Amazing Bassists
March 20th, 2008 | by Reid |Many moons ago, I played the bass guitar. I was never that good, but I idolized a few bassists. I tried to imitate Flea’s funk, the smoothness of Marcus Miler, and the blazing speed of Victor Wooten. And then there’s the pioneer of slapping, Stanley Clarke. Since I was into these bassists long before the era of YouTube, I only today discovered a rich treasure trove of live performances available for your viewing pleasure. So without further ado, let me introduce you to three special clips that will warm your bass-lovin’ soul:
- Red Hot Chili Peppers - Around the World, Live at Slane Castle, August 2003. I don’t think Anthony Kleidis is the most impressive singer, but the energy and ridiculousness of Flea and co. make this a great performance.
- Marcus Miller - this guy is smooth. Check out him playing a song called “Scoop.” The slapping is crisp and the trills around the 1 minutes mark are sick.
- Victor Wooten - so his dress is a little off and the way he holds his bass is kind of awkward, but there’s no denying that this guy can play. He’s a member of “Bela Fleck and the Flecktones,” which in their own right are an amazing jazz/country fusion group. The trio includes, Bela Fleck himself, who plays a mean banjo, Victor Wooten on bass, and ‘Futureman’ a dreadlocks, soulful ‘drummer’ who uses a weird looking guitar-like contraption to produce drum sounds. It’s a very unique sound. So anyway, this is Victor’s solo of ‘Amazing Grace’. I originally heard this on the Flecktones’ “New South Africa” album, where Victor performed this live. What’s amazing is his range of slapping, tapping, and blazing fast runs up and down the neck of the guitar. And my favorite is simply the use of harmonics to perform the tune. Check it:
- BONUS: Check out Miller and Wooten performing alongside Stanley Clarke. It’s a long clip, but definitely worth it. The trio performs one of Clarke’s original hits “School Days,” which has a seemingly simple chorded melody, and in this live clip, some amazing solos. If you ask me, I think Miller had the best of the three.
