Bands without bassists

[Barking Spiders]

Saw the very fine Afro Celt Sound System at Folk At The Oak at Hatfield House a couple of weekends ago. They sure had a whole load of people on stage..but no bass player, although they've never really had apart from the odd guest spot on the albums. Instead they use bass programming and what with all sorts of drums, fiddles, pipes etc going on you didn't really notice ! This may be sacrilege here but are there any proper bands - not duos like The White Stripes, Black Keys etc - that managed just fine without one or could they've been much better with a bass player. The Doors first come to mind. Cant stand them meself and am not convinced the keyboard bass lines sufficiently compensated.

[discreet]

Larry Knechtel was one of the Doors' secret bass players, at least on some of their most significant recordings. There were others who subsequently played on other albums...

[url="http://ultimateclassicrock.com/doors-bass-players/"]http://ultimateclass...s-bass-players/[/url]

Edited August 4, 2016 by discreet

[tony_m]

The Dandy Warhols spring to mind - I think Zia does drag out a Fender Mustang occasionally, but plays most of the basslines on the keys?

[SpondonBassed]

[quote name='Barking Spiders' timestamp='1470306871' post='3104901']
This may be sacrilege here but are there any proper bands - not duos like The White Stripes, Black Keys etc - that managed just fine without one or could they've been much better with a bass player. The Doors first come to mind. Cant stand them meself and am not convinced the keyboard bass lines sufficiently compensated.
[/quote]

I used to think that The Doors had one until recent years. Turns out that the session bassist(s) used to catch my ear. Once that hooked me I was interested in their music. Take this as meaningless hindsight if you will but I don't think I would have listened to The Doors at all if it wasn't for some of the memorable bass lines like on Roadhouse Blues or LA Woman.

Stevie Wonder seems to interchange keyboard bass, string bass and both together on some of his numbers with little problem. Not sure what that says for us poor lot!

[RhysP]

A lot of the people I listen to don't use bass guitar, or any other sort of bass for that matter. Wouldn't class most of them as bands though as most are solo performers or duos.

[Silvia Bluejay]

The Doors had former Elvis bassist Jerry Scheff on LA Woman and Roadhouse Blues IIRC.

Edited August 4, 2016 by bluejay

[SpondonBassed]

[quote name='bluejay' timestamp='1470309199' post='3104934']
The Doors had former Elvis bassist Jerry Scheff on LA Woman and Roadhouse Blues IIRC.
[/quote]

Good to know. Many thanks.

[Geek99]

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1470307325' post='3104905']
Larry Knechtel was one of the Doors' secret bass players, at least on some of their most significant recordings. There were others who subsequently played on other albums...

[url="http://ultimateclassicrock.com/doors-bass-players/"]http://ultimateclass...s-bass-players/[/url]
[/quote]
Jerry scheff also

Doh - read whole thread always ...

Edited August 4, 2016 by Geek99

[ras52]

Van der Graaf Generator! The line-up has occasionally included a bass player, but the longest-serving versions just have Hugh Banton dancing on his organ's pedals.

[leroydiamond]

U2

[Bilbo]

Paul Motion Trio.

[Rich]

Bellowhead.

[RockfordStone]

white stripes

[scalpy]

[quote name='ras52' timestamp='1470313128' post='3105003']
Van der Graaf Generator! The line-up has occasionally included a bass player, but the longest-serving versions just have Hugh Banton dancing on his organ's pedals.
[/quote]

Van Dee Graaf Generator booked the Coach House studio at Rockfield, and keen to impress Kingsley and Otto duly built a special bass isolation booth for them, being completely unaware of the lack of bassist!

[Trueno]

Seem to remember the Jon Spencer Blues Explosion had no bassist, but maybe a baritone guitar.

[bassace]

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1470314217' post='3105019']
Paul Motion Trio.
[/quote]

Motion, that's poo. It's Paul Motian. But you know that, Bilbo. Sorry to be so pedantic, it's a slow Thursday afternoon.

[Cosmo Valdemar]

[quote name='ras52' timestamp='1470313128' post='3105003']
Van der Graaf Generator! The line-up has occasionally included a bass player, but the longest-serving versions just have Hugh Banton dancing on his organ's pedals.
[/quote]

My first thought. Banton often played bass on the records. Nic Potter played bass on the early albums - GREAT bass riff in 'Pioneers Over C' - and rejoined later and contributed some massive fuzz bass to 'Vital. But I suppose that is not what the thread is all about.

[ras52]

[quote name='bassace' timestamp='1470319271' post='3105079']


Motion, that's poo. It's Paul Motian. But you know that, Bilbo. Sorry to be so pedantic, it's a slow Thursday afternoon.
[/quote]

I guess autocorrect only works in fast motion 😊

[RhysP]

One of the main reasons I don't play bass very much anymore is that when I started to write & record my own material I realised that 99% of the time what I was doing just didn't actually need any bass. Heresy I know...

[tonyquipment]

Oasis ? Jimi Hendrix ?

Lol

[spongebob]

Sleater-Kinney. Amazing band - I saw them before their 'hiatus' in about 2003, and live, it sounded as full as any other band I've experienced.

[spectoremg]

[quote name='SpondonBassed' timestamp='1470307734' post='3104914']


Stevie Wonder seems to interchange keyboard bass, string bass and both together on some of his numbers with little problem. Not sure what that says for us poor lot!
[/quote]Nathan Watts plays on Stevie's stuff from around Songs in the Key of Life onwards. Stevie does indeed play keyboard bass but generally avoids stringed instruments.

[MacDaddy]

Level 42 - according to J.J. Burnell [size=4] [/size]

[paul h]

Greyhounds. Very cool, funky band.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AGcUGuQ9ZMs

[4stringslow]

Surely a 'bassist' is anyone who plays the bass part of the song? If that means it is played on a keyboard or pedals or whatever then fine, but it's still the bass part and it is being played by the 'bassist'.

I realise this will sound pedantic but I read the topic title as bands that don't have a bass part in their music, whereas it actually seems to mean bands without a bass guitarist - a whole different thing altogether.