Bass Line: “Can the Circle Be Unbroken?”

Only take this lesson if you're learning "Can the Circle Be Unbroken?"

Also, there's new stuff in the Jam Track Player and Downloads tabs.

Here are your first jam tracks

Jam tracks make practice more fun, and you learn valuable skills you don't learn by playing solo. From now on, every lesson teaching you how to play the song you chose will have jam track players here. At the top, I'll usually give you a couple I recommend for that particular lesson. And below those, you can find all the jam tracks available for that song.

Why so many tracks?

It's easier to play along with a track that features a guitar doing the same thing you're doing. And it's also easier to play slow, obviously. So for this lesson, I recommend you start with "Bass Line Quarter Notes (Slow)" track, which means one of the instruments is a guitar playing the same bass line you're playing, with its volume cranked up louder than the other instruments. Once you get good at the slow version of a track, crank up the difficulty and play with the "Full Speed" version. And for the greatest challenge (and greatest rewards), play along with a "Main Jam Track". On those tracks, you'll be the only one playing your part, like in a real band.

Recommended Tracks

All Slow Tracks

All Full-Speed Tracks

Here’s the bass line to Can the Circle Be Unbroken. Learning the bass line will teach you when the chords in the song change, without being distracted by complicated guitar parts. This is what it’s going to sound like. I’ll just play the first verse.

Feel free to print the PDF file of the chord chart linked to on this page, or bring it up on your screen next to this video, or just follow along with the tablature in the video. Like the two other songs I teach in this course, there are just three notes in the bass line of this song, and they’re all on the 6th string. Let’s find them first. The first note is on the 5th fret, 6th string. This is an “A” note. Play that along with me, make sure it sounds like mine. Next is a “D” note, which is on the 10th fret, 6th string. And finally, the “E” note is the open 6th string.

The song starts with an intro, or introduction, of four measures of A. So grab that 5th fret, and play along with me, playing quarter notes. Then we launch into the first verse, starting with...four more measures of A. Next is two measures of D, so slide up to the 10th fret, and play along with me. Now you slide back down to A for two measures. We’re halfway done with the chord progression. Next we have four more measures of A, then two measures of E, which is open, but wait, you’re going to be playing A again in a second, so don’t let that fretting hand wander off, just let your finger hover over the 5th fret as you play E, now return to A for two measures.

The whole song follows this pattern: A for 4 measures, D for 2, A for 2; A for 4, E for 2, A for 2. A D A, A E A. A D A, A E A.

Try playing the whole pattern with me twice. I’ll call out the count and the changes between notes to help you along.

Now I want you to practice by playing along with the bass line jam track you’ll find on this page, and keep the chord chart in front of you while you do this so that you can get used to following along or at least referring to it if you get lost. Start with the slow jam track, then graduate to the one at full tempo once the slow one’s easy. Full tempo means full speed. You’ll know you’ve practiced enough when you have a good feel for when the notes in the bass line change. Have fun!