IT'S ALL ABOUT THE BASS
Larry Graham is our pick as top Bay Area bassist
The bass doesn’t get the attention of its flashier, sixstring cousin.
Yet, talk to musicians and they’ll tell you that the bass is at least as important as the guitar — or, really, any instrument — since it sets the groove as it marries the rhythmic and melodic elements of a song.
The Bay Area certainly has had more than its fair share of great bassists over the years, ones who not only could be counted on to hold a tune together but also found ways to repeatedly steal the spotlight.
It’s time to celebrate those mighty groove masters as we offer up our list of (drumroll, please) the Top 25 Bay Area Bassists of All Time.
This wasn’t an easy list to finalize, given how many stellar bassists have graced our area over the years. So, we had to come up with some parameters.
The first was the most difficult, as we decided to stick to the realm of rock, pop, R&B, funk and (a little) blues — and leave jazz off the list. We just couldn’t do the genre justice in this space, knowing full well that there were enough great Bay Area jazz bassists to fill up a list on their own.
Second, we decided on only entry per band. Otherwise, Metallica — as just one example — would have landed three of the 25 spots on this list.
Third, we decided the criteria for selection would be a (fairly) equal weighting of body of work, influence, artistry, innovation and, yeah, personal preference. Of course, just how much we like their music factors greatly into the rankings.
Here’s our list. 1. Larry Graham
There was a lot of debate and reordering of rankings. But never with No. 1, which always belonged to the legend who helped define the soul-funk genre as a member of Sly and the Family Stone, as well as the leader of his own Graham Central Station. His pioneering slap-pop style of playing influenced countless other greats, from Bootsy Collins to Stanley Clarke. LISTEN TO >> “Dance to the Music,” Sly and the Family Stone
2. Cliff Burton
How good was this Castro Valley native? Well, as legend has it, he was good enough to make Metallica move out of Los Angeles and relocate to the Bay Area, just so Burton would join the band. Sadly, this virtuoso talent — arguably the best bassist in thrash-metal history — died at the age of 24 in 1986, but not before changing music history with genre-defining work on “Kill ’Em All,” “Ride the Lightning” and “Master of Puppets.”
LISTEN TO >> “(Anesthesia) — Pulling Teeth,” Metallica
3. Jack Casady
His bass lines with Jefferson Airplane sparkled with ideas and innovations, bursting open a door to new frontiers of rock during the wild ’60s and calling out for countless others to follow in his path. He’s continued his amazing work through the years with Hot Tuna. LISTEN TO >> “Spare Chaynge,” Jefferson Airplane
4. Tiran Porter
He’s not the household name that some of the others are on this list, but he certainly deserves to be. Porter was the Doobie Brothers’ secret weapon during their ’70s heyday, punching up the hits with his incredibly rich and soulful bass work.
LISTEN TO >> “Takin’ It to the Streets,” Doobie Brothers
5. Matt Freeman
The best punk rock bassist of all time? Freeman certainly gets our vote for his high-flying, genre-defying, awe-inspiring use of scales and arpeggios with both Operation Ivy and Rancid. LISTEN TO >> “Maxwell Murder,” Rancid
6. Phil Lesh
When he was feeling it — which was often — the Rock & Roll Hall of Famer could improvise toe-totoe with Jerry Garcia while onstage with the Grateful Dead. Lesh’s influence in the jam-band world has been immense. LISTEN TO >> “The Other One,” Grateful Dead
7. Rocco Prestia
The Sonora native’s signature “fingerstyle funk” style of playing, resulting in a clear, percussive sound that always operated within the groove, really set the stage for those fabled horns to shine on such great Tower of Power outings as 1974’s “Back to Oakland.”
LISTEN TO >> of Power
“What Is Hip?” Tower
8. Les Claypool
Possibly the first name one thinks of when it comes to Bay Area bassists, Claypool burst onto the national scene with Primus in the early ’90s with a wicked sense of humor, mad skills and a vision for how to bring the bass to the forefront of alternative rock. LISTEN TO >> “Jerry Was a Race Car Driver,” Primus
9. Ruth Davies
The versatile artist, who sounds equally at home in rock, jazz and blues, has recorded and performed alongside such talents as Charles Brown, Elvin Bishop, John Lee Hooker, Van Morrison, Bonnie Raitt, Sammy Hagar and Maria Muldaur.
