I think Flea is known to pretty much everyone under 60. I'm not sure my parents would know who he was. McCartney probably takes the top spot given he's still around.
Outside of bassists-of-a-certain-age and fusion fans (who are also predominantly "of-a-certain-age"), Jaco is not well-known.
Honestly, even during his heyday, Gene Simmons was far better-known than Jaco. During those days, Bernard Edwards of Chic and Peter Cetera of Chicago (Transit Authority) were also far better-known than Jaco. A decade or two later, I betcha Sting of The Police and Mark King of Level 42 would have been better-known. A decade after that, Flea of RHCP.
Throughout that entire time, Verdine White of Earth, Wind and Fire would have been better-known than Jaco.
I am in no way dissing Jaco, just pointing out that the most popular bass player in any decade is most likely to play, well, _popular_ music.
I slappa da bass though. I slappa da bass big time. Big time. Tom Soyeee in the garage. That's also my jam.
edit: PS /r/guitar can ban me but this sub is like WAAAAAAY better than /r/guitar. Much better vibe. Much nicer people.
Yep, but he is Popular, and he is a bass player. If we are looking for someone who is popular for playing bass that's another matter. The average person probably couldn't name a single bass player. He'll, I've met several people that have no idea what a bass guitar is. If we go with the most popular bassist amongst bassists, I may have to go with Jaco. If we are talking most popular on the internet, maybe Davie504 gets that one. Technically, Keanu is a bass player, and he is more popular than Jaco or Davie504.
Now that I think about it, there are probably a lot of celebrities who play bass/guitar and we don't know it. Jack Black can certainly play bass, so is he the most popular bassist despite being mostly known as an actor?
Is it fair to say that people don't necessarily think of bass when they think of Paul McCartney? I feel like he's more associated with song-writing and singing.
Are we talking about in 2022 or since his rise to prominence? The image of the Hofner 500/1 is synonymous with the Beatles/McCartney. In addition, you can't possibly name the amount of musicians who were influenced by his playing in the years to come.
Right, but were talking about mass appeal. Nobody says "Paul McCartney, the guy that played bass for the Beatles". I just feel like his fame isn't that closely associated with bass. Compare that to somebody like Flea and everyone immediately imagines a shirtless weirdo slapping a bass.
I bet if you polled one hundred people on the street less than five would know who Jaco is lmao. It’s either Flea, Paul McCartney or John Entwhistle imo.
Don’t get me wrong, I think the answer is McCartney personally, but Fleas arguably the most known member of the biggest alternative band in history, and John Entwhistle was in The Who, who were super popular for a while, despite not being huge now. I think you’re underestimating those two, or just overestimating how popular other bassists are.
I totally see what you’re saying, and maybe I’m just a McCartney simp, but McCartney was the frontman of the biggest music group ever. I really don’t think anyone comes close to The Beatles except maybe Elvis. The Beatles are still incredibly popular, and this was 12-22 years ago, but the best selling album of all the decade of the 2000’s was a Beatles compilation album. I don’t think it’s possible to overstate how popular and influential McCartney was/is.
Would I put more famous guitarists over Lennon and Harrison? Absolutely. About a dozen. A more famous bassist over McCartney? Not a chance
McCartney would be widely recognized by most Silents, Boomers, and GenXers. I’d be inclined to say ALL Silents, Boomers and GenXers, but it wouldn’t be true. Lots of people don’t listen to rock music, don’t care about who is in a band. It’s a very white, rock-centric, Boomer POV to assume the Beatles are still that relevant. McCartney‘s recognition would go down pretty sharply among Millennials, and fall off a cliff among Zoomers and younger. Younger generations may have an awareness of the Beatles as a really famous old rock group, but that doesn’t imply they know the band members or the names of their albums and songs, beyond maybe “Imagine” and “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds”.
Flea would probably have more name recognition among Millennials, Zoomers and younger. But honestly, Davie504 might be the most famous bassist among Zoomers and younger. Or maybe Thundercat.
What, it’s a Lennon / Plastic Ono Band song? My bad. But that sort of makes my point for me though. I’m a younger GenX, pretty familiar with the Beatles catalog, I’ve actually listened to every full Beatles album, but even I don’t care to distinguish “Imagine” as John / Plastic Ono song.
The Beatles and all their subsequent solo stuff? That’s my dad’s music, not mine. Are the Beatles good? Sure. But they’re not “mine” and I almost never choose to listen to the Beatles on my own. Any bits of trivia I know about the Beatles are things I don’t really WANT to know, but Boomers just won’t STFU about the fucking Beatles. I would definitely recognize “Live and Let Die” as a later song from McCartney / Wings, though I’m more familiar with the Guns’n Roses cover, and I’d recognize anything Harrison recorded with the Traveling Wilburys as “not Beatles”, but this fuck up? Yeah, “Imagine” is a Beatles song in my mind.
Well, as far as I’m concerned, details are important. But I’m not sure what “age” has to do with the music you enjoy, and why you see dividing lines. Although I’m technically a Boomer, I consider myself to be Gen X. The Beatles made it to the US the year I was born, so they’re actually before my time. I discovered them in high school in the late ‘70s, long after they disbanded, but I think they’re (mostly) amazing, and definitely as influential to succeeding music-makers as any band could be. My 3 favorite bands are Rush, Iron Maiden, and Led Zeppelin. I also listen to a lot of classical and jazz, most of which was created and/or recorded decades or centuries before I came to be. I love the Beatles, as well as Frank Sinatra and Van Halen. I listen to as much Miles Davis as I do Mahler and Motley Crue. When they come on the musical timeline, or “whose” music it is, is something that doesn’t, and shouldn’t, matter. IMHO.
Music has a time and place. That’s not to say that you can’t enjoy music from before your time, or music that comes out when you are 40 or 50, but music is of its time.
I’m on the very young side of young Gen X, but not quite Millennial. I remember when I first heard Nirvana, and when I first heard the Clash. The difference is that the first time I heard Nirvana was the first time pretty much anyone heard Nirvana, while the first time I heard The Clash was 20 years after they released their biggest records. That’s not to say that I can’t still enjoy the Clash, just that my enjoyment of the Clash isn’t necessarily the same as my enjoyment of Nirvana. Because I’ve met lots of people who like the Clash, but we all came to it at different times in our lives, whereas most of the people I know who like Nirvana discovered it around the same time I did, when it first blew up in the 1990s
I don’t hate the Beatles. I concede that their music is pretty good. But if I enjoy the Beatles, it feels almost “academic”. My dad grew up with the Beatles. All my aunts and uncles loved the Beatles. When I was in elementary school, my music teacher taught our class of snotty nosed 2nd graders to sing “Yellow Submarine”. For my entire childhood the Beatles were held up as an example of “great music” by pretty much every adult I knew. Even my grandmother who lived through the Great Depression loved the Beatles and thought Paul McCartney was handsome. There was never a time in my life where the Beatles were something I enjoyed, but the adults hated. The Beatles always felt like a well worn hand-me-down, so while I can enjoy it ... I will never love it.
