Artist: Bowling For Soup
Album: Drunk Enough To Dance
Song: Surf Colorado
Tabbed By: Adam Seaborne ([email protected])
Standard Tuning — EADG

A brief key:
~ — Let Ring
m — Mute strings

Intro:

   A               B
G|———————————————————————————|
D|———————————————————————————|
A|—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—2—2—2—2—2—|
E|———————————————————————————|

   E               A               C#
G|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A|—7—7—7—7—7—7—7—7—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—|
E|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|

   D                               B
G|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A|—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—|
E|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|

Verse:

   E               A
G|—————————————————————————————————|
D|—————————————————————————————————|
A|—7—7—7—7—7—7—7—7—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—|
E|—————————————————————————————————| x3

   C#              B
G|—————————————————————————————————|
D|—————————————————————————————————|
A|—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—|
E|—————————————————————————————————|

Pre—Chorus:

   A     B     E
G|————————————————————|
D|————————————————————|
A|—0~~———2~~———7~~~———|
E|————————————————————| x2 (Could be an open E here instead of A—7)

   A               B
G|———————————————————————————|
D|———————————————————————————|
A|—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—2—2—2—2—2—|
E|———————————————————————————|

Chorus:

   E               A               C#
G|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A|—7—7—7—7—7—7—7—7—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—4—|
E|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|

   D                               B
G|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A|—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—5—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—|
E|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|

Bridge 1:
(Remember the first time...)

   E            A
G|———————————————————————————————|
D|———————————————————————————————|
A|—7—7—7m——rest——0—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—|
E|———————————————————————————————| x2

   E               A               F#              B
G|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A|—7—7—7—7—7—7—7—7—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—————————————————2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—|
E|—————————————————————————————————2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—————————————————|

Bridge 2:

   E             A            F#           B
G|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A|—7—7—7m——rest——0—0—0——rest———————————————2—2—2—2—2—2—2—2—|
E|————————————————————————————2—2—2——rest——————————————————|

Outro

   E               A
G|—————————————————————————————————|
D|—————————————————————————————————|
A|—7—7—7—7—7—7—7—7—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—0—|
E|—————————————————————————————————| x3

   E               A
G|——————————————————————————————|
D|——————————————————————————————|
A|—7—7—7—7—7—7—7—7—0—0—0—0—0—0m—|
E|——————————————————————————————|


That's pretty much it. I know for sure this is nowhere near 100% correct because I can 
hear different bass riffs in the song.
I created this from the guitar chords, but I play it with my band and it sounds allright. 
Please leave corrections — ratings are pointless =)


Play Order:

Intro
Verse x2
Pre—Chorus
Chorus x2
Verse x2
Pre—Chorus
Chorus x2
Bridge 1 x2
Bridge 2 x1
Chorus x2
Outro

Any comments about it, email me.

About Bowling For Soup

Bowling for Soup (also abbreviated BFS) is an American pop-punk band which originally formed in Wichita Falls, Texas in 1994. Now based in Denton, Texas, the band is best known for its singles "Girl All the Bad Guys Want," (a 2003 Grammy Award nominee) "Almost," "High School Never Ends," and "1985."

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! 🎸

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Bowling For Soup — Surf Colorado bass tabs