Carl Radle bass lines - new blog

[the rocket]

I've recently started a blog dedicated to the bass player Carl Radle. He had a wonderfully simple style that was never about flash, always about what was best for the song. He played on so many important records in the 60s and 70s, but is, in my opinion, vastly under appreciated.

On my blog, I'm posting transcriptions of his bass lines along with analysis of each one. I want it to be an educational site, so people can learn to play his lines, but also learn what makes them work. I also have a pretty good discography of his work that I'll continue to update as I get more info.

Carl Radle Bass Lines

 

[slagheap]

Recommended. Very accurate work and a chronology of Radle & associated artists, particularly earlier work. Hope future material includes even more stuff pre Layla.

 

[garp]

Thank you for your dedication and recognition of Carl's brilliance. I recently learned Clapton's "Promises" (1978) for a gig, and had a revelation that when it comes to certain stuff, simpler really IS better.

 

[dramatwist]

Good on you, mate. Carl is probably the most underrated/ignored bassist in history, but his taste and understanding of the music was impeccable.

 

[CallMeAl]

Bookmarked! Thanks!

 

[studebakerhawk]

Your work is very much appreciated.

 

[the rocket]

Thanks everyone. I plan to post a new transcription/analysis each week, so check back often.

Hope future material includes even more stuff pre Layla.

I'll definitely be posting some more pre-Layla transcriptions. The Delaney & Bonnie stuff, Joe Cocker's Mad Dogs and Englishmen, George Harrison's All Things Must Pass, and Clapton's first album feature some of my favorite bass lines Radle ever played.

 

[CallMeAl]

Ive been playing Bell Bottom Blues with the band, but wrote a quick "off the cuff" bass line based on the chord chart. Looking forward to digging into that one first.

I first found Carl Radle (by name) in a search for "bassists who play Precision with a Jazz neck" (as that's what I've come to prefer.) so far I've just found Carl, Duck Dunn, and Billie Cox.

It's been great getting to know these bass lines better, giving a closer listen to many of these songs I've listened to my whole life.

 

[slagheap]

Thanks everyone. I plan to post a new transcription/analysis each week, so check back often.



I'll definitely be posting some more pre-Layla transcriptions. The Delaney & Bonnie stuff, Joe Cocker's Mad Dogs and Englishmen, George Harrison's All Things Must Pass, and Clapton's first album feature some of my favorite bass lines Radle ever played.

oh yeah, that's what i'm talkin' 'bout.
i renewed my membership here in honor of this forum, lee nunn, and all the cool contributors. found so many music resources here, including the great site that contains casady's complete line on candyman, another one with a bunch of lesser covered jeff beck tracks, etc. etc. etc.

 

[tonym]

Fantastic site, great analysis of some great tracks.

 

[LeeNunn]

I'm looking forward to this. I posted transcriptions of all the songs from the Layla album, but only because I wasn't familiar with Carl's earlier work.

 

[the rocket]

I'm looking forward to this. I posted transcriptions of all the songs from the Layla album, but only because I wasn't familiar with Carl's earlier work.

Oh yeah, another TBer sent me those links. Great work! Carl's playing on the Layla album is so awesome. I'll probably eventually post more of those tunes on the blog, but I like hitting the ones that don't get touched on as much.

 

[Intenzity]

Great site!

After learning what he played on Layla, he definitely does not get enough recognition, that line he plays has everything and still doesn't jump out as busy or cluttered, but it has some really cool stuff in there that you won't find in yer basic rock bass playing.

 

[the rocket]

Hello, all!

I've posted several more Carl Radle transcriptions on the blog in the last few weeks. Some Clapton, J.J. Cale, and Leon Russell. I'm going to put up a couple tunes from George Harrison's All Things Must Pass in the coming weeks--and after that, some more Joe Cocker, Delaney & Bonnie, Clapton, Leon Russell, Dave Mason, Buddy Guy & Junior Wells. A lot of great stuff.

Carl Radle Bass Lines

 

[Whousedtoplay]

Hello, all!

