Ex. 1 shows a Cmaj7 chord, outlined with important chord tones: B (major 7th), C (root), and E (3rd). This cell lies conveniently in one fingerboard-hand position. Ex. 2 is a melodic cell over a C7 chord. This is the same pattern as the cell in Ex. 1, but with a flatted 7th. Bass players are often confronted with chords with the same root but shifting quality, like major to minor or major to dominant 7. Experiment with going back and forth between the Cmaj7 and C7 sounds. What a difference a half-step makes!

Ex. 3 is a Cm7 cell using all chord tones: G (the 5th), Bb (flatted 7th), Eb (flatted 3rd), and C (root). This group of notes unmistakably spells out the minor-7 chord sound. Ex. 4 describes one of the trickiest sounds for bass players: the half-diminished chord, also called (in this example) Cm7b5, or occasionally Cø7. The half-diminished chord is a minor 7 chord with a flatted 5th. The cell in Ex. 4 over a Cm7b5 shows the C (root), F (the 4th or 11th note of the scale), the Gb (flatted 5th), and Bb (flatted 7th). Although this chord contains an Eb, the flatted 3rd, playing this melodic cell with the Gb and F together spells out the distinctive half-diminished sound. We do not necessarily need the 3rd of the chord in this case to show that it’s half-diminished. Plus, this melodic cell sits better on the fingerboard than the arpeggio.

Ex. 5 is a diminished chord—it is sometimes called “full diminished” to distinguish it from the half-diminished chord. This cell contains the Gb (flatted 5th), Eb (flatted 3rd), C (root), and B (major 7th). In the context of this melodic cell, the major 7th is preferred as it helps to distinguish the diminished chord from the half-diminished chord, which has a flatted 7th. You can also think of this cell as a B major triad (B, D#, F#) over C diminished.

Okay, so now what? You know some slick little licks—melodic cells that outline certain important chord sounds. Here is what you need to do to make these cells part of your musical arsenal: Practice them slowly through all 12 keys. Ex. 6 shows a basic chord progression, moving up chromatically in half-steps. To begin, take Ex. 1 and play the cell through all the 12 keys found in Ex. 6. Pretty easy, huh? Then try Ex. 6 using all of the cells from Examples 1–5.

Now for the fun part: Get a pencil and paper and write out your own chart using all 12 keys, using any particular order or pattern that you like. Do not use any chord suffixes (that is, do not write maj7 or dim7); only write the letter names of the 12 notes of the chromatic scale. Don’t worry too much about getting a good root motion in your exercise chart—you can use typical patterns or no pattern at all. Here is an example of all 12 keys in a random sequence: G, Db, C, B, Eb, Ab, A, F#, E, D, Bb, F.

Play through your sequence using each one of the cells in Examples 1–5. You should play all maj7, m7, 7, m7b5, or dim7 chords—moving the melodic cell to fit the root movement. This exercise helps you learn to look at the root of a chord and nail the melodic cell that describes a particular sound. The hard part is that these cells, with the exception of Ex. 4, do not start on the chord’s root. For example, you have to look at C but start on the Bn when you play the cell over the Cmaj7 chord.

Once you’re comfortable playing the melodic cells over your random root-movement composition, you can assign specific chord types to each root. Ex. 7 demonstrates a random root movement through all 12 keys with a combination of major, minor, dominant, half-diminished, and diminished sounds assigned to the roots. Your goal should be to automatically play the cell that fits the particular chord. 

Learn these easy melodic cells and you will be able to play over any of the five basic chord sounds. Invent your own cells! Keep your ideas simple, and take care to define the quality of the chord. Most important: Look for ideas that are easy to finger in one position on the bass.

John Goldsby
Read more about navigating chord progressions in John Goldsby’s The Jazz Bass Book [Backbeat Books], the definitive guide to jazz bass players and their techniques. Also check out John’s trio CD with Peter Erskine and Bill Dobbins, Cologne [www.goldsby.de]. E-mail John at john@goldsby.de.