It's a bass guitar. It has four strings, tuned an octave lower than the four lower strings of a six-string. It's a wonderful, subversive instrument. And you've only just picked one up. Perhaps you've just bought a bass and are keen to find your way around it? Or maybe you're an able keyboard player, drummer or other unfortunate, and suddenly feel the urge to try out bass? Or your regular bass player's suddenly left and you think well, why not give it a whirl? So sit down and prepare for some basic training and tips, aimed at the first-time bassist. If you're feeling like a fairly confident bassist already, then bear in mind that a refresher course never did anyone any harm — but try the chord section anyway for a couple of more advanced tips, or the fretless harmonic slide tip, or the... in fact, read it all anyway.

DAMPING

Damping means stopping a note from sounding before it's faded out naturally. Why should you want to do that? Two main reasons. It stops that note interfering with the ones that follow, and it makes the basslines you play sound tighter and, indeed, funkier. But let's hear this idea working.

Pick up the bass and fret an E on the second fret of the D-string. If you pluck the D-string, the E rings out. Listen to how long it takes to die away naturally. Now pay attention to the pressure with which you're pressing down that first finger onto the fret.

Without plucking the note for now, ease off the pressure so that your finger is just lying on the string over the fret. Now, simultaneously pluck the string and fret the note, ensuring a cleanly played note, and as soon as the note sounds, let the finger off the fret again. Notice how this gives you precise control over how long the note sounds, and how lifting the finger so that it's still just touching the string kills the vibrations, cutting the note off cleanly.

Now try applying this control to one of your own basslines. The technique really is essential if you're going to get any kind of expression and punch into your playing, so get it right, OK?

You can use your plucking hand to damp strings in combination with the fretting hand: try using the edge of the hand — that fleshy lump between the little finger and the wrist — to place gently on the strings if you're using a plectrum, or manoeuvre the picking fingers to touch and deaden strings as you require. It may seem a bit fiddly at first, but keep trying these techniques out and they'll eventually become a part of your playing that you don't even think about.

VIBRATO

Vibrato is a change in pitch. Used sparingly via a left-hand technique, it can make basslines sound much livelier and characterful. It's easy, too, once you get your wrist working.

Play an E on the ninth fret of the G-string with the third finger of your fretting hand (this sentence has been prepared under Remember Lefties restrictions). Listen: it is a note; it comes, it goes, it does little in the process. To get a bit of vibrato into it — wobble, if you like — play the note again, and wiggle your finger from side to side. Not so good? Try to imagine that the tip of your finger is glued to the fingerboard through the string, and that you're rocking your finger (and the rest of your hand) from side to side around it. Better? It's the whole wrist that provides the movement, not the finger alone. Keep trying with these ideas in mind, and you should get a smoothly wavering note. Now try it with other fingers of your fretting hand, and then work it into a bassline or two. It's most effective when used sparingly.

If you've got a fretless bass then you'll almost certainly have stumbled on vibrato already. It's almost impossible to play a note on fretless without inducing some vibrato, as the inclination is to wobble notes about by sliding the finger along a short (say ¼in) section of the fingerboard around the note you want to play. This overcomes a lot of the approximation (specially the way I play) involved in bitting notes on the fretless, and sounds brilliant.

CHORDS

Now, do you have a long-ish Bb chord in a song and nothing very interesting to play under it other than a root Bb? Good. Here's a weirdy chord to chuck in that'll wake everyone up at the next rehearsal. Hey, we've got a bass player!

Hit the two-note chord on the A and D strings with the second and third fingers of your fretting hand, plucking with the thumb and first finger of your picking hand. Then immediately play the harmonic over the seventh fret of the G-string with the first finger of the fretting hand and the first finger of the plucking hand, letting the fretted notes and harmonic ring on. Now move your plucking hand up to the headstock and push the G-string down behind the nut, raising the pitch of the harmonic about a semitone (well, till it sounds nice) and then let it go again. Good, no? Course if you have a headless bass you can't do the nut-bending bit. Serves you right for being flash.

This (right) was a Mark King favourite — he showed me this one, ooh, three years ago now, so he's probably forgotten all about it which means it's well nickable. The note on the D-string provides the root, so it's usable in any position, and it's a pretty powerful sounding clang. Use carefully.

