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Thread: John Wetton as a bass player

  1. #1

    John Wetton as a bass player

    I'm a fan of his KC work...but is he really a great bass player? Harmonically he doesn't travel far from the norm...his natural rhythm is pretty good, but he's a plodder...I feel that the vox/bass combo places him above his actual abilities.

  2. #2
    Depends on what you're after I guess. In my book the combination of his tone and what he was doing in the context of KC at the time was killer. He also rose to the occasion in UK; he might not have been on the level of a Jeff Berlin but he did have enough chops to keep up and be interesting. So yeah, I think of him as an excellent bass player. Post Asia, not so much maybe, but the music isn't calling for it.

  3. #3
    Member Guitarplyrjvb's Avatar
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    I agree with Fred. I think he developed carpal tunnel or something that restricted his playing in later years. He ceased being interesting after UK. His sound in Family, Crimson and UK was immediately identifiable and that period of his playing has always been my favorite.
    Last edited by Guitarplyrjvb; 11-03-2014 at 04:41 PM.

  4. #4
    Member Oreb's Avatar
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    Fripp called him the greatest bass player of his generation.

    Does it matter that this waste of time is what makes a life for you?

  5. #5
    Not a plodder at all, i think he usually puts together fluid lines(up to KC, not interested in much he's done since then) that aren't too predictable or square in their rhythm.Someone like Mike Rutherford pre-lamb or Greg Lake would fit that description better imo, if we're looking at well known prog bassists.

    He's not a great extended improviser or soloist(though fine for short breaks and lead licks) nor a guy who goes much beyond pentatonic type stuff harmonically, but overall a very good rock bassist imo.

  6. #6
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    Quote Originally Posted by Oreb View Post
    Fripp called him the greatest bass player of his generation.
    I believe he is the same age as Tony Levin. who is probably whom you are actually referring to

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    Member WytchCrypt's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Oreb View Post
    Fripp called him the greatest bass player of his generation.
    I'd concur that during '73 - '74 he was an absolute monster. His fuzz drenched tone was completely original at that time (interesting also that Nic Potter began using a similar tonal approach when VDGG reformed in the late 70's - illustrated best on the live album Vital) though listening to The Road to Red he seemed to mix things up nightly...one night fuzzy and overpowering, the next smooth and thick like dark chocolate. I have a '74 Crimso boot where he and Bruford take off in the middle of Schizoid Man for a 2 minute bass/drum duet that's stunning. Oft times his contributions to the Crimso improv's could be jaw dropping and he had the ability to play odd bass parts and sing expressively at the same time (the "Health food faggot" verses in the Great Deceiver). As far as his 70's post Crimso work, he was fantastic in Roxy Music and technically proficient in UK - though not nearly as groundbreaking as he was in Crimso. I always look at Wetton '73-'74, Squire '71-'80, and McCartney '66-'69 as the big 3 bassists in terms of unique tonal approaches and taking the instrument melodically where it hadn't gone before
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  8. #8
    Quote Originally Posted by Oreb View Post
    Fripp called him the greatest bass player of his generation.
    In 1972. His chops were gone after Bruford left UK, coincidentally or not. Couldn't even hear him on the first Asia album.

  9. #9
    Quote Originally Posted by WytchCrypt View Post
    I'd concur that during '73 - '74 he was an absolute monster. His fuzz drenched tone was completely original at that time (interesting also that Nic Potter began using a similar tonal approach when VDGG reformed in the late 70's - illustrated best on the live album Vital) though listening to The Road to Red he seemed to mix things up nightly...one night fuzzy and overpowering, the next smooth and thick like dark chocolate. I have a '74 Crimso boot where he and Bruford take off in the middle of Schizoid Man for a 2 minute bass/drum duet that's stunning. Oft times his contributions to the Crimso improv's could be jaw dropping and he had the ability to play odd bass parts and sing expressively at the same time (the "Health food faggot" verses in the Great Deceiver). As far as his 70's post Crimso work, he was fantastic in Roxy Music and technically proficient in UK - though not nearly as groundbreaking as he was in Crimso. I always look at Wetton '73-'74, Squire '71-'80, and McCartney '66-'69 as the big 3 bassists in terms of unique tonal approaches and taking the instrument melodically where it hadn't gone before
    So, by your definition, Bruce, JPJ and Entwistle don't even count?

  10. #10
    Member Oreb's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by N_Singh View Post
    I believe he is the same age as Tony Levin. who is probably whom you are actually referring to
    No, it's a quote from one of the box set booklets - maybe Great Deceiver, too lazy to check which.

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    Member Bytor's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by musicislife View Post
    So, by your definition, Bruce, JPJ and Entwistle don't even count?
    My thought exactly

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    Quote Originally Posted by musicislife View Post
    So, by your definition, Bruce, JPJ and Entwistle don't even count?
    Of course they count, there's always room for #4, #5 & #6

    Seriously though, all great bassists.
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    Meh. His singing = even worse.

