He is often credited as being the first professionally recorded electric bassist! Or the first noted jazz cat to play the instrument, circa 1951 -53 or thereabouts depending on the source. Adapting his upright chops to the electric, William Howard “Monk” Montgomery plied his craft with his right thumb akin to his iconic guitarist brother and colleague Wes.
A solo recording artist, member of The Jazz Crusaders, The Montgomery Brothers, and sideman to artists including Hugh Masekela, Cal Tjader, and Red Norvo, among others, Monk soloed akin to a guitarist, and his grooves were firmly rooted in “doghouse” dogma and modern funk / soul!
“I love singing, so when I’m playing the bass it’s like I’m singing baritone, so I create a melodic line each time.” Aston Barrett.
He is reggae bass – end of story!
Along with Jaco, Sir Paul, Larry Graham, and James Jamerson, he was among the most influential and widely sampled bassists in the history of recorded music.
As the anchor of the iconic Bob Marley & The Wailers, Aston “Family Man” Barrett plied grooves, counter-melodies, and unison lines which moved millions – physically, spiritually, and intellectually.
His tone, rhythm, and feel is unsurpassed in reggae. The tag “Family Man” was borne of Barrett’s role as a bandleader and motivator among his fellow musicians.
A producer, arranger, engineer, and multi-instrumentalist … Aston’s primary weapon of choice was the Fender Jazz bass run through an Acoustic 370 amplifier.
This writer was cited by the Jamaica Observer for including Aston in the Huffington Post feature “A Bass Player’s Rant: 33 Who Belong in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame” Jamaica Observer https://bit.ly/2RQ3Le8
Huffington Post / Tom Semioli (2017) Aston Barrett: “A Bass Player’s Rant … 33 Bass Players Who Belong in the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame” https://bit.ly/38GldI3
Photos courtesy of Bob Marley Com
Andrew Levy (Brand New Heavies)
In the 1990s the musical format known as “acid jazz” which was essentially a remake remodel of late 1960s jazz fusion or “soul jazz” – rekindled interest in the traditional sounds and aesthetic of the Fender bass.
Among the most notable practitioners of the genre – who are still on the bandstand thirty plus years into a stellar career are London’s The Brand New Heavies. Featuring such dance floor divas as N’Dea Davenport and Siedah Garrett, the collective is anchored by founding bassist, producer, composer Andrew Levy – who is a groove monster, plying pulsating pocket and melodic motifs which traverse soul, disco, and old-school funk!
The classic line-up of Rory Gallagher’s Taste featuring bassist Richard “Charlie” McCracken and drummer John Wilson waxed two seminal studio sides along with a couple of archival live slabs which traversed blues, jazz, and hard rock.
A fluid bassist who intuitively left space for Wilson and Gallagher to shine, McCracken often doubled Rory’s trills, hammer-ons, and glissandos, thereby creating a massive sound which, to my ears, rivaled Jimi’s Experience and Cream.
A multi-instrumentalist, composer, singer, recording artist, and top session cat, the late Kenny Edwards was a founding member of the Stone Poneys and the can’t-miss ensemble Bryndle with Andrew Gold, Karla Bonoff, and Wendy Waldman – which unfortunately…missed the commercial success they so richly deserved.
A consummate song -player with formidable skills as a lead and backing vocalist, Kenny graced the stage and studio with such iconic artists such as Linda Ronstadt, Stevie Nicks, Warren Zevon, Lowell George, J.D Souther, Don Henley, and Emmylou Harris, to cite a very select few.
He anchored one of the world’s most artistically and commercially successful recording acts ever.
Though the Bee Gees employed scores of studio cats during their long, iconic career, the late Maurice Ernest Gibb waxed nearly all the bass tracks throughout their golden run from 1967 to 1979.
A multi-instrumentalist, brilliant harmony and lead vocalist, composer, and producer – Maurice was an underrated song-player who excelled on ballads, rockers, pop tunes, disco, dance tracks, and permutations thereof to which the brothers Gibb triumphantly traversed with fine countermelodies and pocket grooves.
Inspired by vocal groups including The Mills Brothers, Everly Brothers, Paul Anka, and The Beatles, Maurice’s weapons of choice included Rickenbacker and Fender basses.
