Nick Seymour / Crowded House appreciation thread

[wateroftyne]

Hey gang

I appreciate this might be a lonely thread, but I think it's about time we had some BC love for Crowded House and their bass man Nick Seymour.

IMO, a marvellous band, and Nick's likes are tasteful and inventive. Never seen 'em live (yet), which is my loss.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UD5rCE3umf8

[gary mac]

It shouldn't be a lonely thread. Great band, superb song writing and bass lines that always seem just right.

[Highfox]

Thanks for posting that, hadn't heard it before.
Weather with you is one of those tracks that just gripped me since first hearing it.
Have to check out more of their stuff me thinks.

[skb558]

Pineapple Head is my favourite. Lovely bass line.

[RhysP]

Great band, great songwriters, great bass player.

Saw them live a couple of times back in the 90's & they were superb.

I'm a big fan of Split Enz & Neil & Tim Finns solo stuff too.

[rushbo]

Love Crowded House. Musicians at the top of their game. I saw them a load of times in the nineties and they never failed to deliver. They'd often go off into lovely little improvisations, which sounded better than most bands' carefully considered compositions. Nick Seymour is a cruelly underrated player and a great visual artist, too.

[machinehead]

Yes I love his soaring, wandering basslines that always seem perfect for the song. I've been a fan since the early 1990s. A greatly underrated player.

Frank.

[IainS]

Couldn't agree more. After listening to and playing nothing but metal in the late eighties and early nineties I was amazed to discover tasteful melodies and songwriting via Crowded House. Love them. Think I might stick one of their CDs on when I get home...

[spectoremg]

Well done, one of those 'why hasn't anyone posted this before' threads.
Superb band. I consider Neil Finn to be an outstanding songwriter.
The production on Woodface and Together Alone loves the bass too. Nick Seymour always does just the right thing.

[BrunoBass]

I'm a massive Crowded House fan. One of my favourite bands, and Neil Finn is one of tbe handful of songwriters I really love and respect. One of the best live bands I've ever seen too (1993 on the Together Alone tour in Birmingham). The fact that they had such a tasteful, melodic bass player in Nick Seymour was an added bonus. I've really been enjoying the demos and outtakes on the recently released deluxe edition albums.

Edited November 23, 2016 by PaulGibsonBass

[KingPrawn]

The mans a player!! I love bass player like Nick. Inventive, melodic and solid. The Holy Grail.

[tonyf]

Nick Seymour is a genius. Love his work in Crowded House. Some of his lines are just sublime. Always serving the song.

[12stringbassist]

Well overdue thread. Good choice of example song - Whispers and moans.

I have the first 4 of the reissue packages and they are excellent.

[Conan]

I do love a tasteful bass player! I'm not a huge fan of Crowded House, but the John Deacon style of serving the song is one that I very much gravitate towards. Of course it helps if the material is top drawer to start with and the other musicians appreciate the space in the arrangement...

[Damonjames]

amazing songwriters, and a cracking band. The image of their farewell gig, and performing "don't dream it's over on the Sydney opera house steps is something I'll
Never forget.
I can't say I've ever studied the bass lines, but to be fair, I think there a a huge amount of bass players who fly under the radar!

[IainS]

Listening to Woodface right now. It's so good. What did he play? Was it a Spector?

[scrumpymike]

Well done for posting this thread w-o-t! Nothing I can add to - or take away from - what's already been said, so I guess I'll just go and play my 'best of' cd again... and again...

[BrunoBass]

[quote name='IainS' timestamp='1480020790' post='3181149']
Listening to Woodface right now. It's so good. What did he play? Was it a Spector?
[/quote]

Warwick I think.

[spectoremg]

[quote name='IainS' timestamp='1480020790' post='3181149']
Listening to Woodface right now. It's so good. What did he play? Was it a Spector?
[/quote]Dunno what he played on the album but he was seen around that time with a red Spector NS-2 at live gigs.

[Funky Dunky]

Brilliant bassist, really serves the song and his lines stand out for their melodies without stepping on toes. Cites McCartney as one of his chief influences, I think he used Warwicks and Trace Elliot. I love his playing on stuff like It's Only Natural.

[spectoremg]

Awesome roller-blader too - check out the It's Only Natural vid.

[IainS]

He's a bit of an artist, too. He created the cover for Woodface.
This really is turning into the Nick Seymour appreciation thread.

[wateroftyne]

Nice to see I'm not alone

The last two albums passed me by until recently, which was a mistake 'cos they're fab.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=yZE9behaJuc

[wateroftyne]

[url="https://www.facebook.com/crowdedhouse/videos/10154797618999357/"]Watch 'em live at Sydney Opera House any minute now...[/url]

[Twincam]

[quote name='Conan' timestamp='1480003331' post='3180945']
I do love a tasteful bass player! I'm not a huge fan of Crowded House, but the John Deacon style of serving the song is one that I very much gravitate towards. Of course it helps if the material is top drawer to start with and the other musicians appreciate the space in the arrangement...
[/quote]

This pretty much sums up my thinking. Some crowded house I can take or leave. As Conan said though very tasteful playing. Some of his bass line are beautiful without being overbearing or overly flashy.

Later on will have a listen I think.