I've posted several more Carl Radle transcriptions on the blog in the last few weeks. Some Clapton, J.J. Cale, and Leon Russell. I'm going to put up a couple tunes from George Harrison's All Things Must Pass in the coming weeks--and after that, some more Joe Cocker, Delaney & Bonnie, Clapton, Leon Russell, Dave Mason, Buddy Guy & Junior Wells. A lot of great stuff.

Carl Radle Bass Lines

I really like your very exquisitely-informative transcriptions!
By the way, here is what I've heard of the bass notes in Alcatraz. Just a few nuances.
In M7, I can hear the note F before D.
In M12, I hear a bent note of C#/Db - not D - later lowered to C.
In Chorus M21, there is (for me) D.
In Chorus M23, I hear another C after the first one, a grace note of A ending on Bb.
And in the same M23, the last note is F# not F.
In M35, there is nice slide from F# to G.
Sorry for my intrusion.

 

[the rocket]

I really like your very exquisitely-informative transcriptions!
By the way, here is what I've heard of the bass notes in Alcatraz. Just a few nuances.
In M7, I can hear the note F before D.
In M12, I hear a bent note of C#/Db - not D - later lowered to C.
In Chorus M21, there is (for me) D.
In Chorus M23, I hear another C after the first one, a grace note of A ending on Bb.
And in the same M23, the last note is F# not F.
In M35, there is nice slide from F# to G.
Sorry for my intrusion.

Thanks for taking the time to check the accuracy of my transcriptions. I think you're right about a couple of those corrections. In m. 23, it may be an F# on the "and" of beat 4, rather than F natural. And in m. 45, there is an A on the "and" of beat 4. Good ear.

I stand by my transcription in the other spots you marked, though. There are times when times the bass is doubled by a guitar, and times when Leon's piano is down in the same register. You may be hearing that.

And regarding the slides--sometimes Radle slides into or off of a note. I don't always include that in my transcriptions. It depends on how integral to the line I deem it to be. Sometimes I think it's very important, sometimes not so much. Including every slide, scoop, shift, cut-off, etc., is a rabbit hole with no end. It's always up to the transcriber how much nuance to notate, and it depends on what you're trying to illuminate with your transcription. What I was trying to show was the simple repetition of that G minor groove and the more melodic chorus line. I applaud you for trying to capture different aspects of the line, though.

Thanks for reading!

 

[Whousedtoplay]

I stand by my transcription in the other spots you marked, though.

Okay, thanks for being nice.
I've had a similar discussion with a very prolific and excellent transcriber ChrisDev about it.
"It's MY(!) transcription; therefore, it's MY(!) right how to transcribe."
Totally agree.
For you, ChrisDev, other transcribers it's more like a "JOB". For me, it's a HOBBY, therefore, I can slow down and enjoy finding those "innocent and tiny" nuances, like that bent Db to unbent C instead of D to C, or a few ghosted Fs in the main riff, or that nice slide from Bb - C - C# to D, etc...
Also, it's my pleasure to find the difference between a major and minor second intervals.

Once again, I really enjoy your explanations about the bass lines!
A very nice web-site!
Thank you for sharing it.

 

[the rocket]

For me, it's a HOBBY, therefore, I can slow down and enjoy finding those "innocent and tiny" nuances

Absolutely! Those things are important for sure! If I'm trying to zero in on a player's feel, I will definitely include as many of those details as possible. They can be crucial in understanding the player's groove. With Radle, I'm almost always more interested in note and rhythm choices. He had a great feel, but I love examining the simplicity of his lines and the space he left for other instruments/voices.

And thanks again for identifying that F# and A I missed. I gotta get back into that transcription and fix those!

 

[Whousedtoplay]

F# and A I missed.

Cool!
P.S. Just if you could check one more time at least that Measure 23. I don't hear the note G after C. It's A to Bb.
And most probably, Open A used.

Once again, thank you for your nice transcriptions and explanations ; otherwise, I would spend my time on Yahoo news site.

 

[the rocket]

P.S. Just if you could check one more time at least that Measure 23. I don't hear the note G after C. It's A to Bb.

Actually I think we both may be wrong about measure 23. I had a question mark in that measure in my original notes. Listening again, I think it's essentially the same as m. 47: C-C-B-C-C#-D-F#.