Jump to content
Why become a member? ×

The pioneers of each genre?


ChunkyMunky
 Share

Recommended Posts

[i]James Jamerson to Motown, Family Man to Reggae, Bobby Valentin to Latin and how Ray Brown is to Jazz. [/i]

Who do you feel are the pioneers of each genre? I ask because I'm going on a massive transcribing spree and I'm looking to absorb a particular player of each style. Was Bernard Edwards the king of disco bass? What is your favourite line that said player has done? I'd love to hear what you lovely folks think. :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Pop ~ James Jamerson
Rock ~ John Entwhistle
Funk ~ Larry Graham
Disco ~ Nard'
Jazz ~ Jaco
Metal ~ Steve Harris/Lemmy
Punk ~ Dee Dee Ramone/Glen Matlock ;)

My tuppence worth!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jaco is barely a Jazz player at all. He does make a contribution to Jazz on one level but is nowhere near hardcore and it would be wrong to call him a pioneer in Jazz. Fusion, yes absolutely. Funk maybe. 'Electric bass' definitely. In Jazz terms, however, he is certainly not a pioneer in any real sense. You would need to look at double bass players for that. The received wisdom says guys like John Kirby (first band leading bassist), Walter Page/Wellman Braud (started 'walking' with Ellington), Slam Stewart (early bowing solos), Jimmy Blanton (first 'soloist' in a mainstream band), Ray Brown, Oscar Pettiford, \\\\\\\red Callender, Charles Mingus, Paul Chambers then guys like Gary Peacock, Scott LaFaro, Charlile Haden (Free Jazz). Jazz bass without Jaco wouldn't look much different whilst pop without Jamerson would be unrecognisable.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Get on Spotify and listen to the best bass lines ever playlist. Lost of INCREDIBLE lines in there, not all by the pioneers as well!

As far as things go, I'm doing something similar and bass players I'm most influenced by currently are Jaco, Jamerson, Pino, Michael League, and Nard. I think you have a VERY balanced group of players there.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1433509815' post='2791704']
Jaco is barely a Jazz player at all. He does make a contribution to Jazz on one level but is nowhere near hardcore and it would be wrong to call him a pioneer in Jazz. Fusion, yes absolutely. Funk maybe. 'Electric bass' definitely. In Jazz terms, however, he is certainly not a pioneer in any real sense. You would need to look at double bass players for that. The received wisdom says guys like John Kirby (first band leading bassist), Walter Page/Wellman Braud (started 'walking' with Ellington), Slam Stewart (early bowing solos), Jimmy Blanton (first 'soloist' in a mainstream band), Ray Brown, Oscar Pettiford, \\\\\\\red Callender, Charles Mingus, Paul Chambers then guys like Gary Peacock, Scott LaFaro, Charlile Haden (Free Jazz). Jazz bass without Jaco wouldn't look much different whilst pop without Jamerson would be unrecognisable.
[/quote]

Does Jazz have a pioneering electric bassist? My obvious suggestion would be Monk Montgomery, but then I really can't think of very many bass guitarists who play 'true' Jazz! (i.e., as opposed to some flavour of Jazz-influenced Fusion/Funk)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I can only really speak for metal, as the whole nu-metal thing was the only breaking new musical movement I've experienced first hand at the right sort of age for it.

I didn't really go in for it initially preferring Death Metal etc. at the time, but I think metal fans have a lot to thank the whole Korn, Bizkit era thing for as suddenly people outside of the black jeans and black band teeshirt brigade were actually coming to metal gigs... At some of our gigs in the late 90s / early 2000s there were even girls in the audience :o

Bass took on a new roll in nu-metal, coming to the forefront with slap and carrying alot more melody than metal had traditionally allowed for bass... hell in most metal the bass was totally inaudible and considered an afterthought.

Alex Katunich's (Dirk Lance) playing on Incubus's Science changed everything for those of us playing in metal bands at the time. The guy from Mudvayne (who's name escapes me) expanded on what Katunich started but when Science came out everyone wanted to play bass like that.

Edited by CamdenRob
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Unfortunately, with so many sub genres there are going to be hundreds of suggestions, I would guess, but from me...... Rock..John Paul Jones.......Metal.....Steve Harris ......Heavy Metal...... Cliff Burton.
For "pop" music I remember the mid eighties when Mark King was basically the only bassist that any non bassist could name, so I guess that would qualify as a pioneer...?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I'd add McCartney and Carol Kaye to the Pop genre, though James Jameson's contribution is undoubtedly immense.

And as MacDaddy has just said, I think Bootsy Collin's contribution to funk needs to taken into consideration too.

Edited by silverfoxnik
Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='EliasMooseblaster' timestamp='1433512297' post='2791732']


Does Jazz have a pioneering electric bassist? My obvious suggestion would be Monk Montgomery, but then I really can't think of very many bass guitarists who play 'true' Jazz! (i.e., as opposed to some flavour of Jazz-influenced Fusion/Funk)
[/quote]

Exactly. What defines pioneering? I would suggest Steve Swallow.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='timmo' timestamp='1433515321' post='2791776']
Lloyd Brevett. Was there anyone before him that had the ska sound? I would say a fair few in the list aren`t really Pioneers, just great bassists who took the sound and genre to a new level. Maybe i am wrong though
[/quote] I was going mention Lloyd :)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='timmo' timestamp='1433515321' post='2791776']
Lloyd Brevett. Was there anyone before him that had the ska sound? I would say a fair few in the list aren`t really Pioneers, just great bassists who took the sound and genre to a new level. Maybe i am wrong though
[/quote] I was going to mention Lloyd :)

Mike Howlett for Gong genre ;)

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1433509815' post='2791704']
Jazz bass without Jaco wouldn't look much different whilst pop without Jamerson would be unrecognisable.
[/quote]
I suppose that goes back to a previous thread and who decides what constitutes jazz (or any other genre) and does it encompass fusion or not, etc.

It is undeniable (although somebody will be along in a minute to do just that) that electric bass playing would be completely different without Jaco...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1433509815' post='2791704']
Jaco is barely a Jazz player at all. He does make a contribution to Jazz on one level but is nowhere near hardcore and it would be wrong to call him a pioneer in Jazz. Fusion, yes absolutely. Funk maybe. 'Electric bass' definitely. In Jazz terms, however, he is certainly not a pioneer in any real sense. You would need to look at double bass players for that.
[/quote]

Hmmm a bit disingenuous - can't let that go by... For the period of jazz YOU like maybe but jazz is much more than Bebop.

For those not stuck 50s/60s, he was a huge pioneer... playing with a harmonic and rhythmic granularity which was entirely new. Let alone his pioneering use of harmonics and fretless bass.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Restore formatting

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

 Share

  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...