I’m often asked how I do Sliding Harmonics on the Fretless Bass. Well here it is! Plus the story of where I first heard sliding harmonics and figured it out. Enjoy!
@@FretlessMonster I wanna listen more to your music. You are definitely impacting my life in a positive way. Definitely want a fretless bass now. I mlm learned bass by playing cello through my school years. Wish I had a cello now too. God bless you, sir, and best wishes to you.
This was very informative and you have taught me a new tool to use for sure! I got your signature bass because of the looks even though I didnt know much about you at the time, but I have been very pleased to find such a pleasant and talented musician behind the signature. Thank you for the tips and for allowing us to enjoy your awesome setup ourselves.
Ahh yes, I still remember hearing this being used at the end of Death's The Philosopher by Steve DiGiorgo. Back in 91 it blew my mind. Hearing fretless bass on a Death metal record at that time was unique on its own, but that one sliding harmonics at the end bass solo was a defining moment for me. Mind you that one second slide on the outro and most possibly improvised solo, that was already mixed fading out on half the volume of the song got me into having a fretless in itself. A powerful move in the hands of an expert musician.
So that's how it's done! It was nice to hear you mention Percy Jones. Long before I knew anything about playing bass, I loved his work on Brian Eno's Another Green World (1975) and Before and After Science (1977).
Thanks. Yeah it’s pretty “easy” when you know how. Percy and Pino were the architects as far as I know. I believe Bunny Brunel was doing it early on as well. 👍🏻🤩
@@FretlessMonster Bonnie Tyler, Terry Williams (Drummer Dire Straights), Bad Finger (Wrote "without you") Charlotte Church, just a few honourable mentions :)
@@brendonelton There's more : The Stereophonics ,Tom Jones,Pino Palladino,Dave Edmunds ,The Manic Street Preachers, Shirley Bassey,The Amen corner ,The alarm,Andy Fairweather Low,John Cale , Catatonia ,Super furry animals ,Shakin' Stevens ,Spencer Davis ,Duffy,Bryn Terfel, Katherine Jenkins 👍🏴 Edit : There was also a singer called Donna Lewis ,from Cardiff.She had a big hit "I love you always forever" in the States from her album 'Now in a minute' she toured with her band - who's bassist was a certain Mr Tony Franklin....
@@FretlessMonster Yes. I'm learning a lot from you these days (more from you, because the concepts Jeff has been covering are things I've known for decades and I'm just remembering). Your fretless tips are precious. You are wonderful!
Tony, I've been a huge Fender fan all my life and have seen so many artist models, and I've got to compliment you on your design (and your playing of course). It's an excellent bass! Years ago, I had a Fender Japan fretless J with an unmarked fingerboard like this one, and it reminds me of it-and makes me wish I hadn't sold it!. Recently I've been thinking of replacing it, and your signature P-Bass would be the perfect fit. Love those sliding harmonics by the way. My best buddy (RIP) loved Pino Palladino and I remember being mystified by that intro you're talking about. There are indeed many things you simply cannot do on a fretted bass, and that _beautifully_ unmarked ebony fingerboard is like a giant dance floor for the fingers. Cheers!
Thanks so much. Nothing beats the sound of a fretless bass. I got lucky many years ago when I modified my 77 P Bass. Fender replicated the exact specs though we added an ebony board instead of the original rosewood. More durable. I use the stock production signature model. No modifications. I hope you’ll get the opportunity to try one.
@@FretlessMonster Hey I have a question. It's about processing the bass to play these kinds of harmonics. They are super quiet compared to plucking the string normally, and when I compress a lot, the static noise comes in too. Is there a way to fix this? Maybe I don't play them loud enough.
Hah! Funny you mention Percy Jones and Brand X! I'm sitting here trying to learn their song "Black Moon" and just now came to youtube to figure out how he was getting those sliding harmonics! Thanks for this! :)
Wonderful lesson...I remember hearing you play on radioactive with the firm in 1985...I was a young lad who had just bought his first bass and I remember being in awe of you because of your talent and for getting to play with jimmy page..I also remember thinking you were a jammy lucky sod...Years later after following your career I now know that it wasn't luck but sheer talent,,hard work and musicianship and being a totally nice guy that got you were you are..I salute you sir and thank you for the music over the years..
Kev Hopper from STUMP was the first time I heard the harmonic slide clearly. This is very helpful! It took me years to figure it out. I was not pushing down after the harmonic. Tony is an often overlooked excellent player. Thank you for the video!
Yes indeed. Jeff A played fretless. I read somewhere that apparently, early on, the band was influenced by the sound of The Firm. 🤷♂️ Jeff’s a tasteful player.
