Bass Groove Basics: Build Better Lines with Q&A Technique

As a young player, like most, I used to feel confined that I was playing the same stuff over and over again. I felt that it was theory—or some unknown scales that I didn’t know how to use—that was causing this. Yet, when I would transcribe my favorite players, I noticed that the bass lines and note selection were a lot simpler than it sounded on the recording. Of course, a lot of that was the feel and phrasing of the player, but part of it was that some of these players never seemed to run out of ideas. Their bass lines were always different and fresh, and they were able to do a lot with just a few notes and rhythms. When I tried to write my own lines, I always felt I was playing the same licks or just didn’t have ideas. 

Over the years, from playing, talking with great players, and studying their lines, I discovered what the great players do. It’s all question-and-answer. 

What’s Question-and-Answer Have to Do with Bass?

The answers may be a little different note-wise, rhythmically, or even range-wise. After the answer, you then state the initial “question” again. After that, you give a bigger “answer,” and then you add “fill” in your line to wrap it up and turn it around. 

So, by way of example: If you have a one-bar bass line, you play that line, and we will call it “A.” Then you answer it with a similar idea, but a little different. We will call that “B.” We then play the “A” groove again, and then we play a “fill” or “bigger statement” that we will call “C.” And there you have it. 

What you are going for in the question-and-answer technique is a form of “A, B, A, C.” This way, you take a simple one-bar idea, and now you have stretched it out to four bars. Or, you take a simple two-bar idea, and now that idea is eight bars, and in doing so you do not sound like you have repeated yourself. Think about that! 

Most verses in songs are eight measures. If we play two verses in a row, that’s 16 measures. With this eight-bar construction example, I have only repeated myself twice. If you were playing a one-bar bass line, you would have repeated yourself 16 times!

Q&A Bass Groove Exercises

Here are some exercises that support the question-and-answer method. They will help you to learn techniques that will enable you to construct strong, effective, and more memorable bass lines and grooves. Notice that we have provided both four- and eight-bar grooves. I have included the accompanying letters to clearly show the construction method of each line. The bass line can be as simple or difficult as you want. The question-and-answer theme may occur in the notes, the rhythm, or both. A consistent construction approach is the key here. You can clearly see that the “odd” number measures in our bass lines are all the same. You will also clearly see the responses to those measures that follow. We want all our lines to be unique to the song or situation we are playing in. Play these grooves slowly and really take the time to break them down and take them apart. 

Q&A Bass Line Exercises

Click on an image to zoom in and view the instructor notes. Listen to the grooves below each image and download them to practice offline.

Bass Groove Construction 1 Download MP3

Bass Groove Construction 2 Download MP3

Bass Groove Construction 3 Download MP3

Bass Groove Construction 4 Download MP3

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‘Forget Me Nots’ Bass Line

Let’s look at the song “Forget Me Nots” by Patrice Rushen. The title might not ring a bell—despite what the title is imploring you not to do!—but as soon as you cue it up on whatever your streaming player of choice is, you’ll recognize it. 

It’s bassist Freddie Washington laying down what has to be one of the most recognizable and famous slap bass lines of all time. It earned Freddie a gold album award and it has been featured in multiple movies and TV shows, and been sampled more than 60 times in other songs. Probably the most famous instance is the theme song from Men in Black. Check out this footage of Freddie, playing the bass line on the original 1973 Fender P-Bass that he used on the recording.

Pay attention to the thumbing figure on the first beat of measures 4 and 8. That’s not easy to do. Also, check out how Freddie incorporates the basic octave technique with the other foundational techniques. Lastly, listen to the groove construction on both sections. It’s A, B, A, C, which is exactly what we have been focusing on here! This bass line really reinforces the question-and-answer technique. 

If you start listening closely to bass lines, you’ll get a lot more ideas—and answers!—from the Q&A technique.

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