GREAT BASS ALBUMS
DOPE-ASS BASSLINES AND SOLOS
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pyl9ppk_uh0&list=PLsA0AvAJ6XUwarN2Wfge6VRxDYpkxslE9&pp=sAgC
The following is an unordered, ever-expanding list of albums where, to my ears, a good deal of the tracks have standout basslines. A couple disclaimers: 1) most of these albums are from the 70s, because pretty much all the music I listen to is from that decade alone. (And because I already know I'm gonna get emails telling me this - yes, I know I need to check out Primus.) And 2) though it was hard, I'm gonna instill a three-album limit for each artist; otherwise, half this list would consist of Yes and Rush albums alone. "Why can't you link any of these to Spotify, like a normal person?" Because I don't use Spotify. "But YouTube has ads..." >Not having an adblocker in 2026
Enigmatic Ocean (Jean-Luc Ponty)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=At1pE_8TlbM&list=PLx3gPQ-E_ONnA3g41odXJX3WdD4SwGP6l
The great thing about this album is that it saves the best for last, and by best, I mean probably the greatest bass solo I've ever heard, "The Struggle of the Turtle to the Sea, Part 3". What makes it so great? I think because Ralphe Armstrong stays super busy, but never once does he step out of the pocket. And the solo's got length: Armstrong was a big FX guy, and he hooks up for the second half and just continues shredding. And the bassline he plays during the following guitar solo by Daryl Stuermer (which isn't half bad, either) is much the same way: busy, but always keeping up, which really was a testament to the guy's sheer stamina. Basically, if Ralphe Armstrong isn't a bass name you've heard of, he should be: he was only 21 when he played on this album, oh, and it was all done on a fretless (which he actually started playing around the same time as Jaco).
Cosmic Messenger (Jean-Luc Ponty)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bNUQBBM_c9E&list=PLHXQGyRfS-5U_12_6B41yQ8kpUTgZZat5
I have "Egocentric Molecules" in that basslines playlist, but another fun one from this album (and one that's a hell of a lot easier to play) is "The Art of Happiness".
Caravanserai (Santana)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WIRBshlXUDk
Wanted to use this opportunity to talk about another of my favorite players, Doug Rauch. Really unique player who might be more well known had he not died way early on in 1979 at the age of only 28, and not exactly leaving behind the largest collection of albums that he played on compared to some of the other guys here. But listening to that collection, you can see just how diverse his chops really were. One of the very early slappers - both Doug and Sly & the Family Stone were based out of the Bay Area around the turn of the 70s, which is probably where he got it from - with evidence being heard on Santana's 1972 release Caravanserai, especially on the track "Look Up (To See What's Coming Down)", which Doug co-wrote. He was also known for his thumb-picking technique, which guys like Wooten would later become known for.
(Caravanserai actually features two bassists: Doug, who mostly plays on side 1, and upright player Tom Rutley, who mostly plays on side 2. Both, however, are showcased on the sublime "All the Love of the Universe".)
Welcome (Santana)
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLvqy46hCJunVs_IdIZZne_7h5QDLAYnbu
Venusian Summer (Lenny White)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f72uuh8Fw00
Possibly the most interesting thing about Doug was that this guy could sustain sixteenth notes through an entire song, like the track "Mating Drive" on this album. Mind you, this isn't a slow song or anything - it's an up-tempo, driving number. I really don't know how he pulled it off. I'm pretty sure he used his fingers, but even if you used a pick for that sorta thing, that's still insane. Again, the stamina required for that sorta thing... I dunno. I wish I could've seen footage of him playing it. I saw a comment on some website describe his playing as like a gatling gun, and yeah, that's a pretty apt description.
Life & Times (Billy Cobham)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sdoD5_5nt-0&list=PL44gxJwuwoaYkxzKSzPC6hjBVG_i8cAYL
Jaco Pastorius (Jaco Pastorius)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pvjHT8Lepz8
This album and Heavy Weather are pretty much essential listening if you call yourself a serious bassist.
Word of Mouth (Jaco Pastorius)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IVUNIsQbCn8&list=PLZLTjLhGndDAuA915D327mpLgQiphtIGE&index=1
Always loved the way he rocks out on the title track.
Heavy Weather (Weather Report)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SvhmaNlLgRM&list=PLP1lC0FnuI0K26N-Z_CtZmaP36Mg5NBdO
Mr. Gone (Weather Report)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xw_GOWCgPZM
Honorable mention: that foreboding synth bassline on the title track.
There's the Rub (Wishbone Ash)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-c5lRE5tc6A&list=PL4AA242F273C88DAB
I really just like Martin Turner's gnarly tone on this album, heard best on the songs "Don't Come Back" and "F.U.B.B.". He's a great player in general, though. Very melodic; reminds me of Chris Squire. (He even played a Rick in the early 70s like Chris did, and with a pick. Heck, both of their singing voices were even on the higher end.)
