He´s amazing...my God! I´m so hypnotized with the riff in "Dazed and Confused"!

ok what do you think of him...and please post your fave Zep songs...i;m a Zep Newbie and I will buy some albums...maybe the Zeppelin I first.

fave Zep songs/ basslines;

Ramble On
What Is And What Should Never Be
Good Times Bad Times
The Song Remains The Same
The Crunge
Over The Hills And Far Away
The Lemon Song
Communication Breakdown

very influenced by James Jamerson/ other Motown players. he did go for the "root, fifth, octave" phrase a lot, maybe a bit too often sometimes, IMHO....

I liked JPJ since I first heard back in 6th grade(1970?...I received Led Zep III for my 12th birthday). Though Plant/Page got the accolades, I do remember Page sayin' in a magazine interview, "...JPJ is the 'real' musical genius in Led Zep".
Looking at JPJ's style NOW, I can hear a Jamerson/Motown influence is some of his lines. "Good Times, Bad Times" has some Jamerson-type groovin' in the change(+ a couple of pseudo-Jazzy fills). IMO, that's cool! Then again, in that particular time frame, what British band worth their ass wasn't influenced by American R&B?

Other tunes I like-
"Ramble On"
"What Is & What Should Never Be"
...both from Led Zep II; both in a mellow, melodic vibe with a "rockin' chorus".
"Four Sticks"...a 5/8 ostinato
"The Crunge"...a 5/4 Funky groove
"The Ocean"...I like the groove/figure over the verses & how that odd bar of fits in(2 bars of 4/4 + a bar of 7/16). Some quasi-"swing" on the outro(kinda) ;)
"The Wanton Song"...Rock/Funk; good tune to practice your octaves & plucking hand(string-skipping). It's a bear...;)

The Rain Song

Jones doesn't play a very complex part on this song, but it's still beautiful.

and of course, Ramble On, the first Zeppelin song I learned to play, even though it was damn hard i didn't want to learn any other song

JPJ is a master all right. Every tune is an example of one or more of the following:

Great tone
Great note choices or riffs
Great sense of space or "when not to play"

The last being the most important, of course....

One of the few bassists who could manage to be melodic and heavy at the same time. Recently deceased Allen Woody of Gov't Mule is another good example of this.

Thanks guys i´ll check him out...

John Paul Jones
John Entwistle
Geezer Butler...

uhmmm...all from the same era...WHAT HAPPENED TO ROCK BASS????

Oh God...don't get me started! My "Old-Fartiness" will be displayed in all it's glory...

Check out JPJ's solo CD "Zooma" and you will get an even better idea about his contributions to Zep and find out the man can still play the bass & other stuff too.

the lemon song got me in to JPJ, sweet walkin durning the solo

I remember saying in a thread here not too long ago that I thought JPJ was over rated. Well, I've been listening to Zeppelin today, and I repent! It's true what people have said here, that he could groove, and considering he had Jimmy Page to contend with, he certainly managed to shine in the group.

On best Zep songs, I've got to pick three that don't really feature John Paul as much as others that have been mentioned, but were real classics:

Heartbreaker
Kashmir
Stairway To Heaven (Of course!)

One of the things that I think has been overlooked a lot about Led Zep was, seeing how they were all session players before forming the band, how versatile they were - they managed to pull off heavy metal, glam rock, R & B, folk, and funk, and as JimK says, they were good with unusual time signatures. But the less said about their stab at reggae on D'Yer Maker, the better...

Les;

If you are going to buy Led Zepplin albums, then you might as well buy the box set. Every Led Zepplin song is great!

On my profile I listed John as my #1 influence. I admire his skill, ability and knowledge of music and of the bass. John stands on his own and I feel he is so underrated. My sound as a bass player can be directly linked to him.

Listen to his groove and how well he and John Bonim hook up on every song they play.

My favorite Led Zep song is "What Is And What Should Never Be." What an amazing bass line he created!

----------------------------
:D

the crunge and the lemon song

He is a big influence over here with me. I think he held his own with Page as well, and as someone has stated before, prevented them from becoming just another hard rockin band. If you look at old Zep vidoes and flims, he is rarely on screen, and is so quiet and subdued. me and my buddy used to joke that when they got together to write songs, he would sit in the corner, only nodding his head yes or no, and jamming away, and when he got what they wanted hed crack a nasty grin. i bet thats the way it was.

