Whatever you play puts a framework around the rest of the music. Guitarists, singers, and horn players tend to claim the flashiest moments in any given song, while drummers channel most of the kinetic energy, but what the bassist brings is something elemental — the part that loops endlessly in your head long after the music ends.
Bassists are often overlooked and undervalued, even within their own bands. As with our Greatest Drummers list , this rundown of the 50 greatest bassists of all time celebrates that entire spectrum.
John Lloyd September 8, at pm. Percy Jones of Brand X?? One of a kind and not in the list?? Bob Trezise September 8, at pm. William Fletcher September 8, at pm. Hardy September 8, at pm. Rob September 8, at pm. Yeah that is outrageous!! Clear 1 in my opinion. Followed by Claypool at 2. Robert Roder September 8, at pm. Mike October 26, at am. Based on skill and creativity. Well the list is not even in the same reality. Nf martinez sR September 8, at pm. Ocando September 9, at am.
Nicolas Liautaud September 9, at am. Bob September 9, at am. Tony September 9, at am. Patvyn September 9, at am. Patvyn September 9, at pm. Not sure what number but Michael Anthony, from Van Halen should be up there, somewhere. Katherine white September 9, at pm. Thank you for saying Mel shocker GFR is so underrated!!! Lars Marke Otzen September 9, at pm. John Entwistle is my man… Unfortunately the best basplayer ever…….
Aris September 10, at am. Dennis Redman September 10, at am. Zython September 10, at am. Rich September 10, at am. Ricky September 10, at pm. Gregg September 10, at pm. Gregg H September 10, at pm.
Erik September 12, at pm. List is atrocious. Robert L. September 13, at pm. Mick DeLeon September 14, at pm. Entwistle on top, for sure. Eric Chatham September 16, at pm. David Joyce January 5, at am.
Michael Gilmore July 4, at am. Tolli May 25, at pm. Nobody heard of Nathan East? Who made this list? Ian Mitchinson September 21, at pm. Jamerson at 19? The man who influenced most on the list inc McCartney, Flea and Entwistle. Chris September 22, at pm. Lama September 28, at am. Jen Moore September 29, at am. Agree Peter Cetera should absolutely be on this list, phenomenal player. Greg Newsome October 12, at pm. Mark Hans Solar of Slave should be on there too.
JimiX November 2, at am. Mikey Nails! November 2, at pm. Ole November 2, at pm. Sam November 2, at pm. Eric Hall November 3, at pm. Geert Aerts November 3, at pm. And, of course completely forgotten, on Number 1A: Robbie Shakespeare! Matt November 5, at pm. Brian November 14, at pm. Sherri November 14, at pm. My favorite bass player was left out. Steve November 14, at pm. Roger November 15, at am.
Declan November 15, at am. Keith Williams November 15, at am. John Aage Nilsen November 15, at pm. Steve Milner December 15, at pm. Norman is probably in a league above this one! MIke Christopher November 15, at pm. Ankele November 15, at pm. Jeremy Montague November 15, at pm. Marcos November 15, at pm. Doug Horspool November 15, at pm. Tmcg November 15, at pm. Mike November 15, at pm. Casey November 15, at pm. Alan November 15, at pm. Jamerson was the bassist who changed the way we envisioned playing bass.
Just the best. Mike Zammit November 15, at pm. Uncle Funk July 9, at pm. I believe Ron Carter appeared on more albums than anyone else.
Chip November 15, at pm. Val Williams November 15, at pm. Steve November 15, at pm. Christel Combs November 15, at pm. Dan Frederick November 15, at pm. He deserves that spot at the very least! Dale November 15, at pm. Will Sullivan November 15, at pm. Michael November 15, at pm. Chris November 16, at am. John Lodge October 25, at am. Chris January 25, at pm. Rob MacNaughton January 25, at am. Glad somebody else caught this. Gary Thain was a monster with Heep.
Robert November 16, at pm. Greg Osborne November 17, at am. I can listen to that record for the bass alone. Mark November 17, at pm. Victor November 18, at am.
