Best ever basslines?

Hattigol

Rocker said:

In most of the posts on this thread, songs are named.  The reality is that the bass player played what the song needed.  He may have come up with the bass part there and then or it may have been worked on for some length of time.   Either way it was crafted to suit the song.  In isolation, it is just a guy noodling on a bass, in the song the bass parts become part of the song.  Everyone hopes that the total [vocals, drums, guitar, bass etc.] will be greater than the sum of the various parts.  When that happens, magic.  But it might have worked too if a different bass line was used.  Or a different guitar line.......

My main point is to suggest that you stop listening to the parts in isolation and listen to the sum total - the performance, what is released on record.

I think you have kind of missed the point of the thread, chap.

Haych

Not sure I'd call it the best, there are so many to choose from, but I do like this one:

equalsql

Can't believe you've not yet mentioned Forget Me Nots by Patrick Rushden..  it's an absolute classic.

EricTheWeary

on a really boring long Teams meeting earlier and flicking around the forum, managed to accidentally treat everyone to the drum intro

Reggaebass said:

This is another great Bassline and a great track https://youtu.be/k1Qnt5bx1OI

  Great song. 

Rocker

Hattigol said:

Rocker said:

In most of the posts on this thread, songs are named.  The reality is that the bass player played what the song needed.  He may have come up with the bass part there and then or it may have been worked on for some length of time.   Either way it was crafted to suit the song.  In isolation, it is just a guy noodling on a bass, in the song the bass parts become part of the song.  Everyone hopes that the total [vocals, drums, guitar, bass etc.] will be greater than the sum of the various parts.  When that happens, magic.  But it might have worked too if a different bass line was used.  Or a different guitar line.......

My main point is to suggest that you stop listening to the parts in isolation and listen to the sum total - the performance, what is released on record.

I think you have kind of missed the point of the thread, chap.

Not exactly @Hattigol, my point is that if it does what is required for the song, it is good.  Can apply to bass, guitar, drums, keys etc

Hattigol

Point of the thread though was about basslines which effectively become the essence of the song - Walk on the Wild Side being the best example for me. Imagine that song without that bassline. It'd be nothing.

Agree with what you say about everything working in harmony on the great songs but I was kind of asking people to pick stand-out bass parts - which you can't really do without isolating it at least a little in your head.

Meh....semantics. It's all good.

sweepy

Ian Dury’s  Hit me with your Rhythm Stick’s baseline IS the song

Freebird

EricTheWeary said:

on a really boring long Teams meeting earlier and flicking around the forum, managed to accidentally treat everyone to the drum intro

Reggaebass said:

This is another great Bassline and a great track https://youtu.be/k1Qnt5bx1OI

Great song. 

At least you weren't caught fapping

EricTheWeary

Freebird said:

EricTheWeary said:

on a really boring long Teams meeting earlier and flicking around the forum, managed to accidentally treat everyone to the drum intro

Reggaebass said:

This is another great Bassline and a great track https://youtu.be/k1Qnt5bx1OI

Great song. 

At least you weren't caught fapping

the worst I've done is forget that my laptop has two cameras and show everyone my socks. Teams normally mutes everything else going on but didn't today. Unfortunately that drum intro is quite dramatic. 

Rocker said:

Hattigol said:

Rocker said:

In most of the posts on this thread, songs are named.  The reality is that the bass player played what the song needed.  He may have come up with the bass part there and then or it may have been worked on for some length of time.   Either way it was crafted to suit the song.  In isolation, it is just a guy noodling on a bass, in the song the bass parts become part of the song.  Everyone hopes that the total [vocals, drums, guitar, bass etc.] will be greater than the sum of the various parts.  When that happens, magic.  But it might have worked too if a different bass line was used.  Or a different guitar line.......

My main point is to suggest that you stop listening to the parts in isolation and listen to the sum total - the performance, what is released on record.

I think you have kind of missed the point of the thread, chap.

Not exactly @Hattigol, my point is that if it does what is required for the song, it is good.  Can apply to bass, guitar, drums, keys etc

Obviously there's no definition of what makes a great bassline but generally something that enhances the song but also works as a coherent line in itself. 
So, as a well known example The Four Tops with Bernadette which is 1960s pop music. Not heavy muso stuff and you could throw some shapes to it in the dance floor. 

  

and James Jamerson could have approached this with a root fifth type bassline but if you hear the bassline pulled up in the mix then it was almost anything but




so it helps the groove, underlines the melody. Musical intelligence I guess. 

Freebird

EricTheWeary said:

Obviously there's no definition of what makes a great bassline but generally something that enhances the song but also works as a coherent line in itself.

So, as a well known example The Four Tops with Bernadette which is 1960s pop music. Not heavy muso stuff and you could throw some shapes to it in the dance floor.

And James Jamerson could have approached this with a root fifth type bassline but if you hear the bassline pulled up in the mix then it was almost anything but

So it helps the groove, underlines the melody. Musical intelligence I guess. 

Or it can drive the entire song

PolarityMan

Mudvayne - Dig

Offset

Pretty much anything with Bernard Edwards on it.