White Cloud Posted September 2, 2016 Share Posted September 2, 2016 [quote name='Barking Spiders' timestamp='1472806923' post='3124361'] What do you folks consider to be your golden age for bass - not just the quality of players but great and memorable basslines. As big a fan as I am of Motown, classic funk and Stax for me it was UK pop 1980 to about 1987, when slap and fretless bass had high profiles in the UK charts. Great bass lines all over the shop, even on some really cheesy pop tunes. [/quote] This! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue Posted September 2, 2016 Share Posted September 2, 2016 (edited) [quote name='neepheid' timestamp='1472811682' post='3124416'] We're in it. Electric bass has only been a thing for mere decades, we're all still pioneers. [/quote] 1964- 1974, back in the late 60d and early 70s the electric bass guitar was prominent and up front in the music from many movie sound tracks, many pop, rock R& B and of course funk recordings. In most contemporary recordings the bass and lead guitar have taken a back seat. And remember we had top 40 radio back then in the US. We haven't had top 40 radio in decades. Blue Edited September 2, 2016 by blue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted September 3, 2016 Share Posted September 3, 2016 (edited) [quote name='Hobbayne' timestamp='1472836143' post='3124689'] The late 70's for me. JJ Burnel and Bruce Foxton with their plectrum powered, almost lead basslines to the fore. No more bass is easy to play and anyone can do it. Right up there in the mix showcasing the power of the bass. [/quote] That would be it for me, two of my main inspirations to play bass (and lucky enough to be playing on the same bill as them both later on this year, a real "we`re not worthy" moment I reckon it will be). From there the early 80s bands all had great bassists with basslines very prominent, Duran Duran, ABC, Flock of Seagulls, Wham, Japan etc, I`m sure with the way that punk brought in those lead basslines had a lot to do with the way these bands had the bass so forward in the mix. Edited September 3, 2016 by Lozz196 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ead Posted September 3, 2016 Share Posted September 3, 2016 It's an interesting question. The electric bass has only been around for maybe 70 years or so and is therefore a pretty new kid on the block compared to some others. With my rose tinted shades on I'd probably agree with the OP but I think the variety of instruments available today and the leaps and bounds in amplification makes today a pretty tasty time. Whether musicians exploit this is a different argument I think, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Grangur Posted September 3, 2016 Share Posted September 3, 2016 [quote name='blue' timestamp='1472848274' post='3124846'] 1964- 1974, back in the late 60d and early 70s the electric bass guitar was prominent and up front in the music from many movie sound tracks, many pop, rock R& B and of course funk recordings. In most contemporary recordings the bass and lead guitar have taken a back seat. And remember we had top 40 radio back then in the US. We haven't had top 40 radio in decades. Blue [/quote] I'm on holiday in Bulgaria right now. A few restaurants are playing what might be called "golden oldies". Most are pumping techno club tracks. In some respects we live in sad times. It's almost like we have gone back to 50s/60s UK: back then the BBC wouldn't recognise Rock n Roll. The young of the day had to dig deeper to find music to excite. The places you looked to were the pirate radio stations like Caroline and Luxembourg. Today to find new exciting bass we need to dig deeper than what the BBC offers to find many of the key in ovations in the art. Yet when you find them it is good and worth the effort. Even on TV when a band is on, the bass player hardly gets a look in. Often during the bass solo you will be shown shots of the guitar or the drummer. Ps. another great who brought bass to the front of the stage was Sting. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted September 3, 2016 Share Posted September 3, 2016 (edited) [quote name='Coilte' timestamp='1472814730' post='3124455'] Let me take a wild guess...the 60's ? [/quote] My dad is the same age as blue,he considers himself too young for the Beatles. Turning 16 in 1970 just as the fun ended. Edited September 3, 2016 by stingrayPete1977 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivansc Posted September 3, 2016 Share Posted September 3, 2016 Let us not forget we are all standing on the shoulders of giants. No such thing as A golden age for bass, there are so many all for different reasons but equally valid. Not all of the bass instruments have/had strings on them either. Check out the Taj Mahal double live album with multiple tubas sousaphones and bass horns! Fabulous stuff that grooves like crazy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Sausage Posted September 3, 2016 Share Posted September 3, 2016 For me it was 1998. Being a 19 yr old bass player in a band bagged me a 26 yr old lap dancer as a girlfriend. That was the definite golden age of Bass for me! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Coilte Posted September 3, 2016 Share Posted September 3, 2016 [quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1472889027' post='3125018'] My dad is the same age as blue,he considers himself too young for the Beatles. Turning 16 in 1970 just as the fun ended. [/quote] I'm the same age as your dad....and Blue. While I loved the Beatles at the time, it was only when I got into my twenties that I realised how seminal they were. In my teens, I was more of a Stones and Beefheart fan. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted September 3, 2016 Share Posted September 3, 2016 [quote name='Coilte' timestamp='1472934610' post='3125480'] I'm the same age as your dad....and Blue. While I loved the Beatles at the time, it was only when I got into my twenties that I realised how seminal they were. In my teens, I was more of a Stones and Beefheart fan. [/quote] I love Carole king, Tapestry was already an old album by the time I was born but quality lasts forever I suppose. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue Posted September 4, 2016 Share Posted September 4, 2016 [quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1472889027' post='3125018'] My dad is the same age as blue,he considers himself too young for the Beatles. Turning 16 in 1970 just as the fun ended. [/quote] I became a huge Beatles fan when I was 9 years old. But remember the impact of The Beatles was a lot bigger in the US than in the UK. Blue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
4stringslow Posted September 4, 2016 Share Posted September 4, 2016 If there is any such thing as a Golden Age, I'd say it lies in the future. Anyone who thinks that things can't be improved upon (and not just musically) must have a pretty depressing outlook on life.. This sort of question is akin to those about your favourite song or favourite bass player. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted September 4, 2016 Share Posted September 4, 2016 [quote name='blue' timestamp='1473009834' post='3126019'] But remember the impact of The Beatles was a lot bigger in the US than in the UK. [/quote] The impact in the UK was seismic. Nothing was the same after 1963. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
visog Posted September 4, 2016 Share Posted September 4, 2016 (edited) I'll go late seventies for me: Yes, 'Going for the One' 1977 Rush, '2112' 1976 Joni Mitchell, 'Heijra' 1976 Weather Report, 'Black Market' 1976 Stanley Clarke, 'Schooldays' 1976 Return to Forever, 'Romantic Warrior' 1976 Edited September 4, 2016 by visog Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Woodinblack Posted September 4, 2016 Share Posted September 4, 2016 For me, its every age since the 70s. Probably there would be stuff in the 60s too, but before my time by not enough for me to go there. [quote name='Misdee' timestamp='1472817827' post='3124493'] Back in the '70's and '80's the bass guitar was far more evident on most popular music than it is now, not least of all because there were far fewer options. Nowadays, what with synth bass, 808's, sine wave etc. there is more competition for the low end of the musical spectrum. [/quote] 808s? Like the Roland 808 from 1980? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue Posted September 4, 2016 Share Posted September 4, 2016 [quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1473011653' post='3126038'] The impact in the UK was seismic. Nothing was the same after 1963. [/quote] I've never been the same since 1964 when they came to the States. Blue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted September 5, 2016 Share Posted September 5, 2016 I can barely remember anything as a four year old, possibly Shakin' Stevens being my first musical memory. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue Posted September 6, 2016 Share Posted September 6, 2016 (edited) I was born in 1953. For a music fan,that's the winning ticket in the lottery if life, as far as I'm concerned. Sorry it's just the truth. Being 16 or 17 in 1971 (the year rock exploded) was simply awesome. You become pretty critical if you we're into pop music growing up in that time period. For example a few years ago a friend was dieing to get me to listen to The Black Keys. I did, and I was like,; "Ok, and why am I supposed to be excited?" Blue Edited September 6, 2016 by blue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blue Posted September 6, 2016 Share Posted September 6, 2016 [quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1473066494' post='3126454'] I can barely remember anything as a four year old, possibly Shakin' Stevens being my first musical memory. [/quote] At 4 years old, I remember quite clearly being in the kitchen with my mom. She had the Black radio station on all the time. I remember hearing Ray Charles. Blue Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dad3353 Posted September 6, 2016 Share Posted September 6, 2016 At 4 years old, I remember, at infant school morning assembly, hearing classical pieces such as The Carnival of the Animals. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
LayDownThaFunk Posted September 6, 2016 Share Posted September 6, 2016 [quote name='blue' timestamp='1473127013' post='3127201'] I was born in 1953. For a music fan,that's the winning ticket in the lottery if life, as far as I'm concerned. Sorry it's just the truth. Being 16 or 17 in 1971 (the year rock exploded) was simply awesome. You become pretty critical if you we're into pop music growing up in that time period. For example a few years ago a friend was dieing to get me to listen to The Black Keys. I did, and I was like,; "Ok, and why am I supposed to be excited?" Blue [/quote] Suprised you don't like the Turn Blue album! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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