All 47 Transcriptions · 5 Collections · 8 hr 32 min Of Video · 52 Downloads · Yours To Keep

The Whole Transcription Library · 47 Lessons

Every line in the library, yours to keep: Paul Chambers, Ray Brown, Israel Crosby, Ron Carter, Charlie Haden, Jaco and Bird, taken apart note for note

Collage of an upright bass scroll rising out of a vinyl record, with a coiled bass string Collage of a bank vault door swung open onto stacks of records and tape reels Collage of file folders spilling reel-to-reel tape and a vinyl record Collage of a vintage microphone, a saxophone, a ticket stub and a cocktail glass Collage of a melting psychedelic record over an electric bass neck

All 47 Transcriptions · By Cole Davis

All 47 transcription lessons, all five collections, 8 hr 32 min of video and 52 downloads. $470 one at a time. $147 for the lot.

From Cole Davis: New York bassist, Juilliard, learned under Ron Carter.

$470$147

One payment · Yours to keep

Get all 47 for $147

47 video lessons · 8 hr 32 min of video · 52 downloads

Walking Like a Legend The Walking Line Vault The Groove Files The Bebop Bassist The Bass Brain Melters
47
video lessons from Cole
512
minutes of video
52
downloads
$147
for all 47

You can find the notes to most famous bass lines somewhere.

The notes were never the hard part.

The hard part is why they work. Why Ron Carter plays the chord on Passion Dance maybe 40% of the time. Why Percy Heath's two-feel on Bags' Groove barely bothers with the root on beat one. Why Jaco's Night Passage sounds impossible and mostly sits under your hand in one spot.

That's what every one of these lessons is for. I play the line, then take it apart: the fingerings, the note choices and why it sounds the way it does.

Here's everything in the library, in one place:

  • ✓The walking lines. Ron Carter, Paul Chambers, Israel Crosby, Charlie Haden, Ray Brown, Percy Heath, Peter Washington and Jimmy Garrison.
  • ✓Time, feel and the two-feel. Ray Brown against a tempo map, Paul Chambers on Bye Bye Blackbird, Percy Heath on Bags' Groove, and how I got my sound.
  • ✓Heads and solos on upright. Bird, Chet Baker, Joe Henderson, Chick Corea and the Eddie Gomez solo I consider the greatest ever played on upright.
  • ✓The hard ones. Jaco, Coltrane, Sonny Rollins, Clifford Brown, Jimmie Blanton, and rhythm changes in all 12 keys at 400 BPM.
One at a time, that's $470. As five collections, it's $205. As one library, it's $147.
What's Inside

All 47 lessons.

Every one's a video lesson from Cole. 8 hr 32 min of video in all, and 52 downloads.

