What's Happening Brother - Marvin Gaye - James Jamerson bass line (w/ transcription & tab)

[moongoon817]

ok last one promise. listen to end of our road by gladys. he decided to strictly play off the double kick. the whole song! he restricted himself to that box and rarely deviated except for transitional notes and a little ear candy. that was the B side to grapevine which is another masterpiece where he introduced pausing in the middle of a phrase. ie "it took me by surprise" anyway,with james,you gotta copy his thoughts then incorporate them. he is the all time master of the bass. learn from him.

[moongoon817]

ps. you can incorporate james into any type of music by thinking how he thinks. he thinks in full phrases,not note for note. before he starts the next measure he knows how he will play it. if it's a melodic tune he thinks wide. funk tunes like cant get next to you he puts himself into a box and does everything that can be done in that box.he's the king of the bottom on that song. verse 2-i can turn a river-james plays 2 then 3 then 4 same note licks.insane! thinking ahead is how thats done

[moongoon817]

good job! and thats coming from a true jamerson-ologist. whats happening brother was the slick finger poppin spin off of WGO and in my top 3 all time jj cuts. jamerson formed my musical dna and it takes a great musical mind to even process him and you got the core of what he did on that track. the trick to getting J is in the ear not the finger. if you can mouth him rite then you get really close. who can touch J? nobody! all you can do is have fun with his music. next time nail it note4note

[praxkan]

Thank you so much for the transcribe ! Saved me hours of work...please check out my cover

[arnaud360]

Wow, this is more than awesome man! Keep up the good work, it's inspiring! :-)

[ellioteaston93]

the 0 dislikes should remain till the end

[tristar848]

fabulous thank's !!

[superfunkyheroe]

Good Job...The Important Thing is You Used The One Finger (The Hook)....Jamerson Set The Bar for Us BASS PLAYERS!

[46az46]

Wow Man!! "The Hook" is alive! Amazing job!

[muzicman20]

i dig!!!



[Sal1675]

Dear Tim,

Thank you for bringing life back into this almighty and most under-rated song and Jamerson's playing. The dude was magnificent as you are for getting this as close to the original as possible

[briank46]

NOW THAT IS A BAD ASS BASS PLAYER!!!

[razor1964]

Don't know if anyone knows this story but James Jameson the original bass player to this song did this recording drunk, in the studio, lying on his back so he wouldn't fall !!! An incredible bass player he was!

Check this video out starting at 1:53

youtube.com/watch?v=YbEWU4jVfc­c&feature=fvwrel

[ArendPaulCurrie]

Thanks for the transcription; I've been wanting to learn this tune for a while. It takes a long time to pick out the line when trying to learn this song by ear.

[POBox1999]

Nice work bro. You've even got the Jamerson 'hook' going on. 

[Skavyslide]

Ahh, sigh, great indeed. Long live JJ

[jaiyoo74]

I hate you!!! You laid all the ghost notes, index hooked it & everything! Just fabulous!!!

[b7160]

Very nice... my favorite work of Jamerson's is on Save the Children/God Is Love. Would love to see you do that one.

[Fjord76]

Perfection :)

Thank you sp much for the post and the transcription man

Peace out.

[SlikkTim]

I thinking of doing a rendition of that song wich has my fave ever Jamerson playin', but you nailed it so hard man... badass all the way. Care for me to use your transcription?

[TheCsue7782]

Love the song..just sad some things have not changed..also like bass player

James Jamerson*

[TheCsue7782]

Love the song..sad some things don't change..like bass player Jamerson*

[jeditwinz]

Awesome. Subscribed

[kidfromzon]

Beautiful. Well done my man. Many Thanks.

[basslabd]

Very nicely done! How did you learn the part (or are you sight-reading)? More important to me is not that you hit every note that Jamerson did (because you did miss or change some phrases) but the feel is genuine. Keep up the good work!

[timometzemakers]

Hey Bob, thanks for your kind words! I'm sight-reading the part, because I'm incapable of remembering every single note Jamerson played on that song... Yes, there are a few clams (darn fingers!), and there are also a few differences between your transcription and mine. I guess that we'd have to get access to Jamerson's isolated bass track in order to know for sure what really went down.

