Do You Know The Best Way To Become A Better Bass Player?

Here's a hint: the answer is NOT to learn every mode of the major, melodic minor and harmonic minor scales in one, two and three octave combinations. The only thing that kind of "learning" will teach you is to play scales.

Instead what bass players who want to get better should do is learn songs. And real world bass lines.

And not just any songs...if you really want to get better at the bass guitar then you can do a lot worse than learn a series of songs that get sequentially harder. Not only do you start acquiring a repertoire of songs that you can actually use at jams, rehearsals and gigs - but you also get exposed to the kinds of technical challenges that you're actually going to face in the real world.

The absolute best way to do this is to take lessons with a good private teacher. Sadly, good private teachers are few and far between.

And for sure there are a gazillion tabs and tab sites out there on the old Interwebz....but (a) often the tabs you can find on the Interwebz are inaccurate and (b) have you ever tried learning a line from tab where the line has some rhythmic variety? It's next to impossible!

In the absence of a teacher, the best way to learn songs is via a combination of accurate notation (and tab) plus video instruction. And back when I started How To Play Bass Dot Com the beginner and intermediate player had no resource like that.

That's why I started First Bass And Beyond.

So What Is First Bass And Beyond?

First Bass And Beyond is a weekly publication that is a unique combination of PDF and Video content. First Bass And Beyond is all about teaching song, song tutorials, and instruction on bass topics that is always placed within the context of songs or real world chord progressions.

Each week there is a detailed song tutorial aimed at beginner/intermediate players.

Learning songs in a structured manner is a great way to improve your skills....so I created a 30 Lesson course for Beginners that was a featured column in the magazine. All Subscribers get access to the full course - and I've just started the follow up, another 30 Lesson course called Blues Bass For Beginners.

Personally I think you'd have value for money if you got just these courses.

But there's much more.

So What Exactly Is In First Bass And Beyond?

Each weekly issue contains the following:

a bass line transcription in notation and bass tab (songs have ranged from Stone Temple Pilots to Allman Brothers Band to John Mayer Trio to Rush to Earth Wind And Fire to James Jamerson)
a 'beginners corner' transcription in notation and tab. This is usually a transcription that's either suited to beginners or those looking to move on from being a beginner. Every video that you see on the How To Play Bass website is attached to a beginners corner, so you should already have a good idea of the range of content. Subscribers get the option to download a high definition version of each video too - and those videos contain extra content that you won't see on YouTube.
2 tutorial columns. Previous columns have included How To Sight Read, How To Transcribe, How To Analyze Bass Lines, Deliberate Composition, Doing The 'Rocco' Shuffle and more. Currently we've just started a 30 Week Column called Blues Bass For Beginners and a new column by guest contributor Gordon Clayton called Bass In The 2 Tone Zone (this is a combination of a bunch of Gordon's Ska songs, and his experience having to sub for a Ska band).
a detailed book or DVD or app review. Each week I review something of interest to bass players....and I don't pull any punches either. If I think something sucks, I'll tell you why I think it sucks and I'll tell you what the Author could have done so it didn't suck. And if I think something should be on your wish list, I'll tell you that too!

There's still more though.

You'll Also Get This...

30 Lesson Bass For Beginners Course. This is a course I created covering basic left and right hand exercises, learning the notes of the fretboard, basic rhythm training, a bunch of articles on good practice habits and of course a bunch of song tutorials. The Bass for Beginners Course contains downloadable PDFs plus is in a 'web page plus embedded video format' as well. It sells separately on the HTPB website for $97.
Access to the 'free monthly ezine' archive. So far I've created about 20 song tutorials for the free monthly ezine....the only place they can be found in one location is in the membership site of First Bass And Beyond. Plus there will be some PDFs only of bass lines going into that archive later this year. (Value - $49)
Analyzing Bass Lines PDF. Analyzing Bass Lines was originally a column in First Bass And Beyond. It's now been compiled into a separate eBook and that's one of the bonuses for joining First Bass And Beyond. (Value - $15).
5 Complimentary Back Issues (value $12.50). Your subscription is for the next 50 issues of First Bass And Beyond. We're currently at Issue 142 - so there's a lot of material in the archives. You can purchase back issues at $2.50 each....but you get 5 issues of your choice as a bonus/thank you for joining!

THE $1,000,000 QUESTION: SO HOW MUCH DOES THE ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION TO FIRST BASS AND BEYOND COST?

Package	Standard Membership	Premium Membership
50 Magazines delivered weekly in PDF format
Each magazine contains a transcribed bass line in music notation, and in notation with bass tab
Each magazine contains a simpler bass line with a video lesson on Youtube
Weekly tutorial columns and a detailed book or DVD review
	PREMIUM VERSION ONLY!
High Definition versions of each new YouTube lesson to download with extra content (value $10 each)
Access to the back issues of the 'free monthly' ezine. (value $47)
30 Lesson Bass For Beginners Course (value $97)
PDF - How To Analyze Bass Lines (value $15)
5 Complimentary Back Issues (Value $30.00)
Purchasing access to the back issues archive
Annual Subscription Price	$147	$157
Note: All prices are in US dollars
NEW! Quarterly Subscription	-	$49 per quarter

FOR THE ANNUAL SUBSCRIPTION, CLICK THIS BUTTON!

FOR THE QUARTERLY SUBSCRIPTION, CLICK THIS BUTTON!

If you wish to join as a Standard Member, please email me.

