Come Together

In a rush, but just for the record: this is a great bassline!

You know the band. You know the album.

(The Beatles, Abbey Road. Yes. Paul McCartney)

Sunny Afternoon

Don't you love chromatic scales? Great song by The Kinks - a band that was missing here.

Song: Sunny Afternoon
Artist / Band: The Kinks
Album: Face to Face
Bass: Pete Quaif
Year: 1966

bass tab (external link)

Something

Another one from Abbey Road, this time by George. Something is one of the most beautiful songs by any Beatle, and McCartney's line is fantastic and, in my opinion, very underappreciated. Melodic as ever, and never clashing with George Harrison's guitar. The solo part is almost like two solos in one (guitar and bass).

Well, there'll be a day when every Abbey Song will have been covered by this blog. The bass of every song in that album is fantastic.

The very rare promo video is quite a finding, as well.

Song: Something
Artist / Band: The Beatles
Album: Abbey Road
Bass: Paul McCartney
Year: 1969

bass tab (external link)

I Heard It Through the Grapevine

Marvin Gaye's version of a Motown classic. Bass performed by legendary James Jamerson.

Song: I Heard It Through the Grapevine
Artist / Band: Marvin Gaye
Album: In the Groove
Bass: James Jamerson
Year: 1967

bass tab (external link)

Gimme Shelter

Ok, I admit I am a little prejudiced against The Rolling Stones, and I shouldn't. Here is an amazing bassline by the Renaissance man Billy Wyman. It must be said that he and drummer Charlie Watts have formed one of the most solid rhythm sections in the history of rock.

Song: Gimme Shelter
Artist / Band: The Rolling Stones
Album: Let It Bleed
Bass: Billy Wyman
Year: 1969

bass tab (external link)

My Girl

Although James Jamerson didn't get much credit for it, he is one of the most influential
bass players ever, for his work with Motown Records. Jamerson is said to have influenced, among others, Paul McCartney, Victor Wooten, Jack Bruce, John Entwistle and Jaco Pastorius - and that's to mention only bassists who have already been discussed on this blog.

So let's start giving Jamerson some notoriety here: the bassline for My Girl, recorded by The Tempations, is one of his best-known pieces of work. It features a very recognisable bass intro.

Song: My Girl
Artist / Band: The Tempations
Album: The Temptations Sing Smokey
Bass: James Jamerson
Year: 1965

bass tab (external link)

Cry Baby Cry

This is one of my favorite Beatles' songs, and this is very much about the bassline, too - listen to how it grows from the beginning to the end of the song. This is our week's Paul McCartney.

Song: Cry Baby Cry
Artist / Band: The Beatles
Album: The Beatles (White Album)
Bass: Paul McCartney
Year: 1968

Bass tab (external link)

Penny Lane

No week is complete without some Paul McCartney. So threr it is: Penny Lane. The four initial notes on thie bass line are fenomenal.

Sorry for the late post!

Song: Penny Lane
Artist / Band: The Beatles
Album: Magical History Tour
Bass: Paul McCartney
Year: 1967

Bass tab (external link)

Taxman

No week is perfect without The Beatles and McCartney's bass. So here is Taxman. I'll save my next post for The Jam's "Start" - so we can see how it was influenced by this bassline.

Song: Taxman
Artist / Band: The Beatles
Album: Revolver
Bass: Paul McCartney
Year: 1966

Bass tab (external link)

Lovely Rita

Another one by Paul McCartney. I love how this bassline changes from intro to verse to chorus (similar to intro) to ending. Only McCartney could create something so groovy and so melodic at the same time.

Song: Lovely Rita
Artist / Band: The Beatles
Album: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band
Bass: Paul McCartney
Year: 1967

Sparks

John Entwistle is one of the most celebrated rock bass players, and there are dozens of songs that could be used to display his talents and explain why he is still so influential. I've chosen this one from the opera rock Tommy.