@@FretlessMonster haha no way!! He's got good taste 😁 its a very distinct sound. Think I was only playing 2 years when i did the jaco thing on an ibanez gsr, but can't play anywhere near his or your level. That tone man, its all in the hands!
Percy Jones is a definite king within this technique. I would recommend listening to 'Another Green World' by Eno, and anything by Brand X for an audio primer....!
Man! You make me so regret selling my fretless! I'm gunna have to save up to get another one now. That's some cool skills, Tony, I'm serious, I AM going to buy one again. I think I was too young and intimidated by the fretless at the time,(waaaay back in the 70's) but now I'm an old fart, interest is taking precedence over intimidation. Thank you!! One more thing, it's like a breath of fresh air to see an accomplished and obviously famous musician remain unaffected and down to earth. You let your musicianship do the bragging, not your mouth. Champion!
Thanks so much. Yeah fretless takes time. It took me a few years before I was nailing it. I love fretless! Thanks for your kind words. I try to keep things real. 🤷♂️🤩
@@FretlessMonster Thanks so much for your reply, Tony. What I forgot to mention in my comment was that back in the Dark Ages in Australia (the 70's), a fretless bass was a rare commodity. I can't even remember why(it WAS the 70's), but I had this el cheapo Ibanez jazz bass copy that I rarely used, so I attacked it with a pair of pliers and some wood filler, and made my own fretless. It actually worked quite well, but being young and stupid (or chemically affected, or both) I lost interest in it much too soon. Watching and listening to you makes me wish I stuck at it. Never too old to learn though, so I'm on the lookout for another fretless now. Again, thank you for rekindling the drive to be a better musician.
God thank you thankyou thankyou! I've been trying to figure out John Giblin's Babooshka bassline and you just answered how to do the harmonics!!! I didn't know you could press down after the harmonic, thought it would kill it. Once again thank you soooooo much
I first noticed about this technique from a Fender magazine's little article from you. Very cool technique. I think Percy Jones is a phenomenal unsung bassist/musician... Thanks for the cool context. Keep up the great work.
Excellent intro, and I still remember the first time I heard Percy Jones doing this on a Brand X album, totally blew my mind! Getting a fretless wasn't far behind that.
Seeing you with the FIRM! As a young bass player I got my first fretless bass from my neighbor for my 18th birthday! A Jackson/Cravel with a whammy bar! My neighbor Uncle Ted Nugent. My secondary fretless bass is a Carver
Tony, you and Mark Egan are why I wanted to play fretless. And this harmonic slide, along with some Kate Bush stuff kept me inspired to keep trying. I love harmonics but this has eluded me somehow for years. It reminds me of how conga players wet their finger and do a similar slide harmonic.
Tony, I just watched you 3 hour vid on your studio bass tracking process on Warran's channel for the second time. Absolutely first class. Many thanks for sharing your insights.
I think I'll be adopting your chart system unless it's so straight forward that it would be a distraction. I've been tracking section by section with little regard to flow but that will stop now, cheers Tony. Top playing by the way 😀
Congrats on your upcoming fretless. Do be patient. It takes time to get the fundamentals as well as the tuning. It took me a while, but it’s worth it. I love fretless.
I love listening to Tony, what a no bullshit dude, a Tony Franklin bass is the next purchase on my N+1 bass collection, N being the number of basses I already have 😂
Love it! None of us will ever forget when we first heard your radioactive fretless ringing out in the Firm. Definitely a before and after moment in the world of Rock. Also great your shouting out to Pino for his work with Paul Young. My, he came up with some beautifully melodic lines, didn't he? Did some nice stuff with Pete Townsend too (Give Blood is a nice one for example).
Tony Franklin the Bass Player who played with Paul Rodgers - Free and Jimmy Page with the little known band Led Zeppelin his playing was perfect for them both ,not a note out of place ! .It's good to see you back.
I been playing fretless for 22 years, now. Fretted basses are too restrictive for me. Anyway, last night, I had a fine little punk jazz freak out on my one and only. The neighbours down the road must have been thinking all sorts. I was playing Spread a Little Happiness inspired by you, and that one from Wizard of Oz Jaco played. Loved Percy Jones, too. Though my influence to play fretless was Mick Karn. You wouldn't tell, I swear!!! Cheers, Tony. Always a pleasure. Thanks a lot 👍
Thanks so much. I truly appreciate that. Spread A Little Happiness is fun. And I used to incorporate “If I Only Had A Brain” into my Blue Murder bass solo inspired by Jaco!
