PICK UP THE PIECES (Bassline)
As recorded by Average White Band
(From the 1974 Album AWB)
Words and Music by Average White Band
Transcribed by Slowhand
Gtr I (E A D G) - 'Alan Gorrie - Bass'
[Intro] [1st Verse]
Q=108
4/4
Gtr I
W W Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S H 4x
G||-----------|-5---------||-||--------------------|----------------||
D||o----------|----------o||-||o------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1------o||
A||o-3--------|----------o||-||o-------------------|---------------o||
E||-----------|-----------||-||--1-----------------|-1--------------||
Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S H Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S H
G|------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1------||--------------------|----------------||
D|-------------------|---------------||o------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1------o||
A|-1-----------------|-1-------------||o-------------------|---------------o||
E|-------------------|---------------||--1-----------------|-1--------------||
[2nd - 4th Verses]
Segno $
Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S H Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S H
G||--------------------|---------------|-------------------|---------------|
D||o------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1------|------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1------|
A||o-------------------|---------------|-------------------|---------------|
E||--1-----------------|-1-------------|-1-----------------|-1-------------|
Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S H Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S H
G|-------------------|---------------|-------------------|---------------|
D|------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1------|------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1------|
A|-------------------|---------------|-------------------|---------------|
E|-1-----------------|-1-------------|-1-----------------|-1-------------|
1.
To Coda
Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S H Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S H
G|------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1------|-------------------|---------------|
D|-------------------|---------------|------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1------|
A|-1-----------------|-1-------------|-------------------|---------------|
E|-------------------|---------------|-1-----------------|-1-------------|
Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S S S E E E
G|-------------------|--------------------||
D|------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1---1-------||
A|-------------------|--------------3---2-||
E|-1-----------------|-1------------------||
[Bridge]
E S S E E +Q Q E S S E E +Q Q
G|-------------------|-------------------|
D|-------------------|-------------------|
A|-1---1---1-(1)-----|-1---1---1-(1)-----|
E|-------------------|-------------------|
E S S E E +Q Q E S S E Q E Q +W Q E S S +E E Q
G|-------------------|-----------------|------------|-------------------|
D|-------------------|-----------------|------------|------3-1-(1)-3----|
A|-1---1---1-(1)-----|-1---1---1----3--|-(3)--------|-------------------|
E|-------------------|-----------------|------------|-1-----------------|
2.
Q E S S H Q E S S E E S S E
G|----------------||--------------------||
D|------3-1------o||------3-1-----------||
A|---------------o||------------3---2---||
E|-1--------------||-1------------------||
[Bridge]
E S S E E +Q Q E S S E E +Q Q
G|-------------------|-------------------|
D|-------------------|-------------------|
A|-1---1---1-(1)-----|-1---1---1-(1)-----|
E|-------------------|-------------------|
E S S E E +Q Q E S S E Q E Q +W +W
G|-------------------|-----------------|------------|--------|
D|-------------------|-----------------|------------|--------|
A|-1---1---1-(1)-----|-1---1---1----3--|-(3)--------|-(3)----|
E|-------------------|-----------------|------------|--------|
[Sax Solo]
+W +W E E S S S S +E E Q E Q S S H
G|------------|------------||-----6h7--------------|---------------|
D|------------|------------||---------5-6-(6)-8----|------8-6------|
A|-(3)--------|-(3)--------||----------------------|---------------|
E|------------|------------||-6--------------------|-6-------------|
E E S S S S +E E Q E Q S S Q. E
G|-----6h7--------------|------------------|
D|---------5-6-(6)-8----|------8-6---------|
A|----------------------|------------------|
E|-6--------------------|-6-------------1/-|
E E S S S S +E E Q E Q S S E S E S E
G|-----6h7--------------|--------------------|
D|---------5-6-(6)-8----|------8-6---8---6---|
A|----------------------|--------------------|
E|-6--------------------|-6------------------|
E E S S S S +E E Q E Q S S H
G|-----6h7--------------|---------------|
D|---------5-6-(6)-8----|------8-6------|
A|----------------------|---------------|
E|-6--------------------|-6-------------|
E E S S S S +E E E S S E Q S S Q S S E
G|-----6h7-----------------|---------------------|
D|---------5-6-(6)-8-------|------8-6------6-----|
A|-------------------------|---------------------|
E|-6-------------------6-6-|-6-------------------|
E E S S S S +E E Q E Q S S H Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S H
G|-----6h7--------------|---------------|-------------------|---------------|
D|---------5-6-(6)-8----|------8-6------|------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1------|
A|----------------------|---------------|-------------------|---------------|
E|-6--------------------|-6-------------|-1-----------------|-1-------------|
Dal Segno al Coda Coda &
Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S H Q E S S S S E E E
G|-------------------|---------------||--------------------||
D|------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1------||------3-1---1-------||
A|-------------------|---------------||--------------3---2-||
E|-1-----------------|-1-------------||-1------------------||
[Bridge]
E S S E E +Q Q E S S E E +Q Q
G|-------------------|-------------------|
D|-------------------|-------------------|
A|-1---1---1-(1)-----|-1---1---1-(1)-----|
E|-------------------|-------------------|
E S S E E +Q Q E S S E E +Q S E.
