The Greatest

Bass Line Ever?

Take the
Power Back

FREE LESSON BOOK The TGrTTatTTesTBheL

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The Greatest
Bass Line Ever?
Take the Power Back
Scott Devine & Ian Allison

There’s no denying the immense power of Rage

Against The Machine. The rap-metal quartet’s finest
hour was probably their 1991 self-titled debut album,
a highlight of which was Take the Power Back. A
masterclass in slap bass, it’s the opening riff that
qualifies the song for immortality!

In this lesson we’re showing you how to recreate Tim

Commerford’s jaw-dropping bass line – complete
with performance notes and explanations on how Tim
dialed in his Music Man StingRay to give the song an
extra rhythmic edge.

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Tim Commerford BASS PLAYERS TO KNOW

Tim Commerford
Rage Against The Machine first began turning heads in the
Los Angeles music scene in the early ‘90s and were signed
to Epic Records in 1992. That same year, they released their
eponymous debut album, and the rest is history.

Seemingly overnight, Tim Commerford established himself as

one of the most unique bass players in metal, inspiring legions
of fans in the process. Then again, Commerford is far from
just a metal guy, as you’ll know if you’ve heard the funk-heavy
approach he took on those early Rage albums, the Audioslave
stuff that followed, and the punk rock and EDM-influenced
bass parts that he’s delivered with Wakrat and Future User in
more recent years.

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Take the Power Back

Slap bass was never a huge part of the Rage sound, but
Timmy C sets the groove from the start, slapping and
popping his way through the tasty lead riff. The balance
between championing the bass track, but keeping the
vocals at the forefront requires immeasurable self-control,
but Commerford absolutely nails it.

Album
Rage Against the
Machine (1992)
Bassist
Tim Commerford

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FREE LESSON BOOK: Greatest Bass Line Ever - “Take the Power Back” 05

The Opening Riff

The opening riff centers around a Dmin7 triad - don’t forget to tune your E
string down to a D - with Commerford exploiting the wide frequency range
of his Music Man bass. It’s a prime example of how the bass guitar in a
heavy-sounding, aggressive band can be supportive yet interesting, holding
down the groove with robotic accuracy.

Example 1
Video 5:44

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Example 2

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4
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5
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The Chorus Riff

Commerford’s bass continues to increase its presence in the chorus. The
first bar follows a chromatic series of dissonant chords from C back up to
the D. The bass drops out in the second bar, making the rhythm and tempo
feel even more dynamic. Pretty simple here, a bass guitar with humbuckers
through some distortion, but mostly aggression. Don’t be nice to it!

Chorus
Video 7:30

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The Bass
As for sounds, there’s no getting away from it – this is a StingRay. “I was 18
years old when I first saw a Music Man Stingray,” said Commerford. “It was
a blonde one with a black pickguard, and it was at a pawnshop and it was
$300. I wanted it so bad, and I scraped up the money, and I got it. That bass
was the one that I used to record the first Rage record, and it was a big part

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Building Basslines: A Rhythmic

Approach With Jonathan Maron
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