Steve Bailey's Rock Bass: Bass Guitar Book & CD

Bailey cuts through the noise with exercises that serve real musical purposes. The pairing of studio and live-playing applications means students aren't just building chops in isolation; they're learning technique that translates directly to the kinds of playing they actually care about. The "Lick of the Week" sections anchor the technical work to genuine musical ideas.

Serious, straightforward, and immediately useful. Bailey's approach respects your intelligence as a musician and your ambition as a player. The exercises feel purposeful rather than academic, designed by someone who has spent countless hours in both recording studios and live venues and knows exactly what technique matters most.

Rock bassists at any level who need systematic technical development beyond simple song charts. Whether you're preparing for studio sessions, gigging regularly, or building foundational chops, this book provides the targeted work needed to close technical gaps and expand your vocabulary. If your bass practice has been mostly about learning songs, this introduces the kind of deliberate technical training that accelerates your growth.

• Work through the hand dexterity exercises slowly at first. Your goal is accuracy and control before speed; the tempo will naturally increase as your fingers find their efficiency.
• Use the accompanying CD to hear how each lick and exercise sounds when played at performance tempo. Let your ear calibrate the sound you're aiming for, not just the mechanics.
• Tackle the "Finger Buster" and "Hazard" exercises as genuine workouts, not quick drills. Spend focused time on these rather than racing through them once.
• Apply the bass-line construction principles from the book by analyzing recordings you love. Reverse-engineer a favorite line using the tools Bailey teaches, then adapt the approach to your own compositions.

Assign sections of this book as supplementary technique work alongside whatever songs or projects your students are learning. The modular structure lets you pull specific exercises to address individual technical needs. For ensemble contexts, use the bass-line construction sections to deepen how your bass player understands the harmonic and rhythmic role they're filling in group arrangements.

• Hand dexterity and finger independence across varied technical patterns
• Bass-line construction including note selection and harmonic awareness
• Double-stops and chord voicings on bass
• Translating exercises into musical licks and idiomatic phrases
• Technical foundations for both studio recording and live performance contexts