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Coldplay's Guy Berryman

#41
to be honest, if the bassists of U2 or coldplay someone died anyone can replace them. But if lets say chris martins died or call it quits, then coldplay is as good as disbanded.

Actually, most of us can play what the coldplay bassist play for his band. Its just we're not lucky enough to be at the right place at the right time :- )

While I dont like mindless shredding and stuff and I agree that the coldplay guy gets the job done for his band. Lets face it, anyone of us could replace him.
 
#43
even though this thread is pretty much dead, I'm still going to post.
I think Guy is a great Bassist and I can actually focus on the bass in Coldplay songs and enjoy it. I would rather listen to Guy Berryman play solid root bass than some guy show off 3 and a half hours of obnoxious slapping and irritating little techniques...
im finished.
 
#47
BrandonBass said:
to be honest, if the bassists of U2 died anyone can replace them.
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sadly, no. his musical interactions with the drummer are the bedrock of U2's sound. and for the record, i don't know a single bassist (outside of contemporary christian music) that wants to sound like Adam Clayton.

and in Adam's further defence, i've read interviews with producers and engineers who've worked with U2 that all say that Adam is a superhuman machine when it comes to 8th notes. every note is perfectly timed and spaced, even and without fault, every take.
that's a skill in and of itself.
 
#48
Adam Clayon -- a perfect example of playing what has to be played and being taken for granted because of it. I agree that U2 would not have the same vibe without him. Maybe many of us could play what Adam plays, but would we have thought of it in the first place? I can play McCartney note for note, but I guarantee that "Dear Prudence" or "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" would not have been what they are had I been the Beatles bassist. That said, I have to credit McCartney and so many other bassists for giving me the groundwork to play lines that I have been told are quite inventive for original songs. When you think of how bass was played before McCartney, Jamerson, Joe Osborn and Duck Dunn, it's even more astounding what they came up with.
 
#49
TrevorOfDoom said:
sadly, no. his musical interactions with the drummer are the bedrock of U2's sound. and for the record, i don't know a single bassist (outside of contemporary christian music) that wants to sound like Adam Clayton.
.
Click to expand...

That's funny, because when I play in church with substitute drummer who doesn't know the songs, I often turn around and yell "U2!" Works every time.
 
#50
I like Coldplay, The Mars Volta, Iron Maiden, Stanley CLarke, RHCP, Ruben Blades, and the list goes on...this Berryman guy gets the job done, i like his playing because he does what he should do in that context...
I would be happy playing the "root" while my bank account grows and grows to a ridiculous amount every day.
 
#52
Fact is if your music sucks, who cares if you can shred your neck to pieces??
Guys (no pun intended) like Berryman and Clayton are smart and confident enough that they don't need to show off, they care about the overall result and what they can bring to it.
There is a difference between being technically amazing and being able to WRITE/play music that is pleasant to listen to. Most of Coldplay's harmonics are awesome and their melodies are catchy and memorable. That's why they sell music and fill stadiums.
As much as Les Claypool is a wiz, has he got the job when trying to become Metallica's new bassist? No. Would he like to play root notes to make as much money as Robert Trujillo makes? I'd say yes. Would him playing in a ''root note band'' make him a lesser player? No.
Aside, unless you hang-out with Guy or Adam, how do you know if these guys would not rip you in piece in a ''bass skills'' contest?
I like Guy's bass line on ''Cemeteries of London''...
Peace.
 
#54
Usually the default complaint about these kind of bassists is that they only play straight 8 all the time. However, this means you probably aren't really listening to album tracks. Adam Clayton pulls off some cool "one drop" riffs, and has been doing it for years. It takes discipline and the right attitude to pull off some of the restraint that dudes like Clayton and Berryman do. They are playing for the song.

I know the shredder style bassists don't want to be stereotyped as over-players. Was it on here someone mentioned that Vic Wooten wishes he would get more pop sessions? But people don't consider it his bag. So, I think it goes both ways, homies.
 
#55
bassist4dalord said:
His tone and presence on the song "Don't Panic" from the album "Parachutes" is just amazing. So fat and warm. Makes me want my P-Bass!
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I agree. He has my favorite P-bass tone ever :)


TrevorOfDoom said:
in Adam's further defence, i've read interviews with producers and engineers who've worked with U2 that all say that Adam is a superhuman machine when it comes to 8th notes. every note is perfectly timed and spaced, even and without fault, every take.
Click to expand...

I have personally heard this in concert. I was shocked
 
#56
I can't say that I like Coldplay very much at all except for a couple of tracks off of Parachutes but you can't say he doesn't have any lines, there's a great bit of bass playing in "Daylight" towards the end (hope I got the name of the track right), very creative.

But yeah, all in all, I don't like Coldplay, but he can still be creative although, let me put this in the most politically correct way possible, I think he should be more creative more often compared to what his is doing now :)
 
#57
Being able to feel it and put your arrogance aside for the sake of music, will make for a great bass player. Berryman plays exactly what needs to be played. He is probably thinking..."hey i would rather make it be big, than be full of poopie." mission success.
 

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