josie Posted February 12, 2018 Share Posted February 12, 2018 (edited) Not sure why I just went back to Dire Straits with good headphones, but I've been blown away by the sparseness of John Illsley's * bassline on "Ride Across the River". It's a dark broody song, and one can easily see a heavy bassline working well, but there's nothing at times, and then two notes on an off-beat, and then three notes where your ear fills in the next three that should be there but aren't. Perfect "play the rests as well as the notes", and "less is more". Any other suggestions for perfect minimal bass? * or maybe someone else according to one of the posts below Edited February 16, 2018 by josie Corrections made in later posts 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
paul_c2 Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 I read the title of the thread and immediately thought of Tina Weymouth, was going to suggest "Genius of Love" (by Tom Tom Club) as an example but there's a number of others too. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
josie Posted February 13, 2018 Author Share Posted February 13, 2018 1 hour ago, hiram.k.hackenbacker said: Well, I'm going to offer this. Very sparse in terms of notes used and it's the same pattern played over and over. But it's not about the bass line, its about how it works with everything else that's going on around it. I must have listen to this thousands of times since it's release and I never bore of it. Utterly magical. Oh yes :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Oopsdabassist Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 I've always been quite enamoured by Stings bass lines, always tuneful but often very empty, so I'll offer up the obvious Walking on the Moon 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mykesbass Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Papa Was a Rolling Stone - same three notes, same pattern for the entire song, and still fabulous after all these years. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
NickD Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Above, by Mad Season... the whole album. I'd bought it because of the Alice in Chains/Pearl Jam connection, but John Baker-Saunders' lines are the star, it's just an exercise in letting every individual note breathe. I recall back when it was released, it was the only non-Jazz/Fusion release that I ever saw get a 5 star review in the American Bass Player magazine. More than 20 years later it's still sublime (YMMV). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xgsjx Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 That white Welsh bloke can groove with very few notes. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowdown Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 42 minutes ago, Mykesbass said: Papa Was a Rolling Stone - same three notes, same pattern for the entire song, and still fabulous after all these years. Groove city. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casapete Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 This. Always loved the sparseness of bass in much of the AWB stuff. Alan Gorrie is a master of playing what's needed, when others would have been all over it and killed the groove completely. Hamish Stuart (when he was with them) was equally adept at this as well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barking Spiders Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Not that I like the song much but the simple bass in Argent's Hold Your Head Up is really effective 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casapete Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Free's 'All right now' is another great example. So economical that it's not even there in the verses! Then when the chorus kicks in it's so effective, and the 'solo' part has more weight too. Andy Fraser - what an amazing player. Joined the band when he was 15, co-wrote and co produced this track when he was 17. Genius. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Johnny Wishbone Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 (edited) The verse to this track probably had more influence on me as a bassist than anything else. Why play 10 notes when one will do? Edited February 13, 2018 by Johnny Wishbone Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Barking Spiders Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Although a bass guitar's not used, for me the most effective minimal bassline is on Leftfield's Phat Planet. Just two notes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Paul S Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Here are three that I play with my little band - great songs, real less is more stuff. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Blank Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ivansc Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Preaching my usual sermon. Listen to any good country bass player. Just because the music is simple doesn't mean it is easy. Seen so many sneering rockers fall flat on their asses trying to get a country line right. A few years back I was hired to re-record the whole of a country album that had been played on upright by a well respected jazzer, who just couldn't hear the ACTUAL feel for the songs at all. Listen to some Waylon Jennings for the Texas beat feel. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris_b Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Have a listen to the wonderful Hutch Hutchinson playing a beautiful, sparse and effective bass line for Keb Mo. Also an example of a good bassist using sustain effectively. Also, how a 5 string bass should be played to enhance the song. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stingrayPete1977 Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 2 hours ago, Johnny Wishbone said: The verse to this track probably had more influence on me as a bassist than anything else. Why play 10 notes when one will do? This would be my suggestion too. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cuzzie Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 To me this is almost the perfect rock song. George Lynch is a vastly underrated guitarist and I think this is a beautiful solo, easily matching the famous Zak Wylde in Ozzy’s no more tears. Ray Luzier is a monster drummer and drives the song, rhythm changes etc. dUg kills it with simplicity. KXM - Breakout - I could listen to this everyday and not get bored. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lozz196 Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 12 hours ago, paul_c2 said: I read the title of the thread and immediately thought of Tina Weymouth, was going to suggest "Genius of Love" (by Tom Tom Club) as an example but there's a number of others too. Psycho Killer is great, sparse but rhythmic enough to keep the song going, I wonder/doubt if we`d ever have heard it had another bassist filled it with as many complex notes as possible. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Blank Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 5 minutes ago, Lozz196 said: Psycho Killer is great, sparse but rhythmic enough to keep the song going, I wonder/doubt if we`d ever have heard it had another bassist filled it with as many complex notes as possible. It's a great song and I think you are spot on. Tina Weymouth is superb, definitely an important inspiration for me. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casapete Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 3 hours ago, ivansc said: Preaching my usual sermon. Listen to any good country bass player. Just because the music is simple doesn't mean it is easy. Seen so many sneering rockers fall flat on their asses trying to get a country line right. A few years back I was hired to re-record the whole of a country album that had been played on upright by a well respected jazzer, who just couldn't hear the ACTUAL feel for the songs at all. Listen to some Waylon Jennings for the Texas beat feel. Absolutely. Played with some jazz drummers / bassists who couldn't stop themselves from playing as many notes as possible, and berating simple pop tunes when they couldn't actually just play the lines to support the song as required. Country stuff is a prime example of this - most of the top players in the genre could whip the more out there flash players into a cocked hat. But don't. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
casapete Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 Loving this topic! How about this one? Some tasty fills here and there, but economical where needed. Love it! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mykesbass Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 11 minutes ago, casapete said: Loving this topic! How about this one? Some tasty fills here and there, but economical where needed. Love it! Classy, classy pop song. Will have to check out the baseline later. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Marc S Posted February 13, 2018 Share Posted February 13, 2018 A lot of the Joy Division stuff is quite sparse. This one is "24 hours", from their "Atmosphere" LP I'm not sure the whole thing would be counted / defined as sparse - but the quieter / slower sections certainly are Great sound and feeling of space, in a fairly sparse bass-line - nice melody too, in which the bass is the "key" instrument 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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