Collage of an upright bass scroll rising out of a vinyl record, with a coiled bass string
Walking Like a Legend
9 lessons · 1 hr 48 min of video · 13 downloads · $47 as a collection
  1. 1Ron Carter: Passion DanceUpright · 9-minute video · 1 downloadHow to play bar after bar of the same chord without sounding boring. On Passion Dance, Ron Carter plays the chord maybe 40% of the time.See this lesson
  2. 2Paul Chambers: Freddie FreeloaderUpright · 6-minute video · 1 downloadKind of Blue is famous for its simplicity. Paul Chambers plays the busiest B flat blues line I've ever heard on it, and it works.See this lesson
  3. 3Charlie Haden: Three Bass LinesUpright · 15-minute video · 3 downloadsMy favorite bass player of all time, bar none. Three lines that do things I'd stop a student for, and sound like there's nothing hipper.See this lesson
  4. 4Peter Washington: Giant Steps, Transcription + ExerciseUpright · 9-minute video · 2 downloadsMost Giant Steps bass lines are root, root, root, because the changes are scary. Peter Washington's isn't. This is what he does instead.See this lesson
  5. 5Paul Chambers: Walking Modal Jazz on So WhatUpright · 10-minute video · 2 downloadsSixteen bars of D minor and you're out of ideas. Paul Chambers never is. The tricks he uses to walk modal jazz, from a live So What.See this lesson
  6. 6The Genius of Israel Crosby: Three Bass LinesUpright · 25-minute video · 1 downloadThe heavyweight champion of bass lines, in a 25-minute deep dive: But Not for Me, You or No One, and a line that sounds like a symphony theme.See this lesson
  7. 7Jimmy Garrison: Resolution from A Love SupremeUpright · 10-minute video · 1 downloadJimmy Garrison's unaccompanied intro to Resolution, from A Love Supreme. It's all fourths, it's deceptively hard, and here's how to play it without hurting yourself.See this lesson
  8. 8Ultimate Paul Chambers: Solos, 2-Feel and So WhatUpright · 16-minute video · 1 downloadSpeed up a Paul Chambers bass line and you get a Paul Chambers solo. His solos, his two-feel, a rhythm changes and the wrong notes on So What.See this lesson
  9. 9Paul Chambers: So WhatUpright · 7-minute video · 1 downloadYou've heard this line a thousand times. Here are five ways to finger it, including the one you can hear Paul Chambers using on the record.See this lesson
Collage of a bank vault door swung open onto stacks of records and tape reels
The Walking Line Vault
10 lessons · 1 hr 41 min of video · 9 downloads · $47 as a collection
  1. 1Ron Carter: The Intrepid FoxUpright · 17-minute video · 1 downloadRon Carter's opening line on The Intrepid Fox, and the playbook behind every two-bar phrase he plays. Once you know it, you'll hear it everywhere.See this lesson
  2. 2Israel Crosby: Cheek to CheekUpright · 13-minute video · 1 downloadThe heavyweight champion of jazz bass lines, on Ahmad Jamal's Cheek to Cheek. How to sound melodic without leaning on chromatic notes.See this lesson
  3. 3Paul Chambers: Bye Bye Blackbird, the Walking LineUpright · 8-minute video · 1 downloadPaul Chambers was the melodic, rhythmic and harmonic engine of Miles's band. His walking on the bridge of Bye Bye Blackbird shows you how.See this lesson
  4. 4Ray Brown: Long Ago and Far AwayUpright · 8-minute video · 1 downloadA bass line so simple you'd think you could have written it. Then you try to play that clearly and find out how hard it is.See this lesson
  5. 5Peter Washington: Giant Steps, the Video BreakdownUpright · 13-minute video · video onlyMaybe the best Giant Steps bass line I've ever heard, and it's built from almost nothing but 1-3-5-7. A 13-minute breakdown.See this lesson
  6. 6Paul Chambers: Bye Bye Blackbird, the Funky 2-FeelUpright · 7-minute video · 1 downloadPaul Chambers was one of the great masters of the two-beat. On Bye Bye Blackbird he dresses it up with a few rhythms that make a band feel amazing without knowing why.See this lesson
  7. 7Percy Heath: Blue HazeUpright · 10-minute video · 1 downloadPercy Heath doesn't make the swing on Blue Haze. He lets it happen around him. How a simple line gave Miles and Horace Silver room to take risks.See this lesson
  8. 8Ray Brown: Have You Met Miss JonesUpright · 9-minute video · 1 downloadA Ray Brown line swings before you do anything to it. This lesson shows you where that feeling actually lives in the notes.See this lesson
  9. 9Charlie Haden: One Finger SnapUpright · 7-minute video · 1 downloadFour bars of textbook walking to prove he knows the rules, then he ignores every one of them. Charlie Haden with Kenny Barron and Roy Haynes.See this lesson
  10. 10Israel Crosby: But Not for MeUpright · 10-minute video · 1 downloadI consider this the greatest jazz bass line ever played. The whole way I teach walking bass came out of it.See this lesson
Collage of file folders spilling reel-to-reel tape and a vinyl record
The Groove Files
8 lessons · 1 hr 9 min of video · 9 downloads · $37 as a collection
  1. 1Ray Brown: Have You Met Miss Jones, Time vs. FeelUpright · 9-minute video · 1 downloadPut Ray Brown's line on Have You Met Miss Jones next to a tempo map and it moves every single beat. It's also as swinging as it gets. So what does keeping time mean?See this lesson
  2. 2Paul Chambers: Bye Bye Blackbird, Three Fixes for Your 2-FeelUpright · 11-minute video · 1 downloadGreat soloists fall apart on the two-feel. Here's Paul Chambers on Bye Bye Blackbird, and the three things that make a two-feel go somewhere.See this lesson
  3. 3Lennie Tristano: Line Up, with Right-Hand Speed ExercisesUpright · 7-minute video · 2 downloadsSpeed doesn't come from the left hand. The right-hand exercises I use for fast lines, plus Lennie Tristano's Line Up to put them to work.See this lesson
  4. 4Folk on Upright: Nick Drake, Simon & Garfunkel, Cat StevensUpright · 8-minute video · 1 downloadUpright bass on Nick Drake, Simon & Garfunkel and Cat Stevens records. Half swung, half straight, and harder than it sounds.See this lesson
