“When I start learning a new song and want to master its tabs, I don’t pick up the guitar right away. First, I listen to the song while going through the tabs. This helps me understand the flow, get a feel for the different neck positions, and sets me up much better before actually learning to play it.
Guitar Pro is the best tool for working with Tabs – Super easy, comfortable and clear. I’ve been working with Guitar Pro for many years.”
With Guitar Pro, Kfir is offering five of his own arrangements, along with my explanations to help you play them too. Download the Guitar Pro demoto access the free files. Here are five songs you all probably know, presented in brand-new versions.
Let’s start with this acoustic version of Wicked Game by Kfir. The song begins with sustained notes that create a calm and peaceful atmosphere. This track is perfect for beginners. However, the final arpeggio section requires slow practice to fully master the transitions. Also, pay close attention to the precision of the slides for a clean performance.
Careless Whisper – George Michael
George Michael has never sounded so rock! This epic-style solo gives the song a completely new dimension. Watch out for notes played with slides: without impeccable accuracy, the solo will lose all its impact, especially with the more spaced-out notes.
Nothing Else Matters – Metallica
Kfir delivers an acoustic version of one of Metallica’s iconic solos from Nothing Else Matters. It’s a 6/8 song, packed with playing techniques such as hammer-ons, pull-offs, slides, and a lot of dynamic nuance. The biggest challenge of this solo is to combine rhythmic precision with all these effects while keeping the expressive nuances intact.
Toccata and Fugue – Johann Sebastian Bach
This distorted version of Johann Sebastian Bach’s Toccata and Fugue will certainly challenge even the most skilled players. The piece relies heavily on sustained notes that suspend time and give full meaning to this 18th-century piece. Every note duration must be strictly respected, not to mention the sextuplet phrases at the end of the excerpt. All of this is reimagined in the style of Yngwie Malmsteen.
Cha-La Head-Cha-La – Dragon Ball Z theme
A special dedication to kids of the ’90s, Kfir invites you to play a section of the Dragon Ball Z opening theme. I warn you, it’s intense! We dive right in with a tapping lick in the very first measure, followed by palm-muted notes alternating with chords that give full power to this legendary theme. Combined with pinch harmonics and Floyd Rose effects, this track is a true guitar challenge.
Now it’s your turn!
Kfir and I hope these pieces have inspired you in your approach to playing guitar. Feel free to share your feedback in the comments, and don’t forget to subscribe to the Guitar Pro newsletter to stay updated.
Ho Ho Ho! Christmas has arrived at Guitar Pro, and I’ve put together a festive selection of 20 Christmas songs, each paired with a downloadable Guitar Pro file. Grab your guitar, settle in by the tree, and let’s explore them together.
Get full access to several of these songs by subscribing to mySongBook!
Here’s a guitar arrangement of Jingle Bells. This fingerpicking version combines both the accompaniment and the vocal melody. It’s a great exercise for guitarists who aren’t yet familiar with this technique, and you’ll find it again in several other pieces in this article, as most of the arrangements are designed for solo guitar.
As you may have guessed, traditional Christmas carols tend to follow a familiar formula. Here again, the piece is written in 3/4 and adapted for fingerpicking on guitar. This time, themelody blends more naturally into the chords, and the transitions are slower, making We Wish You a Merry Christmasmore accessible for beginners while still being enjoyable to play.
Irving Berlin’s White Christmas is a bit more challenging than the previous pieces, with plenty of chord changes played in eighth notes and passing tones that shape the melody. A beautiful piece to play by the Christmas tree.
Wham!’s iconic song, the English duo led by George Michael, never reached the top of the UK charts, as that spot was taken by the Band Aid single released the same year, which we’ll discuss later. Last Christmas is actually about a romantic breakup at Christmas, yet it carries an optimistic tone for the future. Here, we have a guitar-and-voice arrangement, perfect if you feel like singing for friends or family on December 25th.
