Jul 252008
Hey — I got a quick question: there are all kinds of songs that make us play air guitar, or make us reach over to the passenger side to hit an imaginary crash cymbal. I’m also sure more than a few of you have whirled about in the privacy of your homes, wielding the spatula-as-microphone. But — I need to know — which songs make you wish you were thumpin’ the thunderbroom? My faith in the youth of today is restored by the video above, which proves that at least one youngster knows where maximum groove can be found. This song would be right near the top of my bassist wannabe list. How about you?
I look forward to your responses.
Hvb, I think you mentioned Zig Zag Wanderer in the Beefheart discussion last week. It has one of the great bass breaks ever. Abba Zabba has a nice bass solo too.
My go-to bass riff when I take out the bass is I’ll Take You There by The Staples Singers.
As a bassist, maybe I don’t qualify, but here’s some stuff I wish I had played. My personal top ten:
1. Get The Knack by The Knack. The playing is punchy and alive. Very melodic, and I love the mids. I know that when we recorded our last album, I wanted the bass to sound like this.
2. Master Of Puppets by Metallica. Cliff Burton was a very melodic bassist. What made him so cool was that his playing was almost out of place with all the crunchy riffing. He was playing harmonies.
3. Travelers And Thieves by Blues Traveler. Go ahead. Make fun. I’m not a huge fan of this rhythm section, but “Onslaught”. I love that bass part. Listen, I dare you.
4. Look Sharp! by Joe Jackson. I suppose this is an easy one, but c’mon: the bass is great on this record.
5. Houses Of The Holy by Led Zeppelin. “The Song Remains the Same”. I wish that was me..
6. Graceland by Paul Simon. I’m not a huge fan of anything with more than four strings when it comes to bass, but there is some really nice playing on this record.
7. Ben Folds Five by Ben Folds Five. Robert Sledge is great. I guess he plays the guitarist’s role. Dig the distortion.
8. Schmilsson by Nilsson. “Jump Into The Fire”. What bass player wouldn’t want to play that riff? Furthermore, what bassist wouldn’t want a solo where they get to de-tune?
9. Quadrophenia by The Who. John Entwistle. This is my favorite because the bass is so pure. It’s before John got crazy with the tones and he flat out played. “The Real Me” is the one, but there is not a weak bass track here. If he’s playing, it’s brilliant.
10. Tower Of Power by Tower of Power. Frank “Rocco” Prestia is the master of fingerstyle funk. Any TOP record would fit, but this one has “What Is Hip?” which is the fingerstyle song. Those sixteenth note runs are as solid as they come. Those fills are priceless.
TB
The remastered Diesel and Dust which came out just a bit ago reminded how much I really love the bass line in “Beds are Burning:”
http://youtube.com/watch?v=td1ZLqrEpXI
I don’t know if they make me want to jump up and play bass:
but I’ve always like the bass line from “Don’t let me Down”
http://youtube.com/watch?v=jPgEoBlNuqM
And of course “Good Vibrations”
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Rf5uGPdFnpk
(there is a great video of Brian Wilson and Carol Kaye playing the piano and bass parts only on the Smile DVD, but I couldn’t find a link to it anywhere.)
I second the nomination of Quadrophenia. For me, it’s all about “The Real Me” and “The Punk Meets the Godfather.” Also, The Ox’s playing on the Kids Are Alright versions of “Baba O’Riley” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again” is worthy of mention. I’ve always been partial to those swooping runs that sound like the yawns of the family dog I had growing up.
Two come immmediately to mind: Karl Alvarez with The Descendents and All. Also Fernando Saunders on Lou Reed’s much-maligned “New Sensations.”
I’d like to play bass in a band that only played heavy, repetitive stuff with lots of opportunities for octave leaps and syncopation. The Beatles’ “All Too Much” and PiL’s “Poptones” are the first two that come to mind followed by Marvin Gaye’s “Too Busy Thinking ’bout My Baby”.
Mod said: “heavy repetitive stuff with lots of opportunities for octave leaps and syncopation.”
I say: you mean like the MC5? Sorry, couldn’t resist.
Quadrophenia enthusiasts: have you ever heard the ’78 soundtrack? Entwistle remixed the bass and it sounds all dirty. It’s pretty boss if you ask me. I dig it.
Duck Dunn’s part on the song “Hip Hug Her.” I always wanted THAT gig.
there’s also Ronnie Wood’s bass sound on the Jeff Beck album called “Ola” (but NOT his bass sound on “Truth”).
Also, all the Chris Squire bass-ing before “Tales from Topographic Oceans”…in other words, everything up to “Close to the Edge”…made me want to bass, too.
And finally, the way Keef plays bass on Jumpin’ Jack Flash is fucking wicked. I wanted to sound like that when I played bass.
Oh…and the bass on “Substitute.” Fucking brilliant.
That Good Vibrations video is PERRRRFECT.
Funny you should bring up the ’78 soundtrack version of Quadrophenia. Townsman Sethro has that one but not the original release. He was asking if there were any differences in the mixes. I knew something we different (beside the side of oldies, etc), but I couldn’t remember what it was.
Will no one mention James Jamerson? How about that opening to “Going To A Go-Go”? But I think I have to wish I could play bass and drums simultaneously on that one.
I need to go back to the Quadrophenia soundtrack and check it out again.
I may be in the minority with this, but I just don’t dig on Entwistle’s tone in his later years. That phazed mud just doesn’t do anything for me. I guess that’s why I like the tone quality of the original Quad.
For such a brilliant musician, that guy just didn’t seem to exhibit much taste. He was John, and I suppose that he was justified. Then again, if I could play bass like that, maybe I’d want to sound like shit, too.