Song: Sparks
Artist / Band: The Who
Album: Tommy
Bass: John Entwistle
Year: 1969

Hey Joe

This song of obscure origins is best known from the cover version by The Jimi Hendrix Experience, with Noel Redding playing the bass. The chorus progression, semitone by semitone, of this walking bassline is as fun to play as to listen to.

Song:Hey Joe
Artist / Band: Jimi Hendrix Experience
Album:Are You Experienced
Bass: Noel Redding
Year: 1967

Bass tab (external link)

Stand by me

Another classic with a very recognizable bass line. 8 simple bars repeated throughout the whole song - and it works!

Easy to play, I wonder how hard it was to be created. It's hard to come up with something as simple and as good as that. The strangest thing is: I can't find out who the bass player for the song was.

Song:Stand By Me
Artist / Band: Ben E. King
Album:Don't Play That Song
Bass: please, leave a comment if you know the name of the bassist for this song
Year: 1962

Bass tab (external link)

Hey Bulldog

Another beatlesong! I can't help it. I just love McCartney's basslines, and this one is a rock and roll classic, with the bass doubling the guitar doubling the piano.

Actually, I think "Hey Bulldog" is not as widely known as it should (a bit like "Old Brown Shoe"). Why would that be?

Song:Hey Bulldog
Artist / Band: The Beatles
Album:Yellow Submarine (Remastered)
Bass: Paul McCartney
Year: 1969

Bass tab (external link)

Son of a Preacher Man

This is a classic bassline by Tommy Cogbill for a song recorded by Dusty Springfield. You can find every detail about it by clicking here.

Thanks HitPicker, from talkbass forums, for that tip!

Song:Son Of A Preacher Man (Single/LP Version)
Artist / Band: Dusty Springfield
Album:Dusty in Memphis
Bass: Tommy Cogbill
Year: 1969

Bass tab (external link)

Old Brown Shoe

The second Beatles post here (and that's just the beginning), Old Brown Shoe is a song from The Beatles by George Harrison, and it was released as the B-Side of the single The Ballad of John and Yoko (and later made available in Past Masters Vol. II).

Paul McCartney's talent for obtaining interesting and distinct sounds on bass guitar is, I think, unparalleled in rock music. Just think of Baby You're a Rich Man, for instance. For Old Brown Shoe, according to Beatles Bible, that was achieved by overdubbing it with a guitar. Maybe it helps to reinforce the bass agility (just listen to those triplets!).

Song: Old Brown Shoe
Artist / Band: The Beatles
Album: Past Masters, Vol. 2
Bass: Paul McCartney
Year: 1969

Bass tab (external link)

Badge

I don't know why, but it's not very common, for me at least, to listen to Cream on the radio or TV nowadays. I can't actually remember when was the last time I heard a song by them being broadcasted. And they were huge! They were supposedly the first supergroup ever (according to Wikipedia), and have influenced lots of bands and musicians. Yet, you don't get to hear them or watch anything featuring them. Do they sound too dated? I don't know the reason, they are just not played so often as they should.

Anyway, I am glad we can find their songs on the internet, so we can listen to Jack Bruce - one of the greatest - play his classic bassline for Badge.

Song: Badge
Artist / Band: Cream
Album: Gold
Bass: Jack Bruce
Year: 1969

Bass tab (external link)

Sun King/Mean Mr. Mustard/Polythene Pam/She Came In Through The Bathroom Window

I've decided to pick up the bass as my instrument many years ago, after listening to Abbey Road several times in a row during a car trip. I was already familiar with that album for years, but listening to Paul McCartney's basslines, specially during the sequence from "Mean Mr. Mustard" to "She Came In Through The Bathroom Window", really opened my eyes to the wonders of that instrument.

Song(s): Sun King/Mean Mr. Mustard/Polythene Pam/She Came In Through The Bathroom Window
Artist / Band: The Beatles
Album: Abbey Road (Remastered)

Bass: Paul McCartney
Year: 1969

Bass tabs (external link)