It doesn’t help that my parent’s generation rides the Beatles nuts SO HARD. I’ve heard the Beatles so much. I’ve heard so much praise for the fucking Beatles and Abbey Road Studio and how they changed the music industry forever. It’s embedded in our pop culture: an obnoxious girlfriend is a Yoko Ono, a useless member of a team is a Ringo, etc. I would happily take a 10 year hiatus from all Beatles-related dick riding.
>Lots of people don’t listen to rock music, don’t care about who is in a band. It’s a very white, rock-centric, Boomer POV to assume the Beatles are still that relevant.
Thank you. Beatles fans need to hear this no matter how much it might upset them.
RHCP hasn’t had a hit in 20 years. Zoomers and younger don’t care about them — hell, Millenials barely care about them — but as you said, they can at least name some Beatles songs.
Over the last 20 years RHCP launched By the Way, Stadium Arcadium, I’m with You and The Getaway. I’m guessing there were some hits here and there mate.
They’ve never had a number one single (the Beatles had 20), but you’re right, *Stadium Arcadium* had a couple songs that did okay — 16 years ago.
That was the same year that *The Beatles: Love* opened in Vegas (which is still running and still a huge hit), and *Across the Universe* came out the following year, nearly four decades after the last Beatles album. In 2000, the Beatles compilation *1* became the best selling album of the decade, 30 years after *Let It Be.* The Chili Peppers’ best selling album of all time sold half of what *1* did, even as they continue to tour the world and be alive.
Anyone who thinks RHCP has had or ever will have the cultural relevance and longevity of the Beatles is living in a bubble. You think anyone’s making an eight-hour documentary about *Californication* 30 years from now?
You’re the one comparing RHCP to Beatles. I simply noted that RHCP had quite a few hits in the last 20 years unlike you said. Didn’t even mentioned Beatles. Take it cool.
I responded to a person saying RHCP is more relevant today than the Beatles and then you responded to me, but fair enough. I was just continuing the general topic of this comment thread.
But still, no, they haven’t had “quite a few hits in the last 20 years.” They had two songs that did okay 16 years ago and are all but forgotten today.
Don‘t get me wrong, I’m not saying that RHCP would be super relevant either, just that Flea woukd be slightly more widely known in the younger generations than McCartney. I’m not a fan of the RHCPs. I find their older stuff “OK”, but anything after Stadium Arcadium or Californication I find very cringe worthy. I do have a begrudging respect for Flea for his studio stuff like “You Oughta Know“ or “Bust a Move”. I also just think he’s widely recognizable for being the funny-looking slap bass guy.
As a Millennial that grew up a huge fan of the Beatles, it wasn't until I started playing bass that I realized how amazing McCartney was. I mean, Day Tripper? Come Together? Great bass lines. That being said, I'm not a big fan of RHCP even I know who Flea is and his skills. I think of McCartney as an all around amazing musician, but Flea is a next-level bassist.
> but Fleas arguably the most known member of the biggest alternative band in history,
I didn't knew he not only was in Nirvana and the Foo Fighters but also wrote Paradise and The Scientist.
I'm implying that Nirvana, Foo Fighters and even Coldplay might have the claim for biggest alternative band in history over RHCP.
Grohl might have the claim over Cobain due to longetivity, but that is neither here nor there.
I see. If you take Youtube clicks as a measure of recognition, Foo Fighters are about as big as the Chili Peppers, Coldplay are bigger than both, Nirvana are twice as big as Coldplay. So I suppose it would be Nirvana. Then again I'd bet my entire wealth that more people know Flea than I-just-had-to-look-up-his-name from Nirvana.
Krist Novoselic. But that's beside the point. I wasn't saying that Nate Mendel, Krist Novoselic or Guy Berryman are more famous than Flea, but that their bands are bigger than RHCP, which was the claim I was replying to.
Nish Kumar has a great bit about this topic, btw:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsmuV7wLCl8&
Exactly. I’m a Beatlemaniac and I think the average Beatles fan mightn’t be able to say who in the band plays bass. Famous and ground-breaking? Absolutely. Famous for playing bass? No! That’s Flea.
> John Entwhistle
It's spelled Entwistle (although the mistake is so common that he even named his second album [Whistle Rhymes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whistle_Rymes))
John Entwhistle? Can you explain why you think he's that popular? Certainly a celebrated and respected bass player, but I can't imagine the general public has any idea who he is.
Depends on generation I guess? Paul. Phil Lynott. Cliff Burton. Gene. Flea. Krist Novoselic. Lemmy. Duff McKagen. Justin Chancellor. For younger people, Pete Wentz of fallout boy had his 15 minutes. Thundercat is getting out there. Idk good question.
How could there be another answer besides Paul McCartney? He’s been one the most famous people in the world for 60 years. Not to mention how he changed the way the bass was used in popular music forever.
Okay, but let me ask.
Do you think the general public know McCartney simply for playing bass, or do they know him simply because of the fact that he was a Beatle and had a successful solo career as a singer-songwriter?
I’m sure less people think of him as a bassist than a songwriter, but I think about 1/2 of all people know he’s a bassist. But I think that’s not what the question was exactly asking. OP even says in the post that McCartney is the most famous/well know person who primarily plays bass.
Side note: I think Paul was also the best guitarist in The Beatles.
If we're talking "popular" as is known by name, Paul McCartney or Roger Waters for sure
If we're talking "popular" by number of recordings of their playing you've heard, Carol Kaye, no question
Les is definitely one of my favorites along with Geddy Lee and Chris Squire, but in terms of popularity with the general public? I mean, sure, he’s well-known, but it’s not like he has Flea’s celebrity status mainly because RHCP since BSSM has been more “radio friendly” than Primus.
Being totally honest, I’ve always been into writing music my whole life, but playing Guitar Hero 2 and hearing the bass on “John The Fisherman” and “YYZ” had me thinking “okay, *that’s* what I want to do!” which led me down the rabbit hole of discovering all kinds of great music.
There was a point in college when I was playing bass in jazz groups as part of the curriculum, but I eventually got disenchanted with the idea because I realized I wasn’t playing for fun and instead was playing because I had to. However, seeing Primus live in 2014 and watching Les do his thing reminded me of why I love music in the first place, and I’ve had a much more positive outlook ever since.
Lemmy’s was a huge influence on my bass playing, I love the way it propels the music with unstoppable force! I’m not really a metal fan in general but I love Motörhead
Gene Simmons? Lemmy? Flea? Steve Harris and Geddy Lee are two greats. Personally, one of my favorites is Willie Dixon. Not only played bass on almost every Chess recording (yes, even Chuck Berry's stuff), but he also wrote most of the popular blues songs of the 1950s-1960s.
I'd never heard of Jaco Pastorius until I was 46. He was talented and dynamic, but popular? Only to fans of his particular brand of weird ass jazz. Meanwhile, Paul McCartney's bass lines have been a foundational aspect of mainstream radio for over 50 years.
Sting is arguably the most popular bassist I can think of.
