Great Bassists (was100 Greatest Guitarists)

[Richard Lockwood]

Hmm.  I wouldn't have thought "Bass player" needed too much defining.
"Person who plays a bass guitar" does it for me.  If you're going to
discount people who play the bass guitar in innovative ways, you can
discount half of Mr Rider's list.  Would you describe some of the things Les
Claypool or Flea do with four strings as just "playing bass"?

I'd like to nominate Stu Hamm and Billy Sheehan for the list - and in the
just "playing bass" category, one Mr Philip Lynott.  Oh, and Paul Simonon of
the Clash, he can go in there too - for a man who couldn't play for toffee
when the Clash started, he came on pretty well...  :-)  Oops - mustn't
forget that fella, wotsisname in Blue Oyster Cult...

What other comments have I got?  Lessee... I thought Dave Holland was the
drummer with Judas Priest.  Presumably there's another one.

Mark King? (Level 42)  The man who brought "slap" bass to millions?

I'd also argue that there are a few in that list who played bass in some
great bands, but aren't exactly great bass players - Pete Way?!

(Mind you, there's an argument that Ross The Boss doesn't fit into either
category - unless you *really* like the Dictators.  "DEATH TO FALSE
METAL!!!")

Who else?  Jim Lea, no doubt.  Jason Newstead (have you *heard* the first
Flotsam and Jetsam album???!)

I'll stop my ramblings now, as I've only just woken up and I need a good
strong cup of tea.  There should be enough contentious views in the above
post to keep people going for a while.  :-)

Cheers,

Rich.

(Oh - what about that fella who plays bass for Beer Powered Noise Frenzy?)
:-)  And yer man (Chris Copper) in Scirocco Works has to get a mention for
winning the award for "Scariest Picture Of A Bass Player On The Web".
http://www.scirroco-works.co.uk/images/chriscopper.jpg  (And for being the
spitting image of the Kurgan, and being best man at my wedding!) (And being
an ace bass player)

>
> > Lemmy??
>
> Well, maybe...
> first we have to define what we mean by bass player...
> sure Lem plays a bass guitar, but does that alone make him a bass player?
is
> he playing bass?
> the man himself has said he is just playing rhythm guitar on his bass, and
> while it's pretty amazing to see and a mighty force to experience aurally,
it
> isn't 'playing bass' as most would describe it. He refers to himself on
the
> credits on many a M'head lp as simply 'Rhythm'. i don't think he belongs
on that
> list because he's doing something other than what those others on the list
do:
> playing 4-string rhythm guitar; i don't think he'd argue that.
> bobm
>
>

Les Claypool
Steve Harris
Dave Holland
Charles Mingus
Dave Schools
John Wetton
Allen Woody
John Paul Jones
Jack Cassady
Phil Lesh
Bootsy Collins
Geezer Butler
Alan Davey
Jack Bruce
Flea
Rob Wasserman
Pete Way
George Porter
Roger Clover
Geddy Lee
Mike Watt
Chris Squire
Tony Levin
Dennis Dunaway
Billy Talbot
Ross The Boss
Oteil Burbridge
Larry Graham
John Entwistle
Paul McCartney