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Emerson Lake And Palmer — Knife Edge (corrected) bass tabs



Originally tabbed by: Jasen ([email protected])
100% Corrected by: Yoav (me :P)


This song shines most when improvised with.
If your band has a good keyboardist and a good bass player, this is a real soloing
treat.
If you are a beginner and want to know how to play this song, i suggest you to
practice each Part by itself, and when you know it perfectly start combining them
until you can play the whole song.
That way, you will know the song by heart, and your fingers will just hit the notes
without thinking about it.


h = Hammer on
* = Let the note Ring
( ) = Notice the timing on the note between the Parenthesis.

Tuning: Standard (E A D G)

Bass starts at 0:06

G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|—————————————————————————————————|| Repeat 5x
A|——5———3———0——3030—3030———————————||
E|—————————————————————————————————||

G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|—————————————————————————————————|| Repeat 6x
A|—————————————————————————————————||
E|———5555——3333————————————————————||

G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|—————————————————————————————————|| Repeat 2x
A|——————5—4—3—2—1—0————5—3—35—53———||
E|—————————————————————————————————||

G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|—————————————————————————————————||
A|————0—3030—3030——————————————————||
E|—————————————————————————————————||

G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|—————————————————————————————————|| Repeat 5x
A|———5——3——0——3030—3030————————————||
E|—————————————————————————————————||

G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|—————————————————————————————————|| Repeat 6x
A|—————————————————————————————————||
E|———5555——3333————————————————————||

G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|—————————————————————————————————|| Repeat 2x
A|——————5—4—3—2—1—0————5—3—35—53———||
E|—————————————————————————————————||


1:50

G|—————————————7———7——5—————7———7——5—————||
D|——————————————————————7————————————7———||
A|—1——1——1———5———5————————5———5————————5—||
E|———4——4——3—————————————————————————————||

"Well you still know who you are"
G|——————————————————||
D|——————————————————||
A|——3—1—3—1—3—1—3—1—||
E|——————————————————||

"When you come to who you are"
G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|———————————————————————3—0———————||
A|0———0———0———0——————3—0—————3—0———||
E|——3———3———3———3——3———————————————||

G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|—————————————————————————————————|| Repeat 2x
A|———5——3——0——3030—3030————————————||
E|—————————————————————————————————||

G|————————————————||
D|————————————————|| repeat 4x
A|——5——3——0———————||
E|————————————————||

G|————————————————||
D|————————————————|| repeat 10x
A|——5——3——0*——————||
E|————————————————||

G|———————7——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————0h2—0h2——————||
D|——————————————————————————————————————————(3)—2—————————————————————————————2——||
A|—5—0h1———5—3—1—0———————————5—3—0—1—1—0————————0—5——3—3—1—1—0——4—5—————————————0||
E|—————————————————2—3—3—1—0—————————————3———————————————————————————————————————||

G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|—————————————————————————————————||
A|———3030—3030—————3030—3030———————||
E|—————————————————————————————————||

G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|—————————————————————————————————|| Repeat 2x
A|————55——33——00———3030—3030———————||
E|—————————————————————————————————||

G|——————————————————————————————————————————||
D|——————————————————————————————————————————|| Repeat 2x
A|——5555——3333——0000——3030—3030—————————————||
E|——————————————————————————————————————————||

G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|—————————————————————————————————|| Repeat 6x
A|—————————————————————————————————||
E|———5555——3333————————————————————||

G|—————————————————————————————————||
D|—————————————————————————————————|| Repeat 2x
A|——————5—4—3—2—1—0————5—3—35—53———||
E|—————————————————————————————————||



bigbasstabs.
Tablature player for this song:
Emerson Lake And Palmer - Knife Edge (corrected) Bass Tab

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! 🎸

Other versions of Knife Edge

Comments

4 years, 6 months ago
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I am new to bass. played drums for 20 years. It would help noobs like me a lot if the bars were included and even more if the guitar chords were noted above the measures. gives a sense of timing and timber to those of us who need those crutches. I can follow Carl Palmer and Ed White and Neal Peart drumming… but Greg Lake and Chris Squire bass parts, not so much. I need all the help I can get on a bass tab.

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