How George Harrison created pop’s most sophisticated bass line

Last week, we dove into root motion and I’m betting some of you went full detective mode on your favorite songs.

If you’re anything like my students, you probably discovered why certain Beatles progressions feel “inevitable” while your own feel “meh.”

Or realized that half your saved progressions are just the same bass movement with different chord colors.

But let me stress one thing – knowing about root motion and using it are two different games entirely.

Before we dive in, Harmony GPS keeps rolling – Module 2 just went live!

This course uses a unique brain science approach to understanding harmony (including root motion mastery). The goal is to transform how you think about chord progressions with minimal effort.

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“Something” by The Beatles (George Harrison)

Key: C major

Verse Progression:

Broken into two sections for clarity

C – Cmaj7/G – C7 – F – F/E – D7 – G

Ami7 – G/B – Ami – Ami7/E – Ami/G – D9 – F – Eb – G/D

Why it’s genius: George Harrison created one of the most sophisticated bass lines in pop music.

Look at that bass movement: [ C-G-C-F-E-D-G]

[A-B-A-E-G-D-F-Eb-D].

He mixed stepwise motion, strategic leaps, and chromatic passing tones to create a bass line that’s both smooth and surprising.

When you analyze it as “bass line movement” instead of memorizing “C-Cmaj7/G-C7-F-F/E…” you understand the architecture.

Harrison was very intentional about the chord inversions because he was crafting a bass line that moves melodically.

I encourage you to study this song because it is a master class in bass line composition.

So how do you develop this kind of bass line intuition?

Well, it starts with learning the four movement patterns that pros use instinctively.

What it is: A systematic approach to understanding chord progressions through movement patterns rather than chord-by-chord memorization.

The key is practicing with real music rather than just passively studying theory. It’s an effective sequence that moves from recognition to application to mastery (with continued learning of course).

Scott Young talks about this in “Ultralearning” – the principle of directness. Instead of learning about music, you learn by doing music.

Here’s the four-step sequence I’m developing with my students to turn root motion knowledge into creative fluency – a preview of what’s coming in Harmony GPS:

Step 1: Recognition Detective Work

Start with songs you already know. Write out just the root notes and see how they move. Beatles songs are perfect for this – they naturally used strong root motion everywhere.

Step 2: Strategic Bass Control

Learn to use inversions to control your bass line. Want powerful leaps? Keep chords in root position.

Want smooth stepwise movement? Use inversions strategically. You’re controlling what the listener’s ear follows.

Step 3: Analysis Revolution

Stop writing chord symbols. Start describing the movement. Instead of “Dm7-G7-Cmaj7,” think “roots dropping by 5ths twice.”

This rewires your brain to think in patterns, not memorization.

Step 4: Creative Application

Take any movement pattern and experiment with different chord types.

Try the “down by 5ths” pattern with major 7ths, minor 7ths and sus chords. Same skeleton, with a mix of different colors.

Now, here’s what’s really happening: you’re learning to think like the pros do.

Understanding the movement patterns that progressions use instead of just focusing on memorizing progressions, which gets more complicated as sequences get longer.

When I was taking Gary Willis’ bass course, he mentioned that he approaches complex jazz by recognizing patterns rather than memorizing every progression.

Same principle we’re applying to root motion study.

Your Mission: Apply the four-step sequence to a song that you like.

Step 1: Pick a simple song and write out just the chord roots. What movement patterns do you see?

Step 2: Try the same progression with different bass approaches – root position vs. strategic inversions.

Notice how the bass line changes the feel?

Step 3: Describe the movement instead of chord names. “Root drops by 5th, then steps up” instead of “C-F-G.”

Step 4: Keep the same movement pattern but try different chord qualities – 7ths, sus chords, etc. Mix and match these.

The goal is to practice pattern-based thinking that works with any song instead of just learning one progression.

What’s a progression you’ve always loved but never understood why it worked so well? Try analyzing its root motion – you might discover the secret.

Drop me a line [email protected]

See you next week.

Melvin