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Duff McKagan......Sound

#41
A.J. Miller said:
I know it's your opinion, but I still disagree. A guy named John Entwistle comes to my mind when I think of the best rock bassist. However, I can't deny that Duff is a badass.
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you know, back about 8 or 10 years ago, on alt.recording or some such newsgroup, one of the engineers on the appetite for destruction sessions had some sample recordings of the stuff before it got "edited". baaaaaaaaad, especially in the rhythm section. really bad.

the wonders of digital mixdown coupled with a nearly unlimited budget, i guess. the album kicked ass, regardless.
 
#42
dave120 said:
Try looking at the basslines for any of the other hard rock bands around during the GNR era, I don't think any of them were very impressive. Duff is a pretty good pocket player with some nice runs, and he's awesome live on stage. I can only dream to have that much stage presence and be able to play anything at the same time.
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define hard rock - all the metal bands at the time had players who would definitely school him. what else was there at the time?
 
#43
duff and the pocket. snicker. i saw him live in the early 90's and it was like he was playing to a different song than the drummer - he seemed drunk, actually. not even in the same zip code. that's the only time i've seen him and i wasn't impressed at all.

the velvet revolver stuff i've heard sounded pretty cool, though, although nothing stood out as being really amazing, rhythm-wise.
 
#44
john turner said:
duff and the pocket. snicker. i saw him live in the early 90's and it was like he was playing to a different song than the drummer - he seemed drunk, actually. not even in the same zip code. that's the only time i've seen him and i wasn't impressed at all.

the velvet revolver stuff i've heard sounded pretty cool, though, although nothing stood out as being really amazing, rhythm-wise.
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I have to concur, CD sound aside, when I saw Kagan at a concert in the Guns n Roses/Metallica tour, he seemed dazed to me. His entire aspect on stage was so different from that of Jason Newstead's.

Of course, I am a diehard Jason Newstead freak, but even so McKagan had me worried. That just may have been an act of Duff's to look cool. But, for one thing, he was holding his bass so low, if I ever had done that I would have fallen on my face.

I do like Duff's lines on the CDs, but have wondered if a pro didn't come in and overdub the parts after Duff left the studio. Yes, that is just so unfair for me to say or think when I have absolutely no evidence to back up such suspicions.
 
#47
My only point was that I would hardly call Duff one of Rock's great bass players. There are a lot of players far better IMO. But just because someone plays more than simple lines doesn't mean they're wanking either.

Point is, it's a subjective opinion and thus entirely and totally irrelevant whether or not you would call Duff one of rock's greatest bass players.
 
#49
B-NoteCowboy said:
Another musical genius amongst us!

Here's a little known fact... if you are in one band that has long term success, you have talent. Lots and lots of talent. If you then wind up in a second high profile band, you are an elite musician in your genre.
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Nah, just bloody lucky!!


;)

:D
 
#50
B-NoteCowboy said:
Another musical genius amongst us!

Here's a little known fact... if you are in one band that has long term success, you have talent. Lots and lots of talent. If you then wind up in a second high profile band, you are an elite musician in your genre.
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I'm no genious for sure, but when I'm payed to play, I do my own job thank you.

and duff being an elite musician?
uh, no.

That doesn't explain how he got a second high profile gig. Maybe he actually can do it?

maybe he was what someone wanted for that gig, hey whatever. I just cant see him as being elite, or terribly sought after. then again the frontmans a junky and cant keep himself clean. duffs probably just fun to party with.

am i doing first call stuff? no way. I admitted a while back that IM a hack, and I have been paid pretty decent to be a hack. so I guess duff can too.

I was stating my opinion and now i want to adjust my stance a little. if you want to sound like duff you need too much liquor, and steve bailey to cover your ass.
 
#51
Any PROOF, interviews, whatever that Steve Bailey played on Appetite? I searched and couldn't find any reference to it other than vague forum postings that insist it's true. Nothing of GNR is found on his discography.

The only tie I have found to GNR is that Axl's abusive stepfather was also named Steve Bailey.

Of course, this is the internet and we shouldn't let something like the truth stand in the way.
 
#52
dave_p said:
I'm no genious for sure, but when I'm payed to play, I do my own job thank you.

and duff being an elite musician?
uh, no.