I'm not much on Led Zep, but my favorite JPJ bassline is "Immigrant Song". also, he's a great keyboard player ("Trampled Underfoot", "Rain Song" and "No Quarter" spring immediately to mind).

I hate how in "The Song Remains the Same", JPJ is barely shown, and when he is, its usually on keyboards.

Originally posted by gruffpuppy
the crunge and the lemon song


Where's that confounded bridge?

I think my favourite John Paul Jones bass line would have to be Dazed and Confused -- the first thing I ever played on bass (and I did it wrong too because my brother [a guitarist {shudder}] taught me).

If I were to get a Led Zepplelin album the first one I'd go for would be Led Zeppelin II -- that has to be my favourite (though I can't really rate them).

...and if you wanna hear Led Zep LIVE, opt for the The BBC Sessions over The Song Remains The Same soundtrack.
"Dazed & Confused" is a classic 12/8 Blues line(good practice for that sorta vibe).

My fav zep song has to be the ocean, only cause of the vocal solo, plant, page and jones singing, nothing can be better.

"Dazed and Confused" is one of my all-time favorite tunes to play, too. I play in a 3-piece blues-rock band, and we seem to have a particularly good handle on that song. I love to pull it out when there's other musicians in the house and watch the jaws drop! It's an easy song to really lose yourself...I always feel like I'm about to foam at the mouth afterwards.

His entry in Ten Years Gone is kind of chilling. Very subtle and yet perfect (IMO).

I can't remember where I read or heard this, but he liked to stand near the drums where he could lock into the grove. That's why you don't see him much in The Song Remains the Same.

I'm still trying to learn Ramble On, but the chorus bit is throwing me off with all the different variants on the line...

Originally posted by NukeBass
I can't remember where I read or heard this, but he liked to stand near the drums where he could lock into the grove. That's why you don't see him much in The Song Remains the Same.

I'm still trying to learn Ramble On, but the chorus bit is throwing me off with all the different variants on the line...

1)All bassists should be back there with "their" drummer...hi-hat side, preferably (IMO). ;)
2)The "variants"...that's "jamming"(rather than playing a part by rote. Same thing Jamerson did on all those Motown tunes, the same thing Lesh did with The Dead, Casady, Bruce, David Brown, Bootsy Collins, Cetera, Fielder, etc
MOST bassists in Rock/Blues/R&B of the '60s/'70s played in this interactive manner.

I response to what album to buy first I would definitely say Zep II. Of all the albums I think JPJ's tone sounds the most killer on that one. And of course you've got a lot of great songs on there. It's more bluesy than the stuff that came after it (although it rocks plenty, don't worry about that). I mean, all the albums from I - physical grafiti are good, but II is where I would start.

Galen

I saw JPJ, March 16, 2000, At the Caravan of Dreams in Fort Worth. He played 4,5,and 10 string basses, Lap-steel,The triple-neck 6,12,& mandolin,Electric bass mandola, and Keyboards!

GREAT SHOW!!!!!

I LOVE JPJ!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
best rock bassist ever

oh...why do people think ramble on is so hard?
(not trying to be a show off, just the truth)

One of my favorite JPJ basslines is "Celebration day" from "The song remains the same". It's really cool to play this one. There are great LZ songs that feature a melodic bassline like "Dazed and confused" or an unison line with guitar like "Black dog" :cool: ,but i think that this version of "Celebration day" is a master example of groove. :)

Out on the Tiles from ZepIII.But of course,there are so many more and they've probably been listed already.JPJ is the man!!! Oh yeah, No Quarter is pretty cool too!!!

Originally posted by Willie Dizon
Out on the Tiles from ZepIII.But of course,there are so many more and they've probably been listed already.JPJ is the man!!! Oh yeah, No Quarter is pretty cool too!!!
everybody listen to Blind Melon's version of out on the tiles, it kicks ass!!! :)

Originally posted by funkopotimus

everybody listen to Blind Melon's version of out on the tiles, it kicks ass!!! :)
I haven't heard it yet,but now you've got my curiosity going!!!

