Why were older basslines so much more interesting?

[lowdown]

On 21/06/2025 at 10:54, Beedster said:

 

Agree re first line 👍

 

I'm always amazed by just how many people, many of them fellow musicians, are completely mystified by slap, almost to the point as seeing it as a form or irony, the theme to Seinfeld seems to come in for particular flak! 

 

 

The composer, Jonathan Wolff played the bassline on each episode with slightly different fills and varied syncopation. It was to sync with the opening standup routines.

He explained and demonstrated the process in this short video.  It was a patch played on a Korg M1. There were also some other odd sampled patches thrown in/cobbled together here and there.

 

 

[kwmlondon]

People, we have rose tinted glasses and remember the best and conveniently forget the dross.

 

On this day 50 years ago, this was the charts in the UK: 

 

1 - I CAN'T GIVE YOU ANYTHING (BUT MY LOVE)
THE STYLISTICS

2 - SAILING
ROD STEWART

3 - THE LAST FAREWELL
ROGER WHITTAKER

4 - BARBADOS
TYPICALLY TROPICAL

5 - IF YOU THINK YOU KNOW HOW TO LOVE ME
SMOKIE

7 - BLANKET ON THE GROUND
BILLIE JO SPEARS

8 - THAT'S THE WAY (I LIKE IT)
KC AND THE SUNSHINE BAND

9 -JIVE TALKIN'
THE BEE GEES

10 - DOLLY MY LOVE
MOMENTS

11 - GIVE A LITTLE LOVE
BAY CITY ROLLERS

 

Not a bad number one, very seventies, and the Bee Gee's and KC And The Sunsine Band's tunes are great but the rest is not great...

 

Edited 5 hours ago by kwmlondon

[Stub Mandrel]

Sailing was massive, Barbados and Jive Talking are classics and the Smokie song is great IMHO. 

 

But the question is basslines and even the totally wet Bay City Rollers song has a reasonably interesting walking line.

[kwmlondon]

1 minute ago, Stub Mandrel said:

Sailing was massive, Barbados and Jive Talking are classics and the Smokie song is great IMHO. 

 

But the question is basslines and even the totally wet Bay City Rollers song has a reasonably interesting walking line.

The fact that Sailing was massive is the problem. So was Clive Dunn's Grandad. So was Mouldy Old Dough. There was so much awful music in the 70s and 80s that we've forgotten.

 

Having said that, Meri Wilson's Telephone Man is a walking-bass masterpiece and Crazy Horses is one of the best rock tunes I can think of so there are always gems in throwaway pop if you keep an open mind!

[Stub Mandrel]

33 minutes ago, kwmlondon said:

The fact that Sailing was massive is the problem.

 

You nake my point!

 

Sailing may be maudlin and mediocre, but it's like a duck - going like mad under the surface.  You won't find many modern pop chart hits with the complex and continually changing phrasing of its bassline. After the slow start there are barely two bars repeating the same rhythmically or melodically.

[lowdown]

 I know the thread is about the more creative/ interesting Bass lines of decades gone by, but other stuff stands out to me as well...

After just listening to all those tunes on the above list over on YouTube, apart from three of those tunes, the rest all have string arrangements (very good charts that are obviously arranged by experienced arrangers).

Of the three that don't, one has excellent Brass arranging and two have very good, creative, vocal harmony arranging.

 

So, to me, all the above, and including the very fine musicianship involved, elevates those tunes above 'dross'. It may well be music that you don't like, but to my ears, not dross. 

Just my musical opinion(s), of course.

 

 

 

 

[Lozz196]

2 hours ago, kwmlondon said:

The fact that Sailing was massive is the problem. So was Clive Dunn's Grandad. So was Mouldy Old Dough. There was so much awful music in the 70s and 80s that we've forgotten.

 

Having said that, Meri Wilson's Telephone Man is a walking-bass masterpiece and Crazy Horses is one of the best rock tunes I can think of so there are always gems in throwaway pop if you keep an open mind!

Mouldy Old Dough & Crazy Horses, loved them as a kid, and still do now. Used to do Crazy Horses in an old band, complete with the cross-legged dance thing they used to do.