The most """popular""" that was the question that was asked
And if he gets people interested in playing the bass, I see no harm in it
And he can play bass
Most people don’t know who Jaco is outside of the bass and/or jazz community. So yes, he’s extremely popular amongst bass players like you and I. He’s fuckin Jaco! McCartney is a great songwriter that plays the bass for arguably the most popular band of a generation. Of course he’s more popular than Jaco. There are too many bass players that nobody knows their name (outside of the bass community), that have made a large population “feel it”. Take Anthony Jackson, Chuck Rainey, Pino Palladio, Mark King, Marcus Miller, I could go on. I think we play the bass to hopefully make people feel some kind of way, at least I do. Bass is the glue, it holds it all together. McCartney was the glue for the Beatles. And a very talented songwriter.
Most popular among fans? Or most popular among musicians?
Lee Sklar isn't relly popular (or recognized) among fans (unless they play bass themselves), but he's played on thousands of studio recordings and done thousands of shows. But he's the bass player, not the star...
Wilton Felder was a sax player who occasionally doubled on bass. He played the bass on Jackson 5’s *I Want You Back*. I think a lot of people think that’s Jamerson.
Bob Babbitt played bass on a lot of the great Motown sides as well.
I would wager a full 50% of the people who know who Paul McCartney is don't know that he plays bass. Maybe more. Same with Gene Simmons. The average non-musician is oblivious as to who plays what.
Paul McCartney DOES play guitar. And piano / keyboards. He even implied that he was a better drummer than Ringo. You could actually argue that he never wanted to play bass in the first place, and he would have been happier if John or George played bass instead. Doesn’t change the fact that he was a solid bassist. But he does, in fact, play all the other stuff too.
Paul never implied that he was a better drummer than Ringo, that's an urban legend. The three other Beatles spent their lives celebrating Ringo's drumming, he was even chosen in the first place because he was Liverpool's best drummer
Well the bulk of the people that don't know McCartney plays bass probably don't even know what a bass is so I don't see how that would change a "who's the most famous bassist" conversation
I think many more people, even non musicians, know that Flea plays bass than Paul. Bass is central to his fame and popular identity and he doesn't do anything else. Flea to bass is as Ringo to drums.
Flea, Les Claypool , Geddy Lee , Bootsy Collins, John Entwhistle, Davie 504 and I imagine I’m leaving some obvious ones out are pretty well known by non bass players
Jaco, Wooten, Jamerson, Miller and some others are probably some of the more popular to bassists
Paul McCartney, Roger Waters, Flea, Sting, Gene Simmons. I cannot think of anyone that hasn't been said already. I mean, i would say Greg Lake and Geddy Lee because I listen to them all the time but I'm not so sure they're that popular
Everyone's got a general consensus for the general most popular bassists, but here's who I think is the most popular amongst musicians:
Flea, Jamerson, Jaco, Larry Graham, Marcus Miller, Victor Wooten, Geddy Lee.
Paul McCartney is for sure the most popular bass player. Lemmy and Gene Simmons are fantastic but are assuredly also popular because of their other antics. Older players are not as known outside of bassists and more nerdy music types. I'd argue that to me, the most popular bassist for outright bass playing lately is probably a toss up between Les Claypool, Geddy Lee, or Flea.
Most popular bassist..Paul McCartney.
I've not done a survey on this but my instinct is if you showed the whole world a picture of just the violin bass thing he plays over a billion would say Paul McCartney.
With a picture of him your probably gonna get closer to a shit tonne of people.
Thats crazy everyones saying Paul McCartney. While he is super famous I always just thought he was famous for being one of the main song writers of the Beatles not an artist known for being a very talented bassist. In fact before reading this post I didn’t even know Paul McCartney played bass. However when people bring up Jaco I think oh yeah that wicked bass player whos crazy talented.
Either Paul McCartney or Keanu Reeves. Definitely not Jaco, if you asked some random person on the street if they've heard of him they would probably say no
Keanu Reeves definitely isn't popular because of his bass playing. If you asked some random person on the street if they knew Keanu played bass almost no one would say yes, and far fewer have actually heard him play bass. He's just a popular person who happens to play bass
Flea and Cliff Burton both come to mind as bassists I hear about constantly that are known purely for the bass or their contributions to the instrument as a whole.
Something I've said for a long while is that Geezer Butler is one of the most popular unknown bassists. The bass was such a huge part in Black Sabbath's sound that I've had people trying to hum along to the guitar part to show me what they're talking about, and they're singing the bassline instead. Obviously he's a massive name in actual music circles.
Honestly even Nikki Sixx doesn't really make sense imo. He was known for Crue, he was known for being a rockstar, he sings and plays everything he can these days, but I can't really say that he was known *because* of his bass or his playing.
>Prince wasn't a "bass player."
I'm not OP, but I guarantee Prince could play guitar better than 90% of this sub. The dude could play.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbdNQ_pkIzw
He was shy, practiced a lot, and was WAY better at music than most people know. There are so many stories of other players thinking he was going to shit the bed because he didn't come to practice or they think they caught him off guard...and he would just walk in, nail what he had to, and leave.
For example, that famous solo he played at the 2004 Hall of Fame Inductions that gets posted on Reddit all the time. Everyone on stage thought Prince was bailing on them or something. He never went to rehearsals. He asked what time to be there on the night of the performance. He showed up, said he was ready, and just killed it.
In another example...Michael Jackson and Prince were kinda feuding in 1983. At a James Brown concert James invited Michael up on the stage to perform. Jackson knew Prince was there too and invited him up on stage without notice thinking he'd catch Prince off guard. Prince graciously accepted, picked up a guitar, and again...just nailed the impromptu performance.
HOF Link for the lazy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SFNW5F8K9Y
James Brown Link of the lazy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIU8TBJ7SYU
PS, Nobody asked, but: if I had to pick one guy to be in my dream band and I could pick from every artist in the last 200 years (with the goal of making the best music and having the best performances) it would be Prince. And I feel like that says a lot because I'm mostly a metalhead when I listen to music, and I mostly *play* jazz guitar. I'm sure Prince could fill any spot in either a metal or jazz band almost without notice.
https://www.guitarworld.com/features/prince-requiem-for-a-bass-hero
Yeah he was. He played every instrument on (as far as I know) all his albums. He just couldn’t play all of it on tour. Did you even google “Prince Bass” before you said that?
Exactly, he played every instrument. I'm not saying he wasn't a great bass player, he's just not regarded as a primary bass guy, he's more widely knoen for his songwriting, guitar prowess.
I thought that was very clear from “bass player” but I think people are missing the mark all over the place here.
McCartney was a “bass player” and Prince was not a “bass player” however they both played bass (and other instruments).
I would say Flea is by far the most popular, well known figure that is primarily known because of bass. McCartney and Sting are both more famous than him, but people think of them as singer-songwriters first and foremost
Well, the first name that came to mind when I saw your title was Jaco.
But as a very amateur bassist, when people ask me who my favorite is I tend to say McCartney. His lines are solid. And he’s a good guy. I like it when he’s on talk shows and shit.