John Paul Jones is a great bassist. His bass lines fit Led Zeppelin's music perfectly. Many of Zeppelin's songs are as good as they are because of the awesome bass lines. I love Led Zeppelin!!!

Originally posted by Willie Dizon

I haven't heard it yet,but now you've got my curiosity going!!!

EVERYONE MUST LISTEN TO BLIND MELON!!! DAHHH!!!! hahahaha, jimmy page, i heard, was a huge blind melon fan when they came out!!

Originally posted by funkopotimus


EVERYONE MUST LISTEN TO BLIND MELON!!! DAHHH!!!! hahahaha, jimmy page, i heard, was a huge blind melon fan when they came out!!


Blind Melon. eh. They're okay. I don't know if I would call myself a huge fan though.

FF

I listened to Blind Melon & I listened to Led Zeppelin
Back to back.

Led Zeppelin wins....

No contest really.

Sorry

But that's just Me.

Led Zeppelin:
Black Dog! (I can play it, but can't make it swing properly)
Blind Melon:
No Rain (wish I could write REAL songs)

I've just bought "Zooma", JPJ's solo album. lots of crunchy bass sounds (love the low B's on the 12string on "Grind") , and he gets to relive "The Lemon Song" on "Bass And Drums".
still, I feel something's missing with no vocals.....I might check out his album with Diamanda Galas.

Just listen to "Bad Child" from the soundtrack for the movie "Scream For Help" And you will know why it's a good thing he didn't sing on Zooma.

I'll never be able to play like JPJ, But at least I can sing like him.

Ed

i just try to get everyone to listen to blind melon cause i love them so much, i saw an oppurtunity so i at least got you guys to listen to that one song!

Oh yeah and so you guys know, Blind Melons bassist wrote No Rain, the one song that made it before shannon died, he said he could kill him for it!

Blind Melon has some good material, but they are no competition for Led Zeppelin.

Originally posted by nirvanarules28
Blind Melon has some good material, but they are no competition for Led Zeppelin.


they'll always be my favourite but i know they're small compared to Zep

Yup, John Paul Jones has to be one of my favorites. He is by far my greatest influence. I would try to play What Is And Never Should Be before band practice with a friend in high school, and I will admitt that I never could do it quite like JPJ. The man is smooth. I think his work on the second album is some of his best.
-Nate

I have to admit to not being a huge Led Zeppelin fan.

But frankly, the Lemon Song is one of my all time favourite bass lines, and if you haven't heard it, you don't know what you're missing.

At the end of the day though, I prefer Flea. Then again, they're probably not comparable.

I agree JPJ is/was one of the most underated rock bassists ever. My particular favorite example of his playing is What is and What Should Never Be on Zep II. Pure groove, function and style. How the hell can you top that?

I am going to have to disagree with you on that last comment. I am big John Paul Jones fan, but I don't think that he is underrated. In some ways I think he is held up as the prototypical rock bass player. Then again, maybe that is just my opinion.

'Sfunny; I was just re-reading a Guitar World(Jan '91) today that talked about JPJ being underrated as both a player & producer. Even in Led Zep, it was Page("guitar hero"), Bonham("drum demigod", & Plant("sex symbol")who garnered most of the attention.
Here's a snipet-
"As a bass player, Jones is sadly underrated. What most people think of as 'duh outwageous John Bonham dwum sound' is actually an outrageous rhythm section sound, with JPJ's bass lines lending maximum impact to Bonzo's thermonuclear thwacks".

...whatever; IMO, JPJ was/is underrated. If memory serves me, Jack Bruce, Greg Lake, Entwhistle, McCartney, Squire,...seem to get a lot of the accolades back in that day.

Originally posted by JimK

...whatever; IMO, JPJ was/is underrated. If memory serves me, Jack Bruce, Greg Lake, Entwhistle, McCartney, Squire,...seem to get a lot of the accolades back in that day.

Totally agree. He did get some recognition for his keyboard work, but it was like "oh yeh, he plays the bass parts too." Bonham's lines wouldn't have had near the impact without the strong bass lines like "Ramble On."
BTW, did you know JPJ also played all those cool mandolin lines. (i.e. "Going to California")

He is great but you better not brag on him too much because someone might think you were insinuating he was better than GOD (JACO).