  5. 5Wes Montgomery: Four on SixUpright · 8-minute video · 1 downloadIt sounds simple. It's deceptively hard on upright. Here's how to play it for an hour without your wrist giving out.See this lesson
  6. 6Charlie Haden: Turnaround, and How to Get a Great SoundUpright · 11-minute video · 1 downloadHow I got my sound, and it wasn't by practicing faster. The right hand, the three-player rule, and the Charlie Haden two-feel I learned it from.See this lesson
  7. 7Ron Carter x Black Sheep: The Choice Is YoursUpright · 3-minute video · 1 downloadThe bass line from The Choice Is Yours, the one you heard in car commercials and on sports broadcasts growing up. Where Black Sheep found it, and how to play it (with tab).See this lesson
  8. 8Percy Heath: 2-Feel on Bags' GrooveUpright · 10-minute video · 1 downloadWhat I think is the greatest two-feel of all time. It barely bothers with the root on beat one, and it rhymes.See this lesson
Collage of a vintage microphone, a saxophone, a ticket stub and a cocktail glass
The Bebop Bassist
8 lessons · 1 hr 29 min of video · 10 downloads · $37 as a collection
  1. 1Paul Chambers: Dexterity in Thumb PositionUpright · 13-minute video · 1 downloadPaul Chambers' solo on Dexterity, played up in thumb position with straight bebop phrasing. Yes, it's legal.See this lesson
  2. 2Eddie Gomez: You Must Believe in SpringUpright · 17-minute video · 2 downloadsWhat I consider the greatest upright bass solo of all time, plus the thumb position exercise Eddie Gomez showed me himself.See this lesson
  3. 3Charlie Parker: Billie's BounceUpright · 13-minute video · 1 downloadBebop on upright starts in the right hand. Billie's Bounce, with every left- and right-hand fingering written out.See this lesson
  4. 4Joe Henderson: Inner UrgeUpright · 10-minute video · 1 downloadThe melody to Inner Urge on upright, bridge and all. The bridge goes up into thumb position, and it's easier up there than it is down low.See this lesson
  5. 5Charlie Parker: ConfirmationUpright · 13-minute video · 1 downloadBird's Confirmation on upright: the open strings that make the head playable, and how to turn the melody into your solo.See this lesson
  6. 6Paul Chambers: Bye Bye Blackbird, Bebop in Slow MotionUpright · 6-minute video · 1 downloadOn the bridge of Bye Bye Blackbird, Paul Chambers plays F major 7 without playing a single F. Speed it up and you'll hear why.See this lesson
  7. 7Chet Baker: But Not for Me SoloUpright · 10-minute video · 2 downloadsChet Baker's solo on But Not for Me, the one I use to show what melodic really means. It isn't pretty notes. It's something you can copy.See this lesson
  8. 8Chick Corea: SpainUpright · 8-minute video · 1 downloadSpain is a fingering puzzle on upright. There's exactly one open string to save you, and one rule that gets you through every hard tune.See this lesson
Collage of a melting psychedelic record over an electric bass neck
The Bass Brain Melters
12 lessons · 2 hr 25 min of video · 11 downloads · $37 as a collection
  1. 1Jaco Pastorius: Night PassageElectric · 6-minute video · 1 downloadJaco walks and grooves at the same time on Night Passage. It sounds impossible. Most of it sits right under your hand in one spot on the neck.See this lesson
  2. 2Clifford Brown: Joy Spring SoloUpright · 4-minute video · 1 downloadClifford Brown's solo on Joy Spring, made a little more playable for bass, with fingerings. The bass line's in there too.See this lesson
  3. 3John Coltrane: Giant Steps Solo (with Tab)Electric · 1-minute video · 1 downloadColtrane's Giant Steps solo, written out for bass with tab. Watch it played on electric with the notation scrolling, then take the PDF to the woodshed.See this lesson
  4. 4Rhythm Changes in All 12 Keys at 400 BPMUpright · 24-minute video · 1 downloadRhythm changes in all 12 keys at 400 beats per minute, five choruses each. Plus a written-out bass line in every key, one page per key.See this lesson
  5. 5Sonny Rollins: Strode Rode on BassUpright · 1-minute video · 1 downloadSonny Rollins' Strode Rode, written out for bass. Watch it played on upright with the music scrolling, then take the score to the woodshed.See this lesson
  6. 6Israel Crosby: PoincianaUpright · 20-minute video · 1 downloadIsrael Crosby on Ahmad Jamal's Poinciana, 1958. The complete transcription, and how he changes the line every chorus without losing the groove.See this lesson
  7. 7Charlie Parker: Ko-Ko on BassUpright · 1-minute video · 1 downloadBird's Ko-Ko, written out for bass. Watch it played on upright at tempo, then take the score to the woodshed.See this lesson
  8. 8Cole Davis: Across the Footbridge, Chords on BassUpright · 16-minute video · video onlyMy own solo bass piece and the chord shapes behind it. Think like a guitar player and the bass makes sounds you didn't know it had.See this lesson
  9. 9Jaco Pastorius: Havona, Transcribed in Real TimeUpright · 47-minute video · 1 downloadWatch me transcribe Jaco's solo on Havona from scratch, in real time, on upright. The whole process, mistakes and all, plus the finished transcription.See this lesson
  10. 10Jaco Pastorius: Teen Town on UprightUpright · 5-minute video · 1 downloadJaco's Teen Town on upright, at the speed of the record. Two things make it possible, and neither one is practicing harder.See this lesson
  11. 11Jimmie Blanton: Jack the BearUpright · 9-minute video · 1 downloadEllington wrote Jack the Bear for Jimmie Blanton. Here's how to play his part in tune and swinging, with every fingering and string written in.See this lesson
  12. 12Stevie Wonder: LatelyUpright · 12-minute video · 1 downloadThe upright bass on Lately isn't an upright bass. It's a synth. Here's how to play that line on a real one.See this lesson
Who It's For