Let’s take a look at Carol of the Bells, the famous piece composed by Mykola Leontovych in 1914, originally titled Shchedryk. The lyrics were added much later when it became a Christmas carol. Here, I’m sharing an excerpt from Gareth Evans’ arrangement, note that this piece is played in Drop D tuning (lowering the low E string by a whole step) and returns to the traditional 3/4 time signature.
A superb arrangement by Gareth Evans of this Meredith Willson classic. Watch out for the eighth-note triplets and the hammer-on/pull-off effects. This piece is in 2/4 time this time.
As mentioned earlier, the song Do They Know It’s Christmas?, recorded by Band Aid, a group initiated by Bob Geldof in response to the Ethiopian famine, was released in November 1984. Geldof would later create Live Aid, which we all know today as one of the greatest musical events of the 20th century, highlighted by Queen’s iconic performance. Gareth Evans’ arrangement is somewhat technical, featuring hammer-ons, pull-offs, artificial harmonics, slides, and percussive effects. The key is to let the notes ring together smoothly, without interrupting the flow between the chords.
To step away a bit from fingerpicking, I’m offering a version of this Puerto Rican standard with Eric Assarsson’s unique touch. Of course, the main theme is still there, enriched with passing chords that give it a jazzy feel. You’ll also find some fairly fast phrases with sixteenth notes, triplets, sextuplets, bends, slides… and more! A rather powerful version, just as Eric knows how to do.
I Saw Mama Kissing Santa Claus
Eric takes on this standard by Tommie Connor, later popularized by the Jackson 5. We start gently with a theme in eighth notes, then move into faster sixteenth-note passages, finishing with a solo taken from Chet Baker’s There Will Never Be Another You.
Let It Snow
Let It Snow… a blues version? Indeed, Eric has given this Christmas standard a bluesy twist, completely changing the way it’s approached.
When You Wish Upon a Star
This piece is played in a triple meter here, unlike the original version, and is followed by a fiery blues-jazz style solo.
Christmas Songs by Sascha Rebbe
Deck the Halls
Here’s the theme of Deck the Halls, the famous Christmas carol sung by choirs all over the world, arranged in a rock version by Sascha Rebbe. Nothing too complicated here, the key is to get the sound right! Your favorite overdrive pedal will do the job perfectly.
Jingle Bell Rock
Jingle Bell Rock, the song we all know, features eighth notes in triple meter here, some bends, and high-pitched chords approached with slides.
Christmas Songs by Tommy Emmanuel
Christmas Memories
Tommy Emmanuel needs no introduction, he’s an Australian guitarist renowned for his fingerpicking (yes, again) and his use of percussive techniques on the guitar. His piece Christmas Memories is no small feat and will require some patience to master fully. The challenge here lies in weaving the accompaniment together with the melody. It’s recommended to play this piece with a thumbpick, using a capo on the 4th fret.
This other Christmas piece by Tommy Emmanuel presents largely the same challenges as the previous one, with the advantage of being a bit slower. You’ll need a capo on the 2nd fret, and the arrangement includes some hammer-ons and pull-offs.
Blue Christmas, originally written by Billy Hayes and Jay W. Johnson in 1948, was later popularized by the King in 1957. Here, I’m sharing an excerpt of the chorus, featuring a blues-like structure in triple meter over 8 measures.
This song was originally composed by Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane, and performed by Judy Garland in the film Meet Me in St. Louis, before being popularized by Frank Sinatra in 1957. Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas has since become a true Christmas standard, covered by artists including Ella Fitzgerald, Whitney Houston, Michael Bublé, Luther Vandross, Christina Aguilera, Sam Smith, and many more.
This rock/glam Christmas track by Slade topped the UK charts in December 1973. The piece is in triple meter and mainly features power chords played in eighth notes, along with some strummed chords that often drive the transition between verses and the chorus.
Written by John Lennon and Yoko Ono in 1971 during the Vietnam War, Merry Xmas (War Is Over) is a far less cheerful song than any of the previous ones we’ve seen. Above all, it was a call for peace, later covered by artists such as Céline Dion and U2.
