Give it up for the Bassists

Lead Vocals gets center stage and most of the attention. When you think of a band, you think of the singer first. After all, they ARE the voice of the band. Then there's guitarz. Most of the time, if the singer is not the lead it's the main guitar guy who is. They are the main songwriters also and many a song would have a signature riff or solo that the guitarist gets to perform.

Drums and Bass seem to get little love from fans though. There are times when drums do a great solo, but they really are not the focus of many songs. There are times when the Bass is the leader of the band, but they're rare lot. Wicked Bass-lines always grab my attention, but again not really the focus of many songs.

So here I am giving some love to the bassist, the person who keeps the rhythm, the person who gives us that great low to the guitars high. These are a sample of bass players that have that certain something that lets their presence be known. It's completely from my personal taste and I have plenty more, but I like to keep things concise. (oh and it's in no particular order)

Feel free to comment and tell me your faves.


Flea - The Red Hot Chili Peppers. This is one of those bands that each member is recognizable in his own way and as part of the group. Of course them playing with only a sock on their *ahem* helped in their notoriety. Apart from RHCP, Flea has doen the Bass line for Young MC's



Darcy Wretzky - Smashing Pumpkins. Chicks Rock. Rocker Chicks RAWK! Rocker Bass Chick... RAAAAWWWKKK! Darcy was one of the first girls I saw in a rock band. Just seeing a woman rock as hard as the guys left a great impression on my feeling on the individual band members.






Murdoc Niccals - The Gorillaz. Sure he's a cartoon, but that rock star attitude is portrayed well on the bassist of this band. Among all the band memebrs, Murdoc looked like he embraced the rockstar image most of all.







Nick Oliveri - Queens of the Stone Age. Okay I admit it was more along the lines of eye-candy for me. Wicked Bassline in "No One Knows." But, the fact that most of the times I see a vid or images of Nick, it's him with his instrument and nothing else.







Peter Hook - New Order. Bands eventually embrace a distinctive sound that is all their own. Over the years, the musical style can change but the sound remains the same. I collected multiple CDs from New Order. When they came with a new album back in 2001 after an eight year hiatus,some elements changed but that distinctive bass sound from Peter Hook was still there.

BabyDaddy - Scissor Sisters. To be fair, I think he and Del share in the duty of bass, but i see Babydaddy more on bass. Again more of an eyecandy thing for me - presence and physical attraction always helps. Attraction aside, he plays multiple instruments and one of the main song writers for the band. He helped write Kylie Minogue's "I Believe in You."

Tony Kanal - No Doubt. Another band where I feel each individual is recognizable from the whole. Eventhough Gwen went solo for a while, the band came back and toured this year. From the start, the band has a mix of ska/raggae sounds, perfect for bass. With bass on the forefront gotta hava guy who can play and good stage presence. I saw many a times Tony jumping around and enjoying himself.

Nate Mendel - The only other original member of the Foo Fighters. He is like most bassists, there but kinda inconspicuous. So what sets him apart? From my perspective, I notice him in live performances. He seems to have his own groove or rhythm when they play. It's almost a signature for him, in some songs I can see him moving his head which seems out of synch with the song, but the rhythm is there .