The Killers – “Somebody Told Me” bass transcription

Following up on their remarkably successful debut single, “Mr.Brightside“, The Killers released “Somebody Told Me” in March 2004. Although it wasn’t a hit on the scale of Brightside, it still managed to make a reasonable dent in the charts on both sides of the Atlantic.

More impressive than the song’s chart stats, though, is the bassline. “Somebody Told Me” finds Mark Stoermer in fine form:

The chart for “Somebody Told Me” includes portions of the synth part, on the basis that they’re quite important and (more importantly) fun to play.

The Killers – “Somebody Told Me” bass transcription PDF

The chorus is the main attraction here, with a standout bass part that requires some deft leaping around the fretboard. The key signature of Bb minor strongly suggests that the band are tuned down by a semitone on the recording, which would mean that some of the jumps could be made easier by using open strings.

My preference, though, is to stubbornly stay in standard tuning.

Bonus points are available if you can nail the chorus with your eyes closed!