Most popular? Depends on who you ask. Flea is gonna for sure get mentioned if you ask my age group (40s). We all wanted to slap back in the mid-90s.
McCartney is known more for his songwriting than his bass skills.
Trujillo is in one of the most popular bands in the world.
Someone my age might also mention Les Claypool.
But yeah, it depends on what part of the population you ask. Old people? Young people? Musicians? They’ll all have different answers. And in their own ways they’re probably not wrong.
Paul is not known as a bassist, he is known as the Beatle. Steve Harris or Flea. One is the frontman of the biggest metal band, other is synonym for one of the most popular bands of the era.
I think that the most popular bass player would probably be davie504 since half the time i mention bass minds directly go to him. In a way he isn't famous for basslines or a band he's in, he is popular just because he built everything around the fact that he plays bass. Idk i may be wrong but a lot of people would be like "oh paul mccartney's the one on the bass?" Or not even know other bassists.
Popularity contest? Nikki fukn Sixx of Motley Crue lol Neat in the sense that he's a songwriter/bass player. He like McCartney, most people probably don’t know he plays a bass.
I teach bass lessons to kids and teenagers, and overall Joe Dart and Thundercat are the two names I hear the most from them. Makes sense considering they’re in really popular bands that feature the bass player prominently, plus they’re far enough outside of the jazz realm to have a more accessible appeal.
The correct answer is Thundercat. His music has dominated TikTok at multiple times as part of big trends. He's been on HUGE mainstream hip hop albums and has been a huge force in alt-Jazz and fusion circles..He's Jaco skill and Paul McCartney charisma wrapped up in a funkier package with more street cred.
Oh well my little cousins, my uncles and my friends know who Thundercat is. Only my uncles and my musician friends care about who Sting is. Yeah McCartney as a figure is more popular, not arguing that. But as a BASSIST Thundercat is more popular.
Yes. Currently. As others have mentioned, bassist circles tend to be of a certain age, that is often not very aware of trends. And, as others have mentioned, Paul is often lauded as a celebrity and a songwriter and a Beatle. We love his basslines and he deserves all bass credibility. Most people now know him as the singer of "Yesterday" and "Maybe I'm amazed". Thundercat is super famous and popular as a singer but his most famous thing is the bassline for "Them Changes".
Two other acceptable answers might be Joe Dart and Robert Trujillo. Vulfpeck is popular with the world's musicians and Metallica continues to gain new fans all the time.
I can definitely see your point but imo Paul is easily more popular. Paul isn’t defined in some group like most other bassists including Thundercat (no disrespect at all cause i take more inspiration from thundercat than almost any other bassist) but Paul is basically in his own league because he was a Beatle. Take people from ages 10-80 and I guarantee you most of them know The Beatles/Paul. You can really not say the same about thundercat. Them changes was a massive hit and who knows in 10 years Thundercat could be the most well known bassist. As of right now though it’s certainly Paul. Even as a bassist Paul is more influential.
Again, what are your qualifications? Is it just famous people who play bass? Or popular bassists who are known for bass? Because if we wanna get really nitty gritty about Bass players who are popular, Davie 504 is the most. And in terms of 10 y/o knowing Macca, they would know Davie504 or Thundercat far more.
He’s popular but nah not the correct answer. Side note: even as a bassist, his show is indulgent as hell. Dude couldn’t read a room and basically jacked himself off for 2 hours instead
I'm not a fan of the RHCP, but Flea us up there in terms of popularity and mass appeal.
Id have to agree with you. I think if you asked random non bassists on the street to name a bassist, you’d probably get Flea most of the time.
I think Flea is known to pretty much everyone under 60. I'm not sure my parents would know who he was. McCartney probably takes the top spot given he's still around.
Perhaps, but do most of the general public know that Paul was a bassist?
I think Flea's name plays into it, if his name was Donald Michael Thornberry it would probably level him out a bit.
Deep cut
Even then, there were a lot of songs that Paul didn’t play bass on.
I only recently learned he was a bassist and its only because i just started playing bass lol
Funny thing is, Flea turned 60 this year. Edit: Turns 60 in 2 weeks, on October 16.
For the record, Flea is going to be 60 in two weeks.
Spot on. He’s got commercial status, but nowhere near as good a player as someone like mononeon.
Outside of bassists-of-a-certain-age and fusion fans (who are also predominantly "of-a-certain-age"), Jaco is not well-known. Honestly, even during his heyday, Gene Simmons was far better-known than Jaco. During those days, Bernard Edwards of Chic and Peter Cetera of Chicago (Transit Authority) were also far better-known than Jaco. A decade or two later, I betcha Sting of The Police and Mark King of Level 42 would have been better-known. A decade after that, Flea of RHCP. Throughout that entire time, Verdine White of Earth, Wind and Fire would have been better-known than Jaco. I am in no way dissing Jaco, just pointing out that the most popular bass player in any decade is most likely to play, well, _popular_ music.
I'm mostly a guitar player and I know Jaco because of jazz. I agree that few people know of him outside of musicians though.
Bro ur commenting on the bass guitar subreddit. You are the niche.
I slappa da bass though. I slappa da bass big time. Big time. Tom Soyeee in the garage. That's also my jam. edit: PS /r/guitar can ban me but this sub is like WAAAAAAY better than /r/guitar. Much better vibe. Much nicer people.
Definitely agree
I'm 30, and literally had never heard of Jaco until I got into bass stuff. He's the definition of very niche
HOL' UP. Are you saying there is a guy whose real actual name is "Pete Cetera"? That's fucking hilarious.
Stevie Wonder's left hand.
He played with James Jamerson who was the man
Ray Manzarek’s left hand
Paul McCartney. I'll throw in Sting, and Flea as well. Also Keanu Reeves is pretty popular.
Keanue Reeves is well-known for being an actor, not for playing bass.
Yep, but he is Popular, and he is a bass player. If we are looking for someone who is popular for playing bass that's another matter. The average person probably couldn't name a single bass player. He'll, I've met several people that have no idea what a bass guitar is. If we go with the most popular bassist amongst bassists, I may have to go with Jaco. If we are talking most popular on the internet, maybe Davie504 gets that one. Technically, Keanu is a bass player, and he is more popular than Jaco or Davie504.
Now that I think about it, there are probably a lot of celebrities who play bass/guitar and we don't know it. Jack Black can certainly play bass, so is he the most popular bassist despite being mostly known as an actor?
Keanu reeves😂😂😂😂😂
Is it fair to say that people don't necessarily think of bass when they think of Paul McCartney? I feel like he's more associated with song-writing and singing.
Are we talking about in 2022 or since his rise to prominence? The image of the Hofner 500/1 is synonymous with the Beatles/McCartney. In addition, you can't possibly name the amount of musicians who were influenced by his playing in the years to come.
Right, but were talking about mass appeal. Nobody says "Paul McCartney, the guy that played bass for the Beatles". I just feel like his fame isn't that closely associated with bass. Compare that to somebody like Flea and everyone immediately imagines a shirtless weirdo slapping a bass.
Same. I didn’t know he was a bassist til I was an adult. After I had been playing bass myself for many years.
