10 best bass players of all time

No kind of ensemble gets very far without a bass instrument. And particularly in the world of popular music, not many get far without a bass guitar. And for precisely these reasons, if you find yourself looking for the greatest bassists, you’ll be spoiled for choice - there’s a lot to sift through. Fortunately, this article’s done the hard work for you.

The instrument plays an essential if often overlooked role in pop, rock, jazz, soul, funk, country, and just about any style or genre you care to name. And few knew, relished and exploited this more than the ten bass guitarists listed below. 

Collectively, their skills are staggering and their achievements are broad and numerous -  we have studio regulars and rock legends, jazz innovators and pop royalty. But diverse as they are, they’re all bound by a love for, and a mastery of, the bass guitar. So, prepare to explore the length and breadth of stunning bass-playing. Check it out.
 

Best bass players you should know
 

1. Jaco Pastorius
2. Bootsy Collins
3. Carol Kaye
4. Flea
5. Esperanza Spalding
6. John Entwistle
7. Stanley Clarke
8. Paul McCartney
9. Tal Wilkenfeld
10. James Jamerson

1. Jaco Pastorius
 

Jaco Pastorius crashed onto the scene in 1976 with his self-titled debut album. The opening track was a performance of Charlie Parker’s jazz standard ‘Donna Lee’. Although he played it on a bass, Jaco could still match the great saxophonist. It was a deliberate choice of repertoire, and with it Jaco announced himself as a very serious musician. 

No one had ever foregrounded the instrument like that. He turned the bass into a melodic instrument and did it with a breathtaking virtuosity. Listening to his playing, it’s difficult to accept that it’s the work of one individual, sounding that many notes, at that speed, and with that fluidity. 

After the release of his debut, Pastorius was snapped up by Weather Report, the jazz fusion outfit co-founded by Wayne Shorter and Josef Zawinul. The group, in which Jaco’s bass was equal to Shorter’s sax and Zawinul’s keys, created some of the most innovative music of the 1970s. And from this platform, Pastorius rewrote the book on bass-playing.

2. Bootsy Collins
 

It’s difficult to speak about 1970s innovations without nodding to the legendary James Brown. The signature groove that he and his band, the JBs, hammered out in the early years of the decade was massively influential in the development of funk music. And there’s a case to be made that the bass is the heartbeat of that mix. 

Responsible for this key ingredient is William ‘Bootsy’ Collins, who subsequently became one of the great bassist celebrities. A lot of that’s down to his extravagant stage personality, symbolised by his star-shaped bass - and matching star-shaped sunglasses. But his distinctive approach to the groove was no less significant a factor. 

After parting ways with Brown, Collins teamed up with another icon in George Clinton, with whom he continued to innovate the glorious funk tradition. Later touching all sorts of genres and collaborating with all sorts of artists, Collins’ unmistakably choppy, nimble, thick and funky style of play came to make a truly immeasurable impact on music history.

3. Carol Kaye
 

Carol Kaye might be the greatest bassist you’ve never heard of. That’s because she’s plied her trade as one of the unsung heroes of the music industry - a session player. It’s estimated that Kaye’s bass-playing has graced over 10,000 recordings. As far as the session bassist rankings are concerned, she’s arguably top of the pile.  

Talent-spotted at a gig in 1957, Kaye was invited to play on Sam Cooke’s rendition of the George Gershwin classic, ‘Summertime’. Realising that the session game was much more lucrative than the gigging game, Kaye made the switch and never looked back. She made the studio her home, and in it she became one of the most influential bassists of all time.

She’s played on dozens of recordings that you’ll know. It’s Kaye who plays on songs by Frank Sinatra, the Beach Boys and Barbra Streisand. It’s Kaye who plays on film scores by Quincy Jones and Lalo Schifrin - she’s absolutely everywhere. For over 60 years she’s been coolly playing bass on the soundtrack of popular culture. 

4. Flea
 

Ever since he co-founded the Red Hot Chili Peppers in 1983, Flea has been contributing to one of the finest bodies of work in rock history. His part in the tale has become such a renowned one not only because of his technical gifts, but also because of his supreme ability to produce the most dazzling bass performances. 

Take ‘Around the World’, for instance, the opening track on the Chilis’ Californication of 1999. After a blistering introduction, Flea settles into the most funky, grungy bassline that spans the length and breadth of the fingerboard. It’s a riff that no one else could write, and hardly anyone else could play. 

It’s a great achievement to always sound recognisably yourself even as you try to evolve. Flea’s always done just that in the course of his career, and it speaks to his brilliance as a bassist, and as an artist. When the Chilis’ sound developed, he chose to adapt his style to match, responding to the needs of his bandmates, and to those of the music.

5. Esperanza Spalding
 

Once upon a time, a very young Esperanza Spalding picked up some Beethoven by ear and started playing it at the piano. With that, her immense musical aptitude became apparent, and was carefully nurtured. She tried her hand at a range of instruments, before finding her way down to the wonderful world of the bass at high school.

Spalding’s relationship with that world was and remains binary, a passion channelled through the double bass as well as the bass guitar. With those two instruments, she has breathed new life into jazz, soul and R&B. Influenced by figures as diverse as Joni Mitchell and Ron Carter, she’s developed one of the most original artistic voices in music today.