G|-------------------|----------------------|
D|-------------------|----------------------|
A|-1---1---1-(1)-----|-1---1---1-(1)--------|
E|-------------------|----------------3-1---|
E S S E E +Q Q E S S E E +Q Q E S S E Q E Q +W
G|-------------------|-------------------|-----------------|--------||
D|-------------------|-------------------|-----------------|--------||
A|-1---1---1-(1)-----|-1---1---1-(1)-----|-1---1---1----3--|-(3)----||
E|-------------------|-------------------|-----------------|--------||
[Outro]
Q E S S +E E Q Q E S S H 3x Q E S S +E E E S S
G||--------------------|----------------||----------------------|
D||o------3-1-(1)-3----|------3-1------o||------3-1-(1)-3-------|
A||o-------------------|---------------o||----------------------|
E||--1-----------------|-1--------------||-1----------------1-1-|
Q E S S H Q E S S +E E E. S +E e S S S S +E e S S E
G|---------------|---------------------|----------------------------*|
D|------3-1------|------3-1-(1)-3----3-|-(3)---1-3---3-(3)---1-3----*|
A|---------------|---------------------|-----3-------------3--------*|
E|-1-------------|-1-------------------|----------------------------*|
************************************
Duration Legend
W - whole; H - half; Q - quarter; E - 8th; S - 16th; a - acciaccatura;
+ - note tied to previous; . - note dotted;
Duration letters will always appear directly above the note/fret number it represents the
duration for. Duration letters with no fret number below them represent rests.
Uncapitalized letters represent notes that are staccato (1/2 duration).
| (n) - note tied to previous
| h - hammer on
| /\ - slide into or out of (from/to "nowhere")
*************************************
Bass Tabs |
|
Title |
Pick Up The Pieces |
Artist |
Average White Band |
Tablature Type |
ASCII Tab |
YouTube ID |
kj4K87jvvyI |
Interactive Bass Tab Guide
Interactive bass tabs provide a better experience than ASCII tabs. With playback, loop, print features and a responsive display that follows the screen of your device.
Use these buttons to control the digital tab player.
Symbol | Function |
| Move cursor to the first bar |
| Play interactive tabs |
| Pause playback |
| Loop |
| Print the tab |
| Zoom |
Page | Switch between page and horizontal view mode |
How to Read Bass Tab: A Beginner's Guide
1. Understanding the Basics
a. Strings:
Bass tab consists of horizontal lines representing the strings of the bass guitar.
The lowest-pitched string (usually the E string) is at the bottom, and the highest-pitched string
(usually the G string) is at the top.
b. Numbers:
Numbers on the lines indicate which fret to play on a specific string.
For example, if you see "3" on the E string, it means you should press down the third fret on the lowest string.
2. Reading Bass Tab Example
In this tab:
- Play the note on the 1st fret of the E string.
- Play the open E string.
- Play the 3rd fret on the A string.
- Play the 1st fret on the A string.
G|-----------------|
D|-----------------|
A|---------3-------|
E|---1-1---1---3---|
3. Playing Techniques
a. Hammer-ons and Pull-offs:
Hammer-ons are represented by an "h" (e.g., 5h7 means play the 5th fret and hammer onto the 7th fret).
Pull-offs are represented by a "p" (e.g., 7p5 means play the 7th fret and pull off to the 5th fret).
b. Slides:
Slides are often indicated by an "/" or "\\" between two numbers (e.g., 5/7 means slide from the 5th fret to the 7th fret).