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I'm a bit of a bass snob (lol)... I grew up in the 70's and while I loved the energy of the Punk Rock Music, I feel that it nearly killed the art of melodic bass playing. Post punk bass playing is heavy on the root note played as fast as possible. Prior to that, bass lines actually had melody. I'm not talking about any of that Prog Rock stuff either. But plain old good Rock N Roll bass playing. In my opinion, bass really came into it's own in the late 60's, early 70's. That's when bass amps finally started to be real bass amps. Early 60's bass amps were a joke. They did not have enough power, so for the most part bass was distorted. Even though this is a Garage Punk forum, & I've played in a million garage bands, my favorite bass players are not really within this genre. These have influenced my playing a lot more, especially since I saw them all live.
Entwhistle is my all time fave. Obviously My Generation, but just about anything on the Live at Leeds lp is amazing. "Tattoo" from the newly remastered version is a fine example. The tone is unbelievable.
I also really like "Lost Woman" by The Yardbirds. Paul Samuel Smith is highly under rated as a bassist.
Jack Cassady's Bass lines on "Crown Of Creation" (Jefferson Airplane) is another favorite of mine
Slade's Get Down & Get With it from Slayed Alive.
Dennis Dunaway (Alice Cooper) Gutter Cats versus The Jets from School's Out is mind blowing bass.
Winter & My Soul from the first Grand Funk Railroad lp. Has there ever been a tighter rhythm section than Don & Mel?? This album paired with my first concert experience (Grand Funk at The Fillmore East) is what inspired me to pick up a bass in the first place.