TONE

Here's a thing. Fret an A on the G-string. Now put your plucking finger or plectrum near the point where the neck of your bass meets the body. Play the note, and listen carefully to the tone and character of the resulting sound. Now move your finger or plectrum as near to the bridge as you can get it, and play the note again. Think carefully about the differences from the previous sound. Now move the finger/plectrum to various points between the two, say near the pickup(s) or any other landmarks that might be lurking around the body, and keep a mental note of the sound changes.

PATTERNS

With the bass in your normal playing position, just stop for a sec and look down at the fingerboard. It can really help your playing to imagine patterns going across and along the fingerboard, usually in four-fret sections (you've only got four fingers, after all).

These are two simple root, third and fifth patterns suggested by Russ Shipton in his helpful "Rock & Pop Bass Guitar Book 1". These are simple, but will give you a basis to work from and make your own more complicated patterns from. Work further across the strings from these, listening for the way the notes work together. Embellish away!

HARMONICS

Harmonics are ringing, high-pitched tones that are easy to produce when you know the simple technique required. Play a D on the seventh fret of the G-string. Now instead of pressing down your finger on the fret, just rest your finger lightly on the string exactly over the seventh fret. Pluck the string and, an instant later, pull the finger off the string. You should hear a clear, bell-like tone. Practise till you get it as pure, clean and loud as you can. Once you have, you can try getting harmonics all over the bass — and not just directly over frets, though these are easiest, particularly at the seventh, fifth and fourth. Selecting the back pickup and using new strings and a plectrum gets the best results.

Harmonics also provide a good way of tuning the bass, exploiting the clear harmonics available over the fifth and seventh frets on each string. Tune the G-string to an instrument in the group that you know is in tune — the Fairlight, say, or the lead banjo.

Now play the harmonic (marked above by an X) over the seventh fret of the G-string. While this is still ringing, hit the harmonic on the fifth fret of the D-string. The two should be of exactly the same pitch, so adjust the D-string machine head as necessary, continuing to compare the harmonics until they are of exactly the same pitch. Now continue this process for the other strings, comparing and matching the seventh fret harmonic on the D-string with the fifth fret harmonic of the A-string; and the seventh fret harmonic of the A-string with the fifth fret harmonic of the E-string.

And here's a good harmonic trick for fretless players, brought to our attention by Pino Palladino last year. He uses it in 'Wherever I Lay My Hat', and the particular position he used it in is as good as any, so here goes (it comes on the first chorus, if you should have the record handy). Remember this only applies to fretless basses.

Hit a G harmonic over the fifth fret position of the G-string and an A harmonic over the seventh fret position of the D-string. Pino explains: "Wait till the harmonics ring, then press the two strings against the fingerboard and slide down." Yup, an harmonic slide! You must be able to use it (see above) somewhere more favourable in one of your own songs....

Harmonics can also be useful for setting the intonation of the bass. The what? Set the intonation of each string correctly and it will be in tune properly over its whole length. There's a recognised sequence of events to set intonation that involves moving the bass's bridge saddles back and forward. Before you start, make sure you understand how to move the saddles — it usually involves adjustment of a screw, so make sure you've got the right tool. Now proceed as follows.

Play a harmonic at the 12th fret, then play the fretted note at the same fret. They should be the same — and if you don't trust your ear, use a tuner. If the fretted note is higher in pitch compared to the harmonic, move the saddle very slightly toward the back of the bridge. If the 12th fret note is lower in pitch compared to the harmonic, then move the bridge saddle very slightly toward the nut Keep going back or forth in tiny steps until the notes coincide. Do the same for the other three strings.

In his excellent guide "Electric Bass Guitar", Laurence Canty also suggests the following comparisons for intonation: G-string 14th fret note with D-string 7th fret harmonic; G-string 19th fret note with D-string fifth fret harmonic; D-string 17th fret note with G-string 12th fret harmonic; A-string 17th fret note with D-string 12th fret harmonic; E-string 10th fret note with open string D.

Remember that if at any later time you put on new strings of a different gauge, the intonation will almost certainly need some readjustment.

CLEAN MACHINE

Every now and again, take the strings off your bass and give the fingerboard a bit of attention. Dirt and grime will have collected either side of and up against the frets, so wipe these areas very carefully with a bit of fine sandpaper and linseed oil — the oil helps prevent the wood from drying out. If you're feeling brave, you can also use a flat, smooth file to even out any string gouges or uneven spots on individual frets. Careful now.