Song Title: Filthy Habits
Artist: Frank Zappa
——————————————————————————————————————————————

Filthy Habits by Frank Zappa
from the 1991 CD `You Can't Do That Onstage Anymore Vol 4'
Disc 1, Track 15   5min40sec
transcribed by Craig Jones (on MS Notepad)
[email protected]

Hi Again!
Here's another FZ tune. This is the way that I play this one in my band
The Zappa Instrumentaale. It's a good basic riff for a guitarist to solo
over & any band can work up some hot moments with this trance—like riff.
It's not all that hard to play but you will need to strech a bit in the `B'
section (or finger it across 2 strings). It's played on a 5—string but I
will provide alternate fingerings at the end.I would love to hear from any
other FZ fans playing this stuff (live or bedroom) & would appreciate
getting any other FZ TABs, either Bass or Guitar). I would also be pleased
to receive any corrections.  Ciao!


Filthy Habits — FZ
*=time signature change
  in next bar


A section (basic riff)                                      (not 10th time)
     (x10)                                                            V    *
  ||—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————||
 5||.—————————————————————————————————————————————————————3———————————3—.||4
 4||.———————————————————————————4—————————————3—————————————————————————.||4
  ||———1——————————2——————————————————————————————————————————————————————||
  ||—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————||


B section (fiddly bit)
     v————3————v    v————3————v    v————3————v    v—————5——————v      *
  |——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
 4|——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|3
 4|——8——8—10—8—6————8——8—10—8—6————8——8—10—8—6————8——6——8——10——6—————|4
  |——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
  |——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|


     v——————5——————v    v—————5—————v    v—————5—————v    *
  |—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|  |———————————————|
 3|——10——8——8——8——10————6——6——8——6——5————5——5——6——5—————| 4|———————————————|
 4|——————————————————————————————————————————————————7——| 4|—8—————————————|
  |—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|  |—————————1———3—|
  |—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|  |———————————————|


                           *  (x4)
  |——————————————————————|  ||———————————————————————————————————————————||
 4|——————————————————————| 5||.—————————————————————————————————————————.||
 4|——————————————————————| 4||.—————————————————————————————————————————.||
  |———4———————————6——————|  ||———————————————————————————————————————————||
  |——————————————————————|  ||———2———————2———2————————2————2———/—8——————||
                                                           s s


C section (guitar solo)
    (x ?)
  ||——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————||
 5||.————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————.||
 4||.—————————————————————————————————————————————————————3————————————3—.||
  ||———————————————————————————4—————————————3————————————————————————————||  |————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
  ||————1——————————2——————————————————————————————————————————————————————||




D section (fiddly bit again)
     v————3————v    v————3————v    v————3————v    v—————5——————v      *
  |——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
 4|——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|3
 4|——8——8—10—8—6————8——8—10—8—6————8——8—10—8—6————8——6——8——10——6—————|4
  |——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
  |——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|



     v——————5——————v    v—————5—————v    v—————5—————v    *
  |—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|  |———————————————|
 3|——10——8——8——8——10————6——6——8——6——5————5——5——6——5—————| 4|———————————————|
 4|——————————————————————————————————————————————————7——| 4|—8—————————————|
  |—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|  |—————————1———3—|
  |—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|  |———————————————|


                v————3————v   v————3————v   v————3————v   v—————5——————v   * 
  |——————————|————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
 4|——————————|————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|3
 4|——————————|——8——8—10—8—6———8——8—10—8—6———8——8—10—8—6———8——6——8——10——6——|4
  |—4———6————|————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
  |——————————|————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|



     v——————5——————v    v—————5—————v    v—————5—————v    *
  |—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|  |———————————————|
 3|——10——8——8——8——10————6——6——8——6——5————5——5——6——5—————| 4|———————————————|
 4|——————————————————————————————————————————————————7——| 4|—8—————————————|
  |—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|  |—————————2———4—|
  |—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|  |———————————————|



  |—————————————————————|——————————————||
 4|—————————————————————|——————————————||
 4|——————————————3——————|——(3)—————————||
  |————6————————————————|——————————————||
  |—————————————————————|——————————————||




————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————
————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————


Alternate fingering for 4 strings

B section (bar 5)                     C section (guitar solo vamp)
    (x4)
  ||———————————————————————————||      ||————————————————————————5——————5—||
 5||.—————————————————————————.||     5||.———————————4—————3—————————————.||
 4||.—4————4—4—————4—4——/10——.||     4||.—3————4————————————————————————.||
  ||———————————————————————————||      ||—————————————————————————————————||



Have Fun!



Submitted by:  Craig Jones ([email protected])

About Frank Zappa

Frank Vincent Zappa (pronounced /?zæp?/; December 21, 1940 December 4, 1993) was an American composer, electric guitarist, record producer, and film director. In a career spanning more than 30 years, Zappa wrote rock, jazz, electronic, orchestral, and musique concrète works. He also directed feature-length films and music videos, and designed album covers. Zappa produced almost all of the more than 60 albums he released with the band Mothers of Invention and as a solo artist.

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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Frank Zappa — Filthy Habits bass tabs