John November 20, at pm. I always love the bass on story in your eyes by the Moody Blues. Scott November 22, at am. And Steve Harris is shit. Steve Jordan November 25, at pm. A one! Sarah Sutherland November 27, at pm. Anderson December 16, at pm. This list is skewed to havor hard rock and metal.
Jim December 29, at am. VintageRocker December 31, at pm. WVA December 31, at pm. Chuck foxwell January 1, at am. Doug Rea January 17, at am. I think Stanley Clarke should be number one!!!!!!!!! Kelvin McKisic January 19, at pm. Tim January 25, at pm. Ram February 5, at am. Dave Haladay February 17, at pm. Where is Felix Pappalardi from Mountain?
Jack Bruce listed behind Flea? Bruce Shaakhal February 17, at pm. Henry Gutierrez February 18, at am. J D Spurlock February 18, at am. Dennis February 18, at pm. He was amazing. Mike Vande February 19, at pm. What a load! Juan C. February 19, at pm. Not Jeff Berlin and Alain Caron on the list, this is a shit. Prinz H. I miss Melissa auf der Maur on this list so Tina weymouth might not be alone. Greg B February 19, at pm. Tall Paul February 19, at pm.
John O March 7, at pm. Richie March 9, at am. March 19, at am. Joe April 25, at pm. This list is a joke. FLEA better than Jaco…..
Robert Hooker April 25, at pm. What about Greg Lake? He has got to be considered in this list. Paul Dooley April 26, at am. Glenn Goldsmith October 29, at am. Bob Davison April 26, at am. Dennis April 26, at pm. David Brehaut April 27, at am. Matt Channing April 27, at pm. TheKunig April 30, at pm. Lars Arnwald April 30, at pm.
Andrew Blegg April 30, at pm. Richard P Heine May 1, at am. Jaco only made 12? Who used harmonics on a Bass before he did? Richard May 28, at pm. JD Hoskins June 28, at am. Lgbpop June 29, at am. Jim July 26, at pm. Gary August 2, at am. ShortLegs August 2, at am. There is one great Bass player omitted, that being session bassist, Carol Kaye!!! Hill August 4, at pm. James August 5, at pm. Veronica August 20, at am. Alex August 22, at am. Peter Ellis September 22, at am.
Kaman October 25, at am. Shane Sikes October 25, at pm. Timothy Schubert October 26, at pm. I would put McCartney at number 2 and Willie Dixon at number 3. Otherwise, a good list. Hari Mwell October 27, at pm. Andrew Gates November 12, at am. Ally December 10, at pm. Steven Montalbano December 12, at pm. Galen mccall September 25, at am. Mark December 13, at am. Adrian Cunliffe December 13, at am. The best bass guitarist ever. Dan December 13, at am. Sims, Mel Schachler….
Mike December 20, at am. George February 14, at pm. Eugene January 21, at pm. Jim Wass April 16, at am. Bill Carroll May 5, at am.
Dennis Reilly May 5, at am. Andy Frobig May 5, at pm. Ed May 8, at pm. Paul Keys June 2, at pm. Wil Golja July 5, at am. Give your bass a boost with our pick of the best bass guitar strings around. Clearly, Mark King from Level 42 could play a bit. There they are, with their none-more-tight jeans and Pavement t-shirt, holding their bass at weird angles and occasionally bawling out a backing vocal.
By day, they're an account manager at an East London PR firm, but by night they stride the stage like a Chuck Taylor-sporting colossus. Their thumb has a life of its own, and their bass is subjected to a near-constant battering from that swollen digit. Sir Slapsalot bought a one-way ticket to Slapsville immediately after seeing the Red Hot Chili Peppers at the Milton Keynes Bowl in the early '90s, and has yet to return.
This bassist is a funky one alright, but beware: their shirt is rarely on, and their thumb is always - always - popping. Whether you like it or not. It's not easy playing alongside a blues guitarist whose dials are set to wail, but the Blues Baron does it with a cool, calm efficiency that belies their many years. They sit down when they play, never sweat, never smile, and somehow the entire show revolves around them.
