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best bassist ever
- Thread starter Stanleyism
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Easily over 100 per genre, probably, to account for guys some have heard that others have not.
Hmmm ... which is more lame; this oh-no-not-again thread or the oh-no-not-again anti-Flea comments?
So anyway, how are we judging art these days, by who can run the fastest or who can jump the highest ?!?
The former. It's not disrespecting Flea's contribution to his band or his influence on a generation of kids to suggest that he doesn't belong anyhwere near a list like this.
You know... it's so simple for musicians on other instruments to come together and make this sort of judgement based on technique, which is a bit more objective than basing it on musical appeal. But when bassists try to do it, it gets bogged down by folks who haven't figured out that their favorite pop/rock/metal tunes might not require anything special in the way of training. I mean, I love U2, but wouldn't put Clayton, Edge or Mullen on any "greatest musicians" list.
The revered players on just about every other instrument are revered for their technique and talent, but guitarists and bassists are judged by record sales and tattoos. I guess it's a by-product of the "Go to a pawn shop, buy a Strat/P-Bass, learn three chords, fling your hair around and you're a musician" mentality of electric solidbody sales marketing, but I'll never understand how it flies on a website dedicated to the craft of bass playing.
+1. There ain't no best of course, but MK is one of my all time faves. Seeing him live is quite the experience. And I'm going to see L42 again this October!
Sorry, it clearly *is* disrespectful, intentionally or otherwise. Surely the contribution of any musician in a band *to* that band is one of the most important aspects of what they do? Often arguably more so for a bassist? And isn't influence a considerable mark of a player's significance? And, incidentally, with a career and rep stretching well over 20 years, Flea's influence has been on considerably more than one generation of 'kids'.
Or perhaps folks who have figured out that there's more to a discussion of art than whose brush strokes are tidier?
Are you seriously comparing Flea on a technical level with the guy out of U2?!?
The fact that Flea's rep was established during the years that the Chilis were struggling to sell records at all might we worth mentioning here? In fact it's that rep, as the speedy-slapper-guy, that still follows him around even now, depite the fact that the huge sales mostly came after he'd largely abandoned that style of playing.
That comes across as pretty disrespectful of rock players in general. If you can't hear the 'craft' in pretty much any given Chilis line (or for that matter the music of any number of rock acts out there in the various genres) then I can't help you.
Look, 'Best of' lists are always a bad idea. Artistic qualities - and sorry no, it's not all about 'craft' - go beyond technique, and can't be judged on objective terms. Someone else here has suggested that the only way a topic like this has any chance of working is to split it into genre which makes sense - unless you're genuinely of the mind that Victor Wooten could successfully front Motorhead ..?
Flea's in what was once a kindasorta funk band. There's nothing he does that hasn't been done better by literally hundreds of bassists in R&B bands playing small clubs and bassists in small Southern Protestant storefront churches. Nothing. He is to funk what Kenny G is to jazz.
<Event MC> And now, theeee funkiest bass player on the planet... Sidneeeeeeey "Cornbread" Leshkowitz!!!!!" </Event MC>
...have you ever heard of a product called "Shake N Bake"?
Yes.
Someone else here has suggested that the only way a topic like this has any chance of working is to split it into genre which makes sense - unless you're genuinely of the mind that Victor Wooten could successfully front Motorhead ..?
Woot can't successfully front Motorhead because his voice is different from Lemmy's and because rock is all about image.
Image.
Im.
Age.
Lemmy doesn't play -has never in his life played- anything Victor Wooten can't. The reverse is definitely not true.
Look, I'm not opposed to kids and old rockers having respect for their current posterboys and childhood heroes (I'm one of the biggest Police fans of all time, but I don't think Sting belongs on this list), but I believe that technique ought to be at least a part of any thread that includes "best" in it. We all like different styles of music, so that's going to be subjective no matter how many people offer opinions.
I'm simply asking that we respect our instrument. Do you think a similar poll in the Doublebass part of this site would include a rockabilly player?
Rickett Customs
Commercial User
OP,
This is what happens when you ask, sometimes it's just better not to know some things
.
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Excuse me, could I get a Redballs?
This is what happens when you ask, sometimes it's just better not to know some things
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Excuse me, could I get a Redballs?
Out of that list I most like Stuart Hamm and Stanley Clarke. But no Jonas Hellborg or Geddy Lee?
ROTFLMAO
Priceless.
Ladies and Gentlemen, I give you the greatest bass player in the history of the world.
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Logic Flaw. The best likely hasnt been born yet, dont ya reckon?
2nd logic flaw, not mentioning Mr. Graham yet. Jaco's melodics, but for pure thump, LARRY!
2nd logic flaw, not mentioning Mr. Graham yet. Jaco's melodics, but for pure thump, LARRY!
Not really. RHCP were a post-punk band massively influenced by funk. The punk-funk thing was almost exclusively down to their influence and playing those lines in that context with that level of attack and aggression is far removed from straight funk playing.
I'll admit to not frequenting too many small Southern Protestant storefront churches, but really ... I'm genuinely having to curb the profanity here!
I've read some lame quotes on bulletin boards through the years, and that was certainly one of them.
First of all -wow. I mean wow. Could my comment about Wooten and Motorhead have been any more obviously a joke? And yet, there's a serious answer to it. Wow. Interesting too that said answer shows your absolute disrespect for rock music.
To put my views here in some sort of context, my own interests (specific to bass guitar) include rock (alternative, prog and classic), funk and jazz (fusion, mostly). Among my all time favourite players and biggest influences are Jaco Pastorius, Jack Bruce, Marcus Miller, Larry Graham, Geddy Lee and Les Claypool. Flea is without doubt my favourite player and biggest influence (and yes, Lemmy's probably in there somewhere too). I am not coming at this with a blinkered 'old rocker's' view.
Obviously, but Lemmy has produced classic music (filthy rock of course, barely worthy of your attention
), that Wooten never would have. Incidentally, although his music is not to my taste, I certainly respect and admire Wooten's jaw-dropping technique.I'm simply asking that we respect the players of the instrument.
Anyone ever consider the following individuals?
James Jamerson (duh!)
Carol Kaye (oh yea...I remember her!)
Lee Sklar (you know him - that guy with the long grey beard...)
James Jamerson (duh!)
Carol Kaye (oh yea...I remember her!)
Lee Sklar (you know him - that guy with the long grey beard...)
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