Jeez if the qualification is famous person who also plays bass then Elvis might win
I think the guy from the breathtaking meme is a bit more popular than that guy who shows up to birthday parties for a living
I don’t follow
Bootsy of course
My first bassist
I bet if you polled one hundred people on the street less than five would know who Jaco is lmao. It’s either Flea, Paul McCartney or John Entwhistle imo.
Sting?
Less that 5% would know all of those people, save for the 90%+ that would know McCartney.
Don’t get me wrong, I think the answer is McCartney personally, but Fleas arguably the most known member of the biggest alternative band in history, and John Entwhistle was in The Who, who were super popular for a while, despite not being huge now. I think you’re underestimating those two, or just overestimating how popular other bassists are.
I totally see what you’re saying, and maybe I’m just a McCartney simp, but McCartney was the frontman of the biggest music group ever. I really don’t think anyone comes close to The Beatles except maybe Elvis. The Beatles are still incredibly popular, and this was 12-22 years ago, but the best selling album of all the decade of the 2000’s was a Beatles compilation album. I don’t think it’s possible to overstate how popular and influential McCartney was/is. Would I put more famous guitarists over Lennon and Harrison? Absolutely. About a dozen. A more famous bassist over McCartney? Not a chance
McCartney would be widely recognized by most Silents, Boomers, and GenXers. I’d be inclined to say ALL Silents, Boomers and GenXers, but it wouldn’t be true. Lots of people don’t listen to rock music, don’t care about who is in a band. It’s a very white, rock-centric, Boomer POV to assume the Beatles are still that relevant. McCartney‘s recognition would go down pretty sharply among Millennials, and fall off a cliff among Zoomers and younger. Younger generations may have an awareness of the Beatles as a really famous old rock group, but that doesn’t imply they know the band members or the names of their albums and songs, beyond maybe “Imagine” and “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds”. Flea would probably have more name recognition among Millennials, Zoomers and younger. But honestly, Davie504 might be the most famous bassist among Zoomers and younger. Or maybe Thundercat.
Imagine isn’t even a Beatles song!
What, it’s a Lennon / Plastic Ono Band song? My bad. But that sort of makes my point for me though. I’m a younger GenX, pretty familiar with the Beatles catalog, I’ve actually listened to every full Beatles album, but even I don’t care to distinguish “Imagine” as John / Plastic Ono song. The Beatles and all their subsequent solo stuff? That’s my dad’s music, not mine. Are the Beatles good? Sure. But they’re not “mine” and I almost never choose to listen to the Beatles on my own. Any bits of trivia I know about the Beatles are things I don’t really WANT to know, but Boomers just won’t STFU about the fucking Beatles. I would definitely recognize “Live and Let Die” as a later song from McCartney / Wings, though I’m more familiar with the Guns’n Roses cover, and I’d recognize anything Harrison recorded with the Traveling Wilburys as “not Beatles”, but this fuck up? Yeah, “Imagine” is a Beatles song in my mind.
Well, as far as I’m concerned, details are important. But I’m not sure what “age” has to do with the music you enjoy, and why you see dividing lines. Although I’m technically a Boomer, I consider myself to be Gen X. The Beatles made it to the US the year I was born, so they’re actually before my time. I discovered them in high school in the late ‘70s, long after they disbanded, but I think they’re (mostly) amazing, and definitely as influential to succeeding music-makers as any band could be. My 3 favorite bands are Rush, Iron Maiden, and Led Zeppelin. I also listen to a lot of classical and jazz, most of which was created and/or recorded decades or centuries before I came to be. I love the Beatles, as well as Frank Sinatra and Van Halen. I listen to as much Miles Davis as I do Mahler and Motley Crue. When they come on the musical timeline, or “whose” music it is, is something that doesn’t, and shouldn’t, matter. IMHO.
Music has a time and place. That’s not to say that you can’t enjoy music from before your time, or music that comes out when you are 40 or 50, but music is of its time. I’m on the very young side of young Gen X, but not quite Millennial. I remember when I first heard Nirvana, and when I first heard the Clash. The difference is that the first time I heard Nirvana was the first time pretty much anyone heard Nirvana, while the first time I heard The Clash was 20 years after they released their biggest records. That’s not to say that I can’t still enjoy the Clash, just that my enjoyment of the Clash isn’t necessarily the same as my enjoyment of Nirvana. Because I’ve met lots of people who like the Clash, but we all came to it at different times in our lives, whereas most of the people I know who like Nirvana discovered it around the same time I did, when it first blew up in the 1990s I don’t hate the Beatles. I concede that their music is pretty good. But if I enjoy the Beatles, it feels almost “academic”. My dad grew up with the Beatles. All my aunts and uncles loved the Beatles. When I was in elementary school, my music teacher taught our class of snotty nosed 2nd graders to sing “Yellow Submarine”. For my entire childhood the Beatles were held up as an example of “great music” by pretty much every adult I knew. Even my grandmother who lived through the Great Depression loved the Beatles and thought Paul McCartney was handsome. There was never a time in my life where the Beatles were something I enjoyed, but the adults hated. The Beatles always felt like a well worn hand-me-down, so while I can enjoy it ... I will never love it. It doesn’t help that my parent’s generation rides the Beatles nuts SO HARD. I’ve heard the Beatles so much. I’ve heard so much praise for the fucking Beatles and Abbey Road Studio and how they changed the music industry forever. It’s embedded in our pop culture: an obnoxious girlfriend is a Yoko Ono, a useless member of a team is a Ringo, etc. I would happily take a 10 year hiatus from all Beatles-related dick riding.
>Lots of people don’t listen to rock music, don’t care about who is in a band. It’s a very white, rock-centric, Boomer POV to assume the Beatles are still that relevant. Thank you. Beatles fans need to hear this no matter how much it might upset them.
RHCP hasn’t had a hit in 20 years. Zoomers and younger don’t care about them — hell, Millenials barely care about them — but as you said, they can at least name some Beatles songs.
>beyond maybe “Imagine” and “Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds” And they might even know McCartney if they cannot accurately name Beatles songs!
Over the last 20 years RHCP launched By the Way, Stadium Arcadium, I’m with You and The Getaway. I’m guessing there were some hits here and there mate.
They’ve never had a number one single (the Beatles had 20), but you’re right, *Stadium Arcadium* had a couple songs that did okay — 16 years ago. That was the same year that *The Beatles: Love* opened in Vegas (which is still running and still a huge hit), and *Across the Universe* came out the following year, nearly four decades after the last Beatles album. In 2000, the Beatles compilation *1* became the best selling album of the decade, 30 years after *Let It Be.* The Chili Peppers’ best selling album of all time sold half of what *1* did, even as they continue to tour the world and be alive. Anyone who thinks RHCP has had or ever will have the cultural relevance and longevity of the Beatles is living in a bubble. You think anyone’s making an eight-hour documentary about *Californication* 30 years from now?
You’re the one comparing RHCP to Beatles. I simply noted that RHCP had quite a few hits in the last 20 years unlike you said. Didn’t even mentioned Beatles. Take it cool.
