Metal Sludge Gossip Board

I’ve been working on learning some scales on bass as I’m new to the instrument. Musical theory never made any sense to me as my guitar skills involve basic power chord riffs, common major and minor chords, etc.

Do you really need to know or master scales to play bass for Motley Crue, Kiss, or Poison songs?

This is a cool video about Nikki’s style of playing and there seems to be no scales in sight.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsDcU8zUWjw

Knowing theory does help, but it's not required. Some bass players will play mostly root notes of the chords. Sometimes walking bass lines sound cool and you need to know the scale patterns for that. It just depends on the needs of the song.

If you're studying scales so you can play Poison, you're doing it wrong.

Any knowledge of scales will put you far above 99% of 80's glam bass players.

Saying that:

Pentatonic Major
Pentatonic Minor

That's really it. You'll be playing root notes of the chord (no scale knowledge needed) most of the time, and then use those two scales for riffs/runs/transitions.

FreddyFender wrote: ↑Sun Feb 23, 2025 1:41 pm Any knowledge of scales will put you far above 99% of 80's glam bass players.

Saying that:

Pentatonic Major
Pentatonic Minor

That's really it. You'll be playing root notes of the chord (no scale knowledge needed) most of the time, and then use those two scales for riffs/runs/transitions.

This^^^^^

The only scale you need for 80s glam is a good digital scale for the Columbian bam bam.

/thread

p86 wrote: ↑Sun Feb 23, 2025 5:11 am Do you really need to know or master scales to play bass for Motley Crue, Kiss, or Poison songs?

No. Not even remotely.

This is a cool video about Nikki’s style of playing and there seems to be no scales in sight.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WsDcU8zUWjw

I think your perspective on what it means to "learn" or "master" scales is a bit off.

I don't know what you're expecting Nikki to be doing, just randomly playing a major scale up and down the neck?

Most of the utility in learning scales is to just help familiarize yourself with what notes go together in a given key, etc. And they're useful for practicing technique because you might as well be playing patterns that are going to show up in the music you want to play.

So to summarize: No. Not even remotely.

FreddyFender wrote: ↑Sun Feb 23, 2025 1:41 pm Any knowledge of scales will put you far above 99% of 80's glam bass players.

Saying that:

Pentatonic Major
Pentatonic Minor

That's really it. You'll be playing root notes of the chord (no scale knowledge needed) most of the time, and then use those two scales for riffs/runs/transitions.

^^ Better answer than mine, but I think learning the entire Major scale is at least worth something .

I used to say 80's music on bass, was spend 5 years growing you hair, before you walk out on stage I will show you the top 2 strings, play them open, and don't touch the bottom 2

Dad gives 12-year-old boy a bass for his birthday and signs him up for lessons. Boy comes home from his first lesson and dad asks: "How was your lesson, son?" - "Great! I learned the notes of the first 5 frets of the E string." Next week comes home from his second lesson. "How was your lesson, son?" - "Great! We practiced the notes of the first five frets of the A string." Next week son comes home; "How was your third lesson, son?" - "Eh, I blew it off. I had a gig."

keyofgee wrote: ↑Tue Feb 25, 2025 5:39 am I used to say 80's music on bass, was spend 5 years growing you hair, before you walk out on stage I will show you the top 2 strings, play them open, and don't touch the bottom 2

Pro tip: Don't take any bass guitar advice from someone who thinks the E and A strings are the "top 2 strings" and the D and G strings are the "bottom 2 strings".

P.S. I still laughed.

aznsquirt wrote: ↑Tue Feb 25, 2025 9:03 am

keyofgee wrote: ↑Tue Feb 25, 2025 5:39 am I used to say 80's music on bass, was spend 5 years growing you hair, before you walk out on stage I will show you the top 2 strings, play them open, and don't touch the bottom 2

Pro tip: Don't take any bass guitar advice from someone who thinks the E and A strings are the "top 2 strings" and the D and G strings are the "bottom 2 strings".

P.S. I still laughed.

its how I look at it,, and yes, I know the difference etc...it was a bass joke, when you look down the top string on the bass is the Low E,. I get it but its on top of all the other ones...