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Who's the better slapper: Flea or Les Claypool?
- Thread starter Tupac
- Start date
My point, and a small one is that BH and RJD are too far apart in time and style to be analogous to Flea and Claypool. I just thought my pairs were more applicable. I was in no way trying to take your point away from you, only trying to refine it. MY point is I don't understand "better than" when it come to quasi-artistic expression. I think we may agree on this? I can listen to about 3 primus songs before losing interest. I can listen to way more RHCP but not endlessly. I have no idea if that makes Flea better, the same, or worse than Claypool. Both have serious command of both their chops and music in a more general sense.
okay?
Mugre
That's because rhcp is a radio band (and a good one) and primus is strange music that requires an acquired taste. I could listen to frizzle fry fo days.
Les Claypool back in the day is still one of my all time favorites. Old primus riffs are the best. He has complete wild abandon. Nowadays everything he does sounds pretty much the same. Flea has always been boring to me. When it comes down to it though I think the slap thing is overrated and bass players should move on.
I do like Jonas Hellborg actually. He might be a little old for a lot of the Talkbass audience to be aware of him. Again, though - his music is a blatant feature of him and his ideas, many of which are good. That, however, makes him an interesting, or maybe even good, bandleader - more than it makes him an excellent bass player.
Listen to "Bust A Move" (Young MC) and "You Oughta Know" (Alanis Morrissette). Basslines in both of them are cool and iconic. Both of them serve their songs perfectly. Neither of them screams "hey, this is Flea from the Peppers, I'm playing bass on this tune!"
Then listen to Claypool playing with Gov't Mule on "Greasy Granny's Gopher Gravy" from "The Deep End". It's _really cool_, but it might as well be a Primus song. Granted, Claypool is also singing and it sounds like Haynes may have wanted that song to feature Claypool. I'm just not sure Claypool could have done it any other way.
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"I'm just not sure Claypool could have done it any other way"
Statements like these are the reason I want to never visit this site. how ridiculous, "he couldn't do it another way". he could have played that tune in any style he wanted to & you know it
Statements like these are the reason I want to never visit this site. how ridiculous, "he couldn't do it another way". he could have played that tune in any style he wanted to & you know it
Give me any example of a collaboration Les Claypool worked on that didn't end up sounding like Primus.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ad_hominem
And those Floyd covers totally sound like Primus. They were Primus, weren't they?
BassHouston
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- Jan 30, 2012
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Technically and Musically speaking, Les is in another league.
Flea is great at what he does.
They both have inspired a whole generation of bass players.
Just enjoy the music!
Flea is great at what he does.
They both have inspired a whole generation of bass players.
Just enjoy the music!
BUCKETHEAD.
Also for those who think Les only slaps in a wild and erratic fashion have obviously never heard his cover of "Silly Putty"
That's not an apt comparison, in both of those cases Claypool is intentionally playing other guys' basslines note-for-note. WJGreer is clearly talking about original compositions, examples of how Flea contributed basslines to songs that didn't come out as RHCP soundalikes.
I don't think anyone would argue against that he is physically capable of playing a bass in a more traditional style. I read it as that he never comes up with original material that doesn't sound like Primus. But I'm just playing devil's advocate here. I personally think that some - very little but some - of the oysterhead stuff didn't sound like "the guy from Primus".
It's a fine line, to have such a distinctive personal style vs to be a one-trick pony.
Cool. Very Stanley Clarke-ish. I admit that I might not have guessed that to be Claypool. But again, it is a cover.
Don't know if any of you heard Primus' last album Green Naugahyde from 2011 but half of those songs are on an upright bass or whamola. Also, the pink floyd animals cover set isn't primus its the frog brigade.
The "slap" thing is Underrated. It's only overrated to you because you are on talkbass, having bass guitar being somewhat relevant in your life, lol. Most people that arn't actually into music have no idea what slap bass even is. Obviously, the most common way to play bass is not using slap or pop, which would make just playing bass in general overrated, wouldn't it? Of course some of my favorite bass players don't do the whole slap and pop thing but I love funk, and I love a good bass player that can not only just play a bass line but beat the thing up once in awhile. Ahh..Mike Gordon.. perfect example of that.
The "slap" thing is Underrated. It's only overrated to you because you are on talkbass, having bass guitar being somewhat relevant in your life, lol. Most people that arn't actually into music have no idea what slap bass even is. Obviously, the most common way to play bass is not using slap or pop, which would make just playing bass in general overrated, wouldn't it? Of course some of my favorite bass players don't do the whole slap and pop thing but I love funk, and I love a good bass player that can not only just play a bass line but beat the thing up once in awhile. Ahh..Mike Gordon.. perfect example of that.
