A thousand years ago, I read an interview with Tom Hamilton, the bass player of Aerosmith. He was asked why he chose that instrument over anything else, and his reply stuck with me.
Paraphrasing Tom, he said that the bass is the bridge between the drums and the guitar. The bass has percussive elements and is often used to emphasize the beat. A bass player and a drummer who can lock together is an amazing thing and can turn an okay band into something awesome.
But the bass also has melodic characteristics. A great bass player can also underscore what’s happening with the guitar and even the vocalist. Listen to what Paul McCartney did with the Beatles or how John Paul Jones subtly and effectively added more power to Jimmy Page’s riffs.
If you’re gonna rock, you need bass. That bottom end is the sonic scaffolding upon which everything is built. Without it, things sound thin. And I’m looking at you, Metallica, and your ...And Justice for All album.
Like, come on. I mean, it’s a fine metal record, but it would have been so much more powerful if you’d turned up Jason Newsted in the mix. But noooo! James and Lars ordered that Jason be pushed way down in the mix, so he’s pretty much inaudible. They said, “Oh, our ears were just fried from touring, and we just kept pushing up the treble so we could hear it. And in the process, the bass just disappeared. Sorry… our bad.”
Right. It was ego, and you know it.
If you want an alternate universe for this album, just look for a fan project called And Justice for Jason.
Anyway, I digress. What we’re here for is part two of a look at the most important bass players in the history of alt-rock. And you’ll be able to hear each and every one of them.
Songs heard on this show:
- The Stranglers, No More Heroes
- Talking Heads, Life During Wartime
- The Smiths, This Charming Man
- Primus, Tommy the Cat
- Radiohead, The National Anthem
- Green Day, Longview
- Pearl Jam, Jeremy
- Rage Against the Machine, Killing in the Name
Here’s Eric Wilhite’s playlist.
The Ongoing History of New Music can be heard on these stations:
- 102.1 The Edge/Toronto – Sunday night at 7pm
- Q107/Toronto – Sunday night at 9pm
- Live 88-5/Ottawa – Saturdays at 9am and Sundays at 6pm
- 107.5 Dave-FM/Kitchener – Sunday nights at 11pm
- FM96/London – Sunday nights at 8pm
- Power 97/Winnipeg – Sunday nights at 10am and 10pm
- 107-3 The Edge/Calgary – Sundays at 10am and 10pm
- Sonic 102.9/Edmonton – Sunday at 8am and 8pm
- The Zone/Victoria – Sunday at 9am and 9pm
- The Fox/Vancouver – Sundays at 10am and 10pm
- The Goat Network/Interior BC
- WAPS/WKTL The Summit/Arkon, Canton, Cleveland, Youngstown – Mon-Fri at 9pm
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