Should I learn to read?

M.W. writes:

>I am 42 years old now.  Have been playing bass since the late
>seventies.  I have a lot of dexterity, and have good chops in most styles
>but are an expert in none.  I have learned by ear throughout all the
>years.  What is really turning me on lately is swing bass, jazz style
>walking.  Asleep at the Wheel style.  My question is, now that I have
>a "real job" and I don't play out any more, would it be in my best
>interest to learn how to read music.  At least on a basic level so that I
>can utilize the Bass Builder series books.  Or should I continue to go with
>the ear? 
> 
>Also, if I learn these great walking styles wont this help my ability to
>solo?  This is also a week point.
> 
> 
>M.W.



Dear M,
Regardless of your musical activity or goals, it is always a good idea to learn to read music. Music is a language. Why would we want to speak a language but not know how to read and write it at least a little?
I am not suggesting that you must become a killer sight reader who can walk in off the street and instantly play anything put in front of you. But you should know how rhythms and pitches are organized on paper.
If you don't learn the written language, you won't be able to benefit from what the books can show you. Tablature is a poor alternative because it does not give you nearly as much information as standard notation.

Don't be intimidated by what you don't yet understand. There are lots of good resources for learning to read music. Check out musictheory.net for good music reading trainers. Also, let me suggest the book I use to teach reading, Sight Reading for Bass by Ron Velosky.

As to your other question, the answer is yes. Good walking bass is built on a solid knowledge of harmony (chords). Walking lines and solos are both improvised over a set of chord changes, so the skill is the same -- coherently linking one chord to the next with a single-note line.
For more, check out http://www.andrewpfaff.com.

Hope this helps,
Andrew Pfaff