Fragile (Yes)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cPCLFtxpadE&list=OLAK5uy_mr3aLJuPJvJve1bSwRl-8W4iN8uhGOr80
Relayer (Yes)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g8kLYZvVP7s&list=OLAK5uy_mB2Z4c14a1jFhhTFB2IlKyhfpizRSXkKI
Drama (Yes)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dXsFByRJsos&list=PLhuvEQzJRGB5TrtoLTcVrtES2Z8wfdv24
Features a fretless on "Run Through the Light", played by singer Trevor Horn. He didn't really wanna play the part, but Chris insisted, who himself plays piano on the track (which is barely audible lol) in what I can only imagine was a cheeky throwback to the music video for "Then", an early Yes song in which Chris and then keyboard player Tony Kaye are seen playing each other's instruments. Other than that, look out for the sick solo at the end of "Does It Really Happen?" and the Dorian bass riff in "Tempus Fugit".
Fish Out of Water (Chris Squire)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-mc0sX3cPfg
Larks' Tongues in Aspic (King Crimson)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CVb2tnFN5AA&list=PLJfwklRIOOp3Ioa2BBSldX5cJqP6ilCxN
Starless and Bible Black (King Crimson)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-O5Yvvz8XY0&list=PLuJ-cxh9BxLvQDnmCTVEpEVr6VEB7U66g
I particularly like "The Mincer". Also, check out that beautiful (and entirely improvised, like most of the tracks on this album) arpeggio work on "Trio", which really makes the song.
Red (King Crimson)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aXTCDB70Qgo&list=PLjom7II-Xcsc3ZBZ26slTn4kX63_DxkkH
Ocean (Eloy)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KI8b6GQ5C80
Consider also checking out Dawn and Silent Cries and Mighty Echoes, which also feature great moments from the extremely underrated Klaus-Peter Matziol. (Track for track, though, I think Ocean contains his most exemplary work.)
Animals (Pink Floyd)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D4KQae9oMWs
Ironically, two of the greatest basslines in the entire PF output were both played by Gilmour, not Waters. It's a shame the bass on "Pigs (Three Different Ones)" is mostly buried in the mix - I had to look up a bass cover of the song to fully appreciate it. Meanwhile, the bassline in "Sheep" is a lot less complex, but the syncopation combined with the ghost notes, as well as the use of Waters' signature phasing tone, just make that line sound nasty and I can never quite get enough of it. (Oh, and I guess the bassline in "Dogs" is alright, too, though that song's great for other reasons.)
A Farewell to Kings (Rush)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tvcFV8aeCsQ&list=PLaVHibd49QFLDcS_C6GbUYzhZyfivilNG
Hemispheres (Rush)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=fMoHes_BChQ
Moving Pictures (Rush)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=iAIxUvd8gWo
There's a Riot Goin' On (Sly and the Family Stone)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hoPJZ4UMm7E&list=PLNPGM2D7aODcuiDxQCy1qsp3iyHne6Wn2&index=1
Fresh (Sly and the Family Stone)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g6xhSqz_4m8&list=PLH1rxoohuFOvsQ1qPdcPwyR4upQbUNQHW&index=1
The great Larry Graham was already on his way out of the band around this time and only features on two tracks, "Que Sera, Sera" and "If It Were Left Up to Me" (itself an outtake from an earlier album), but his successor Rustee Allen (and probably Sly himself, who has bass among his credits on this album) does a good job filling his massive shoes.
Wired (Jeff Beck)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nusv6nLWxU
I've always like Bascomb's major pentatonic lines on "Goodbye Pork Pie Hat".
(Some fun basslines can be found on Beck's previous album, Blow by Blow, as well.)
Alleycat (Nucleus)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=giYvwLM-JEo
This album has it all: a catchy bassline on "Phaideux Corner"; the occasional spotlight on the title track; some lead bass-playing on "Splat" (with some wah-wah, which I suspect served as the namesake for the track); "You Can't Be Sure", a cool little free jazz number featuring twelve-string guitar, bass, and muted trumpet; and even some walking-bassline action on the up-tempo "Nosegay".
Stanley Clarke (Stanley Clarke)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BW7a1rTIfAA
Journey to Love (Stanley Clarke)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EiunrrqveTQ
School Days (Stanley Clarke)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JgWMiDMt0Bk
1976 was a hell of a year for the bass - that year, we got at least two essential bass recordings, Jaco's self-titled album and Stanley Clarke's School Days. This was probably the pinnacle of Clarke's abilities in effortlessly bringing to the forefront an instrument usually relegated to the background, as well as infusing jazz with a pop sound (the genre, as well as the slapping component - see what I did there?). And one cool thing about Clarke, as usual, was that he wasn't afraid to dabble on the upright, even including the bow.
Thrust (Herbie Hancock)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ffzjh7nl3Lg
Secrets (Herbie Hancock)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mkm-FxQfneE
Histoire de Melody Nelson (Serge Gainsbourg)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VB0X3wx3fX0&list=PLAyqE9JL0JKNDxPc15aBzFLbFSj3JkrpE
Graceland (Paul Simon)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l78j_NnB4FY
Fool for the City (Foghat)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=szmkDlfu8YQ
The funny thing about this album is that the bassist, Nick Jameson (who was also Foghat's producer/engineer at the time) only stepped in to do the job after the band's previous bassist left and before they hired another one for the following tour. But judging from his brief 4-string stint in the band, it's clear the guy had talent. Just listen to those fills on "Slow Ride" (which Jameson composed most of the music for), especially during the bass break in the middle - you can tell the guy knew what he was doing. He also leads a pretty colorful life outside of music, at least according to his Wikipedia page.
(As if that wasn't enough, Jameson also plays keyboards on the last song, "Take It or Leave It", which he co-wrote. Good song, too.)