It’s Christmas, so I’ve saved a final surprise for you, a 21st track to end things on a high note!
Merry Christmas Mr. Lawrence
The title track of the 1983 film, composed by Ryuichi Sakamoto, a highly renowned Japanese composer. Originally written for piano, it has been arranged here for guitar, with the low A string tuned down to Gfor easier fingering. The main theme of the piece features eighth-note triplets, and a capo on the 1st fret.
Full scores: these are highly detailed tabs that include the parts for every instrument. Here’s an example with Highway to Hell by AC/DC in its full-score version, featuring the three guitar tracks, bass, drums, and vocals.
Simplified full scores: more compact, with fewer tracks and pages, designed to help you progress faster and more efficiently. For example, Never Too Much by Luther Vandross.
Easy arrangements :
Simplified and more accessible versions for beginners, like this track by Jimi Hendrix, Purple Haze.
Many pieces in the catalog are arranged forguitar/vocal duets, for example, this version of Born In The U.S.A. by Bruce Springsteen.
If you play guitar solo, mySongBook includes many arrangements for solo guitar. Try, for example, Oogway Ascend (from Kung Fu Panda), taken from the film’s soundtrack by Hans Zimmer.
Some pieces are available as duets, and even trios for certain tracks. What better example than this arrangement of Caravan by Duke Ellington?
Regardless of the type, more and more mySongBook files come with an audio track, which greatly enhances both usability and sound quality. New audio tracks are added every week.
How to access mySongBook
Access mySongBook content by subscribing or purchasing credits:
Subscriptions
The subscription gives you access to all mySongBook scores. You can choose to subscribe for 1, 12, or 24 months. If you opt for the 24-month subscription, it comes out to just €2.50 per month.
Please note that your subscription does not renew automatically and does not cancel your current subscription, it will take effect once the current period ends. Also, if you want to export and/or print the scores, you will need to purchase credits.
It is not possible to edit mySongBook scores due to copyright restrictions.
Purchasing a score with credits gives you unlimited access to it, even without a mySongBook subscription. In addition, buying a score allows you to export it (PDF, SVG, and audio) and print it.
It is not possible to edit mySongBook scores due to copyright restrictions.
mySongBook, the score library built into Guitar Pro, is packed with songs that feature some seriously groovy basslines. I picked out 10 of my favorites, the kind of lines that just make your head start nodding, from funk and disco to pop and soul.
Download the Guitar Pro demo to access the 10 Guitar Pro files included in this article!
I Want You Back is one of the Jackson 5’sbiggest hits. It’s a perfect example of how electric bass can drive a song, with a melodic line that basically lays out the track’s main theme. Contrary to what many bass players believed for years, the bass line wasn’t played by James Jamerson, but by Wilton Felder, who also played on ABC and Marvin Gaye’sLet’s Get It On. The confusion makes total sense, though, since both musicians were part of Motown’s roster, the legendary ’60s label behind Stevie Wonder, Marvin Gaye, and of course the Jackson 5.
The bassline in I Want You Back is a true classic when it comes to creativity and musicality. Wilton kept things simple by sticking to the notes of the key (the song is in Ab), adding a few chromatic touches and playing effects to give the line its groove and character. It’s basically essential learning for any bassist who really cares about the instrument.
To recreate a classic ’50s–’60s bass tone, you don’t need much: a Precision Bass with flatwound strings will do the trick. You can even slide a small piece of foam under the stringsnear the bridge to accentuate that muted, “thumpy” sound.
Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine – James Brown (1970)
Photo credits: Rolling Stone
No introduction needed: James Brown, the Godfather of Soul, released Get Up (I Feel Like Being a) Sex Machine in 1970, a track that became iconic for defining the funk sound we know today. On bass, a young musician destined for greatness: Bootsy Collins, whose inventive playing was already making waves before he left Brown after a falling out. He later joined Funkadelic and went on to have a brilliant solo career. Bootsy Collins is known for his flamboyant style and irresistibly funky playing, often enhanced with effects like the envelope filter or wah-wah.