This Lancastrian (he was born in Lancashire, North West England) bassist, composer, singer, recording artist, multi-instrumentalist, producer has penned some of rock’s most enduring hits – most notably The Yardbirds “For Your Love,” (along with “Heart Full of Soul,” and “Evil Hearted You”), The Hollies “Bus Stop,” and Herman’s Hermits “Listen People,” among others for Wayne Fontana, and Normie Rowe.
Co-founder of the watershed pop / art-rock ensemble 10cc – which he continues with to this day as sole leader – Gouldman is the consummate song-player, rendering passages that anchor the composition and afford harmonic and rhythmic embellishments. Graham has also waxed a few solo slabs, and teamed with many notable artists including Ringo Starr and Andrew Gold.
Coda: As per Graham…”Mythology has it that the name 10cc came from the average male ejaculation being 9cc, and, of course, being big, butch, Mancunian guys, we’re gonna be, y’know, 1cc more than that. No, the name actually did come from Jonathan King. Um, he said he’d had a dream the night before he came up to Manchester to listen to Donna. And, he saw a hoarding over Wembley Stadium or Hammersmith Odeon or something like that and said, “10cc The Best Group in the World”. So we … well, that sounds great to us, we’ll call ourselves 10cc. And that’s how it came about. ”
He penned the (el) perfecto paean to plump patootie entitled “Tush!” Joseph Michael “Dusty” Hill endures as the unshakable rhythmic/harmonic moor of ZZ Top, the iconic little ol’ band from Texas.
Entrenched in the pocket, and pulsating in 1/3/5/b7 modus operandi plied on a myriad of custom and vintage instruments, Dusty is “A Sharp Dressed Man” who accentuates his wardrobe with “Cheap Sunglasses.”
In the rock and roll profession, you can rest assured that you’re on the hallowed path to fame, fortune, fornication, and immoral immortality if the critics (duh) despise you…which brings us to…
…an individual who created one of the most influential bands in the history of rock and roll. Yet the “establishment” will never, never, ever admit it.
Though recognized more for their outrageous image and debauched reputation for excess, Motley Crue, co-founded by the former Frank Carlton Serafino Feranna Jr., will forever define the vital ‘80s metal era by way of their exceptional song-craft, musicianship, and studio work. It ain’t rocket science – it’s rock and roll! And Crue delivered the goods, pushing the music industry to its most profitable zenith.
Heaven (and hell) forbid another generation of George Michael, the Pet Shop Boys….thank you Crue for that reason alone. (Full Disclosure: I’ve never purchased Motley Crue music.)
Nikki Sixx, the band’s primary songwriter and visionary, guided this crew through a decade plus of platinum albums, arena-filling tours, and entertaining videos which set the template for modern hard rock.
Overcoming a horrific childhood, Sixx absorbed the essence of what made The Beatles, Queen, Sir Elton, Alice Cooper, and David Bowie great – a visually provocative persona with music to match. Crue concerts were bona-fide events. Their records were fun, subversive, occasionally reflective, and above all, dangerous. What more can rock and roll ask for?
As a bassist Sixx was all meat-and-potatoes – heavy riffs and pocket grooves to support the songs. Outside of the Crue, Nikki embarks various endeavors as an author, producer, radio host, photographer, and entrepreneur. His musical side-projects reflect the glory of Crue, but that’s a chemistry than cannot be replicated.
Millions love ‘em – millions hate ‘em… but that’s rock and roll for ya…
John Glascock is a brilliant bass player, the best in the business in rock…. opined Deep Purple’s Ritchie Blackmore, a rock guitar legend in his own right who worked with iconic bassists aplenty including Roger Glover, Glenn Hughes, Jimmy Bain, John Paul Jones, and Bob Daisley…to cite a select few.
A multi-instrumentalist, composer and vocalist, the late John Glascock anchored Latin prog-rock ensemble Carmen (Fandangos in Space, Dancing on the Cold Wind), blues ensembles Toe Fat and Chicken Shack (Imagination Lady) and one of the more eclectic line-ups Jethro Tull from 1976-79.
Among the early adopters of Leo’s MusicMan Stingray bass in 1976 (or thereabouts), John was an engaging stage performer and a register leaping, plectrum purveying, dexterous pocket / melodic player. Among John’s additional weapons of choice included Fender Precision, and Gibson basses.Sadly, John passed at the age of 28 from congenital heart problems.
