Members Flogger59 Posted February 26, 2009 Members Share Posted February 26, 2009 Technically the 70's, but Wilton Felder(?) kills on this, and apparently his first instrument is sax! [YOUTUBE][/YOUTUBE] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kurfu Posted February 26, 2009 Members Share Posted February 26, 2009 Haha... the Grassroots bass player isn't even trying to pretend that he is actually playing all those notes.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jimbroni Posted February 26, 2009 Author Members Share Posted February 26, 2009 Since somebody mentioned reggae. Here's a couple from one of my favorite reggae bass player's "the family man" Aston Barret. Since the theme is the 60's I chose a couple from the pre catch a fire era. [YOUTUBE][/YOUTUBE] [YOUTUBE][/YOUTUBE] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kurdy Posted February 26, 2009 Members Share Posted February 26, 2009 One thing I've noticed about recordings from the late '60s to early '70s is not only the basslines themselves, but also the sound of the bass in records from that period. Very punchy and in your face, and you could clearly hear the attack of the strings. Something about the way bass was recorded back then that for some reason fell out of favor. I've never heard it duplicated since. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Moderators Lee Knight Posted February 26, 2009 Moderators Share Posted February 26, 2009 One thing I've noticed about recordings from the late '60s to early '70s is not only the basslines themselves, but also the sound of the bass in records from that period. Very punchy and in your face, and you could clearly hear the attack of the strings. Something about the way bass was recorded back then that for some reason fell out of favor. I've never heard it duplicated since. Flatwounds. The attack is big. Not clicky but sustantial. This meant you better have your time together cause where you place your notes in time will be heard. Then the sustain portion is all fundemental and not much in overtones. This made for a big fat, solid note. If the player chose to play a 5th on the chord it flew. Try that with a boom and it's just mud. But with a solid fundemental it sounded (sounds) great. I'm using flats exclusively now and offer it up to visting players when the time and tune are right. Most guys are very surprised at how fun flats can be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Jimbroni Posted February 26, 2009 Author Members Share Posted February 26, 2009 One thing I've noticed about recordings from the late '60s to early '70s is not only the basslines themselves, but also the sound of the bass in records from that period. Very punchy and in your face, and you could clearly hear the attack of the strings. Something about the way bass was recorded back then that for some reason fell out of favor. I've never heard it duplicated since. That's definitely true. Perhaps the music itself lends to that. A lot more sonic space allowing for more bass fundamental. But also, I'm pretty sure Carol Kaye was one of those people who never changed her bass strings. Giving a more pure fundamental and less upper harmonic ring to the tone. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Kendrix Posted February 26, 2009 Members Share Posted February 26, 2009 Flatwounds. The attack is big. Not clicky but sustantial. This meant you better have your time together cause where you place your notes in time will be heard. Then the sustain portion is all fundemental and not much in overtones. This made for a big fat, solid note. If the player chose to play a 5th on the chord it flew. Try that with a boom and it's just mud. But with a solid fundemental it sounded (sounds) great. I'm using flats exclusively now and offer it up to visting players when the time and tune are right. Most guys are very surprised at how fun flats can be. Yes, thats why I use pyramid flats.Theay have a unique core composition and feel.Supposedly these are the strings of Jack Cassidy and P. Lesh.Fingers versu pick is the other enabler. No one mentioned Jameson? He is clearly the king of 60's bass lines (via motown) IMHO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tremolounge Posted February 26, 2009 Members Share Posted February 26, 2009 No one mentioned Jameson? He is clearly the king of 60's bass lines (via motown) IMHO. Yeah, we mentioned him above, and I linked to "Reach Out I'll Be There", which is only the greatest bass performance in the history of mankind. For some reason, when I try to embed a youtube video, I get a white box. I used to know how to do it... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rasputin1963 Posted February 26, 2009 Members Share Posted February 26, 2009 Apparently James Jamerson never changed the strings on his bass, either. The dirt and oil in the strings imparted a certain quality... The bass he recorded all those hits on has been stolen.... and never has since materialized... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members sailorman Posted February 26, 2009 Members Share Posted February 26, 2009 "You Keep Me Hanging On" by the Vanilla Fudge. Just about anything with that guy. "House On The Hill" by Audience - one that I always turn up the bass when I listen to it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Silent Heart Posted February 26, 2009 Members Share Posted February 26, 2009 Is it a lost art? Yes. The stuff the kids listen to today basically consists of a drum line, synth noodling, and chanting. Hell, it makes hip hop from the 90's look like Mozart by comparison, and one of the main things missing IMHO is actual basslines. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members bp Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Active basses haven't helped. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Richard King Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Haha... the Grassroots bass player isn't even trying to pretend that he is actually playing all those notes.... I noticed that and I don't even play. I don't think he could keep up. saw those dudes many years ago at the Minnesota State Fair. It was probably about 1968 or so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members kurdy Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Yeah, we mentioned him above, and I linked to "Reach Out I'll Be There", which is only the greatest bass performance in the history of mankind. Actually, I've read somewhere that particular bassline was actually Carol Kaye. It was supposedly standard practice for Motown to secretly cut its tracks with L.A. studio musicians, then bring the tapes back to Detroit, where they'd overdub the vocals. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Richard King Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 I ordered one (actually two copies of one) of Carol's CD's off her web site a while back. I sent her an email and requested that she sign one that I was going to give to my nephew for Christmas last year. A few days later I received the CD's, both signed, along with a bunch of her promo material and history. It was good reading. I wish I had kept the reading material rather than giving it to my nephew. He enjoyed it though, although I don't know if he still has it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tremolounge Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Actually, I've read somewhere that particular bassline was actually Carol Kaye. As much as I love Carol Kaye, I have a lot of trouble believing that James Jamerson didn't play that particular song. ...but even if Tiny Tim played it, it's still the greatest bass part ever! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Richard King Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Just about ANY Motown tune fits.... Aint' That Peculiar Wow... look what I found - A totally different mix. I was listening to this and noticed some horns standing out that I hadn't noticed in the MANY times I have heard this song, then... all the instruments disappeared. [YOUTUBE][/YOUTUBE] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rsadasiv Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Great thread. Lee - you have impeccable taste. Next time I change strings on my bass I'm going to try some flatwounds. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members Blastula Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 "Friend And A Lover-- "Reach Out In The Darkness"" I emailed Jim Post (the "Friend" of "Friend and Lover") a few years back, asking him who the bass player was on that hit, he responded that he couldn't specifically remember, but "It could have been Emery Gordon." Gordon was a great local (Chicago) player. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members rasputin1963 Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 "Friend And A Lover-- "Reach Out In The Darkness"" I emailed Jim Post (the "Friend" of "Friend and Lover") a few years back, asking him who the bass player was on that hit, he responded that he couldn't specifically remember, but "It could have been Emery Gordon." Gordon was a great local (Chicago) player. Kewl! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cooterbrown Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 http://www.bassland.net/jamerson.html It's a shame that Carol Kaye has always felt the need to pad her otherwise stellar resume by claiming she played on many Motown hits that were obviously Jamerson's.In some cases - particularly Stevie Wonder's "I Was Made to Love Her" her claims were completely rebuffed by sworn affidavits by the musicians, producers, and engineers of those sessions.So I posted a link to this site, where somebody has gone to great lengths to uncover the truth...while still trying to be fair to Kaye...it's not a hatchet job, by any means. It's more of a project to give Jamerson some backup, since he cannot speak for himself - but just listening to the songs can do that.Jamerson played mostly with his fingers, his attack was very round and powerful, where Kaye played mostly with a pick, with an obvious "tick" to her attack. Her tone was also less pronounced than Jamerson's in the mid-range. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members cooterbrown Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Anyway... how about this freaking monster of a bass performance courtesy of Richard Evans on Gene Chandler's "Groovy Situation"? [YOUTUBE]BpU5PdEUrpM[/YOUTUBE] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members tremolounge Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 http://www.bassland.net/jamerson.htmlIt's a shame that Carol Kaye has always felt the need to pad her otherwise stellar resume by claiming she played on many Motown hits that were obviously Jamerson's....Jamerson played mostly with his fingers, his attack was very round and powerful, where Kaye played mostly with a pick, with an obvious "tick" to her attack. Her tone was also less pronounced than Jamerson's in the mid-range. Thanks for posting this -- I totally agree; the proof is in what your ears tell you, and the two bassists' sounds (and feels) are unmistakable. I think Jamerson also has a "loping" feel, a subtle swing maybe, that sets him apart. I read somewhere that J.J. almost always played with just his index finger -- if so, that was one dextrous digit! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members samtrips Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 http://www.bassland.net/jamerson.htmlIt's a shame that Carol Kaye has always felt the need to pad her otherwise stellar resume by claiming she played on many Motown hits that were obviously Jamerson's.In some cases - particularly Stevie Wonder's "I Was Made to Love Her" her claims were completely rebuffed by sworn affidavits by the musicians, producers, and engineers of those sessions.So I posted a link to this site, where somebody has gone to great lengths to uncover the truth...while still trying to be fair to Kaye...it's not a hatchet job, by any means. It's more of a project to give Jamerson some backup, since he cannot speak for himself - but just listening to the songs can do that.Jamerson played mostly with his fingers, his attack was very round and powerful, where Kaye played mostly with a pick, with an obvious "tick" to her attack. Her tone was also less pronounced than Jamerson's in the mid-range. Excellent stuff, cheers for the link. Thing is, she obviously HAS doubtlessly played on hundreds of classic 45s and albums, and yet still feels the need to claim more! Strange. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Members lonotes Posted February 27, 2009 Members Share Posted February 27, 2009 Great thread. Lee - you have impeccable taste. Next time I change strings on my bass I'm going to try some flatwounds. I love my Thomastik-Infeld Jazz Flats. Put a set of them on a P-bass for some serious old school tone. They aren't cheap, but they last forever. I have them on a few basses, and I haven't needed to change strings for years. Still the same great sound as when they were new. Nickle round wounds start to lose their sound for me in a few weeks, stainless round wounds in a few days. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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