So Who Should Join First Bass And Beyond?

If you're a beginner or intermediate player, First Bass And Beyond is for you. If the 'only' benefit you got from First Bass And Beyond was the 30 lesson Bass For Beginners course, and the follow on 30 Lesson Blues Bass For Beginners...that's plenty of bang for your buck.

Think what 60 lessons with a private instructor would cost....plus the travel time/opportunity cost of getting to the instructor. And you can take these lessons to suit your schedule. Whenever you're ready for a lesson, simply head over to the First Bass And Beyond website and sign in!

But you'll find value in some of the other content too. The weekly cost of the subscription works out to around $3.00 - if you were having regular lessons you'd probably spend more than that on gas or train fare.

(A Note For More Advanced Players)

First Bass And Beyond is aimed squarely at beginners and low level intermediates. But that doesn't mean there's no value in it for players with higher abilities. I have a couple of subscribers who've been to Berklee and use First Bass And Beyond for the main transcriptions and some of the columns. But I have to be honest...if you're at this level you should probably email me before subscribing!

I want you to be happy with your subscription to First Bass And Beyond - and I'm so confident you will be that I offer an unconditional 30 day guarantee. If for any reason you're not happy with First Bass And Beyond then simply drop me an email letting me know and I'll give you a full and immediate refund - no hoops to jump through and no hassles before you get your money returned.

"1. I don't read music...I'm worried that I won't be able to access the information"

All the music examples are presented in notation AND tab, so non readers can access the infomation. Additionally there is video content for the completed Bass For Beginners Course and the ongoing weekly "beginners corners" column, and for the Blues For Bass Beginners column.

"2. I'm really interested...but the one off payment is an issue, is there anything you can do?"

The answer to that question used to be no...but things have been shitty for a while out there and I know what it's like to be out there playing restaurant gigs for pocket change and a pizza. So I'm trialling something....instead of the one-off payment of $157 there's also a option to pay quarterly payments of $47. And yep, I know that adds up to more than $157 over the course of a year, but there's extra admin work for me involved in running this plan.

"3. I 'm only a beginner on the bass - I'm concerned that a lot of the material will be above my level."

Firstly, some of the material WILL be above your level. But there is a detailed 30 Module course specifically created for beginners....by the end of that course you should have made significant progress and understand a lot more. And you can always go back to earlier material from a more advanced position.

"4. First Bass And Beyond sounds great....what do I do if I'm still not sure?"

If there is a specific area of concern, then use the Contact form and email me. I'll get back to you as soon as I can with an honest answer. Here's the thing - if I don't think First Bass And Beyond is for you, I'll tell you. Don't forget that you're covered by my No Hoops No Hassles No Questions 30 Day Guarantee.

Abso-freaking-lutely. Use the Contact form and let me know that you're interested and I'll send you a random copy that's been published recently.

If you've seen the list of videos that are on the Index Of Video Tutorials then you'll have a pretty good idea what I cover - stuff like classic rock, classic R&B, a bit of reggae, some pop-rock, some pop and even some jazzy tinged tunes. The main areas of music that I DON'T cover are jazz, country and gospel. If your heart is really set on learning in those musical areas then First Bass & Beyond is probably not for you.

Format: The videos are in M4V format - so they'll play in the majority of media players. My recommendation is that you play them in either Quicktime or iTunes - both programs are available on Mac and PCs. Because the videos are in M4V format you can also transfer them to video compatible iPods or iPhones. The PDF files can be read (and printed out) with whatever PDF Reader you use - if you don't have one, Adobe has a free downloadable reader available. The MP3 files can be loaded onto any MP3 player - or burnt to CD.

Delivery: All the course components are downloadable. The magazine component of First Bass And Beyond is published every Friday at 5.00 PM GMT, 12.00 PM EST. The high definition videos are usually uploaded a few days after the corresponding issue of First Bass And Beyond is published. You are notified of all updates via email.

Payment Methods: All payments are via PayPal. If you don't have a PayPal account they are extremely easy to set up and use - or you can pay securely by credit card.

Currency: All payments are in US Dollars. Paypal will convert the USD amount to your own currency when you get your credit card statement. In some cases, depending on where you're from, you may be able to see the conversion rate in your own currency before you pay (this feature is not available for all currencies though).

Compatibility: All M4V files, MP3 files and PDF files are compatible for both Macs and PCs. If you have any issues, don't hesitate to email me and I'll help you sort them out.

Support: If you're having trouble downloading the different parts of each lesson, or finding software to open it, all you need to do is email me. I'll get back to you with answers and help as soon as possible.

If you have any concerns please use the contact form and email me. In a recent email with one of my subscribers - a guy called Nigel - he wrote the following: "As a beginner with no access to an instructor, I'm so glad I found First Bass And Beyond - previously I'd found a course by (name witheld) which almost put me off the whole idea, in fact I did give up for a while."

Or how about this from Todd: "the videos are a HUGE help. It's one thing to look at a tab. It's another to have you walk me through it section by section - with the video I ALWAYS get it."

No-one else on the Interwebz caters for the Beginner and Intermediate player the way I do - I'm confident that you'll be as happy as Nigel or Todd are when you join First Bass And Beyond.

PS if you're a beginner or intermediate bass player, this is the ONLY magazine that caters for you. There's PDF and Video tuition, song tutorials, and loads more. There's lots of bang for your buck built in - and remember you're covered by my No Hoops No Hassles No Questiosn 30 Day Guarantee.