book that is informative, readily comprehensible, and highly imaginative. I recommend it for any bassist interested in expanding his awareness in the art of improvising.”
— Eddie Gomez, bassist with Bill Evans, Chick Corea, and many others
“The book is great and Chuck Sher is to be congratulated. It is very thorough and gives a great deal of knowledge about both instruments. This is really an excellent theory book and a reference book too.”
— Rufus Reid, author of "The Evolving Bassist"
“When I was just starting out and got ‘The Improvisor's Bass Method’ it really gave me a jumpstart on the whole idea of what it means to be a jazz bass player, and the transcriptions opened me up to all the great bassists waiting for me to discover. Thanks!”
— Larry Grenadier, bassist with Brad Mehldau, Fly