I'm a HUGE Led Zeppelin fan, the band's music simply changed my life... I decided to be a bass player the moment I heard Jones on "The Lemon Song".

He's one of the most talented musicians I know.

Black Dog

Not a big JPJ Fan, but becoming one! I just picked up Zep II, and was blown away! I think Lemon Song, is the best line tho!

John Paul Jones! man I cant say enough about that man. Ive allways thought that if someone could learn LeD II not only the all the notes and the feel but the roles and conepts and His amazing sence of aranging a Rock trio and the basses versitility within that role .That would be enough to be a bad ass in a clasic rock setting.

AJ

I used to really like Zeppelin until I started playing bass, now I absolutely love them. JPJ really knows how to write great lines with a solid groove, it's a shame he doesn't stand out more in the mix on a few songs IMO.

I saw a Zep tribute band a few weeks ago and the bass player was horrible, he even missed the little solo/fills in Good Times Bad Times (one of my faves) so now I am starting a LedZep tribute to compete. I definitely have my work cut out for me on some of those tunes.

Yes, playing Led Zeppelin tunes is much more fun than listening to Led Zeppelin tunes on your stereo!

Originally posted by Dave Castelo
He´s amazing...my God! I´m so hypnotized with the riff in "Dazed and Confused"!

ok what do you think of him...and please post your fave Zep songs...i;m a Zep Newbie and I will buy some albums...maybe the Zeppelin I first.


There ya go! I don't hate you as much anymore!:) :D

this thread is almost 2 years old :cool:

This is a little off topic, but does anyone know what kind of strings JPJ used on II/III/IV/Houses of the Holy?

Oh, and I like the walking line at the end of The Ocean. My band just covered it at a recent gig and damn, that part's fun to play.

"Wearing and Tearing", "Out on the tiles", and "Night Flight". My favorites.

Jeff Doe

In no particular order:

Good Times/Bad Times
How Many More Times (Repetitive, yes, but really drives the song)
Dazed and Confused
Lemon Song
Ramble On
Bring it on Home
Ten Years Gone
Song Remains the Same
What is and What Should Never Be

As far as I can tell, on the occasions where he stepped out from behind Page, he never played a bad line. No matter what instrument he was playing.

Oh, and "Celebration Day" was from III

And yes, I realize this thread, from the date of the previous post, is nearing five years in age.

The Ocean.

The Song Remains The Same.

Black Dog.

Houses of the Holy.

The man isn't just a bass player - he's a musician. Huge influence on me.

The man isn't just a bass player - he's a musician.Exactly. I agree with all the praise here, and I'll add one more thing. He was a genius about knowing when to hang back and let Jimmy Paige's guitar fly, and when to step in with a cool riff.

Most of us on here wouldn't be doin' what we're doin' the way we're doin' it if it weren't for JPJ.

I'm a personal fan of 'I Can't Quit You Baby', really laid back groovy bass work by JPJ. Pages guitar is brilliant might I add.

Moby Dick, The Ocean, Black Dog, Over The Hills And Far Away etc are all classics too!

JPJ is simply humbling.

Oh man he is one of my all time favorite musicians. He was great on bass but after watching the DVD's they release a couple of years ago I was so surprised to see him playing parts of songs I always thought Page was playing like the mandolin on "Going to California".
My faves are.
"The Wanton Song"
"How Many more Times"
"What is and What Should Never Be"
"Black Dog"
"The Lemon Song"
"The Immigrant Song"
"Celebration day"
"The Song Remains The Same"
The whole Presence album.
Oh forget it the whole freakin' catalog!

In no particular order

Song Remains the Same
Since I've Been Loving You
Ten Years Gone
Achilles Last Stand

He kills it ..period!

JPJ is a master all right. Every tune is an example of one or more of the following:

Great tone
Great note choices or riffs
Great sense of space or "when not to play"

The last being the most important, of course....

One of the few bassists who could manage to be melodic and heavy at the same time. Recently deceased Allen Woody of Gov't Mule is another good example of this.