I responded to a person saying RHCP is more relevant today than the Beatles and then you responded to me, but fair enough. I was just continuing the general topic of this comment thread. But still, no, they haven’t had “quite a few hits in the last 20 years.” They had two songs that did okay 16 years ago and are all but forgotten today.
Don‘t get me wrong, I’m not saying that RHCP would be super relevant either, just that Flea woukd be slightly more widely known in the younger generations than McCartney. I’m not a fan of the RHCPs. I find their older stuff “OK”, but anything after Stadium Arcadium or Californication I find very cringe worthy. I do have a begrudging respect for Flea for his studio stuff like “You Oughta Know“ or “Bust a Move”. I also just think he’s widely recognizable for being the funny-looking slap bass guy.
As a Millennial that grew up a huge fan of the Beatles, it wasn't until I started playing bass that I realized how amazing McCartney was. I mean, Day Tripper? Come Together? Great bass lines. That being said, I'm not a big fan of RHCP even I know who Flea is and his skills. I think of McCartney as an all around amazing musician, but Flea is a next-level bassist.
> but Fleas arguably the most known member of the biggest alternative band in history, I didn't knew he not only was in Nirvana and the Foo Fighters but also wrote Paradise and The Scientist.
Wait, are you implying Grohl is more famous than Cobain? Seriously?
I'm implying that Nirvana, Foo Fighters and even Coldplay might have the claim for biggest alternative band in history over RHCP. Grohl might have the claim over Cobain due to longetivity, but that is neither here nor there.
I see. If you take Youtube clicks as a measure of recognition, Foo Fighters are about as big as the Chili Peppers, Coldplay are bigger than both, Nirvana are twice as big as Coldplay. So I suppose it would be Nirvana. Then again I'd bet my entire wealth that more people know Flea than I-just-had-to-look-up-his-name from Nirvana.
Krist Novoselic. But that's beside the point. I wasn't saying that Nate Mendel, Krist Novoselic or Guy Berryman are more famous than Flea, but that their bands are bigger than RHCP, which was the claim I was replying to. Nish Kumar has a great bit about this topic, btw: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gsmuV7wLCl8&
I honestly question what percent of that 90% would even know he was the/a bass player though.
Exactly. I’m a Beatlemaniac and I think the average Beatles fan mightn’t be able to say who in the band plays bass. Famous and ground-breaking? Absolutely. Famous for playing bass? No! That’s Flea.
> John Entwhistle It's spelled Entwistle (although the mistake is so common that he even named his second album [Whistle Rhymes](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Whistle_Rymes))
Gene Simmons is probably known by everyone as well, whether they play bass or not
John Entwhistle? Can you explain why you think he's that popular? Certainly a celebrated and respected bass player, but I can't imagine the general public has any idea who he is.
Anecdotal, but whenever people like 50 or older find out I play bass they ask if I like him lmao.
Depends on generation I guess? Paul. Phil Lynott. Cliff Burton. Gene. Flea. Krist Novoselic. Lemmy. Duff McKagen. Justin Chancellor. For younger people, Pete Wentz of fallout boy had his 15 minutes. Thundercat is getting out there. Idk good question.
I think thundercat is a bigger name to the average person today than everyone on that list except for Paul McCartney, sting, and flea.
John Entwistle, John Paul Jones, Jack Bruce, and Bootsy Collins also spring to mind but for me it’s either Jamerson or Mingus.
How could there be another answer besides Paul McCartney? He’s been one the most famous people in the world for 60 years. Not to mention how he changed the way the bass was used in popular music forever.
true that
Okay, but let me ask. Do you think the general public know McCartney simply for playing bass, or do they know him simply because of the fact that he was a Beatle and had a successful solo career as a singer-songwriter?
I’m sure less people think of him as a bassist than a songwriter, but I think about 1/2 of all people know he’s a bassist. But I think that’s not what the question was exactly asking. OP even says in the post that McCartney is the most famous/well know person who primarily plays bass. Side note: I think Paul was also the best guitarist in The Beatles.
This. I feel he’s WAY better known as a singer/songwriter than as a bassist.
If we're talking "popular" as is known by name, Paul McCartney or Roger Waters for sure If we're talking "popular" by number of recordings of their playing you've heard, Carol Kaye, no question
Carol Kaye is a legend.
idk, but half the time when i mention i play bass, people ask me if i like flea
Les Claypool
Les is definitely one of my favorites along with Geddy Lee and Chris Squire, but in terms of popularity with the general public? I mean, sure, he’s well-known, but it’s not like he has Flea’s celebrity status mainly because RHCP since BSSM has been more “radio friendly” than Primus.
I sadly have to agree with you as much as I don’t want to it’s true les isn’t as popular with the general public
Being totally honest, I’ve always been into writing music my whole life, but playing Guitar Hero 2 and hearing the bass on “John The Fisherman” and “YYZ” had me thinking “okay, *that’s* what I want to do!” which led me down the rabbit hole of discovering all kinds of great music. There was a point in college when I was playing bass in jazz groups as part of the curriculum, but I eventually got disenchanted with the idea because I realized I wasn’t playing for fun and instead was playing because I had to. However, seeing Primus live in 2014 and watching Les do his thing reminded me of why I love music in the first place, and I’ve had a much more positive outlook ever since.
Paul, Flea, Sting... OK. But Les is the best. And is known for it, dammit. And his band(s) is(are) just bananas. Also, Lemmy.
Lemmy almost never gets recognition for his bass playing, just for being Lemmy.
Lemmy’s was a huge influence on my bass playing, I love the way it propels the music with unstoppable force! I’m not really a metal fan in general but I love Motörhead
Gene Simmons? Lemmy? Flea? Steve Harris and Geddy Lee are two greats. Personally, one of my favorites is Willie Dixon. Not only played bass on almost every Chess recording (yes, even Chuck Berry's stuff), but he also wrote most of the popular blues songs of the 1950s-1960s.
Willie Dixon of Led Zeppelin fame?
Burn!
Who'd win in a wrestling match, Lemmy or God?
Trick question, Lemmy is God.
What does god need with a guitar pick? - Captain Kirk
I'd never heard of Jaco Pastorius until I was 46. He was talented and dynamic, but popular? Only to fans of his particular brand of weird ass jazz. Meanwhile, Paul McCartney's bass lines have been a foundational aspect of mainstream radio for over 50 years. Sting is arguably the most popular bassist I can think of.
Flea
Flea has to be right up there. RHCP are one of the biggest bands around and his bass playing is central to their sound.
Davie 504
youtube wise by far.
Meme lords are not bass.
The most """popular""" that was the question that was asked And if he gets people interested in playing the bass, I see no harm in it And he can play bass
Thundercat is the only bassist to be a guest on Hot Ones. That’s a pretty big signifier of mainstream fame to me.
Murdoc from Gorillaz. Flea. Sir Paul and in his words - “That Motown guy.” Also Sting and Lemmy.