Built for the bassist who wants the whole shelf.

✓This is for you if…

  • You want the vocabulary of the great jazz bassists on your shelf, not a few lines at a time.
  • You'd rather own it outright than subscribe.
  • You play upright. 45 of the 47 are taught on upright, and two are on electric.

×It's not for you if…

  • You're a total beginner still finding the notes.
The Price

The whole library: $147. You keep $323.

One payment. Yours to keep. It opens in your Better Bass Lessons member portal the moment you check out.

47 video lessons8 hr 32 min
Downloads52
One at a time (47 × $10)$470
As five collections$205
The whole library$147

You keep $323

Get all 47 for $147

One payment · Yours to keep · Opens in your member portal

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The notes were never the hard part.

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FAQ

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Every line in the library.
Yours to keep.

All 47 transcription lessons and all five collections: Paul Chambers, Ray Brown, Israel Crosby, Ron Carter, Charlie Haden, Jaco and Bird, taken apart note for note.

$470 one at a time · $147 for all 47
8 hr 32 min of video · 52 downloads · Yours to keep

Get all 47 for $147
The Offer

Here's everything you get.

All 47 Transcriptions: The Whole Library
47 video lessons from Cole, 8 hr 32 min in all
52 downloads
Opens in your Better Bass Lessons member portal the moment you check out
One at a time$470
Today$147

One payment · Yours to keep · You keep $323

Get all 47 for $147