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Players playing inna Bootsy stylee?

OnTheOneBaby

OnTheOneBaby

Sep 4, 2013
375
472
#1
Just the other day when listening Bootsy Baby, it occurred on my mind that Bootsy being the best space bass player ever, so how come there are no well-known copycats around?
I think flamboyant if somewhat one-trick-pony Larry Graham has some followers as well as that little white guy Flea has a few,too (with shirt or without).

To me the main ingredients in Bootsy's playing are his ability to play around the beats seemingly casually but always on the right spot and the use of his effects with taste not letting them to overpower his playing. Sheer musicality.To me Bootsy is in his uniqueness in the same class with the great ones like Coltrane, Hendrix, Callas, Bach.

Michael Henderson is another favourite one and he has recorded with effect-laden bass sound, but I have never liked his angular funk tracks as much as his more melodic bass lines.

But I'm still wondering if there are any (good) Bootsy alikes?
 
#6
You mean someone copying his playing style or his persona?


On the subject of Bootsy, best basslines. Mothership Connection sounds like it was all him, right? Night of the Thumpasaurus Peoples is one of my all time favorites. Cholly too. (Skeet played every other track of the album)
 
#7
bkbirge said:
Hah, what? I love Bootsy but Graham is the man.
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Graham has probably influenced way more people than Bootsy and still, no one sounds quite like him (okay, I admittedly haven't heard all of his imitators :D). There's no "trick" to Graham's playing either - he's a super solid bassist who lays it down with taste.

As for Bootsy imitators, are you talking about his playing or his character/sense of fashion?

Edit: I just noticed that Tupac asked the same question.
 
#8
Tupac said:
You mean someone copying his playing style or his persona?


On the subject of Bootsy, best basslines. Mothership Connection sounds like it was all him, right? Night of the Thumpasaurus Peoples is one of my all time favorites. Cholly too. (Skeet played every other track of the album)
Click to expand...

So which line *did* Bootsy play? Just listened to this album again on vacation last week, and it is simply a superlative album! One of the best of any genre anywhere any time, in my opinion.

Are you saying Skeet Curtis played every line except Thumpasaurus? Who/what is Cholly? I always figured "P. Funk" and "Tear The Roof Off The Sucker" were Bootsy, especially P.Funk, deft bass playing.

"P. Funk (Wants To Get Funked Up)" sounds like two bass tracks to me, too, one heavy filter effect carrying the main line, almost just another percussion track the filter pops so hard, and then the fills are a clean bass 2nd track, or if not completely clean then a much less pronounced filter. You're saying that's not Bootsy though? Do tell!

As for the OP question, I think Freekbass is pretty dang close, in fact, he is a confidant and protege of Bootsy. He's got some cool stuff.
 
#11
Thankee for participation.
Yes, I was looking for a player who would play as a rhythmically ingenious way as Bootsy. I checked that Freekbass guy, couldn't get hold of him, too many notes, too much copying Bootsy's habitus which made him look a little bit sad case.

What comes to this Larry Graham thing, I admit him being a great innovator in the early days, but to me his style is that of Bay Area hippy-happy Mish-Mash with plenty of notes flashing out of his bass (well, white folks often appreciate fastness and plentyness in music) and I have trouble to find out The One in his music.
But by no means I don't want wake up any controversy of who's best or worst.

Played some Bootsy to a MIB (musically innocent bystander) and her comment was: " I never knew that bass could be played like that".

That reggae remark was a hit, because I do love reggae bass lines (Flabba, Fully, Robbie) where there is as important what is not played as what is played.
 
#13
OnTheOneBaby said:
(well, white folks often appreciate fastness and plentyness in music)
But by no means I don't want wake up any controversy of who's best or worst.
Click to expand...

And here is where the thread officially turns bad.

As a white folk I also appreciate white bread and christmas sweaters and Will Smith because he raps happy.

Invalid Link Removed
 
#14
Sorry, sorry fellas (and gals)!

I'm a white European dumbbell, whose record collection consists of 98% black music (soul, funk, jazz, reggae, afro). So in my surroundings I have constantly to defend my music taste against majority and this has probably made me over-aggressive and causing me to throw those rather stupid irrelevant remarks.

My stupidness makes me sad, cause it ruined my prospects to be part of this vast community.

Got to keep on lurking on as before

Ciao
 
#15
OnTheOneBaby said:
Thankee for participation.
Yes, I was looking for a player who would play as a rhythmically ingenious way as Bootsy. I checked that Freekbass guy, couldn't get hold of him, too many notes, too much copying Bootsy's habitus which made him look a little bit sad case.

What comes to this Larry Graham thing, I admit him being a great innovator in the early days, but to me his style is that of Bay Area hippy-happy Mish-Mash with plenty of notes flashing out of his bass (well, white folks often appreciate fastness and plentyness in music) and I have trouble to find out The One in his music.
But by no means I don't want wake up any controversy of who's best or worst.

Played some Bootsy to a MIB (musically innocent bystander) and her comment was: " I never knew that bass could be played like that".

That reggae remark was a hit, because I do love reggae bass lines (Flabba, Fully, Robbie) where there is as important what is not played as what is played.
Click to expand...

If you can't find the one when listening to "Hair" or "It's Alright," the problem is not the music.
 
#17
HolmeBass said:
So which line *did* Bootsy play? Just listened to this album again on vacation last week, and it is simply a superlative album! One of the best of any genre anywhere any time, in my opinion.

Are you saying Skeet Curtis played every line except Thumpasaurus? Who/what is Cholly? I always figured "P. Funk" and "Tear The Roof Off The Sucker" were Bootsy, especially P.Funk, deft bass playing.

"P. Funk (Wants To Get Funked Up)" sounds like two bass tracks to me, too, one heavy filter effect carrying the main line, almost just another percussion track the filter pops so hard, and then the fills are a clean bass 2nd track, or if not completely clean then a much less pronounced filter. You're saying that's not Bootsy though? Do tell!

As for the OP question, I think Freekbass is pretty dang close, in fact, he is a confidant and protege of Bootsy. He's got some cool stuff.
Click to expand...
No no, Cholly is off of One Nation Under a Groove by Funkadelic, not Mothership Connection. Mothership was all Bootsy I think. The only track on One Nation Under a Groove Bootsy played on was Cholly, with Skeet playing the rest.
 

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