Here's how I discovered your playing. Many years ago, I was only peripherally aware of The Firm and Blue Murder, but the first time I really heard your playing was on Gary Hoey's "Animal Instinct" album. I heard the intro on the title track and the groove you laid down with Frankie Banali on drums (R.I.P.), and I was hooked! I've been a fan ever since!
Very nice and clear video. I only have fun in setting up or building instruments and recently I discovered how fun it is doing like that after making a fretless fingerboard for an ukulele. After playing around with that I picked up the never used bass and wondered "Why do they put frets? It's much more fun without frets".
Great description Tony!! Such a cool sound for sure!! My 1st time hearing the sliding harmonic was Bunny Brunel with Chick Corea..he used it a ton during his solos especially..think he also used a Precision during his time with Chick..
Clicked on the link to hear about how to do sliding harmonics on fretless bass…and the first thing I thought was “I’d love to know how to do it like that guy in The Firm playing Radioactive”….only to finally find out they are one in the same person…a bass hero to me in the 80s. Of course it wasn’t just the sliding harmonics that were amazing in that song…everything about his playing was incredible.
Wow…a personal response! Yes, I DID watch the video, and was shocked at the apparent simplicity…emphasis on “apparent”. Of course, I have now watched a number of your videos. Your video about the Takamine TD10 was surprising in how similar it was to an upright (where I started in middle school in the orchestra - because I was tired of the violin). I had an Ashbory bass for a bit (it “grew legs”, and now I don’t have it anymore). The silicone strings made it sound similar to an upright (but my fat fingers couldn’t fit the scale). I guess I need to get me a Tony Franklin Fender :). I love the look of your JayDee in (but I don’t see one like it on the site, so he must have made a Tony Franklin “Signature” model for you in the day. It was the bass that got me to you, in an indirect way…I loved Level 42, and that’s when I found the JayDee (not fretless)….but the rabbit hole led me to you, and that is awesome.
How cool. Thanks for sharing that. I remember trying the Ashbory Bass. Same here, my fingers were too big. And I didn’t dig the silicon strings. The Takamine is a beautiful instrument. A workout to play. I’d like to use it more. I found the JayDee in a store back in 1985. It wasn’t custom made for me. They’d make one I’m sure if you requested it. Amazing bass.
@@FretlessMonster Don’t intend to drag you into an endless thread, but your recollections resonate a lot with me, so I’ll share one more. Last night I watched a RU-vid about you done by someone in Japan (it’s only in Japanese (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-v8jVESDUWPY.htmlsi=bvCiOh0tfO-l0T2b), but I lived there from ‘83 to ‘85, so it works for me). It said you also play the clarinet and the theremin…so, I have a new rabbit hole. The recollection that hit me was due to a combination of bass, Japan, and your comment on the TB10 being a workout to play. In ‘84 I bought an Aria Pro II bass (beautiful - neck-thru (maple/walnut), red stain, ash body, active electronics) for $200. The store owner said it was “last year’s model”, which is why it was so cheap. I had no money, but saved up for months, sure that it would disappear every week when I went back and checked. But the Japanese only wanted the latest, and I finally had the money…and then the bass. The store owner even came to the only “gig” I ever did while in Japan. It’s got the best action of any bass I’ve played…very low, yet no buzz…very easy to play. After moving back to the US in ‘85, I found out that the bass player from my sister’s favorite band (‘Duran Duran’), essentially played almost the same bass (but his had 2 pickups, and mine only has one). I call her “Stella”. I haven’t really played since finishing uni, but I’m starting to feel an itch. The first time I picked up a Fender Jazz (my high school’s bass for the stage (jazz) band), it had a horrible action, and was a workout. I thought that was what a Fender was like (didn’t know that it was not set up correctly, and could have been adjusted, but it put me off Fender). You are quite an inspiration, and very kind to let me share a couple of stories.
haaaaaaa haaaaa that is so cool! I don't think that will work on my fretted strat but I am certainly going to try and see what happens! :) I recognized that from Radioactive very cool - it reminds me of that old '50's song Sleepwalk (I bet you could pull that off!) or a theromin. It also reminds me of spackling - like you have to just watch someone do it then pretend you're them lol (makes sense to me if no oine else). Thanks Tony - love your videos - so glad I stumbled on these. Two string harmonic thing is awesome :)
Ha. Thanks so much. I actually recorded a version of Sleepwalk a long time ago doing exactly that. It was never released though. It can work on a fretted instrument but the note dies much more quickly because of those pesky frets!! 🤣🤣 Cheers!
Ah so you were the gent that I first heard do this with the Firm? I loved that tune Radioactive. That ballsy sound and the sliding harmonics hooked me right off. I think my band mates at the time got sick of me constantly playing that intro lol.