I remember a few years ago, Pete was posting some soundboard recordings on his website. Some listeners were commenting that there wasn’t much bass present. Pete explained that the reason why was because their wasn’t much bass mixed into the board. The bass you were hearing at the shows was simply coming from John’s rig onstage! Just how loud was that thing?
TB
Duck Dunn in Booker T’s “Mrs. Robinson.” *That* smokes!
latelydavid, fear not. the ’78 remix of the quadrophenia bass pushes it BACK in time, to sound morelike “Live at Leeds”, not forward to sound like “Face Dances.”
Mod, as I recall, some of the endings (and beginnings) of songs are different (maybe “the real me” has a different ending? maybe “godfather” has a different beginning?). Moon’s drums are also less canned sounding.
I prefer these mixes to the original release.
I’ll A-B it and get to you on this…I don’t remember being sickened by the soundtrack, plus it was nice to hear some of the “oldies” like “Be My Baby”.
TB
hvb,
i’m as big a Duck fan as anybody on this list, and I like his take on “mrs. robinson,” too.
but i always identify that kind of playing (with the octave leaps) as a McCartney thing. I think of that as Duck copping McCartney. He does a great job of it, but it’s kind of like saying that “Hide Your Love Away” is your favorite John Lennon song, despite it being more Dylan than Lennon. To put it in RTH terms, it’s like saying that Skylarking is your favorite XTC album, knowhatimean?
I’d rather hear Duck be Duck, man. That’s why I mentioned “Hip Hug Her.” Have you ever heard it? He’s behind the beat, playin’ way down low, connecting with the groove…it’s some SERIOUS ear candy.
go ahead, cyber yell at me if you must. ask me “what the hell ‘duck being duck’ means.” be *totally dismissive* of my view, even though it’s founded in lots of listening and you know it. act as if what i’ve just written has no merit whatsoever, in order to have me argue my viewpoint from a vast deficit, as is your usual, predictable way. ask me what i’ve been smoking…you know…do that thing you do when I offer a point of view that’s different than yours. do all of this, and more, but only if you must. i’m ready.
Hip Hug Her? WTF?!
Hey, Sat — this thread is starting to veer off topic, and you’re not helping. I don’t want to hear RTH’s Kentonite analyses of bass sounds, or round-wound versus flat-wound strings, or playing in one’s own “natural” style, or whatever. We can save that for another, nerdier, day. You got half marks on this one — at least you identified a song that actually makes you want to play the bass. And a *great* one it is, too: Hip Hug-Her. So thanks for that. But lay off the Dunn-playing-like-McCartney thing, okay? I’ll tell you why you’re totally WRONG on that one if you want, but it’ll have to be in a different thread.
Thanks for understanding,
HVB
#1 for me is Blur’s “Entertain Me”
Some others:
Bowie’s “Black Country Rock”
James Brown’s “Funky President”
James Gang’s “Funk #49”
Supergrass’ “Richard III”
And probably a bunch of Beatles related ones, like the already-mentioned Don’t Let Me Down, I Want You, Baby You’re A Rich Man, Taxman Polythene Pam, Another Day and Too Many People.
What ever happened to Robert Sledge, anyway?
BigSteve, HVB: you’re both making my morning coffee a LOT funnier.
Thanks!
saturn posts about his morning coffee at
Pince nez — morning ends at noon.
BigSteve, you have to start these posts with “hey Sat…i love ya but….”.
Saturn, you know I do, but I think public displays of affection are so gay.
I do enjoy these little flashes of insight into your leisurely lifestyle now that you’ve finished the dissertation.
And I feel like I should give a shout out to George Porter of the Meters. I Just Kissed My Baby definitely makes me want to play the bass.
Oh, and Tim Drummond on I Can’t Stand Myself.
Songs? Taxman and and those Costello winners with Bruce Thomas lines on numbers like “Pump it Up”, “Opportunity”, “Lipstick Vogue”, etc.
That said, NOBODY handles a bass like Danny Partridge. That’s my bassman!
Sincerely,
E. Pluribus
What makes me want to throw by bass away is the superior version of Gladys Knight’s “I Heard it Through the Grapevine”. I hear that and feel like a fish with a bicycle.
25 responses and not one mention of the Barney Miller theme? Philistines.
Badge and Let’s Get It On
John Paul Jones’ Led Zep bass riffs always get me in air bass mode.
The Pretty Things cover of “Come See Me”
My air bassing of McCartney’s Jamerson immmitation on “Everybody’s Got Something to Hide Except for Me and My Monkey”
I was never that big of a Jason Faulkner fan, but his bass playing on Eric Matthew’s “Fanfare” is something I’ve been trying to replicate in my air bass and real bass moments.
Hey, Tvox — “Fanfare” is a great one!
Just so you know, I will be picking up a new pressing of the orig. Quadrophenia using hi end 200 gram virgin vinyl. It has gotten good reviews for great sound. BTW saturn, I ‘m ready for that CD that we talked about
Just heard it today, and I want to play bass on it:
“Last Train To London” by ELO. It’s a disco line, but goes all over the neck. I love it.
TB
thanks for givin’ the bass player some!
Here are 10 that made me want to play bass
1. I Want to tell you – Beatles
2. What Is and What Never Should be – Led Zeppelin
3. Live With Me – Stones (Keith)
4. Blood & Roses – Smithereens
5. What’s The Frequency Kenneth – REM
6. Love Rears Up It’s Ugly Head – Living Colour
7. Sweet Thing – Mick Jagger (Flea on bass)
8. Come Together / Something – Paul overplays but it’s cool
9. Paperback Writer – Again – every note is a solo, but I love it
10. The Who – Borris The Spider / The Real Me (tie)