Who played bass on Superstition

[agoya]

Hi,
anybody an indea who played the original overdub bass part on "superstition"?
i was not able to find anything :-(

 

[ddnidd1]

Wonder Moog Bass

 

[ugly_bassplayer]

Stevie

 

[MonetBass]

Yep, Stevie's left hand.

 

[Jeff Scott]

Yep, Stevie's left hand.

Was Stevie, himself, involved, or just his left hand?

 

[DWBass]

Synth

 

[EastCoastThump]

JIC you'd want to hear Stevie's road band from this era playing it w/ electric bass, here's a live version (from Sesame Street), with Scott Edwards on bass:

 

[Bob_Ross]

Wonder Moog Bass

Definitely Stevie on synth...but was it a Moog, or an ARP? At that time Stevie was using the ARP 2600 a lot.

 

[EastCoastThump]

IIRC, Talking Book credits say Moog bass

 

[agoya]

Of course Stevie,
but the who doubled the bassline?

 

[Wisebass]

Was Stevie, himself, involved, or just his left hand?

Maybe his third hand was involved?

greetings

Wise(b)ass

 

[dkfbassist]

None of the above.
"TONTO combined the cavernous Moog bass with undulating ARP synthesizers that became Stevie's signature sound on hits like "Superstition," "The bass "player" was a machine called TONTO..."
TONTO: The 50-Year Saga of the Synth Heard on Stevie Wonder Classics – Rolling Stone

 

[LBS-bass]

Tim Bogert

Oh, you meant the other version.

 

[Bob_Ross]

"The bass "player" was a machine called TONTO..."

Having met and spoken with Malcolm Cecil (I was the moderator for an Audio Engineering Society roundtable symposium with Malcolm and mastering engineer Darcy Proper in the early 00s) I can assure you that the bass was not "played" by TONTO. The bass sound was generated by TONTO; the actual musical information -- aka, the bass line -- was played by Stevie Wonder. On a piano-style keyboard. In real time.

 

[ShadowGroover]

Nice "Superstition" commentary and analysis including bass line

 

[LBS-bass]

Nice "Superstition" commentary and analysis including bass line

I didn't listen to this so I don't know what that dude said, but what makes this song great is the freaking clavinet. And the horns.

It's the most boring bassline in the history of basslines, so boring that when I play this song I play the clavinet and horn parts.

It's not an accident that the first version of it I heard was this one, though.



Now, that's a bassline.

 

[ShadowGroover]

I didn't listen to this so I don't know what that dude said, but what makes this song great is the freaking clavinet. And the horns.

There's no clavinet, just layers of clavinets, nicely isolated and dissected in the video. Great horn isolations as well.

Stevland's bass line reflects his awesome musicianship, far surpassing the creativity of garden variety bassists on TB.

The entire song is like a groove jigsaw puzzle. It's easy to see the big picture, while fascinating to examine the individual pieces.

Also interesting is the context of Jeff Beck in the genealogy of the song.

 

[Whousedtoplay]

There's no clavinet, just layers of clavinets

In the days of the song, "Superstition," I've always thought it was Hohner Clavinet.

Stevland's bass line reflects his awesome musicianship

Just playing with Stevie Wonder "reflects" any musician's awesomeness.

Nice "Superstition" commentary and analysis including bass line

I'm am old enough to know that song even without any commentary.

The song has truly gone around the world and "conquered" the world.

 

[Whousedtoplay]

It's the most boring bassline in the history of basslines, so boring that when I play

I have my personal opinion about the bass players who tend to call a/any bass-lines boring.

 

[Whousedtoplay]

garden variety bassists on TB.

LOL!