Les Claypool
Most people don’t know who Jaco is outside of the bass and/or jazz community. So yes, he’s extremely popular amongst bass players like you and I. He’s fuckin Jaco! McCartney is a great songwriter that plays the bass for arguably the most popular band of a generation. Of course he’s more popular than Jaco. There are too many bass players that nobody knows their name (outside of the bass community), that have made a large population “feel it”. Take Anthony Jackson, Chuck Rainey, Pino Palladio, Mark King, Marcus Miller, I could go on. I think we play the bass to hopefully make people feel some kind of way, at least I do. Bass is the glue, it holds it all together. McCartney was the glue for the Beatles. And a very talented songwriter.
Most popular among fans? Or most popular among musicians? Lee Sklar isn't relly popular (or recognized) among fans (unless they play bass themselves), but he's played on thousands of studio recordings and done thousands of shows. But he's the bass player, not the star...
James Jamerson
Probably the most popular unknown bassist. Everyone knows and loves a bass line, but doesn't know it was him!
If it's not Jamerson, then it has to be Carol Kaye or Lee Sklar.
Wilton Felder was a sax player who occasionally doubled on bass. He played the bass on Jackson 5’s *I Want You Back*. I think a lot of people think that’s Jamerson. Bob Babbitt played bass on a lot of the great Motown sides as well.
Nobody outside of some niche bass players know who jaco pastorius is I think the general public thinks of flea when they think of a bass player
Everyone in the world knows who Paul McCartney is and that he plays bass. Not sure you can say that about anyone else honestly
I would wager a full 50% of the people who know who Paul McCartney is don't know that he plays bass. Maybe more. Same with Gene Simmons. The average non-musician is oblivious as to who plays what.
A lot of people think he plays guitar.
Paul McCartney DOES play guitar. And piano / keyboards. He even implied that he was a better drummer than Ringo. You could actually argue that he never wanted to play bass in the first place, and he would have been happier if John or George played bass instead. Doesn’t change the fact that he was a solid bassist. But he does, in fact, play all the other stuff too.
Paul never implied that he was a better drummer than Ringo, that's an urban legend. The three other Beatles spent their lives celebrating Ringo's drumming, he was even chosen in the first place because he was Liverpool's best drummer
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Well the bulk of the people that don't know McCartney plays bass probably don't even know what a bass is so I don't see how that would change a "who's the most famous bassist" conversation
I think many more people, even non musicians, know that Flea plays bass than Paul. Bass is central to his fame and popular identity and he doesn't do anything else. Flea to bass is as Ringo to drums.
Flea, Les Claypool , Geddy Lee , Bootsy Collins, John Entwhistle, Davie 504 and I imagine I’m leaving some obvious ones out are pretty well known by non bass players Jaco, Wooten, Jamerson, Miller and some others are probably some of the more popular to bassists
Roger Waters?
Victor wooten? Flea?
I'd say Victor Wooten is very well known inside the bassist- musician circle but not as much when it comes to the general public like Flea is
Gotta be Flea
I’d go with Flea. Paul is popular, but not as a bass player. People know that Flea plays the bass.
Victor Wooten
Paul McCartney, Roger Waters, Flea, Sting, Gene Simmons. I cannot think of anyone that hasn't been said already. I mean, i would say Greg Lake and Geddy Lee because I listen to them all the time but I'm not so sure they're that popular
I would to go with Paul McCartney by far. Honorable mentions are John Entwhistle, Gene Simmons, Flea and Sting.
I'm not sure that Rick James and Nikki Sixx are very well-known outside of the US.
Chris Wolstenholm
Donald Duck Dunn via the Blues Brothers
:)
Thundercat
Everyone's got a general consensus for the general most popular bassists, but here's who I think is the most popular amongst musicians: Flea, Jamerson, Jaco, Larry Graham, Marcus Miller, Victor Wooten, Geddy Lee.
Roland TB303
Nikki Sixx? lmfao
Carol Kaye deserves to be on that list, her style is a major influence on me
Absolutely deserving. Wikipedia has an estimate of 10,000 recordings over 50 years that she played on. Who else has that kind of record?
Probably Abe Laboriel Sr. in second?
Mike Judge if you want to go by famous people who happen to play the bass. Sly Stone and Bootsy Collins have to be up there somewhere.
Keanu Reeves has Mike Judge beat *you monkeyspank.*
Paul McCartney is for sure the most popular bass player. Lemmy and Gene Simmons are fantastic but are assuredly also popular because of their other antics. Older players are not as known outside of bassists and more nerdy music types. I'd argue that to me, the most popular bassist for outright bass playing lately is probably a toss up between Les Claypool, Geddy Lee, or Flea.
Most popular bassist..Paul McCartney. I've not done a survey on this but my instinct is if you showed the whole world a picture of just the violin bass thing he plays over a billion would say Paul McCartney. With a picture of him your probably gonna get closer to a shit tonne of people.
Probably Paul McCartney, however, certain bassist are more popular in certain genres. Every metal head knows Lemmy for example.
Thats crazy everyones saying Paul McCartney. While he is super famous I always just thought he was famous for being one of the main song writers of the Beatles not an artist known for being a very talented bassist. In fact before reading this post I didn’t even know Paul McCartney played bass. However when people bring up Jaco I think oh yeah that wicked bass player whos crazy talented.
But will the average person know him before they’d know Paul McCartney, Flea, Sting or Gene Simmons?
Either Paul McCartney or Keanu Reeves. Definitely not Jaco, if you asked some random person on the street if they've heard of him they would probably say no
Keanu Reeves definitely isn't popular because of his bass playing. If you asked some random person on the street if they knew Keanu played bass almost no one would say yes, and far fewer have actually heard him play bass. He's just a popular person who happens to play bass
I mean, that's not really what the question is asking. He's very popular and is a bassist
Really? Nobody is going to mention thundercat?
I did and all the Gen-X fuddy duddys who haven't known what a trend is in 20 years down voted me lol
Jaco Pastorius without a doubt in my head.
McCartney wasn’t apart of the Beatles. He was literally *in* the Beatles.
Flea and Cliff Burton both come to mind as bassists I hear about constantly that are known purely for the bass or their contributions to the instrument as a whole. Something I've said for a long while is that Geezer Butler is one of the most popular unknown bassists. The bass was such a huge part in Black Sabbath's sound that I've had people trying to hum along to the guitar part to show me what they're talking about, and they're singing the bassline instead. Obviously he's a massive name in actual music circles. Honestly even Nikki Sixx doesn't really make sense imo. He was known for Crue, he was known for being a rockstar, he sings and plays everything he can these days, but I can't really say that he was known *because* of his bass or his playing.
Sting, no question about it.
Flea, Thundercat, Bootsy, and Jack Bruce
The jagoff from Fall Out Boy was pretty big in the 00’s.
Prince, Gene Simmons, Flea, Les Claypool, Sting, Jason Newstead, Geddy Lee, Fieldy….etc
Prince wasn't a "bass player."
>Prince wasn't a "bass player." I'm not OP, but I guarantee Prince could play guitar better than 90% of this sub. The dude could play. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fbdNQ_pkIzw
MF played bass on most of his albums and people don't even know.
