Nick Beggs' 10 most influential bassists

[klothos]

In terms of influence on popular music, I'd argue that Paul McCartney elevated the bass to a role of prominence first, and influenced most of the other players on that list. I'd nominate "Rain/Paperback Writer" as the single most influential record on bass players of all time.

I think this was my point in my typing diarrhea post above: I can name 10 highly influential bassists just from Prog and Rock alone.....this isnt counting all the influential jazz players, all the influential funk players, all the other influential players from other genres (Lee Sklar for example or guys from the metal genres, etc), and modern/millennial influential players (which do not get a whole lotta play around these parts)...Its hard to really narrow it down to only 10 without thinking of 10 other cats that didn't make the cut...............Beggs still did a great job

[AncientChord]

Great list from a great bassist. But mine would have had to include Magma bassist Jannik Top, always a unique bass monster IMO. Maybe he's not into Zeuhl?

[Neptune]

I'd also have to give a nod to Andy West and Ralphe Armstrong.

[jeffo621]

I got no problem with the list... it's going to be pretty subjective, after all.

I sorta got the impression that he was making sure certain folks got their props, and he seemed pretty unapologetically slanted towards the proggy end of the spectrum.

Jannick Top is the only omission that maybe could have been on there (in my opinion!) but, like AncientChord said - it could be that Beggs isn't big into the Zeuhl Wortz Kosmik.

Jeff

[rdclark]

Influential =/= best.

Victor Wooten is one of the best bassists on the planet in an (and pretty much every) genre. Someday he may also be among the most influential, but not yet.

Esperanza Spalding, on the other hand, is a fine bassist but I wouldn't call her great (a great all-around musician, yes). But she is influential, in her capacity as a role model for a whole passel of demographics that might not have considered the bass, jazz, or even serious music as worthy pursuits.

[Phlakaton]

I'd have Jonas Hellborg and Bill Laswell on my list and not Mike R. and Waters.

[Phlakaton]

Great list from a great bassist. But mine would have had to include Magma bassist Jannik Top, always a unique bass monster IMO. Maybe he's not into Zeuhl?

+1 on Jannik - a big sound.

[Baribrotzer]

Although.....

Suppose this is a list of the ten most influential rock bassists (I know it's not, it's essentially NB's favorites, but bear with me). Jamerson, McCartney, and Entwistle will have to be on the list, plus Jaco and probably Squire. But most successful rock bassists don't play like any of them. They play just what's needed, not one note more, and are masters of the appropriate and expected. That's why they were hired. Or why they were kept in the band rather than being kicked out for taking the spotlight away from the songs and vocals, and replaced.

So where are the masters of understatement in that list? Guys like Bill Wyman, or Carl Radle, or Rick Danko, or dozens of anonymous sessionmen - the ones you never notice, but they're always there, always just right, and always a part of at least half the great songs out there. Leland Sklar and Tony Levin might make it - while both can play more actively, neither would be first among first-call guys for the LA and NYC studio scenes if they couldn't vanish into a song-oriented singer-songwriter arrangement. But who else?

Or perhaps it's a matter of influence without notice: bassists who are not so much influenced by players, but by favorite songs, by what they hear on the radio, and they might not even know who the players are.

[rdclark]

But who else?

Will Lee.

[gearHed289]

Nice list. Mine would look quite similar, but right off the top of my head, I'd have John Deacon in place of Waters.

[wideopenears]

Although.....

Suppose this is a list of the ten most influential rock bassists (I know it's not, it's essentially NB's favorites, but bear with me). Jamerson, McCartney, and Entwistle will have to be on the list, plus Jaco and probably Squire. But most successful rock bassists don't play like any of them. They play just what's needed, not one note more, and are masters of the appropriate and expected. That's why they were hired. Or why they were kept in the band rather than being kicked out for taking the spotlight away from the songs and vocals, and replaced.

So where are the masters of understatement in that list? Guys like Bill Wyman, or Carl Radle, or Rick Danko, or dozens of anonymous sessionmen - the ones you never notice, but they're always there, always just right, and always a part of at least half the great songs out there. Leland Sklar and Tony Levin might make it - while both can play more actively, neither would be first among first-call guys for the LA and NYC studio scenes if they couldn't vanish into a song-oriented singer-songwriter arrangement. But who else?

Or perhaps it's a matter of influence without notice: bassists who are not so much influenced by players, but by favorite songs, by what they hear on the radio, and they might not even know who the players are.

Good points.
In terms of "influence," I think most bassists are influenced by groove, and by tone, primarily. Sure, the ability to solo is a factor when I rate my "best"--but not necessarily my "most influential."

In terms of shaping music, I'd say these are the most influential: Bill Johnson, Wellman Broud, Milt Hinton, Jimmy Blanton, Oscar Pettiford, Charles Mingus, Scott LaFaro.......all these guys are in the jazz lineage but they reflect the genesis and development of bass groove, from 2-to-the-bar to walking 4, to the development of syncopated bass lines and soloing or a group call-and-response/improv sort of thing.

James Jamerson is maybe the most influential bassist in pop music history. His sound, and his rhythmic and harmonic skills, influenced everyone who came after, I think. A host of other studio players, like Carol Kaye, and Bob Babbitt, follow after.

Larry Graham is surely the second most influential bassist in pop music history.

I think McCartney brought a strong melodic sense to his instrument, and he also brought the bass guitar to the fore, esp. from Sgt. Peppers onward. Jack Bruce, and John Entwistle, have to be on the list as well. Chris Squire, and Jaco, would be next in the transformation of the sound and role of the bass.

These are the guys who, in my mind, influenced the bass as a functioning rhythm section instrument, tonally, or compositionally, or in the sense of driving a Groove. Some are great soloists as well, some are great composers. But all these guys shaped the groove. That's the main thing.

[infandous]

Yeah, seems like a decent list and I think it's a PERSONAL list, not him trying to say these guys are the greatest or most influential for everyone.

I'm a guitarist, but my list of the most influential guitarists on me personally would probably not be the same as my "best" guitarists list (there would be some crossover, but not much). Also, if I was trying to be general, I'd probably list a couple I don't really even care for but recognize the greatness and innovativeness of. If that makes any sense.

But yeah....Waters......wouldn't have expected him to show up.

[saucyjackstl]

Not that he would ever make the most influential list, but no list of great bass players would be complete without Dave Hope.

[Stickleback]

Keep in mind that this is Beggs' list of most influential bassists, not the best bassists or the most influential for everyone. With that said, I don't know what Waters or Geezer Butler are doing here. Beggs mentions McCartney and Entwistle along with Squire and yet doesn't list either one of them in the top 10, so to me he should have replaced Waters & Butler with McCartney and Entwistle.

Otherwise, that top 8 is certainly among the best bassists ever.

Is it possible that he actually meant influential on himself.