Kalamazoo (Ver 2) Bass Tabs - Primus @ BigBassTabs.com

Song: Kalamazoo
Artist: Primus
Album: The Brown Album
Tabbed by: Renny Kissling      [email protected]


So far I have only seen one version of this song on the websites and it is terrible.
The song is played on a six string bass, and can only be played on a six string bass.
It is played with standard tuning, and uses lots of strumming and thumb—slapping.  The
notation key is as follows:

      h — hammer on 
      p — pull off 
      b — bend string up
      r — release bend
      / — slide up
       — slide down
      ~ — vibrato 
      t — right hand tap
      d — downstroke
      u — upstroke
      x — mute
      s — thumb slap
      p — finger pop
      H — harmonic
      

Watch the live version on Videoplasty to understand the rhythm.

Intro:  x4

C:—————————————————————————|
G:—————————————————————————|
D:—————————————————————————|
A:———————————————————————x—|
E:——————————————0—0————————|
B:—0—0—0——0——0———————0—0———|
   s s s  s  s  s s  s s p

Now, this is the only part of the song that I am unsure of.  But this sounds close enough,
and definitely good enough if you want to cover the song with your band.



Chorus:  The high notes are all strummed with a down—to—up rhythm.  On the parts that have
         the muted "x's," you play the muted strum on the downstroke, and hit the actual 
         note on the upstroke.  It is hard to explain, but watching the live version on 
         Videoplasty will make sense of it all.  Remember that Les improvises often.


C:——7—7————————x—7—————————9——7—7—————————x—7——————————|
G:——7—7————————x—7—————————9——7—7—————————x—7——————————|
D:—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A:—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
E:——————————6—————————0h7——————————————6—————————0h7———|
B:——————7h9—————————7——————————————7h9—————————7—————7—|
    d u s   s  d u  s s s d  d u   s   s  d u  s s s s



C:——7—7————————x—7—————————9——7—7—————————x—7—|
G:——7—7————————x—7—————————9——7—7—————————x—7—|
D:————————————————————————————————————————————|
A:————————————————————————————————————————————|
E:——————————6—————————0h7——————————————6——————|
B:——————7h9—————————7——————————————7h9————————|
    d u s   s  d u  s s s d  d u   s   s  d u  



Verse:  This is played quietly with a light strum and slap motion.  On the studio version,
        Les plays the verses the same way as the chorus, but I think the live version is
        more appropriate, and that is what is shown here.


C:——7————————x—7————————9——7————————x—7———————|
G:——7————————x—7————————9——7————————x—7———————|
D:————————————————————————————————————————————|
A:————————————————————————————————————————————|
E:——————x—7————————x—7—————————x—7————————x—7—|
B:————————————————————————————————————————————|
    d   s s  d u   s s  d  d   s s  d u   s s


C:——7————————x—7————————9——7————————x—7—|
G:——7————————x—7————————9——7————————x—7—|
D:——————————————————————————————————————|
A:——————————————————————————————————————|
E:——————x—7————————x—7—————————x—7——————|
B:——————————————————————————————————————|
    d   s s  d u   s s  d  d   s s  d u   


Bridge/Guitar Solo: 

C:——7—7————————x—7—————————9——7—7—————————x—7——————————|
G:——7—7————————x—7—————————9——7—7—————————x—7——————————|
D:—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A:—————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
E:——————————6—————————0h7——————————————6—————————0h7———|
B:——————7h9—————————7——————————————7h9—————————7—————7—|
    d u s   s  d u  s s s d  d u   s   s  d u  s s s s


C:——7—7————————x—7—————————9——7—7—————————x—7—|
G:——7—7————————x—7—————————9——7—7—————————x—7—|
D:————————————————————————————————————————————|
A:————————————————————————————————————————————|
E:——————————6—————————0h7——————————————6——————|
B:——————7h9—————————7——————————————7h9————————|
    d u s   s  d u  s s s d  d u   s   s  d u  


C:——9—9—————————x—9—————————11——9—9——————————x—9——————————|
G:——9—9—————————x—9—————————11——9—9——————————x—9——————————|
D:————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A:————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
E:———————————8—————————0h9————————————————8—————————0h9———|
B:——————9h11—————————9———————————————9h11—————————9—————9—|
    d u s    s  d u  s s s  d   d u  s    s  d u  s s s s 


C:——9—9—————————x—9—————————11——9—9——————————x—11—10—9—8—|
G:——9—9—————————x—9—————————11——9—9——————————x—11—10—9—8—|
D:———————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A:———————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
E:———————————8—————————0h9————————————————8——————————————|
B:——————9h11—————————9———————————————9h11————————————————|
    d u s    s  d u  s s s  d   d u  s    s  d u  s s s s



Breakdown:  This is essentially the same as the verse, except that Claypool does some 
muted
            double—slap and then a harmonic at the end


C:——7————————x—7————————9——7————————x—7—————————————|
G:——7————————x—7————————9——7————————x—7—————————————|
D:———————————————————————————————————————x——x——x——x—|
A:——————————————————————————————————————————————————|
E:——————x—7————————x—7—————————x—7————————xx—xx—xx——|
B:——————————————————————————————————————————————————|
    d   s s  d u   s s  d  d   s s  d u  psspsspssp


C:——7—7————————x—7————————9——7————————x—7H———|
G:——7—7————————x—7————————9——7————————x—7H———|
D:———————————————————————————————————————————|
A:———————————————————————————————————————————|
E:————————x—7————————x—7—————————x—7—————————|
B:———————————————————————————————————————————|
    d u   s s  d u   s s  d  u   s s  d u



Ending/Outro:  Same as the intro, but slide up to the twelth fret octave and pop the chord.
               As I am writing this without aid of my bass, I am not sure at the moment what exact
               fret the high chord is, but at this point it is not necessary to hit the 
               exact right note.  I will say that it is on the 16th fret, as that is the
               b octave on the g string


C:—————————————————————————|—————————————————————————————————16—|
G:—————————————————————————|—————————————————————————————————16—|
D:—————————————————————————|————————————————————————————————————|
A:———————————————————————x—|————————————————————————————————————|
E:——————————————0—0————————|————————————————————————————————————|
B:—0—0—0——0——0———————0—0———|—12—12—12——12——12——12—12——12—12—————|
   s s s  s  s  s s  s s p   s  s  s   s   s   s  s   s  s   p
     

C:—————————————————————————————————16—16—16——16——16—16—————|
G:—————————————————————————————————16—16—16——16——16—16—————|
D:——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
A:——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
E:——————————————————————————————————————————————————————————|
B:—12—12—12——12——12——12—12——12—12———————————————————————————|
   s  s  s   s   s   s  s   s  s   p  d  u   d   u  d


There you have it.  You can get the rhythm and order by listening to the song or watching 
the video.  I highly recommend that you watch the video of this song to understand how to 
correctly  strum the high notes.  This may not be 100% accurate, but it is much much closer 
than what the old tab that I have seen has given you.  Email me any questions or comments. 
 
This song is difficult to play, but incredibly fun once you have it down.  Good Luck!

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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Primus — Kalamazoo (ver 2) bass tabs