Bilbo

Another long overdue transcription which I wish I could have done decades ago! Geddy Lee's bass part to 'La Villa Strangiato' from the 1978 Rush album 'Hemispheres'. The 'Ghost of Aragon' section was the tricky bit. It is only really a pentatonic lick but a slippery little sucker nevertheless. https://bilbosbassbites.co.uk/la-villa-strangiato-rush/

Now there's a thought.

AnotherJack Bruce performance from the Cozy Powell 'Over The Top' album. This one is the Bernie Marsden penned 'El Sid'. I did not transcribe the bass solo in the closing section because it is loaded with non specific bent notes that cannot be written down with conventional notation. https://bilbosbassbites.co.uk/el-sid-cozy-powell/

Now it really IS out and available to buy. The track I am on is the first one, 'Signs And Traces'. https://www.progrock.co.uk/multi-story-cbf10-digipak-c2x32609100

I always wonder what shortcomings guys like Linder have. Is his intonation on fretless really poor? 😃

I just can't fathom the level of intensity in these performances. It's awesome.

Bill Bruford drummed with both. Does that help clear things up?

It is apparently out today. https://www.progrock.co.uk/multi-story-cbf10-digipak-c2x32609100 Bugger. Apparently it is NEXT Monday 🤣

That is wisdom, Simon.

Another one from the album that gave me my 'optimum' bass sound. This is the Jack Bruce bass part from 'Killer' from the 1979 Cozy Powell album 'Over The Top'. https://bilbosbassbites.co.uk/killer-cozy-powell/

Joe Dart's bass part to the 'must learn' 'Dean Town' from the 2016 Vulfpeck album, 'Thrill Of The Arts'. I just wanted to transcribe something that wasn't recorded in the 1970s I transcribed it as 8th notes rather than the 16th note transcriptions I have seen on-line as I think it makes it easier to read. Great phrasing. https://bilbosbassbites.co.uk/dean-town-vulfpeck/

Paul Martinez's bass part from the title track of the 1977 Paice, Ashton and Lord album 'Malice In Wonderland'. This is an album chock full of great grooves. https://bilbosbassbites.co.uk/malice-in-wonderand-paice-ashton-and-lord/

Pino Palladino. Nothing wrong with him but the plaudits are a bit hyperbolic. Guy Pratt. Funny with a small F but otherwise a decent enough player rather than a mover or shaker. Geddy Lee. About 10 minutes of tough lines throughout his entire career (I do love Rush) otherwise it's pretty unremarkable. Cliff Burton. Never saw what the fuss was about.

A request received through the website, this is my take on the Percy Jones bass part for 'Cambodia' from the 1980 Brand X album 'Do They Hurt'? I say my version because transcribing Percy Jones is like herding cats. https://bilbosbassbites.co.uk/cambodia-brand-x/

I have finally been able to put together a passable transcription of Jeff Berlin's bass part for 'One Of A Kind: Pt.2' from the 1979 Bruford album of the same name. This means that I have transcribed all of One Of A Kind and Gradually Going Tornade and all but one track from Feels Good To Me!! This is something I would have loved to have been able to do when I had all day to practice as a teenager! There are sections where I am not 100% convinced it is absolutely correct but the notes fly past so fast it is tough to be sure of the details, even when you slow the thing down. https://bilbosbassbites.co.uk/one-of-a-kind-pt-2-bruford/

I agree. Not bad. Just limited.

Only one good track on PotC..... Oh, sorry. I was thinking of something else. Seriously, though, although there are moments of promise, it is, broadly speaking, a weak idea badly executed.

I always thought Live and Dangerous was a strong album. I am aware of the criticisms of Tales of Topographic Oceans but, for me, bad Yes is better than a lot of other stuff that is lauded. Genesis 'Seconds Out' is about as good a double album as there is. Rush 'Exit Stage Left' I liked when I was a kid but haven't heard for decades. I enjoyed Mike Oldfield's 'Exposed' (love the live marimbas/vibes). Jazz wise - Pat Metheny Group Travels and his album with Brecker et al 80/81 are both genius Jaco Pastorius 'Twins I and II' is superb. Oregon 'In Moscow'...... And the legend that is Joni Mitchell's 'Shadows and Light'. Nearly all live albums except the Yes and Oldfield. Seems to make sense to me. A double album is loosely the same length as a gig.

FOOW is 'close but no cigar' for me. The vocals are iffy and the tunes only ever OK. For Yes solo stuff, I say Anderson and Bruford were the greatest, the Wakeman and Howe then Squire and, tailing behind, White and Moraz.

Maybe the bits you don't like are the bits that I do

Me too. There are about five or six transcriptions of Martin Briley's bass parts of Greenslade's 'Time And Tide' album on my website. (There are also a few Yes tunes on there including the full bass part to Close To The Edge, as it 'appens ) https://bilbosbassbites.co.uk/animal-farm-greenslade/

This one is currently a bit of a train wreck with a few glitches that need attention but, for the time being, an imperfect transcription of the Mike Rutherford bass (and Taurus bass pedal) part to 'One For The Vine' from the 1976 Genesis album 'Wind and Wuthering'. UPDDATE: this chart has been corrected and I think it is ok now. https://bilbosbassbites.co.uk/one-for-the-vine-genesis/

I was referring to the 'there are none of the original members so it isn't the band' argument. I always think of it as a relay. If line ups evolve, that's cool with me. On a similar train of thought, I always wondered how eg Manchester United could be almost entirely populated by foreign players and still be called 'Manchester' anything. 😃

That old chestnut. Brand X never had a fixed line up throughout the early years so I guess it doesn't really matter but, what will those tracks sound like without major stylists like PJ and JG? It will be difficult to see how the results will be comparable.

Strange coincidence but my top four have always been Jaco, Jimmy Johnson, Percy Jones and Jeff Berlin so I guess I couldn't have asked for more in terms of the replacement for Percy. But, yes, it is a strange marriage.