And that voice has helped to cast the bass in a new light. Not just a bassist but a singer too, Spalding brings the bass to the musical fore, emphasising its musical role with a freshness that has echoes of Pastorius about it. And as for her technique, let’s just say that there aren’t many players out there that can match her fretwork.

6. John Entwistle
 

The Ox. Thunderfingers. These are the nicknames that John Entwistle earned in his time, and if they fail to suggest the scale of his reputation, there’s little that will. Perhaps being voted the greatest bassist of all time by readers of Rolling Stone magazine in 2011 will say a little more.

The vehicle for Entwistle’s greatness was the Who, the British band that hit the big-time in the 1960s. In contrast to the wild rock-and-roll antics of bandmates Pete Townshend, Roger Daltrey and Keith Moon, however, the famously reserved Entwistle would let his fingers do all the talking.

All his expression was channelled through his instrument, and he had incredible ideas and ability to express. Album after album, gig after gig, Entwistle brought composed, complex, powerful and ear-catching basslines to the Who’s turbulent but tuneful soundworld. He also released a string of little-known solo albums that are well worth your time.

7. Stanley Clarke
 

Like Spalding, Stanley Clarke is another bassist in the broader sense, a master of the bass guitar as well as the double bass. And again like Spalding, the jazz tradition is at the heart of Clarke’s musicality. Jazz is a genre that has always cherished the unique properties of the bass, and has developed particular roles and customs to styles to exploit them.  

Those roles saw major changes in the late 1960s. The electrification and diversification of jazz pioneered by Miles Davis inspired many double bassists to look to the bass guitar as a new horizon. Clarke was one of them. Co-founding the fusion group Return to Forever, his bass became a leading voice in the ensemble, much like Pastorius’ in Weather Report.

Clarke is revered in particular for his technical versatility, which allows him to achieve a wide range of styles and sounds. And he’s able to shift between these seamlessly and to great effect. One moment he’ll be winding his way lyrically through a bass solo, the next he’s snapping his fingernails against the strings to produce surreal, cutting tones.

8. Paul McCartney
 

Paul McCartney is a musician that usually doesn’t need an introduction. His tenure with the Beatles, his prodigious songwriting, his incredible vocal ability - all these aspects of his musicianship and legacy are taken for granted. But less well appreciated is the quality and influence of his bass-playing. 

The Beatles were at the helm of the massive changes in popular music that occurred in the 1960s. They wrote their own songs, exploited the possibilities of the studio, and engaged with a plethora of musical influences. All the while, McCartney was grounding the band’s increasingly complex songs with increasingly expansive bass parts. 

The power of these parts resides in the potent combo of accomplished skill, imaginative playing, and the growing musical complexity that he, John, George and Ringo brought to their music-making. He helped to pave the way that many other iconic rock bassists would soon follow, like Cream’s Jack Bruce and Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones.

9. Tal Wilkenfeld
 

So far, we’ve considered bassists that encompass a range of genres and generations. But who’s out there on the frontline, the cutting edge, producing the most thrilling bass-guitar music of the young century? Potentially Tal Wilkenfeld.

Wilkenfeld independently recorded her 2007 debut album at the age of just nineteen. By 2010, she had toured with Jeff Beck and Chick Corea, and recorded with Prince. When icons like that are falling over themselves to collaborate with you, you know you’ve made it. Overnight, she was one of the most in-demand players in the music industry. 

Listening to her play, it’s not difficult to see why. She possesses an incredible presence, hair-raising virtuosity, first-rate compositional ability, and she can jam, improvise and groove with the all-time greats. And no doubt she’s inspiring players around the world to pick up the bass and be the best of their generation, too.

10. James Jamerson
 

Through the 1960s, the Detroit hit-factory that was Motown was churning out some of the finest pop music ever recorded. The likes of Smokey Robinson, Gladys Knight and Marvin Gaye were becoming legends. On all those hits you can hear the label’s house band, the Funk Brothers - arguably the real architects of the famous ‘Motown Sound’.

Another session player, the bassist in this rhythm section was the great James Jamerson, and despite his key role as a sideman, his and the other Brothers’ efforts went largely uncredited in his time. Only in the last few years, long after his death in 1982, has the breadth of his impact - and the quality of his service - become apparent and appreciated.

Once a double bass-player - and a jazzer at that - Jamerson possessed an improvisatory, melodic flair, and he was given the space to bring it to Motown’s basslines. Comfortable with chromaticism, syncopation and extended harmony, he managed to innovate bass performance, even as he played some of the most iconic bass hooks of the era.

Your next steps for bass music
 

If the exploits of these exceptional bassists haven’t made you eager for bass music, then just what will? Discover and be wowed by some of the truly astonishing music that these ten icons have written, played and immortalised.

Needless to say, there are countless remarkable players who didn’t make the incredibly tight cut, so why not expand the scope a little? 

Bass Player magazine counted down the top 100 players in 2017, with none other than Jamerson himself coming out on top. Find Cliff Burton of Metallica, Geddy Lee of Rush, Les Claypool of Primus, Chris Squire of Yes, and many more colossal names in the bass-playing business.

For similar content on the blog, check out hard bass songs, and best bass songs. Seems only natural for a list of great repertoire to follow a list of great players. All of those songs and many more can be found among nkoda's diverse collection of bass guitar sheet music.