How1

I was being flippant with the easy ride part, but the way a lot of the songs are mixed though gave him a lot of focus, nobody is having to work very hard to pick out his bass lines. They were obviously working around him with the mix. The bass line to What’s Going On was pretty much written for him specifically. It’s just as prominent as the strings and guitar in the mix for example if not more so. It should stand out, it’s brilliant I’m not arguing otherwise. His tone and playing style was obviously a big part of it. I’m not questioning his playing abilities at all, it’s pretty much impeccable and way ahead of anybody else at the time and still up there now. I’m just saying the bass is treated differently and given more relevance than it possibly would have if it wasn’t Jamerson. Although soul is like that anyway.

Yeah, maybe so. It’s a shame either way.

Really? I assumed it was because he was constantly sh*tfaced and couldn’t play properly anymore.

I agree with pretty much all of that. I love soul/R&B and the bass of the 60s& 70s era. For me though there are other players and sounds that I like just as much as JJ’s - David Hood and Duck Dunn being two obvious examples, Nathan Watts, George Porter…I guess it comes down to who is the most well known as to who gets emulated the most? Or the most unique?

True. I’m not saying he never had that, just that *in general* he had a lot of freedom, sometimes to the point of probably things being arranged around him.

True. I guess for people of a certain age it’s THE sound of bass. But there’s a good chance if he played that same stuff now he’d have used totally different gear and still been as popular.

That kind of illustrates my point about the space he had to play in. There’s not much else going on that’s affecting how audible the bass is or how he might have to adjust his tone or playing whatsoever. He’s quite obviously the star of the show and is practically playing lead. Don’t get me wrong, his playing is brilliant and I’m not saying otherwise. Classic tune though 👍

Is it all about the actual sound or more to do with the legacy/genius side of it and people assuming if they have the right setup they can play like him?! I love James Jamerson’s stuff and play plenty of it, but I’m genuinely curious as to why people are so in love with *that* sound particularly. He’s no doubt brilliant but I think to some degree he had an easy ride - it’s not like he’s fighting three guitars and a string section.

As from this morning I’m the proud owner of a brand spanking Fender Player Precision. It’s the first stock Precision I’ve ever owned and I’m loving it. I’ve nearly always had jazz neck type basses so this is pleasantly different.

I do mean crowned. It was on purpose - and you fell into my cunning trap ( or cunningly designed trap!) 👺😁

Makes sense. Funnily enough a Bob Dylan cover was my first thought!

I’ve just realised I started posting and never introduced myself. I’ve been playing for about 25 years but pretty much had a 10 year break. Used to be in a band that broke up, so I started recording my own stuff, did the whole PC based home studio thing but it wasn’t really what I was interested in and eventually just lost interest. Family life kind of got in the way as well. So I’m playing every day again, mostly soul but some punk/rock stuff as well, steering clear of computers and just using my SR18! Not any real plans to join a band or anything as yet, but who knows? Cheers, James.

I wouldn’t go as far as terrible but I don’t particularly like Limp Bizkit’s Behind Blue Eyes. It brings nothing new and sounds a bit whiny. My problem may be with Fred Durst though rather than the actual song. Is there a ‘covers better than the original’ sister thread?

I’d much rather see special programming on Mark King than the actual king. And probably rather have Mark King coronated!

Oh. Maybe they do 😂

I recently heard the Ernie Balls mentioned in a review, I might give them another look. I wasn’t unhappy with the Fenders particularly; I’m just not convinced that flats suit that bass/pickups. I would like a bit more tension though so I can play higher up the neck but keep things a bit ‘tighter’. Good point about the Bass Centre thing. They even do a Jamerson inspired Precision that comes as stock with flatwounds…surely they don’t ship those with the E string set up like that??

That would be really good, thanks.

I read somewhere he’s only 25. Must be the beard - puts years in him.

The J pickup doesn’t get a huge amount of use, so I might just wire on to the p pickup. I’ll have a look into it. I’ve sealed & tidied it up for now, but nothing that can’t be undone if needs be.

That looks like just the kind of thing that would p*#s me off after a while! Other than that though, what’s the tension like?

No, tbh never. Not for any particular reason they’ve just not been in my radar. He’s not selling it to me when he says they’re ‘floppy’ 😁