by Tim Higgins

Created on: April 19, 2008

Bass Guitar - the unsung hero of almost every rock band, and the harmonic 'glue' in most poplar music. Even The Doors, famed for having no bassist, used several well known LA session men on their albums. It's often remarked that a band is only ever as good as it's rhythm section, and you'll notice many of the choices I've selected below come from bands with highly respected drummers. This isn't entirely surprising, as the sound of one affects the other more strongly than any other combination of instruments in a group. That itself is a subject worth it's own article but for now, let's resume the task in hand, starting with one of the most obvious choices first...

PAUL McCARTNEY
Definitely the most famous on this list, not just for his bass work, but his singing, songwriting and of course, above all, being a Beatle. However, put all the hype about The Beatles to one side and actually listen to his playing. Not many Bassists in the early sixties were anywhere near this melodic, if any. McCartney opened up a whole new world of musical possibilities for the lower end guy, as can be heard on pretty much any Beatles and Wings song you care to listen to.

JOHN ENTWISTLE
Considered one of the greatest and most influential Bassists in rock, 'The Ox' was classically trained in music, able to play Piano, French Horn and Trumpet. His treble-heavy sound and aggressive lines helped him to pioneer the bass as a lead instrument with legendary rock group The Who. Entwistle was also the first person to use the now world-famous Marshall Stacks, primarily to hear his playing over Drummer Keith Moon. His other nickname, 'Thunderfingers' refers to this bone shattering volume and intensity that was an inspiration to many players from the late sixties, especially the next two on my list...

JOHN PAUL JONES
Led Zeppelin's master bassist, keyboard player and arranger may have been the quietest of a band as famous for it's offstage debauchery as it's earth destroying live shows, but he's certainly not reserved when it comes to Bass playing. That said, he never overplayed for the sake of it (something you could accuse the other members of Led Zeppelin of if you wanted to), preferring the 'understated' approach. A true craftsman and a master of Blues bass-lines, JPJ's sparse solo work since the dissolution of the Zep, however rare, is still musically interesting and forward thinking - the only way he knows how to be.

CHRIS SQUIRE
Yes' founding member (and the only one to remain in the band and perform

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