The bassline of Get Up is syncopated, always landing back on the downbeat, which was James Brown’s golden rule.
Chic, an internationally renowned band, is driven by the exceptional guitarist and composer Nile Rodgers. His loyal partner, Bernard Edwards, passed away in April 1996 after a concert in Tokyo. Edwards is considered one of the most influential musicians in history and continues to inspire thousands of bassists around the world. He’s responsible for the grooves on Good Times, We Are Family by Sister Sledge, Spacer by Sheila, and Upside Down by Diana Ross. An impressive track record for Bernard, and for his friend Nile Rodgers as well, who would later co-write Get Lucky for Daft Punk.
Let’s take a closer look at this funk and disco masterpiece: Le Freak. It features a groove that only Bernard could deliver, complemented by Rodgers’ signature funky guitar riffs that instantly make you want to dance. Edwards specialized in basslines that firmly anchored the song. The key is in respecting the length of each note, this is absolutely essential to keeping the groove alive.
The Chicago-based band was initially influenced by jazz, gospel, as well as traditional music from the Caribbean and Africa. On bass, there’s Verdine White, a founding member alongside his late brother Maurice White. Verdine is still regarded as one of the greatest bassists of all time. He has played on every Earth, Wind & Fire album since 1971 and has also worked as a session bassist and producer for artists like Jennifer Lopez and Level 42.
The track I’m highlighting, September, is one of the band’s biggest hits. Its bassline is instantly recognizable by the A-A-G-A pattern, backed by the brass section. The main challenge here is to avoid letting the A string ring out, so that the G and high A notes can be heard clearly. The result is a fantastic bass line, where keeping the rhythm precise is key to making you want to nod your head along.
I Wanna Be Your Lover appears on Prince’s second album, titled… Prince! Released in 1979, this album marked the artist’s first major success. Prince played all the instruments himself, including the bass.
This bassline has a bouncy feel, thanks to the 16th note on the second beat of the first measure and on the first and fourth beats of the second measure of the cycle. Make sure to hit the G# on the ‘e’ of the fourth note in the third measure, and pay close attention to the slide that kicks off the next cycle on the fourth measure.
This bass sound has been debated for a long time, some say it’s a synth, others think it’s an electric bass with a filter effect, and why not both? Hard to tell, but you could easily replicate a similar sound with a synth bass pedal or a Moog-style keyboard.
Celebration is arguably the most played funk track at dance parties around the world. The band was founded by bassist Robert ‘Kool’ Bell, whose nickname gave the group its name. They stood out with hits like Jungle Boogie, which even appears on the Pulp Fiction soundtrack, and later Get Down On It.
The bassline in Celebration is quite repetitive, staying almost the same throughout the track (except during the bridge), giving the song a constant energy. Once again, it’s the arrangement of the 16th notes that drives the groove.
David Bowie went through many different phases in his career, but Let’s Dance is definitely the album that got the whole world dancing in the ’80s. On guitar and production duties, a familiar face: Nile Rodgers, who we’ve mentioned before. He was joined by the legendary Stevie Ray Vaughan and his longtime partner Bernard Edwards, who was never far away. In fact, Edwards only played bass on one track, Without You, which I highly recommend checking out. On the rest of the album, bass duties were handled by Carmine Rojas.
The bassline of the title track Let’s Dance is marked by strong emphasis on each beat, with small syncopations sprinkled throughout the cycle. The tab indicates that the bass should be tuned a half-step down from standard tuning (Eb-Ab-Db-Gb instead of E-A-D-G). As for the sound, the bass is doubled by a synth on the recording, once again, a synth bass pedal will come in handy.
