ROLLING
written/performed by Soul Coughing
from the album El Oso
transcribed by James Meakim ([email protected])
This one, like a lot of the stuff on El Oso, is very cool sounding, but not a
lot of fun to play more than once. Sebastian uses a heavily affected
5—string on this song. i've tabbed it for a 4—string in drop—D. it's not
too hard to convert it to a 5—string.
main riff
G|—————————————|
D|—————————————|
A|—————————————|
D|—0——2——4——5——|
"hey norman, was it thrown with a broken arm?"
G|———————————————|
D|———————————————|
A|———————————————|
D|—0—3—5——0—5—3——|
Soul Coughing was a New York-based alternative rock band. The band found modest mainstream success during the mid-to-late 90's. Soul Coughing developed a devout fanbase and have garnered largely positive response from critics. Steve Huey describes the band as "one of the most unique cult bands of the '90s ... driven by frontman M. Doughty's stream-of-consciousness poetry, Soul Coughing's sound was a willfully idiosyncratic mix of improvisational jazz grooves, oddball samples, hip-hop, electronics, and noisy experimentalism (described by Doughty as 'deep slacker jazz')."
Bass tablature (tabs) is an easy way to learn songs without needing to read traditional sheet music. Here’s a quick guide to understanding the symbols and techniques commonly found in tabs:
Each line in a tab represents a string on your bass:
Numbers on the lines indicate which fret to press. For example:
G|-------------------| D|-------------------| A|---3---------------| E|-------------------|
This means you play the 3rd fret on the A string.
Play the first note by picking it, then press down on a higher fret with another finger without picking again.
G|-------------------| D|-------5h7---------|
Pluck a note and then "pull off" your finger to let a lower fret ring.
G|-------------------| D|-------7p5---------|
Move your finger up (/) or down (\) the fretboard while maintaining pressure.
G|-------------------| D|-------5/7---------|
G|-------7b9---------|
G|-------7~----------|
Tabs don’t always indicate timing, so listen to the song while reading the tab. Wider spaces between numbers mean longer pauses, while closer numbers indicate quicker notes.
Tabs are a great tool to learn songs, but mastering the techniques takes practice. Listen carefully to the original track and play along to lock in the rhythm. Don’t rush — smooth, accurate playing is more important than speed. Happy jamming! 🎸
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