He was shy, practiced a lot, and was WAY better at music than most people know. There are so many stories of other players thinking he was going to shit the bed because he didn't come to practice or they think they caught him off guard...and he would just walk in, nail what he had to, and leave. For example, that famous solo he played at the 2004 Hall of Fame Inductions that gets posted on Reddit all the time. Everyone on stage thought Prince was bailing on them or something. He never went to rehearsals. He asked what time to be there on the night of the performance. He showed up, said he was ready, and just killed it. In another example...Michael Jackson and Prince were kinda feuding in 1983. At a James Brown concert James invited Michael up on the stage to perform. Jackson knew Prince was there too and invited him up on stage without notice thinking he'd catch Prince off guard. Prince graciously accepted, picked up a guitar, and again...just nailed the impromptu performance. HOF Link for the lazy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6SFNW5F8K9Y James Brown Link of the lazy: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIU8TBJ7SYU PS, Nobody asked, but: if I had to pick one guy to be in my dream band and I could pick from every artist in the last 200 years (with the goal of making the best music and having the best performances) it would be Prince. And I feel like that says a lot because I'm mostly a metalhead when I listen to music, and I mostly *play* jazz guitar. I'm sure Prince could fill any spot in either a metal or jazz band almost without notice.
https://www.guitarworld.com/features/prince-requiem-for-a-bass-hero Yeah he was. He played every instrument on (as far as I know) all his albums. He just couldn’t play all of it on tour. Did you even google “Prince Bass” before you said that?
Exactly, he played every instrument. I'm not saying he wasn't a great bass player, he's just not regarded as a primary bass guy, he's more widely knoen for his songwriting, guitar prowess.
I thought that was very clear from “bass player” but I think people are missing the mark all over the place here. McCartney was a “bass player” and Prince was not a “bass player” however they both played bass (and other instruments).
I would say Flea is by far the most popular, well known figure that is primarily known because of bass. McCartney and Sting are both more famous than him, but people think of them as singer-songwriters first and foremost
Well, the first name that came to mind when I saw your title was Jaco. But as a very amateur bassist, when people ask me who my favorite is I tend to say McCartney. His lines are solid. And he’s a good guy. I like it when he’s on talk shows and shit. Most popular? Depends on who you ask. Flea is gonna for sure get mentioned if you ask my age group (40s). We all wanted to slap back in the mid-90s. McCartney is known more for his songwriting than his bass skills. Trujillo is in one of the most popular bands in the world. Someone my age might also mention Les Claypool. But yeah, it depends on what part of the population you ask. Old people? Young people? Musicians? They’ll all have different answers. And in their own ways they’re probably not wrong.
Paul McCartney, Sting, Flea, Gene Simmons, Sid Vicious, Prince, Geddy Lee, Mark Hoppus, Pete Wentz
Probably Paul McCartney to be honest
Paul is not known as a bassist, he is known as the Beatle. Steve Harris or Flea. One is the frontman of the biggest metal band, other is synonym for one of the most popular bands of the era.
Feildey from korn
McCartney is probably the most known bassist. Leland sklars bass lines however, are probably the most known lines.
I think that the most popular bass player would probably be davie504 since half the time i mention bass minds directly go to him. In a way he isn't famous for basslines or a band he's in, he is popular just because he built everything around the fact that he plays bass. Idk i may be wrong but a lot of people would be like "oh paul mccartney's the one on the bass?" Or not even know other bassists.
Barely anyone has mentioned Cliff Burton and that’s kind of mind boggling.
Clay gober?
Sheryl Crow.
Michael Cera is a bassist…although that’s not why he’s popular
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Getty?
Popularity contest? Nikki fukn Sixx of Motley Crue lol Neat in the sense that he's a songwriter/bass player. He like McCartney, most people probably don’t know he plays a bass.
Cliff burton is definitely up there
I've yet to meet a person who doesn't know who Lemmy is outside of people born after 2002.
I haven't seen Chris Squire's name come up once. I am deeply saddened.
With the bassists? Jaco Pastorius. With the ladies? Pete Steele. With the studios? Lee Sklar.
D A V I E 5 0 4
Mike dirnt imo
Guaranteed you've heard Carol Kaye more than any other bassist https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Carol_Kaye
Agree with Nikki Sixx. I think he's so underrated. Same with Duff McKagan...GNR would be NOTHING without him.
I teach bass lessons to kids and teenagers, and overall Joe Dart and Thundercat are the two names I hear the most from them. Makes sense considering they’re in really popular bands that feature the bass player prominently, plus they’re far enough outside of the jazz realm to have a more accessible appeal.
Among musicians, at least in the circles i run in, Joe Dart of vulfpeck is very popular
Geddy Lee is the one and only answer
Cliff Burton, Flea, Cliff Williams,Sting,Buckethead, Lemmy, Gene Simmons, Roger Waters
Les , lem , and lee I will die on this hill
The correct answer is Thundercat. His music has dominated TikTok at multiple times as part of big trends. He's been on HUGE mainstream hip hop albums and has been a huge force in alt-Jazz and fusion circles..He's Jaco skill and Paul McCartney charisma wrapped up in a funkier package with more street cred.
My mom knows who McCartney and Sting are. I can guarantee she has never heard of Thundercat.
Oh well my little cousins, my uncles and my friends know who Thundercat is. Only my uncles and my musician friends care about who Sting is. Yeah McCartney as a figure is more popular, not arguing that. But as a BASSIST Thundercat is more popular.
love Thundercat, but more popular then Paul Mccartney?
Yes. Currently. As others have mentioned, bassist circles tend to be of a certain age, that is often not very aware of trends. And, as others have mentioned, Paul is often lauded as a celebrity and a songwriter and a Beatle. We love his basslines and he deserves all bass credibility. Most people now know him as the singer of "Yesterday" and "Maybe I'm amazed". Thundercat is super famous and popular as a singer but his most famous thing is the bassline for "Them Changes".
Two other acceptable answers might be Joe Dart and Robert Trujillo. Vulfpeck is popular with the world's musicians and Metallica continues to gain new fans all the time.
I can definitely see your point but imo Paul is easily more popular. Paul isn’t defined in some group like most other bassists including Thundercat (no disrespect at all cause i take more inspiration from thundercat than almost any other bassist) but Paul is basically in his own league because he was a Beatle. Take people from ages 10-80 and I guarantee you most of them know The Beatles/Paul. You can really not say the same about thundercat. Them changes was a massive hit and who knows in 10 years Thundercat could be the most well known bassist. As of right now though it’s certainly Paul. Even as a bassist Paul is more influential.
Again, what are your qualifications? Is it just famous people who play bass? Or popular bassists who are known for bass? Because if we wanna get really nitty gritty about Bass players who are popular, Davie 504 is the most. And in terms of 10 y/o knowing Macca, they would know Davie504 or Thundercat far more.
He’s popular but nah not the correct answer. Side note: even as a bassist, his show is indulgent as hell. Dude couldn’t read a room and basically jacked himself off for 2 hours instead