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Worst bass solos......?

Beedster

By Beedster,
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Dr.Dave Mentor

Dr.Dave

Posted
Posted

I'm quite happy with the My Generation type solo - more of a musical break I suppose - but all this barclay's banking twaddle leaves me cold. Exactly who do you think is entertained by it ?? Not me - I'm away to the bar , let me know when you're done. For a long time I used to start the encore early and go through a verse of Ilkley Moor bah tat before the band kicked in on the last note but that was more a few seconds of fun than a solo. I stopped it because Williams would come up and say 'Yer effing great you are chief yer can play ilkley moor an that that were brilliant that ' etc etc. I'd look at them and know they hadn't a clue what else I'd done for the past hour and a half. Nowadays the tricks and gags are in the songs. If audience are too thick to pick them up , and most of them are ,  tough.

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ezbass Grand Master

ezbass

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Posted
39 minutes ago, stewblack said:

For me it's the bass break in Atomic by Blondie. Astonished it made it onto the recording, bewildered by the terrible sound quality and amazed that people like it.

My old band used to do this and the solo is totally at odds with song’s general vibe. A bit of pentatonic noodling over an ostensibly disco track. O.o

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Buddster Mentor

Buddster

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Way back in 1984 I went to the Old Duke in Bristol to watch an R&B band that were big in Bristol at the time. Great band, great gig and towards the end of course round came the solos. The bass player would probably admit it wasn't his finest moment. I can't solo at all so I'm no one to call him out, but it was a pretty bad 12 bars. 

 

Skip forward 3 weeks and I managed to get an interview at a studio in Bristol. And who should be the owner of the studio?.... Yup, the very same bass player. 

I got the job and needless to say i never mentioned that solo. 

I did however end up doing the bands live sound and had some of the best nights ever. They were an awesome R&B band and it was a pleasure doing the sound. And he did manage to play better solos. 

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TheLowDown Experienced

TheLowDown

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Posted (edited)

Scott Devine did a video on "good solos" where many were really bad! (some were tasteful)

I can't believe someone as talented as Scott would genuinely believe trying to fit in 50 notes every second makes anything other than showmanship, as opposed to music. 

 

His premise for the video seems to be more on stretching technique to the limits, like extreme finger raking, than on making music.

 

Edited by TheLowDown
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lowdown Grand Master

lowdown

Posted
Posted
2 hours ago, binky_bass said:

Genuinely agree... while I'm sure it's technically tricky to play, there no real melody or hook or anything actually interesting to listen to. Jaco has always been a bit overrated in my eyes. 

 

You may not like the piece and plenty don't but, for me, there is plenty of melody there, along with good chord changes and inversions, and in the middle, a nice descending chromatic Bass line.

It clearly showed that Jaco knew his stuff when it came to harmony and theory etc - Just my opinion of course and I suppose, we all hear things differently.

For instance, I've just listened to a live, John Entwistle solo, and found it painful. Others probably love it.

 

 

23 minutes ago, Buddster said:

Way back in 1984 I went to the Old Duke in Bristol to watch an R&B band that were big in Bristol at the time. Great band, great gig and towards the end of course round came the solos. The bass player would probably admit it wasn't his finest moment. I can't solo at all so I'm no one to call him out, but it was a pretty bad 12 bars. 

 

Skip forward 3 weeks and I managed to get an interview at a studio in Bristol. And who should be the owner of the studio?.... Yup, the very same bass player. 

I got the job and needless to say i never mentioned that solo. 

I did however end up doing the bands live sound and had some of the best nights ever. They were an awesome R&B band and it was a pleasure doing the sound. And he did manage to play better solos. 

 

 

Out of interest, was the Bass player a Musician called Dave U.....?

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lowdown Grand Master

lowdown

Posted
Posted

Re the Scott Devine video:

Once again, I suppose we all hear things differently. From my ears point of view, most of the solos Scott showcased and dissected where brimming with very tidy, musical, lyrical phrasing.

Scott has a great pair of ears and I like his enthusiasm for the detailed breakdown and nuances of the players.

 

Two of my favourites as a bonus as well:

Dane Anderson and Jeff Andrews.

 

 

 

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grumpyguts Enthusiast

grumpyguts

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I would like to be good enough to play a decent solo, but when the bass drops out of a tune for a solo the bottom drops out of the song. The groove disappears and it makes you realise why we are such a crucial element to a band.

 

To play a great solo and retain the heart of the groove at the same time is going to a level of ability beyond most - best not to bother!

 

Guitarists can widdle away in the knowledge that the rhythm section is still providing the foundation of the song.

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Dan Dare Grand Master

Dan Dare

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Posted

Worst bass solo? Any bass solo. Joking aside, i can't stand them. It always feels as if the bass player is saying "Look. I can do twiddly bits, too. I'm not just part of the rhythm section".

 

As if there is anything dishonourable about creating a solid foundation for the entire band. If the other musicians appreciate what I'm doing, that'll do for me. Grumpyguts is right - the bottom drops out of the piece when the bass takes a solo.

 

I don't mind that I'm not in the limelight and I don't care whether audience members throw their knickers at me (not that they ever will, now I'm pushing 70).

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Mudpup Veteran

Mudpup

Posted
Posted (edited)

I've never heard a bass solo that has engaged me apart from maybe this one. I suppose it's more of a performance piece rather than a solo as such so maybe that's why I'm ok with it. Billy did used to do it live as a showpiece though.  Bordering on classical and with a bunch of new school techniques in there it was pretty ground breaking back in the day.

 

 

Edited by Mudpup
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SteveXFR Grand Master

SteveXFR

Posted
Posted
33 minutes ago, Chris2112 said:

I always thought 'Maxwell Murder' was a dogturd of a solo in a dogturd of a song. Never mind that the bass solo itself sounds very goofy, but the song itself goes on longer because if it! Awful. 

 

I'm not all that keen on the solo but I love the song. Matt Freeman is one of my favourite bassists

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EdLib-3 Community Regular

EdLib-3

Posted
Posted
3 hours ago, SteveXFR said:

 

I'm not all that keen on the solo but I love the song. Matt Freeman is one of my favourite bassists

I can't believe what I'm reading! Maxwell Murder, for me, is up there with the best bass solos ever. I absolutely love it 🤯

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