
Muse 
Album: Blackholes and Revelations
Track 1: Take a bow
Bassist: Chris Wolstenholme
Tuning could be EADG or EADA depending on what way you want to 
play one bit. 


No Bass until 0:38

/ — slide up
\ — slide down

The reason behind the tuning is the Take a bow bit, where the bass 
is hitting octaves and getting higher. To play it you would need 
a 6 string or a 26 fret 4 string. Tuning to A allows you to play it 
on 24 fret 4 string. 

It's an ok song, may be hard for beginners. 


No bass until 1:42

Verse
Mainly octaves. 

G|———8—8—8—4—4—4—3—3—3—3—3—3——8—8—8—4—4—4—6—6—6—6—6—6——|
D|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|   
A|——6—6—6—2—2—2—1—1—1—1—1—1——6—6—6—2—2—2—4—4—4—4—4—4———|   
E|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|    
—
G|——————————11—11—11—10—10—10—10—10—10————————11—11—11—8—8—8—8—8—8——|
D|———8—8—8—————————————————————————————8—8—8————————————————————————|   
A|—————————9——9——9——8——8——8——8——8——8—————————9——9——9——6—6—6—6—6—6———|   
E|——6—6—6—————————————————————————————6—6—6—————————————————————————|

(2:04)

take a bow—bow—bow.....

This is my favourite bit in the song on bass. But it poses a problem. 
I have looked at every possible alternative, and i have come 
up with 3 possible ways he could be playing this run.

1) He has a 4 string with 26 frets (they exist? other then 36 frets?). 
Here is how you would play it on one of those.


G|————————————————————————10—10—10——14——14——14——17——17——17——22——22——22——26——26——26——|
D|——3—3—3—7—7—7—10—10—10————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|   
A|———————————————————————8——8——8——12——12——12——15——15——15——20——20——20——24——24——24————|
E|—1—1—1—5—5—5—8——8——8——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|

2) He could also have his G string Tuned to A, so that way the last 
notes are 24s and not 26s. 
This would mean that every not hit from the A string would have 
its octave at same fret on the G string.

In that case this bit would be.
A|———————————————————————8—8—8———12——12——12——15——15——15——20——20——20——24——24——24——|
D|——3—3—3—7—7—7—10—10—10—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|   
A|——————————————————————8—8—8——12——12——12——15——15——15——20——20——20——24——24——24————|
E|—1—1—1—5—5—5—8——8——8———————————————————————————————————————————————————————————| *

3) If you had an extra string tuned to C, like on a 6—string bass. 
You could play it like this.  

C|—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————17——17——17——22——22——22——|
G|———————————————————————10—10—10——14——14——14——17——17——17——————————————————————————|
D|——3—3—3—7—7—7—10—10—10—————————————————————————————————15——15——15——20——20——20————|   
A|——————————————————————8——8——8——12——12——12——15——15——15————————————————————————————|
E|—1—1—1—5—5—5—8——8——8—————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
B|—————————————




Anyways, after that bit. 2:15

G|——10—10—10——————————10—10—10——————————10—10—10——————————10—10—10—10—10—10———|
D|———————————11—11—11——————————11—11—11——————————11—11—11—————————————————————|   
A|—8——8——8———————————8——8——8———————————8——8——8———————————8——8——8——8——8——8—————|
E|——————————9——9——9———————————9——9——9———————————9——9——9———————————————————————|

G|——10—10—10—10—10—10———————————————————10—10—10—10—10—10—————————————————————|
D|————————————————————11—11—11—11—11—11———————————————————11—11—11—11—11—11———|   
A|————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
E|————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————| x2

2:38

G|———————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
D|———————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|   
A|——1———————1———————1———————1————————6———————6———————6———————6———————————————|
E|——————2———————2———————2———————2————————7———————7———————7———————7———————————|


2:59

G|———————————————————————————————————|
D|———————————————————————————————————|   
A|———————————————————————————————————|
E|——4————0————4————0————4—/—12——4————|

3:10                   3:20

G|————————————————|    |——————6\——————|
D|———————6\———————| x4 |————6———(1)/7—|   
A|—————6———(1)/7——|    |——4———————————|
E|———4————————————|    |——————————————|

This next bit can be played with the open D/12 but i think it sounds 
better to have the 5 on the A / 12. You need to have that D ring out 
slightlybefore the slide

3:31

G|————————————————————|
D|——————4—————————————| x4  
A|————4———5/17\***————|
E|——2—————————————————|

3:42

G|————————————————————|
D|——————9\————————————| x4  
A|————9————2—2/10—————| 
E|——7—————————————————|


Outro 3:52

**                  **
G|—————————————|    |————————————|  
D|—————4——5——2—| x2 |—9——4——5——2—| x2  
A|——2——————————|    |————————————|    
E|—————————————|    |————————————|    

4:03

G|—————————————|    |————————————————|
D|—————————————| x2 |————————————————|   
A|—22——2———22——|    |—22——2———2—————3| 3 just seems to work, he's probably
E|———22——22——2—|    |———22——22———————|  not playing anything there. 


*) I wouldd love to test and see if this sounds well, but i'm tabbing 
this on my 20 fret Squire Jazz. I need a new bass. You will have 
to change some other G string bits out yourself if you try things 
this way. 

**) Here you could hit more notes between the given notes, I just 
like how letting the notes ring out sounds. Put in some slides 
if you want too.

About Muse

The Muses (Ancient Greek ?? ??????, hai mo?sai : perhaps from the o-grade of the Proto-Indo-European root *men- "think") in Greek mythology, poetry, and literature are the goddesses or spirits who inspire the creation of literature and the arts. They were considered the source of the knowledge, related orally for centuries in the ancient culture, that was contained in poetic lyrics and myths.

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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Muse — Take A Bow (4-string) bass tabs