Recently I've been enjoying a lot of Jeff Berlin and noticed how he's completely omitted slap from his repertoire of playing tricks and it made me think.. There are so many one truck pony bass players out there.. I think Jeff, as celebrated as he might be, he's still criminally underrated. While people like Tal Wilkenfeld(did I get that right?) and flea are worshipped. I have tried to like Tal's playing but nothing I have heard from her impressed me. Feel free to change my mind but I think if she's being propped up just because she's a woman then there are actually better female bass players in THAT case (Marta Altesa anyone?).. Flea on the other hand is a miserable bass player, I'm not getting why anyone is a fan of his.. Unless it's the only slap bass they've heard in which case they need schooled on some classics. I think flea made his career ripping off the true funk and disco musicians.. Slapping and popping a few OCTAVES every now and then doesn't make you some bass God.. I seen a recent video of him live with Nile Rodgers trying to play "Le Freak" and he absolutely butchered it, really??! I also want to state that I think Leon Sylvers is a criminally underrated bass player. He always balanced nice meaty finger style playing with tasteful slapping, a real skillful player. He produced and played in Dynasty, The Whispers, Shalamar etc. I'm interested in learning about some great bass players you think are underrated and also who you think needs less attention. I'm sure Flea was a obvious one and I'm sure I know a few you'll end up mentioning but I would like to hear everyone's thoughts.
talk about a "weak" jam..
talk about a "weak" jam..
