Songs with great bass lines

[Vamprey]

Off the top of my head:

Cream, Tales of Brave Ulyssess - Badge
Old Brown Shoe - Beatles
Detroit Rock City, Sure Know Something - Kiss
1000 Days - Alien Ant Farm
Whipping Post - Allman Brothers
Earshot - Goodbye
Remember Me - Hoobastank
Levitate, Used To Be ALright, Summertime In The Void - I Mother Earth
Another Day, Silly Love Songs - Paul McCartney
Illumination, Love's So Heavy, Your Number Is One - Rollins Band
Gasoline - Seether
Always, Take It Away - The Butterfly Effect
Love Song, Beautiful Disaster, What Was I Thinking - 311
Think The World, World's On Heroin - All
Come Down - Bush
Gunkmonkey - The Lazy Gene Theory
Lost Control, DCx3 - Grinspoon
Love Your Way - Powderfinger
Swirl - Sprung Monkey
Bust A Move - Young MC
Take On Me - Reel Big Fish (version)

 

[Mark Hope]

Ah, sweet music to my ears... and all of the other places that other instruments cannot reach .

Can't disagree with any of the above choices, but must add another vote for the versatile virtuoso that is Stu Hamm, the flailing genuis of Cliff Burton and the unspeakable wizardry of Jaco.

All of your bass are belong to us!

 

[Wulf Ratbane]

But the other one, by far, is Higher Ground by the Chili Peppers. Flea is a VERY powerful bass player.

What have you got against crediting Stevie Wonder?

For that matter, you can add Superstition to the list.

 

[DungeonmasterCal]

And Kip Winger did some nice stuff with his band and as a session player on countless albums...(that's right, you may have Kip Winger's work in your collection and not even know it!) Despite being in a despised glam rock band, Kip laid down some impressive progressions.

I saw Kip Winger as the bass player for Alice Cooper back in 1986. The entire band (and show) was incredible, and Winger was a great stage presence.

I agree with you on the speeding ticket songs! I used to own a 1972 Monte Carlo, and "Highway Star" came out in '72, as well. With that song in the deck, I could beat the Falcon on the Kessel run!

 

[Jerome Steelsides]

The beginning of "Schism" by Tool.

 

[barsoomcore]

"It's Your Thing" by the Isley Brothers
"Bakabatka" by Super Junky Monkey
"Diamonds Are Forever" -- the James Bond theme. Right when the second verse starts, this utterly wicked bass line comes storming in that kicks my butt every time.

 

[Ultrazen]

2 that need mentioning -

ozzy - no more tears
smiths - i am human


carry on.

 

[talwynor]

I was going to mention When Dove's Cry earlier, but didnt want to lend support to the bass players aren't memorable undercurrent sometimes out there (hell, there wasn't one on that track!). Come to think of it, for being as funky as he is, his bass lines usually aren't what drive the song. And when they do, they're usually pretty straight forward grooves.

Gotta say, he is one of my favorites.

Talk about memories tho...I forgot all about King's X. I loved the depth of the sound they created with essentially just a trio. They still recording?

I'm really getting into Victor Wooten of late, especially his solo stuff. He can pull off the intricate fretboard stuff and still work in a simple fat bass line...great range. If you're looking for something different, but not just a "musician's musician", I'd give him a listen.

 

[Impeesa]

Basses - Mike Oldfield

You, sir, are a man of surpassing taste. Out Of Sight also has a pretty strong bassline, although I don't know if I'd call it especially fancy. From the same CD (Guitars), B. Blues sounds like it should have more bass than it actually does. Mastermind, from The Millenium Bell, has some nice bass and a very cool James Bond-ish feel to it (thus the name, I guess). A few tracks on Tr3s Lunas have some decent bass to them, but I think they're all synthed... a couple years in Ibiza baked his brain. :/ That album is mostly cool for how he filters his guitar to sound like a saxaphone anyways..

I also recommend:

Rush - Closer To The Heart (any live version only - when they play this song live, they add a whole second section with a sweet bass solo)
Liquid Tension Experiment - Paradigm Shift (another mind-bending bass solo)

Also anything featuring Tony Levin on bass (Peter Gabriel, Liquid Tension Experiment, etc - he gets around). The man has skills. When I saw Peter Gabriel live, Tony Levin played an upright bass with a bow, a more regular-looking bass with drumsticks, and some other cool stuff I don't even remember any more. He's done some independant stuff - look up his cover of the Peter Gunn Theme.

Speaking of Peter Gabriel, his most recent CD (Up) is very bass-and-percussion driven. Check it out, I recommend it. A song from it is even quoted in Monte Cook's AU.

Oh, and the Chrono Trigger official arranged album, Brink of Time. Very jazzy and experimental, lots of cool bass.

--Impeesa--

 

[mac1504]

If you can allow a little punk...

I think Repeater by Fugazi has one of the coolest bass lines.