In this lesson we’ll be looking at the main bass riff from the song Let’s Get It Started by The Black Eyed Peas. We look at the riff and then break it down so you can try applying chord tones in your own bass lines.
Let’s Get It Started
This great little riff is based on scalar patterns around the chords of B minor, D major, G, and F#. If you already know your chord construction you can actually work out the bassline just by outlining the chords on your instrument by arpeggiating them. If you’re not at all familiar with chords, start by simply playing the root notes so you get a feel for where you’ll be playing on the neck.
If you aren’t familiar with the arpeggio shapes for the chords in question, here they are in both notation and tab.
It’s worth nothing that to get the feel of the original recording you should play the notes staccato so that each note is abrupt and doesn’t flow into the next.
As a beginner, it’s really eye opening to see what initially sounds like a complicated riff be broken down like
this, into simple interval relationships – makes it a lot less intimidating and a lot easier to learn.