LISTEN TO >> “The Blues Rolls On,” Elvin Bishop
10. Klaus Flouride
His bass was at the forefront of the Dead Kennedys’ best songs — and, thus, some of the best songs in punk-rock history — elevating East Bay Ray’s razor-sharp guitar work and Jello Biafra’s social and political commentary to remarkably high levels.
LISTEN TO >> “California Uber Alles,” Dead Kennedys
11. Stu Cook
Never flashy, always in service to the song, Cook set the unwavering pulse for all those classic tunes by the pride of El Cerrito — Creedence Clearwater Revival. LISTEN TO >> “I Heard It Through the Grapevine,” Creedence Clearwater Revival
12. Greg Christian
A true heavyweight, Christian helped draw up the rulebook on thrash metal in the ’80s as a founding member of Berkeley’s Testament.
LISTEN TO >>
Testament
“Eerie Inhabitants,”
13. David Brown
It can be hard to draw attention while operating in the shadow of a first-tier guitar great, yet this Daly City groove master was still able to shine brightly while working alongside Carlos Santana in the ’60s and ’70s.
LISTEN TO >> “Black Magic Woman,” Santana
14. Phil Kennemore
He was a muscular yet empathetic player who helped propel frontman Dave Meniketti to remarkable heights as part of Oakland’s Y&T.
LISTEN TO >> “Rescue Me,” Y&T
15. Bob Mosley
Mosley’s thundering, driving bass work is just one reason why so many still think that the ’60s San Francisco psychedelic group Moby Grape should have been much, much bigger.
LISTEN TO >> “Omaha,” Moby Grape
16. Raphael Saadiq
Although often overshadowed by his many other musical talents, the Oakland native’s soulful bass work elevated both Tony! Toni! Toné! and his own solo career. LISTEN TO >> “Feels Good,” Tony! Toni! Toné!
17. Billy Gould
There was a lot going on in Faith No More’s post-punk/experimental-rock/funk-metal mix, but Gould was always up to the challenge of bringing it all together. LISTEN TO >> “We Care a Lot,” Faith No More
18. Meshell Ndegeocello
This neo-soul pioneer never forces a groove on a song, but instead seems to find a touch that sounds so authentic, organic and at times deceivingly effortless. LISTEN TO >> “Don’t Disturb This Groove,” Meshell Ndegeocello
19. Bill Church
The man nicknamed “Electric Church” did terrific work on Van Morrison’s “Tupelo Honey” and “Saint Dominic’s Preview,” as well as on several Sammy Hagar solo albums, but we remember him best for those epic bass lines on the first Montrose album. LISTEN TO >> “Bad Motor Scooter,” Montrose
20. Eric “Pik Funk” Smith
So many top artists — including Sheila E., Janet Jackson, Lalah Hathaway, Rihanna and Justin Timberlake — have turned to this great bassist when in need of some mighty funk.
LISTEN TO >> “I Just Wanna,” Legally
Blynd 21. Bud Cockrell
His wonderfully rhythmic and jazzy bass lines propelled the first three albums from arguably the most underrated Bay Area act of all time — Pablo Cruise.
LISTEN TO >> “Whatcha Gonna Do?” Pablo Cruise
22. Jone Stebbins
Although Imperial Teen members are known to trade around their instruments a bit, Stebbins is the one who delivers most of the indie-cool bass lines in the band’s melodic power-pop catalog. LISTEN TO >> “Birthday Girl,” Imperial Teen
23. Victor Krummenacher
It’s still a bit mind-boggling that he was able to sew all of Camper Van Beethoven’s disparate musical interests — from punk and pop to ska and world music — into a cohesive indierock sound.
LISTEN TO >> “Take the Skinheads Bowling,” Camper Van Beethoven
24. Maya Ford
This Palo Alto product focused on power and precision with her bass work, delivering the unfussy, driving rhythms that set the stage for the Donnas’ charged brand of straight-ahead rock ’n’ roll. LISTEN TO >> “Too Bad About Your Girl,” the Donnas
25. Frank Zincavage
The former San Francisco Arts Institute student brought such style, flair and drama to his work with the vastly overlooked New Wave outfit Romeo Void. LISTEN TO >> “Never Say Never,” Romeo Void
Honorable mentions:
• Rob McKillop, Exodus
• Ross Valory, Journey
• Mike Dirnt, Green Day
• David Freiberg, Quicksilver Messenger Service, Jefferson Airplane/Starship
• Trevor Dunn, Mr. Bungle