It Ain’t Over ‘Til It’s Over – Lenny Kravitz (1991)
Recognized as the rock’n’roll icon of the ’90s, Lenny Kravitzfirst found major success with It Ain’t Over ‘Til It’s Over, a song that’s anything but rock’n’roll. With its pop and soul influences, this track marked a decisive turning point in Lenny’s career, featuring a strong Motown vibe highlighted by strings and the Phenix Horns, Earth, Wind & Fire’s legendary horn section, classy stuff!
Of course, the bass was played and recorded by Kravitz himself, who handles almost all the instruments on his albums, guitar, bass, drums, keyboards, and vocals, much like his idol, Prince. This bassline perfectly reflects Lenny Kravitz’s style: groovy, no frills, and musically outstanding.
For more advanced bassists, I’ve picked two slightly trickier tracks that will help you take your playing to the next level.
Soul With A Capital “S” – Tower of Power (1993)
Photo credits: Guitar World
The band Tower of Power, hailing from Oakland and still somewhat unknown to the general public, has nonetheless been a funk pioneer since the release of their debut album in 1970. In 1973, they released their self-titled album, driven by the hit What Is Hip?, which catapulted them into the spotlight and remains one of their most iconic tracks. After nine studio albums released between 1973 and 1991, the band returned in 1993 with T.O.P., featuring Soul With A Capital “S”, the track we’ll focus on here.
Since the formation of the Californian band, Francis Rocco Prestia was one of Tower of Power’s iconic members until his passing in September 2020. Known for his 16th notes playing, Soul With A Capital “S” is an excellent example of the rhythmic consistency Prestia was famous for. It’s essential to master the 16th notes patterns and practice raking with the right hand (moving from string to string with the same finger) toplay the song as faithfully as possible.
This Gorillaz track gives me the chance to show that you can find groovy basslines outside of funk, soul, or disco. Cracker Island is a pop/electro song for which the band enlisted the talents of Thundercat, one of the most influential bassists, singers, and producers of the 21st century. He’s known for his numerous collaborations with artists like Kendrick Lamar, Erykah Badu, Silk Sonic, Justice, not to mention Mac Miller and Travis Scott.
Stephen Bruner, aka Thundercat, stands out for his virtuosic bass playing and his love for complex chords and effects. He is a master of the six-string bass and apassionate manga fan, making him as much a character as a musician. The bassline of Cracker Islandcan be played on a five-string bass, Thundercat only uses the high C string (the highest string on a six-string bass) for a few fills, notably the final one in the track, which is fairly fast.
We hope you enjoyed this top 10. Have any other groovy basslines, or basslines in other styles come to mind? Tell us in the comments, and let us see your top 10.
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Black Friday 2025 is coming to Guitar Pro! From November 18 to December 1, enjoy 30% off Guitar Pro 8 and 50% off mySongBook.
Guitar Pro 8 is now €48.97 instead of €69.95. Don’t miss this chance!
Bonus! With any purchase on the Guitar Pro website during the offer, get 30 days of free access to TrueFire, the leading platform for online guitar and bass lessons, including downloadable Guitar Pro files.
Edit your own scores, play your favorite songs, practice chords and scales, all with an easy-to-use tool accessible to everyone: Guitar Pro.
Create professional-quality scores and keep improving with the loop feature, with the ability to adjust playback speed and transpose your songs into any key. Over 200 instruments are now available in version 8.
Play along with backing tracks by adding an audio file to your Guitar Pro scores. Practice more comfortably by playing directly with the track. This also allows for more efficient editing, and teachers can comment and provide guidance using the audio track.
Refine the sound of your scores with the new pedalboard.
Create your own scale diagrams and display them directly on your scores.
Save time and transcribe faster with the Command Palette, which lets you search for and apply any Guitar Pro function directly from the search bar at the top of your score.
If you own a previous version of Guitar Pro, enjoy 30% off the upgrade: €24.47 instead of €34.95.
Check out the full list of Guitar Pro 8 features here.
