Do you want to learn how to play funky beats using the bass guitar, but you don't know how? In this article we will talk about the basics, everything you need to know about the bass guitar. This article is perfect for complete beginners because we will talk about the parts of the bass guitar, some playing tips and the lessons that you need to study first before you study advanced bass playing techniques. I will also give you some quick information about bass guitar's history. As a beginner you need to know and study these things first. Anyway, enough chit chat, let's start our little tour about the bass guitar.

Electric Bass – was derived from the double bass or the bass violin. Just like the electric guitar it has metallic strings and it produces sound by the vibration of the strings to the pick-ups to send sound signals to the amplifier. Unlike the electric guitar, bass guitar has 4 (to 6) thick strings, thicker than the electric guitar strings. The bass' distance between each fret is wider than the guitar. It may have 4 strings, but if you want to create catchy and groovy beats then it will take you months or even years to master it. Don't worry bass is a lot easier than guitar, for me.

Did you know that the first electric bass was invented by Paul Tutmarc in 1930? The size is about 30 ½ inches scale which made the instrument easier to carry and use.

Parts of Bass Guitar:

1. Body – This is the largest part of the bass and it contains the bridge (which holds the strings), pick-ups (black rectangular blocks under the string), strap pins (where you will put your strap), jack socket (where you will plug in the cable) and volume/tune knobs (where you can adjust the tone and volume).
2. Neck – The longest part of the bass. It connects the body and the head. Neck contains the strings and the fret or your indicators.
3. Head or Headstock - This contains tuning pegs or heads where you will adjust to tone the strings properly.

Tuning the guitar by ear is quite hard, since you are still a beginner you can use a bass guitar tuner (you can buy one from the music store and most bass guitar package include this). It will make tuning easier and faster for you, but if you want to tune it by ear you need to practice your ears with the tones first by practicing the scales.

For beginners, you are required to study the basics of bass playing such as fretting and picking. You need to master these simple steps first before you proceed to the advanced level. You need to get your fingers used to the position and neck. If you will practice regularly you will master it in no time.

After that, you can try playing simple bass lines first. When you are confident enough, then it is time for you to move to the next level which is the note reading or music theory.