That doesn't explain how he got a second high profile gig. Maybe he actually can do it?

maybe he was what someone wanted for that gig, hey whatever. I just cant see him as being elite, or terribly sought after. then again the frontmans a junky and cant keep himself clean. duffs probably just fun to party with.

am i doing first call stuff? no way. I admitted a while back that IM a hack, and I have been paid pretty decent to be a hack. so I guess duff can too.

I was stating my opinion and now i want to adjust my stance a little. if you want to sound like duff you need too much liquor, and steve bailey to cover your ass.
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duff is not an elite wanker bassists but that doesnt mean hes a crap bassist. Hes job is to make the band sound good and he does a good job at it with his melodic basslines. I personally dig his playing rather than some steve bailey 10mins solo which would just bore me to sleep,honestly.

Of course you cant really compare steve bailey to duff, cos theyre too different type of musicians. But its funny how they can say 'duff sucks' etc.

and seriously, if you're axl would you rather have steve bailey playing in ur band ahead of duff? Lol
 
#53
The 0x said:
Mid scoop? :eyebrow: Sounds more like a slight mid boost to me. :hmm:
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I said 'slight' :smug: ...and that's how it sounds to me. I hear a good low end, lot's of treble (pick noise) and not so much in between. Not as scooped as say Korn... but a little. I think it worked for him/them, the guitars play parts that don't compete for the bass range... of course, I'm working from memory, I haven't heard a GnR song in years. :eyebrow:
 
#55
Sundogue said:
My only point was that I would hardly call Duff one of Rock's great bass players. There are a lot of players far better IMO. But just because someone plays more than simple lines doesn't mean they're wanking either.
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B-NoteCowboy said:
Point is, it's a subjective opinion and thus entirely and totally irrelevant whether or not you would call Duff one of rock's greatest bass players.
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If you are going to quote me, at least have the courtesy of giving me credit for having said it.

And since it is a subjective opinion, it is totally relevant to me saying he is not one of rock's greatest players.

My opinion might be entirely and totally irrelevant to you, but that's what makes it an opinion and not fact. There isn't a single bass player from any band of that ilk that I would call a great rock bass player. The "hair" band Zeppelin wannabe's are just that. Simple rock and nothing more. That doesn't make them bad. They just are what they are.

Just my entirely and totally irrelevant opinion. :D
 
#56
Steve Bailey ghost recording for Duff is actually true. I have heard him talk about it at a Victor Wooten Camp. He said he can't say which bands the ghost recorded for because of contracts he signed. But than he goes on to say that he "can't confirm or deny that he recorded for guns n roses." He makes it obvious that he did without actually stating it. I just read the Bass Player article on Duff and was pissed that he gets credit and the truth is still hidden.
 
#58
I love Duff. His tone is textbook GK800RB with some chorus. I remember reading in an interview that even after he switched to the 2001's, he still used 800's in the studio. I've owned both of those heads (as well as the Fusion 550), and the 800RB always sounded just like all the GnR stuff. Get an 800RB and look no further.
 
#59
maseguitar said:
Steve Bailey ghost recording for Duff is actually true. I have heard him talk about it at a Victor Wooten Camp. He said he can't say which bands the ghost recorded for because of contracts he signed. But than he goes on to say that he "can't confirm or deny that he recorded for guns n roses." He makes it obvious that he did without actually stating it. I just read the Bass Player article on Duff and was pissed that he gets credit and the truth is still hidden.
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Did we really have to bring this thread back from the dead? The post before yours was in 2006 for crying out loud.
 
#60
Duff is a rock bass god, plain and simple. He is a Rock n Roll hall of famer, in one of the best bands of a generation, with the highest selling debut album of alltime, and his bass tone and bass lines are a GIANT part of all of that. You can hear everything he plays clear as a bell, even though he is competing with TWO loud guitar players and a bunch of Marshall stacks. He plays a ton of cool counter melodies, has a bunch of tasty fills, and never over does anything. He co-wrote many of those songs, and he is still out there throwing down bass to this day. When it comes to style, tone, attitude, melodic playing, and just overall coolness factor, Duff is one of the best ROCK bassists ever and APPETITE is one of the alltime great rock bass albums. This dude was like an L.A. glam/punk Paul MacCartney........ Duff is in the same category as Steve Harris, John Paul Jones, and Geezer Butler...... a rock bass icon.
 

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