Playing slides on bass is one of the first techniques you should learn. While they’re pretty easy, slides add a whole new sound and feel to your playing.
Slides can be played on any string and any fret. They’re a great way to transition smoothly from note to note, and you should hear every fret in-between your starting and landing note as you slide. The note should ring out clearly and fluently the entire way through.
Whether or not you pick the landing note will depend on the riff or lick you’re playing, most of the time, you will not pick the landing note. Your original pick should be loud enough that the entire slide rings out clearly. When you stop sliding, the landing note should sustain a bit, it should not die out instantly.
When learning slides, you can start on any fret and any string, but the easiest slides to learn are usually on the G string, just because of the string’s thickness. Start with a smaller slide, two or three frets, and extend it from there.
Slides can be used for more than just transitioning from note to note. A lot of famous bassists slide in and out of licks. To slide into a note, basically start from any random fret, picking the string as you fret the note and slide up (or down) to your landing note. You don’t want the landing note to sound out too clearly, just slide in from nowhere in particular. You can also slide out by picking your starting note, and slide down (or up) the fretboard, releasing your finger from the fretboard after a few frets.
Tips & Tricks
Here are some tips and tricks to make learning to play slides as easy as possible:
- Keep pressure on the string as you slide to avoid buzz or losing the note.
- You don’t want to have to pick the landing note, your original pick should be hard enough that the note will continue to smoothly ring out as you slide.
- If you’re losing the notes, try starting on a shorter distance (two or three frets) and make sure your finger isn’t letting pressure off the string.
- Make sure you’re fretting properly, if your starting note isn’t sounding out clearly, there’s no way the slide will!
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