moondance by van morrison - how-to-play-bass.com · basic parts from van mor-rison’s original...

Moondanceby Van Morrison

2 | Working Basslines Vol 2 | Moondance | www.how-to-play-bass.com

QUICKGUIDE #8-MOONDANCE

Quickguides 8 and 9 are the basic parts from Van Mor-rison’s original version of Moondance.

Now I did a video showing a specific way to play through Moondance before - and whilst there are similari-ties, this tutorial is based on the original recording and is much more authentic. (Though depending on the

situation you are playing it, you might want to tone down the jazzier ele-ments...that’s a working choice that needs to be made).

I won’t cover all the parts either...but there will be enough variety for you to mix and match parts to create your own authentic sounding sections if you don’t have the full transcription did previously in FB&B.

Let’s get started with the intro:

Next up is a 16 bar verse. This is Verse 1:


After the verse there is a section - I guess it’s the pre-chorus - but I often think of it as the bridge or the transition. Here’s the first one:


And here’s the first chorus. The chorus is one part of the tune that re-mains faithful and constant throughout - there is unison playing in this section so no chance to ‘stretch out:’

These sections could be repeated - or if you want some variations, there are some in the remainder of the lesson. Most of the variations take place in the verse rather than the bridge or chorus - although there are minor variations in the bridge.

Next up is Verse 2 - that looks like this:


As I said above, you could use the original bridge. I have transcribed and filmed the second bridge if you want further variations or variation ideas. That looks like this:


Here’s what the bass line plays under the solo so you’ve got yet more variation options to learn:


The final section that you need to learn - which also has some variations you can use in other played sections if you wish - is the outro verse. This is 12 bars instead of 16, with a 4 bar tag that ends the tune. This section looks like this:


How To Program The Sections In Band In A Box

If you want to program the sections in Band In A Box to use the slow down features, or the chordal metronome, or the woodshed feature, here’s what you need to do.

1. Set your key to Am.2. Choose a style to play with. If you’re getting towards performance tempo (which from memory is around 140 BPM) then you might want to use one of the jazz styles to give you an authentic feel to play with. If you’re playing at slower tempos then use the ‘chordal metronome’ op-tion. (see separate lesson on this.)3. Program the specific chunks you wish to practice.

When programmed the verse looks like this:

The transition or pre-chorus or bridge looks like this:


The chorus doesn’t lend itself to programming. The only other section you’ll need is the outro verse:

11 |̀ Moondance | www.how-to-play-bass.com

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You can find the full details here:

https://how-to-play-bass.com/first-bass-and-beyond

Here’s the quick version:

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12 |̀ Moondance | www.how-to-play-bass.com

The link with the details again:


SONGS INCLUDED IN THE 20 SONG TUTORIAL PACK:

Hotel California Low RiderVenus Statesboro BluesI Shot The Sherriff Let’s Stay TogetherWishing Well Wild NightRhythm Stick Knocking On Heaven’s DoorLovely Rita Stray Cat StrutThe Weight Baker StreetMercy Mercy Me Only So Much Oil In The GroundRadio Radio The Jean GenieMake Me Smile Grapevine

Note: the song tutorials in this collection - and in the First Bass And Be-yond magazine - feature the following elements not found in the how-to-play-bass.com tutorials:

(i) interactive soundslice notation(ii) most tutorials feature bass less backing tracks to play along with


moondance by van morrison - how-to-play-bass.com · basic parts from van mor-rison’s original...

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