  14. #14
    Quote Originally Posted by WytchCrypt View Post
    Of course they count, there's always room for #4, #5 & #6

    Seriously though, all great bassists.
    McCartney! Heh

  15. #15
    Member Digital_Man's Avatar
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    I'd say he's probably on par with Greg Lake(more or less). No he's not in the same league as Squire or Lee but who is?

  16. #16
    Quote Originally Posted by Oreb View Post
    Fripp called him the greatest bass player of his generation.
    Certainly the best KC ever had!!!!

    & way way better than Geddy Lee in all fields, bass player, singer & songwriter!

  17. #17
    The Enemy God
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    Simply for his Larks Tongues Pt 2 on USA , Wetton was a game changer. That window rattling tone and interestingly people like John Taylor Duran Duran cite him as a huge influence. I like the Bozzio/Wetton duets from 1979 UK live.

  18. #18
    Highly Evolved Orangutan JKL2000's Avatar
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    I have to admit I'm guilty of under rating his bass playing based on his looks. I always thought well, he's a very handsome crooner sort, his bass playing can really only be so good. But when I pay attention to it, his playing actually is pretty good.

  19. #19
    Member Zeuhlmate's Avatar
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    In KC
    He has his own sound and style - fantastic when live. That means a lot to me. There are way to many musictechnicians our there, who can play anything, but you cant feel why they do it.
    He way more than fits the bill in KC - he contributes generously at times. Like Asbury Park, Easy money on The Nightwatch, Fracture on the Starless album, etc., etc.
    And I like his voice too.

    No he is not a fusiontechnician (Berlin, etc.) or a can play-all-styles like Tony Levin, but the 70'ties KC would have been something quite different whithout him.
    I feel sorry for his alkohol problems, and musicaly I think he burned out and became a more mainstream player today (less character).

  20. #20
    Great bass player.. Fripp picked the right guy for the Trio lineup..

  21. #21
    Agree w/ the above, a slick technician, no matter how gifted would not have done what Wetton did to shape LTIA through Red. I dig Alphonso Johnson, but in retrospect it may be best that neither he or Levin were given the job w/ King Crimson in 73.
    Last edited by Bake 1; 11-02-2014 at 08:51 AM.

  22. #22
    Member Sputnik's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by trurl View Post
    Depends on what you're after I guess. In my book the combination of his tone and what he was doing in the context of KC at the time was killer. He also rose to the occasion in UK; he might not have been on the level of a Jeff Berlin but he did have enough chops to keep up and be interesting. So yeah, I think of him as an excellent bass player. Post Asia, not so much maybe, but the music isn't calling for it.
    I agree with this. Absolutely awesome in KC, and highly influential for what he did with them. Also very good in UK. After that, not so much, but the music doesn't really call for it. I don't know his work in Family that well.

    I took me a bit to get my ears around what Wetton was doing as a bass player in KC. Once I did, though, it definitely hit me hard. It's an interesting combination of fairly technical playing with a raw, visceral power. I agree with Zeuhlmate, Wetton really shines in a live setting where that rumbling power is apparent. But this is combined with pretty uncanny precision. His grooves with Bruford are tight as hell. So no matter what he did elsewhere, he'll always rank highly as a bass player in my book for his incredible work with KC. I definitely walk in his shadow.

    Bill

  23. #23
    I've been playing bass for 30 years, my favorite bassists are Jaco, Squire, Geddy, and Wetton. Wetton was an AMAZING bass player. The stuff he did in Crimson was completely unique. His tone combined with the completely out-there note selection and rhythmic placement of his playing has never really been duplicated by anybody. When you listen to the Crimson improvs, the level of inventiveness and telepathy he seems to have with Bruford is uncanny. He's incredible.

  24. #24
    Member rcarlberg's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by Genital Giant View Post
    I've been playing bass for 30 years, my favorite bassists are Jaco, Squire, Geddy, and Wetton.
    Jaco kinda redefined the nature of bass playing, making it a lead instrument instead of just part of the "rhythm section." Every bassist after Jaco has had to take it up a notch to stand out -- Marc Johnson, Bernie Worrell, Michael Manring, Patrick O'Hearn, Freddie Baker. Squire had a bright, forward sound with his Rik and Rotosounds, but his lines were more along the lines of traditional bassplaying (unless he was playing The Fish).

  25. #25
    Member WytchCrypt's Avatar
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    Quote Originally Posted by musicislife View Post
    McCartney! Heh
    I stand by my statement that McCartney '66 - '69 was quite innovative compared to others at that time. Possibly not in the jazz field (I'm not a jazzer so can't really say), but certainly in the rock-pop field. I find his post-Beatles playing to be extremely pedestrian, same with Wetton post-Crimso and Squire post-Drama
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