Play Your Favorite Songs with mySongBook
Guitar Pro gives you access to scores created by professional musicians to accompany your practice. From Led Zeppelin, U2, Lenny Kravitz, Red Hot Chili Peppers, to Jamiroquai, Stevie Wonder, and Michael Jackson, there’s something for everyone.
Enjoy 50% off a 1-year mySongBook subscription and access thousands of scores, with new songs added every week.
1 year mySongBook subscription: €20 instead of €40.
There are several ways to approach a piece, a melody, a riff, or a chord progression: first by ear, the oldest method, or through written notation. In this tutorial, we’ll focus on the latter, highlighting the two most common forms used in Guitar Pro: Tablature notation and Standard notation.
Note: The goal here isn’t to oppose these two writing systems, but to show you how to take advantage of the strengths of each.
What are the benefits of standard notation for your learning?
Standard notation is often overlooked by guitarists and bassists, but there are still a few things worth knowing that could be very useful when using Guitar Pro. This form of notation is a universal musical language, present in most cultures around the world.
Even if you mainly use tablature, standard notation, more commonly known as sheet music or “solfège”, helps you learn the names of notes, which is essential for truly understanding your instrument.
You can even display the guitar or bass fretboard in Guitar Pro, allowing you to see the note names in real time as your score plays back.
View > Show FretboardView
Several options are available, such as left-handed mode or highlighting the notes of the current key. An essential tool for deepening your knowledge of the fretboard.
Here’s how the guitar fretboard is displayed in Guitar Pro:
Guitar Pro tip: You can choose your notation type in the Track Inspector ⬇️
The second key advantage of standard notation is rhythm indication. Displaying the staff above the tablature gives you both the fret positions and rhythmic information for your piece or exercise.
As an example, here’s a Steve Lukather solo from Rosanna by Toto. You can download the Guitar Pro file to practice. It’s written here in standard notation, but you can easily switch to tablature in Guitar Pro to see the difference. Your turn to play!
Don’t wait, have fun by downloading the Guitar Pro demo!
Long dismissed by “purists,” tablature is, in my opinion, a highly intuitive and visual tool that makes music more accessible to players who haven’t studied at a conservatory from a young age.
Its main advantage is that it immediately shows which fret each note is played on, allowing you to learn songs faster. Until recently, its biggest limitation was the lack of rhythmic information, numbers on strings don’t tell you much about timing!
As mentioned earlier, you can display Standard notation above the tab to see rhythm along with fret numbers. But thanks to Guitar Pro, you can now show rhythmic values directly on the tablature by simply disabling Standard notation in the Track Inspector.
Here’s the Rosanna solo again, this time in tablature. Which version do you prefer?
A simplified writing form, typically used with chord symbols. It’s mainly designed for rhythm playing and often provides a clearer view than staff or tab notation.
Numbered notation
Originating from China, numbered notation displays the intervals of a given key. For chords, the lowest note is taken as reference. This system is particularly efficient for transposing music.
Wave the white flag
Each notation system has its own specific use. Classical musicians will prefer standard notation, while rock guitarists often choose tablature. These forms are complementary, each has its strengths and weaknesses, and it’s up to you to decide which best fits your goals.
My advice: use both! Display standard notation and tablature in Guitar Pro for an optimal learning experience.
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For those who haven’t discovered him yet, Eric Assarsson is a Swedish guitarist specializing in jazz. After three intensive years of study at Fridhems Folkhögskola, a renowned music school in Sweden, he turned to teaching in order to share his knowledge with other musicians. By sharing his expertise on Instagram and YouTube, he quickly built a large community of guitarists, which now counts several thousand followers. A true reference in his field, Eric now teaches guitarists all over the world.
Among the many topics covered in his lessons, Eric has put together a course specifically focused on neo soul guitar playing, a musical movement that gained popularity in the 1990s with artists like Erykah Badu or the late D’Angelo, whose iconic album Brown Sugar was released in 1995.
Here are 5 free excerpts offered by Eric. Don’t forget to download the Guitar Pro files, and if you haven’t already, you can also get the free demo version.
