BASS TAB
Aerosmith — S.O.S. (Too Bad)
(S. Tyler)
>From the album Get Your Wings, 1974
Bassist:  Tom Hamilton

Tabbed by:  Austin Lewis ([email protected])

To play this correctly, you need to tune your bass down one half step 
(Gb, Db, Ab, Eb).


Part 1
Intro:
Gb|——————————————|——————————————|——————————————|——————————————|
Db|—7—5——————————|——————————————|—7—5——————————|——————————————|
Ab|—————7———3—4——|—5————————————|—————7———5—3——|——————————————|
Eb|———————5——————|——————————————|———————5——————|—5————————————|

Gb|——————————————|——————————————|——————————————|——————————————|
Db|—7—5——————————|——————————————|—7—5——————————|——————————————|
Ab|—————7———3—4——|—5————————————|—————7———5—3——|——————————————|
Eb|———————5——————|——————————————|———————5——————|—5—3——————————|

Gb|——————————————| You should be holding the note on the 3rd fret
Db|——————————————| from the previous measure, and then all you do here
Ab|——————————————| is a quick hammer on to the 4th fret, holding that 
Eb|—h4———————————| until you play what's below.

Gb|—————————————————|—————————————————|
Db|—————————————————|—————————————————|
Ab|—————————————————|—————————————————|
Eb|—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—|—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—|

Gb|—————————————————|—————————————————|
Db|—————————————————|—————————————————|
Ab|—————————————————|—————————————————|
Eb|—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—|—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—|


Part 2
Verse:
Gb|———————————————————————————————————|
Db|———————————————————————————————————|
Ab|—12—0—0—10—0—0—7—0—0—5—0—0—3—0—————|
Eb|———————————————————————————————3—1—|

Gb|—————————————————|—————————————————| This rhythm is really weird
Db|—————————————————|—————————————————| so I just play eighth notes
Ab|—————————————————|—————————————————| all the way through.
Eb|—1—1—1—1—1—1—1—1—|—1—1—1—1—1—1—1—1—|

Gb|———————————————————————————————————|
Db|———————————————————————————————————|
Ab|—12—0—0—10—0—0—7—0—0—5—0—0—3—0—————|
Eb|———————————————————————————————3—1—|

Gb|—————————————————|—————————————————| Here's the weird rhythm again.
Db|—————————————————|—————————————————|
Ab|—————————————————|—————————————————|
Eb|—1—1—1—1—1—1—1—1—|—1—1—1—1—1—1—1—1—|


Part 3
Chorus:
Gb|———————————————————————————————|
Db|—12—0—0—10—0—0—7—0—0—5—0—0—3—0—|
Ab|———————————————————————————————|
Eb|———————————————————————————————|

Gb|—9—————7——————————————————————| This is easier to play than it 
Db|—————————————9—————7——————————| looks.  Bar the 7th fret with your
Ab|———7—7———7—7———7—7———7—7—10—7—| first finger.
Eb|——————————————————————————————|

Gb|———————————————————————————————|
Db|—12—0—0—10—0—0—7—0—0—5—0—0—3—0—|
Ab|———————————————————————————————|
Eb|———————————————————————————————|

Gb|———————————————————————————————|
Db|———————————————————————————————|
Ab|—12—0—0—10—0—0—7—0—0—5—0—0—3—0—|
Eb|———————————————————————————————|


Part 4
Solo:
Gb|——————————————|——————————————|——————————————|——————————————|
Db|—7—5——————————|——————————————|—7—5——————————|——————————————|
Ab|—————7———3—4——|—5————————————|—————7———5—3——|——————————————|
Eb|———————5——————|——————————————|———————5——————|—5—3——————————|

Gb|—————————————————————|———————|————————————————————————|
Db|—————3—————3—————3———|———————|—————7—————7—————7——————|
Ab|—————————————————————|———————|————————————————————————|
Eb|—1—1———1—1———1—1———1—|—1—3—4—|—5—5———5—5———5—5———5—5——|

Gb|———————|—————————————————————|———————|
Db|———————|—————3—————3—————3———|———————|
Ab|———————|—————————————————————|—0—————|
Eb|—4—3—1—|—1—1———1—1———1—1———1—|———8—9—|

Gb|———————————————————————————————|
Db|—12—0—0—10—0—0—7—0—0—5—0—0—3—0—|
Ab|———————————————————————————————|
Eb|———————————————————————————————|

Gb|—9—————7——————————————————————|
Db|—————————————9—————7——————————|
Ab|———7—7———7—7———7—7———7—7—10—7—|
Eb|——————————————————————————————|

Gb|———————————————————————————————|
Db|—12—0—0—10—0—0—7—0—0—5—0—0—3—0—|
Ab|———————————————————————————————|
Eb|———————————————————————————————|

Gb|———————————————————————————————|
Db|———————————————————————————————|
Ab|—12—0—0—10—0—0—7—0—0—5—0—0—3—0—|
Eb|———————————————————————————————|


Part 5
Outro:
Gb|———————————————————————————————| Play this 8 times.
Db|———————————————————————————————|
Ab|—12—0—0—10—0—0—7—0—0—5—0—0—3—0—|
Eb|———————————————————————————————|


Song Order:
Intro      Part 1
Verse      Part 2
Chorus     Part 3
Verse      Part 2
Chorus     Part 3
Solo       Part 4
Verse      Part 2
Chorus     Part 3
Outro      Part 5


Email questions or comments to:

[email protected]

About Aerosmith

Aerosmith is an American hard rock band, sometimes referred to as "The Bad Boys from Boston" and "America's Greatest Rock and Roll Band". Their style, which is rooted in blues-based hard rock, has come to also incorporate elements of pop, heavy metal, and rhythm and blues, and has inspired many subsequent rock artists. The band was formed in Boston, Massachusetts in 1970. Guitarist Joe Perry and bassist Tom Hamilton, originally in a band together called the Jam Band, met up with singer Steven Tyler, drummer Joey Kramer, and guitarist Ray Tabano, and formed Aerosmith. In 1971, Tabano was replaced by Brad Whitford, and the band began developing a following in Boston.

How to Read Bass Tabs

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:

1. The Basics

Strings and Frets:
Each line in a tab represents a string on your bass:
- The top line is the highest-pitched string (G on a 4-string bass).
- The bottom line is the lowest-pitched string (E on a 4-string 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.

2. Common Techniques

Hammer-On (h):
Play the first note by picking it, then press down on a higher fret with another finger without picking again.
```
G|-------------------|
D|-------5h7---------|
            
```
Pull-Off (p):
Pluck a note and then "pull off" your finger to let a lower fret ring.
```
G|-------------------|
D|-------7p5---------|
            
```
Slide (/ or \):
Move your finger up (/) or down (\) the fretboard while maintaining pressure.
```
G|-------------------|
D|-------5/7---------|
            
```

3. Advanced Techniques

Bend (b): Push the string up or down to raise the pitch. Example: G|-------7b9---------|
Vibrato (~): Shake the string slightly after playing a note to create a vibrating sound. Example: G|-------7~----------|
Muted Notes (x): Rest your finger lightly on the string without pressing a fret and pluck for a percussive "click" sound.

4. Rhythm and Timing

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.

5. Slap and Pop

Slap (s): Strike the string with the side of your thumb for a percussive sound.
Pop (p): Pull the string away from the fretboard and let it snap back.

Practice Makes Perfect

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! 🎸

Forum

Aerosmith — S O S bass tabs