Thanks again for listening!

[metzemakers031271]

He Timo,

I accidently stumbled on your video. Cool music. Are you ever going to perform in Amsterdam?

Take care

[Peacefrog35]

PERFECT!!!!

[JC10255]

Great playing... I enjoy your videos! Post more!

[djstachniak]

Outstanding!!! You really nailed this! It's such an under-appreciated song, too. Who are some of your other influences? Have you ever tackled The Lemon Song by Zep? John Paul Jones bassline in that song is SICK! Give it whirl and post a video. You've obviously put your time in at the edge of your bed so I'm sure you can nail that one too.

[blindspotlighting]

I can't stop watching this... It's just unbelievable.

[afrosensuous]

Hey Tim, I listened to you again. That sick lick at :50 is nice and you hit it perfectly. Hopefully other people who hear this will have a newfound respect for guys like you, showing that you have quality skills, along with good taste.

[revengeofthescalp]

Good man. I'm a southpaw but play right handed, cheaper! Been working hard on your transcription but not up to your elegant levels of nonchalance yet, will persist.

[revengeofthescalp]

Incredible. Transcription is great and kudos for the one finger picking as well! You a left hooker or have you reversed the image?

[timometzemakers]

Thanks man, I'm really a lefty.

[afrosensuous]

Hey Tim....I damn near cried when I heard this. This song doesn't get the hype like the other songs. For you to hit every freakin lick James did.....coming from Los Angeles, California...as a bassist and Motown fiend....I THANK YOU, MY BROTHA!!!

[timometzemakers]

Wow! Thanks, man!

[mothersborsch]

thank you!

[Wefunkyou]

Bonjour Tim, je n'avais pas vu que tu étais français. Félicitations pour ton jeu et ton approche de la basse électrique. Je voudrais te suggérer de reprendre la ligne de "I Want You" de Marvin Gaye, que je suppose jouée par Wilton Felder. Elle est simple, aérienne.

[priesty78]

Awesome rendition of an awesome bassline, hats off to you!!

[bacciafiore]

this is just great. this bassline is the best ever, so many interesting things happening here, each making me smile. great job too!!

[jamersonshook]

Wonderful! 50 stars.

[timometzemakers]

Thanks, man! Coming from you, the compliment is especially appreciated!

[aaduntov]

Wow....I have been in awe of this song for years. Can't believe how well you nailed it, not to mention the transcription. Seriously impressive.

[LetTheRainCome]

wow thanks so much, i've been searchin for this transcription for awhile! I learned about a minute of it by ear a few months ago but didn't stick with it long enough. This will definitely save me sometime. Good playing as well man!

[Wefunkyou]

Thanks mate, I'm now in love with heavy gauge La Bella flats! ;-)

[Wefunkyou]

Very nice playing! I'm using Thomastik flats on my P, they have some great Mojo but too light to my taste. I'm thinking about getting those Jamerson flats, but won't it twist my neck??

[timometzemakers]

You'll definitely have to tighten your truss rod, but apart from that you should be OK. The Jamerson flats are fantastic strings; I have them on my P and on my J and there are no problems. By the way, you don't have to use high action like the man himself. In fact, since the string tension is so high, you can have a low setup that's very comfortable without fret noise.

[Wefunkyou]

Thanks, I think I'm ready to switch now! I think the TI's are excellent strings but they lack that huge bassy thump.

[howdykeith]

Excellent! I have only found brief video clips that show Jamerson using his 1 fingered "hook" technique. How in the world did you get so fast using just 1 finger? I can play with 1 finger, but not as fast as you (or James Jamerson). Very impressive.

[timometzemakers]

Thanks, man! I'm a double bass player first and foremost, and I like to use one finger on DB whenever possible for consistency and power. I guess I just transferred the technique to the electric bass.  The biggest problem is when there are several 16th notes on the same string. I try to play with a light touch, and keep my finger close to the string, and the rest is just practice. I'm still working on it myself; there's a lot of room for improvement ! ;-)

[amimbari]

very good dude!!

from amimbari on TB

way to go fellow lefty :)