I watched a DVD that contained some old tape from an early show at a TV sound stage. They had an audience of teens in front of them. They ripped a great tune out...can't remember the title...what I remember is that when they took off into the "lead" section...JPJ and John Bonham started really taking the song away..really incredible example of rhythm section jamming...then Plant and Page stomped on it big time...I'll bet any of you die-hard LZ peeps who have this DVD know what I am talking about

How Many More Times is the first bassline I ever learnt, so simple yet so fun to play.

So glad I could bring this back to life! lol
I went out tonight and purchased the the digitally remastered versions of Led Zeppelin and Led Zeppelin II. Probably hadn't really "heard" The Lemon Song in 5 or 6 years.............OhMyEffinLawd!

JPJ is one of my favorite bassplayer. The man does know how to groove, that's for sure. I like the bassline of "How many more times". It's really a very simple line, but very effective IMO. And, of course, Dazed and Confuzed is a classic and one of my favorite LZ songs.

I like John Paul Jones, but you guys should check out Jake Holmes' original version of Dazed and Confused if you get a chance. It's a real eye opener, and it proves Led Zep didn't only steal from old black bluesmen!

More on topic, it may be corny, but I'll never tire of Ramble On or What is adn What Should Not Be or whatever the heck it's called.

My faves are.
"The Wanton Song"
"How Many more Times"
"What is and What Should Never Be"
"Black Dog"
"The Lemon Song"
"The Immigrant Song"
"Celebration day"
"The Song Remains The Same"
The whole Presence album.
Oh forget it the whole freakin' catalog!

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I know people were throwing out Blind Melon's "Out on the Tiles" earlier...if you want a different perspective on Led Zeppelin, see if you can dig up Infectious Grooves doing Immigrant Song (Rob Trujillo's band either before or after Suicidal Tendencies, dont remember)

I'm not gonna say its great, just different, and I like to hear it now and then.

I know people were throwing out Blind Melon's "Out on the Tiles" earlier...if you want a different perspective on Led Zeppelin, see if you can dig up Infectious Grooves doing Immigrant Song (Rob Trujillo's band either before or after Suicidal Tendencies, dont remember)

I'm not gonna say its great, just different, and I like to hear it now and then.

After S.T. on "Sarsippius' Ark". They also covered a Bowie song, though the title escapes me at the moment. Edit: "Fame"

You could also check out "Dread Zeppelin", an Elvis Impersonator-fronted Reggae, um, tribute band. Odd.

You could also check out "Dread Zeppelin", an Elvis Impersonator-fronted Reggae, um, tribute band. Odd.
DZ's very own Bob Knarly is a TB'er (knarlybass).

I would get this... the Zeppelin in full flight... http://www.amazon.com/Led-Zeppelin-Robert-Plant/dp/B00008PX8P

I was always a big fan, since I was a kid and my dad gave me the albums, and this DVD still blew me away 2 decades later...

DZ's very own Bob Knarly is a TB'er (knarlybass).


No ****? That there is pretty cool.

No ****? That there is pretty cool.

yup... so is he. go ahead and introduce y'all's self.

His bass lines are great even when he's not playing them on the bass. Check out "Since I''ve Been Loving You" on Led Zeppelin III.

If we're talking great Zeppelin covers, Tool's take on No Quarter (http://youtube.com/watch?v=bMr8Ehwt1xc) is the best I've heard.

John Paul Jones is the man! Led Zeppelin rules.

"What is and What should Never Be" = cool bass line

For gods sake check out "The Rover"

It rocks really really hard

Check out the drummerworld section on Bonham. There is a great tech vid on Bonhams drum setup especially his head tunings. His drums are large yet tuned such that they give a great lowend without being overly boomy.

Also of particular interest is the "Fool in the Rain" drums only track. Listen to Bonham put so much feel into the groove, beautiful. This really highlights the heavy bottom end feel of LZ's sound.

Another great example of the power of this rhythm section is found on the song "In my time of dying". Jones plays a fretless Precision on this track. This is my favorite track off of the DVD. The power of all the members is put to use, but jones really explodes the bottom end with the Precision. This is what proper heavy rock and roll is about.


http://www.drummerworld.com/drummers/John_Bonham.html

Best Led Zeppelin song is hand's down "Babe I'm gonna leave you" and it's a cover!

I haven't seen anyone mention his solo records which I think are great. I listen to them more than I do the Zep stuff.