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Show a Little Love for the Poor Overlooked Bass Player
A Rate-a-Record for the most-forgotten band member
Bass players get no respect; unless they also happen to be a band’s lead singer, they are easily the most overlooked member. If you think that’s an overstatement, try to tell me that when you think of members of The Who, you don’t first think of Roger Daltrey, Pete Townshend, and Keith Moon while trying to remember bassist John Entwistle’s name. If I say the name John Paul Jones, do you think of the American Revolutionary War naval hero long before the bassist of Led Zeppelin?
Two of the greatest bassists in rock music history, Paul McCartney and Sting, are not remembered for their bass playing but for their vocals. Did you even realize that Gene Simmons was the bass player for KISS (besides you, Buddy Gott; I know you knew this)? And I am confident that only a handful reading this (including, of course, Alex Markham, Mark Holburn, and Rachel Anderson) have even heard of the bassist for the legendary E Street Band.
Given all this, today’s installment of Rate-A-Record focuses on those poor, overlooked bass players with four of my favorites, starting with the man who played my favorite bass solo ever.
“The Chain” — John McVie (Fleetwood Mac)
