I've been playing bass for just about 50 years, started out on trumpet in grade and junior high school, semi-learned to read but always could play by ear too well and remembered the simple tunes we had to play too well to have to rely on the music. I started to teach myself how to read for bass a few times but ran into the same problems, also probably laziness. I just retired and really want to stretch and learn to read and also progress. I can pretty much play all kinds of music but the problem is I cannot sight read at all. I find myself with a lot of time on my hands now (just retired, yay!) so I'm ready to start. My question is can anyone recommend some good books to start out with and has anyone been in a similar situation and found a way to progress with reading? I would also appreciate some tips on tools to get better such as metronomes etc, tools for learning I guess, thanks.
Your situation is a lot like mine... learned to read on another instrument in school band then picked up bass (and did learn to read on the first 5 frets at the beginning via a beginner book of some sort but then didn't look at music for like 20 years and can play way more complexly than I could read). Somebody mentioned that beginner books will be too easy for you, and they will be, mechanically, but you SHOULD start there; gotta crawl before you walk. You are a beginner reader so you start from the beginning. It should take all of a week or two to get the first 5 frets down if you can already play. No sweat.
Then, I think you will get the most mileage out of reading relatively easy Jazz/Blues walking bass lines because they constantly move, usually in even quarter notes, and they will help you break down and see chords. Rock is cool but it will either be too root-y or too rhythmically distracting for a new reader, there isn't a real good happy medium in rock.
I first tried reading walking lines using Aebersold Jazz play-a-longs but Reid and Carter are way more complicated than a beginner should be using without a teacher to explain what is going on harmonically and, perhaps more importantly to a beginner, shifting-wise. I have learned that there is a strategy in shifting fretting-hand position- I do know theory and mode patterns so I can see what's going on and that greatly helps shifting as each time you shift you want to shift to a position which will allow you to play a block of notes (and if you know scales and modes you will easily see what's going on and your shifting choices). You should definitely simultaneously learn the structure of major and minor triads and major, minor and dominant 7th chords. Nevermind the diminished for now, don't overwhelm yourself.
Speaking of not overwhelming yourself like I might have just done to you, read this:
I have found that TB's own Ed Fuqua has a book called Walking Bassics which is designed to teach you how to walk but it has been invaluable to me in learning to read/shift. It starts off very simply, using simple and repetitive keys and almost all dominant chords. You can easily spend a month dissecting the first three tunes to learn the ins and outs of shifting into "known patterns" so don't rush building that foundation (but do go ahead and play the other tunes for sight-reading/fretboard knowledge improvement (drop the sound files into a slower-downer and slow them down as much as necessary to keep up- you will not be looking for perfection so you don't stop, you just keep reading the notes and playing for the purpose of learning to sight read). You can stop here if you want so you don't get overwhelmed. Then read more below. All of this stuff is easy but it's easily overwhelming to take in all at once.
However, sight reading is easier when you know what's going on harmonically.
To aid your insight on the first three tunes, at this point merely learn the Mixolydian mode. Google that and/or read below
The finger pattern is like the major scale 2,4 1,2,4 1,3,4 except it's 2,4 1,2,4 1,2,4 (the 7th scale degree is flatted- learn how the Mixo mode sounds, don't just learn the pattern). Also note for the purposes of these tunes, you are effectively changing key with each chord change- if the chord is Bb7, you will largely be using the notes from Bb Mixolydian and when the chord changes to Eb7 you will largely be using the notes from the Eb Mixo. Don't overthink it at this point, just do it. It kinda violates the rules of basic (diatonic) theory and that's okay- you can totally demoralize yourself if you start asking "why" at this point. Just do it while simultaneously reading about theory. Learning will come in small increments that you might not notice then "BAM" you'll put 1 and 1 together and understand something.
Good luck. If you can afford a teacher, do it, but yep, it's sort of a PITA when you can already play. A teacher could show you a couple of these patterns then you could spend a couple of months using them and internalizing them. I would never bash lessons but you need a few bits of info and then lots of practice more than you need weekly lessons for the purposes of sight reading. Also, a community college theory course would be good for understanding chord structure but remember that Blues and Jazz is going to violate the chord movement that you'd learn but don't worry about that, just worry about the chord structure. Again, this is all WAY easier than all of these words imply but you have a bit of a ball of yarn to unravel first.
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