Walking Bass Lines for Jazz Standards

Changes, notation, tab and a play-along for the tunes that actually get called at jam sessions. Every line is one chorus you can read, loop and slow down. Then turn the bass off and walk it yourself with the piano and drums.

Pick a tune

BBL-S01Autumn LeavesG minor · AABC, 32 barsMajor and minor ii-Vs in one key signature: Cm7-F7-Bbmaj7 is a ii-V-I in B-flat major, and Am7b5-D7-Gm7 is a ii-V-i in G minor, its relative minor. Apart from the chromatic run near the end, the tune stays in those two keys.Open the line →BBL-S02All the Things You AreA-flat major · AABA, 36 bars (8+8+8+12)Five key centers in 36 bars: Ab, C, Eb, G and E. The first A lands in C, the second in G and the bridge in E, so you've got to know where each ii-V is headed, not just what the next chord is.Open the line →BBL-S03Billie's BounceF blues · 12-bar blues, 12 barsThe quick change: bar 2 moves to Bb7, the IV chord, and bar 3 goes right back to F7, so the root moves F, Bb, F across the first three bars.Open the line →

How these lines are built

Chord tones on the strong beats. Beat 1 of every chord, and beat 3 when a chord lasts a whole bar, lands on the root, 3rd, 5th or 7th, so the harmony is always clear.
"Wrong" notes on 2 and 4. Passing and chromatic notes live on the weak beats, where they pull the line forward instead of fighting the chord.
Chords are approached by a half step or a whole step. That's what makes the next chord sound like it arrives instead of appearing.
Never the same note twice in a row. It's the fastest way to make a walking line sound stiff.

Practice tools that go with them

Walking Line Builder: type any changes and get a line to study.
Click Trainer: a metronome that clicks on 2 and 4, the way jazz drummers feel it.
Guide Tones: the 3rds and 7ths that make ii-V-Is sound right.

Your next step

These pages give you lines to study. These courses teach you to build your own, on the bass you play.

Walking Basslines on Upright Bass from the Beginning

Cole Davis

Five lessons from “my walking lines don't sound like the records” to professional-grade walking.

The chord first: the 1-3-5-7, where every great bass line starts.
The master move: changing the order of the notes, bar by bar, on an F blues.
The three questions every bass line has to pass, then the whole method on Autumn Leaves.

Get the course · $97 →$97 · One-time · 7-day money-back

The 7-Day Walking Bass Breakthrough

Cole Davis

Walk through any jazz tune with lines that move, swing, and never repeat themselves.

Walk through any ii-V-I, major or minor.
Solve the two-bar problem on static modal tunes.
Never repeat yourself two bars in a row.

Get the course · $37 →$37 · One-time · 30-day money-back

Not sure which course fits? Answer a few questions and we'll point you to one.