He used a Precision on that track. There's actually a short video of him playing the line on Youtube and it sounds exactly like what he played on the record.
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Best Slap Bass Player?
- Thread starter Funk$tar
- Start date
He used a Precision on that track. There's actually a short video of him playing the line on Youtube and it sounds exactly like what he played on the record.
The reason why I'm not a big fan of Rhonda Smith's return to working with Jeff Beck is also why she should be mentioned in this thread. I'm of the opinion that she relies too heavily on slap and pop, despite the fact that she's quite well versed in other techniques.
I think it really depends what you're into and what you want to emulate. For sheer virtuosity, it's hard to beat guys mentioned here like Buddha Dickens and Kai Eckhardt. But that's a steep hill to climb (their chops are in the stratosphere)... and their slapping isn't particularly musical to me. The two guys who rock (or rather funk) my world are Marcus Miller and Mark King. King's virtuosity is unquestionable, but his lines are still so musical. Even when he's playing some of his crazy 16th-note upbeat grooves, he's still so musical. And the guy is freakishly accurate. My personal fave is Miller just because his pocket is bottomless. He usually doesn't try to do the machine-gun "look at me!" lines, but, man, his groove is impeccable.I've been playin' slap for about a year and feel i haven't really progressed that well! Dont get me wrong I'm pretty good but I feel I just need to study someone else's technique to really get better! Any suggestions?
THANKS!
If you're slap chops are pretty limited, it's worth starting with Larry Graham since you'll find some pretty easy lines that still groove hard (though he has plenty of not-so-easy lines). Louis Johnson is also great from the old-school, though he has a pretty weird technique (often wraps his thumb around to catch his E string), so some of his lines can be tricky.
+1 for Wojtek Pilichowski.
Larry Graham can slap a ballad and make it funky and I've yet to hear anyone do "The Jam" even close to what Graham did.
Larry Graham can slap a ballad and make it funky and I've yet to hear anyone do "The Jam" even close to what Graham did.
If you want to slap but keep a sense of "melody and groove" I would suggest Larry Graham, Marcus Miller and Louis Johnson (to start). They are pioneers who are tried and true in the funk and technique. There are many other slappers who can slap a million notes a minute... but thats really all you get.
I was at that event. Steve Bailey was on stage as well as I recall and Future Man was playing drums. Or at least that was the lineup on the night I saw them. It was 1995. I believe it was at an SLM sponsored event.
All three bassists were in top form, but the spotlight was on Bill that night. I was blown away by the entire thing.
I'm not a huge fan of funk or softer music, but in the rock metal crowd, Ryan Martinie is well known for his unique slapping style.i still listen to Mudvaynes album LD50 here and there when I get sick of hearing meat and potatoes bassists. One of my favorites currently is Tesserect, their bassist uses slapping very tastefully. It's not tacky or flashy, it just enough to keep it interesting.
Bill Dickens is the best IMO but were talking about some very tasteless show off stuff.
Bill Dickens is the best IMO but were talking about some very tasteless show off stuff.
I clicked on that link, and within 10 seconds my little sister said "that sounds like Seinfeld music!"
Don't get me wrong, Marcus Miller is a legendary skilled bassist but to be honest I have never developed an interest in his music! I've been a fan of Victor Wooten and Jaco but never Marcus, I think he's a terrific bassist but I have never really thought of him as an influence of mine, same goes for stanley clarke! Its just personal preference, i'm not saying that their terrible bass players all I'm just saying is I've never been into their music...
And trust me I'm a real bassist, play slap and funk all day baby ! Quite odd that I view them differently than most...
There are lots of great bass slappers out there, personally I prefer the ones who keep it simple!
However, I think that to study the slap technique, MarloweDK is great! He makes it so simple, and yet so funky!! But that is just my opinion.
(One thing about Victor Wooten, who is the reason I ever started playing bass, I wouldn't class him as the best in any specific type (slap, tap etc.) but I think he is the person who can get the most simultaneus styles and sounds out of the bass! He can make the bass sound like 10 diferent instruments, all at once!!!)
However, I think that to study the slap technique, MarloweDK is great! He makes it so simple, and yet so funky!! But that is just my opinion.
(One thing about Victor Wooten, who is the reason I ever started playing bass, I wouldn't class him as the best in any specific type (slap, tap etc.) but I think he is the person who can get the most simultaneus styles and sounds out of the bass! He can make the bass sound like 10 diferent instruments, all at once!!!)
Marcus can do it all. He loves slap but he can do any style of playing the gig calls for with total mastery! You don't get called to record over 1000 records over 40 years being a one trick pony.
i'm not sure if we both agree on our definition of simple, but nonetheless, I agree! I like sparing use of slap, or in the case of a guy like Marcus Miller who uses it almost exclusively, I dont want its percussive effect to overshadow the actual players ability to provide interesting musical notes. So, off the top of my head, Id include...
Eric Czar, whose playing on the Rockpalast video alongside Joe Bonamassa alternates between normal finger plucking and slap, both applied with master and complementing Joe's music and style in a unique way that made his contribution nearly as interesting as Joe's own. You can dislike his stage presence, but you cant deny his musicality and technique - I miss his contribution to Joe's recent work. its also interesting that Eric adds slap to a blues-rock repertoire that usually doesn't see much of that technique.
Marcus Miller - the guy is a thumping clinic, and should convince everyone that slap is a legitimate musical techique.
Les Claypool and Flea - they're so different, but being of the same generation and having written so much of their successful band's music, Ive always thought of them in the same context - great slappers that influenced a generation of rock bassists.