Thank you for the great videos and good cheer. Guess Jaco wasn't wrong about the frets being roadblocks. Gave a listen to Radioactive again and the Paul Young song. Such beautiful playing.
Hey Tony, great playing. I love the sound of the fretless bass you pretty much mastered the fretless. I'll check out that song. You talked about. Thanks Tony Everytime I see clips of Chernobyl April 26, 1986 35 years ago today. I think of the song Radioactive ☢️ by The Firm.
THANK YOU!!! I've always wondered how this was done. I always tried keeping my finger lightly on the string, and of course, as soon as I moved, the harmonic died.
@@FretlessMonster I can't believe how frickin' amazing it is that Tony Franklin answered my comment! AND I learned how to do a sliding harmonic. I tried it, and it WORKED!! Thanks again, man!
So funny you should post this, I was thinking about the harmonics on this song the other day. Is it too hard to strip the frets off the bass I just bought?? 😄 Thanks for posting this! 💜💯
I've done it successfully, just make sure you use a cheapy for your first attempt. I used an old Ibanez jazz copy I didn't use much. Also, use a good quality wood filler, one that remains flexible once it dries. And remember to pull the frets out from the side, not upwards, that'll ruin your fretboard (shouldn't that be fretLESSboard now?) Just be patient, and gentle. Of course you'll have to do some sanding to get the fretboard smooth, but again, patience and care are what's required. You'll also have the benefit of seeing exactly where to place your fingers. Just one more thing, you can purchase ready made fretless necks, depending on the breed of bass you're going to use, this may be a better option for you. Good luck!
Hi Tony! Great video on harmonics! Thank You for sharing! I’m soon getting one of your signature fretless basses!(yayee!!) I saw you have a signature jazz bass pickup on it,was wondering did you have ideas for a bridge pickup previously to your signature bass and how did it come about that fender designed a signature jazz pickup for your bass? Thanks again😃
Hmm. I use rounds. It’s hard to get it clean from flats for me. Make sure you’re right on the harmonic. / fret position. Experiment with your technique. Little adjustments can make a huge difference.
This has been the hardest part. The harmonics. Playing fretless wasn't as scary as I thought it would be. But finding the harmonics is a little more advanced I have to work to get better at finding it consistently.
Hi. Welcome aboard. No I’ve never played flats. I cannot get my sound. I’ve used DR Sunbeams for 30 years. They’re rounds, with an incredible sound. And they’re a little easier on the fingerboard.
No that was a different technique. Creating harmonics in the corresponding two octave and 3 octave over the body, with the plucking hand. Not sure what the official name for it is.
@@FretlessMonster Thanks Tony for your response! I believe that might be called "Pinch harmonics" (perhaps)... I get it now. BTW - you have a fantastic channel and I am so glad I just discovered it and am passing it along to bass player buddies (I'm primarily Keys/composer) 🍻. You certainly made the baselines for Roundabout seem doable but alas skilled players have a knack of that but I'll give it a go over the time I still have on the this planet (in my current form). Are you available for hire (or temptation) for recording? Me got some killer fusion needing talent! Cheers 🍻 Alex
Interesting stuff- the science behind the art, thanks for the explanation 👍 Yeah ,Pino Palladino - one of Wales's greatest musicians! 🏴🤘 Edit : I was wondering ,what would the fretless bass sound like with an *e bow* - have you ever used one ?
Man what a cool trick, I'm really surprised this works at all. How does the harmonic keep playing when you press the string down? Even more confusing, why does it only work to press down where you played the harmonic? If you start the harmonic at one spot, then move a half step and press your finger down, the string instantly stops vibrating. But if you press down on the same spot where the harmonic started the string's vibration is not interrupted.
I can’t explain the science of it. But I know it doesn’t work on a fretted bass. Just a thought though. The string vibrates on both sides of the finger placement - meaning towards the nut and the bridge, on both sides. Maybe placing it elsewhere than the harmonic spot, it only vibrates on one side of that spot. I don’t know - it’s hard to explain. I just know that it works! 🙃🤷♂️😂
Do you have any fretless basses that you made from converting a fretted bass? I'm thinking of making one of mine into a fretless. The videos I've seen on RU-vid look like something I can do.
Mine were always Fretless from the beginning. Even my very first one. If you feel able to do it then do it. The fingerboard is probably the most important element of a Fretless. There are pitfalls and Fretless often reveals other flaws within a bass. I personally would have a pro luthier do it. However if it really goes south, you can always have a pro look at it later. I wouldn’t necessarily trust info on the internet.
