Bass work

Name: The Beatles Tag Database
License: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/

values

212

total uses

14 of the 21 Beatle-written songs carrying the 'Melodic bass' tag are Paul McCartney's, more than any other Beatle (John Lennon has 7).

Values Over Time

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#	Value	Songs	% of total
1	Stepwise bass line Three or more consecutive chords where the bass note moves by step (semitone or whole tone). Creates smooth, Bach-style voice leading.	94	44.3%
2	Chromatic bass line Three or more consecutive bass notes moving by semitone in the same direction, often using slash chords to create a smooth descending or ascending line.	35	16.5%
3	Descending bass A bass line that walks downward through scale tones.	27	12.7%
4	Melodic bass The bass guitar carries a distinct melodic line that functions independently of the harmony	21	9.9%
5	No bass guitar No bass guitar on the recording. A bass line may still be there, played by a cello, a piano left hand or a guitar's low strings.	18	8.5%
6	Bass ignores harmony The bass plays independently of the prevailing chord, creating deliberate harmonic tension	6	2.8%
7	Walking bass A bass line that moves in steady quarter-notes through chord tones and passing notes.	4	1.9%
8	Ascending bass A bass line that walks upward through scale tones.	3	1.4%
9	High bass notes Paul McCartney plays unusually high register bass passages, sometimes in the guitar's territory	3	1.4%
10	Bass intro The record opens on bass alone, before any other instrument or voice enters.	1	0.5%