They are the silent arbiter of breakdowns and pace, and seem to be controlling the drummer via telepathy. The father of Latin bass and king of the tumbao, Cachao transformed the Cuban traditional dance, danzon, into mambo, and his seminal recordings of jam sessions called descargas changed popular Afro-Cuban music and paved the way for generations of artists to follow.
As a classically trained bassist who made his symphonic debut at 13, Cachao developed a hard-swinging style rife with inventive figures that included hitting the body of the bass, all to create rhythmic counterpoint—the true mark of great Latin bass playing. The first lady of bass is a pioneering legend both as a performer and educator. A bebop guitarist, Kaye picked up a Fender Precision at a Capitol session for an absent bassist.
Possessing a deft touch and funky feel, she began a rapid rise as a member of L. His zingy, aggressive riffs under songs such as Roundabout , played on his Rickenbacker RM, made for a completely new sound—especially since he used both a pick and roundwounds.
The prolific rock-bass virtuoso honed his craft in the Buffalo bar trio Talas, where he recreated on his fingerboard many of the missing parts on cover songs.
And the 'producer switch,' a dummy toggle on his bass that speaks for itself. The quintessential Gotham bassist since , Lee redefined support bass with a new level of stylistic versatility via his ability to shade the pocket in myriad ways and move seamlessly from finger-plucking to slapping, which he introduced to the studio scene.
Uncle Will has played and recorded with everyone, invented late-night TV bass and the term 'subhook,' sings his butt off, and is eternally hip.
On Jerry Was a Race Car Driver , Les slaps, taps, and tritones his Carl Thompson bass to produce a frenetic whack-fest with a strong, slightly swinging 16th-note groove.
Claypool got players asking, What on earth is he doing? And how can I do it, too? Just as Charlie Parker and Dizzy Gillespie created bebop language on their instruments, Oscar Pettiford — defined bebop on bass. He had a sleek walking style, precise in melodic choices and steady in tempo, with brilliant and complex solo lines.
Cracking the L. With a penchant for finding the perfect pocket, Duck was to Memphis soul what Jamerson was to Motown. Charlie Haden — told his story with few notes. He rose to stardom in with the Ornette Coleman Quartet. From on, he worked with Quartet West.
Among the second wave of L. Bass was felt more than heard in pop when Osborn—with a Fender Jazz Bass and pick in hand—innovated a melodic, legato style filled with trademark slides and upper-register phrases as a member of L.
His dirty tone, courtesy of Fender Telecaster and maple-board Precision Basses, has stood the test of time. Listen to Live at Fillmore East The 5-string ace pioneered propulsive, improvised fretless bass lines and bebop-infused solos, both as a member of Tribal Tech and as solo artist.
Edwards grounded chart-topping Chic hits like Good Times and Le Freak with tight, motive lines via his 'chucking' technique, where he emulated holding a pick and struck the strings with both nail and finger.
The bridge between Stanley and Jaco and the second wave of fusion bassists, Berlin combined his classical violin training with a love of rock and jazz to fashion a fleet, melodic support-and-solo style that broke ground with Bill Bruford and led to a successful solo career.
As founder of the Players School, his volatile views on music education are ongoing. Known for his lightning-fast fingers, articulate soloing, and 'lead bass' role, Burton achieved legend status before he died in a band bus crash in Along with Jaco Pastorius, Swallow is perhaps the best-regarded composer and player to wield a bass guitar in jazz.
His singular technique he uses a copper pick on a 5-string with a high C , unerring melodicism, and implacable swing have made him a stalwart sideman with artists like Gary Burton, John Scofield, and Carla Bley, and a bandleader of lasting import. More an improvising composer than mere bassist, Lesh elevated the Grateful Dead from hippie jam band to an artistic ensemble capable of reaching heights of interactive ecstasy.
Balancing roots with bouncy, offbeat upper-register figures, he could spin long motivic statements sometimes lasting over a minute, often steering the band into daring new harmonic territory.
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