Favorite Funk Bass Line?

[Alvabass]

Aside from "What Is Hip?", "Oakland Stroke" and "Play That Funky Music", which have been mentioned already, I think most of you have heard Lequeint "Duke" Jobe playing bass with Rose Royce. Awesome funk bass player! The "Car Wash" soundtrack is one of my favorite LPs from my collection. Of course, the main title theme is maybe the most famous cut from the album, but "Yo-Yo" is one of the tracks I like the most, specially because that instrumental was, for a long, long time, the opening theme of a very popular TV comedy here. A repetitive line, but very tasteful.

 

[Oatus]

as a part time drummer full time bassist, it hit me just recently...

...how the hell do i play a funky beat on drums without sounding like a wanker who cant find a time signature? are there any ovbious beats that im missing?

 

[gkkearny]

Looking for BASS line from School Boy Crush - PLEASE

Since funk is my first love, it is hard to pick just one line. I always loved the powerful simplicity of AWB's "Schoolboy Crush" and I love the hyper slapping of "Glide" by Pleasure (a Stingray tune). A really great bass part that shows off finger and slap style is "Stomp" by the Brothers Johnson. Finally, I'm completely in awe of the things that Anthony Jackson played on Chaka Khan's first three solo albums. That's what really made me want a five string bass.

Where can I find Tablauture or just plain musical notation for the bass guitar line in Average White Band's School Boy Crush?? This is one of the best funk bass lines EVER. please let me know if you can help! gkkearny in Arizona with 115 Degree HEAT

 

[Smallmouth_Bass]

Just pick it up by ear. It sounds fairly simple.

 

[RobertB]

Give a listen to the line in Prince's "Let's Work". You'll wanna light a match. And yes, that's him playing it.

 

[Holdsg]

Holy Zombie Thread, Batman.

Who doesn't like a little Stevie Wonder now and then? I Wish (as in, I Wish I wrote that one), Isn't She Lovely, Signed Sealed Delivered, Sir Duke, all pretty funky lines in my book.

 

[Thunder139]

I really like "Get the Funk Out Ma Face" by the Brothers Johnson, although for a little funk riff, I like playing the tail end of "Cholly" by Funkadelic, nice tight funk bassline right there, yessir.

 

[drTStingray]

1) Give Up the Funk (Tear the Roof off the Sucker) - Parliament
2) Flashlight - Parliament
3) Cissy Strut - The Meters

Oh and +1 on Get the Funk Outta Ma Face - Brother's Johnson.

 

[Lynottfan]

Ai No Corrida watching Louis Johnson beat the funk outta his ray

 

[pnts]

Hi!

Might not be the correct way to make a first post but the subject is up my alley.. Slave, Aurra, Rose Royce (Whitfield productions in general have the Duke on them) and Pleasure already mentioned, here are some of my inspirations. For most of them there are lotsa other stuff if you dig into the works:

Bar-Kays - Holy Ghost
Betty Davis - Quintessence of hip
Bobbi Humphrey - Fun House
Bootsy - Party on plastic
Brass Construction - Get up get down
Bros Johnson - You keep me coming back
Bros Johnson - Get the funk outta ma face
Bros Johnson - Thunder thumbs and lightnin licks
Bros Johnson - Funk it
Cameo - Funk funk
Cold blood - Kissing my love
Commodores - Slippery when wet
Commodores - Look what youve done to me
Commodores - The bump
Commodores - I feel sanctified
Donald Byrd - Thank you for funkin up my life
Fatback - Hip so slick
Fatback - Busstop
Fatback - Yum yum
Pfunk - Cosmic slop and lotsa others..
George Duke - Dukey stick
Heat Wave - Boogie nights
Herbie Hancock - Spider
Isley bros - Climbin up the ladder
Isley bros - The Pride
Isley bros - Take me to the next phase
Jamiroquai - Just another story (S Zender..)
Jimmy Castor - Maximum stimulation
Linda Lewis - Sideways shuffle
Minnie Riperton - Young willing & able
Modulations - Rough out here
Mutiny - Lump
Mutiny - Funk n bop
Ohio Players - Skin Tight
Ohio Players - Ecstasy
Ohio Players - Fopp
Osiris - Gritt on it
Osiris - Say you will
Parlet - Help from my friends
Rare Earth - Ijust want to celebrate
Rick James - Bustin out.. and other stuff
Stargard - Which way is up
A Taste of Honey - You
A Taste of Honey - Aint nothing but a party
A Taste of Honey - Disco Dancin
Teena Marie - It must be magic
Teena Marie - Square Biz
Teena Marie - Playboy
Temptations - Shakey Ground
Temptations - Standing on the top

..keep em coming! I really like to find "new old music" in this genre.

Cheers!

-P

 

[dezziwood]

I like Stomp by Brother's Johnson featuring Louis "Thunder Thumb" Johnson. Lowrider by War is a classic. Sly and the Family Stone featuring Larry Graham on Sing a Simple Song is BADASS! I could go on for days with great bass parts to songs like these! I still have my Afro from 1974.

 

[AlexBongoCrazy]

I'd definitely say Jamiroquai and Parliament is some of the funkiest stuff ever and the Headhunters version of Herbie Hancock's Watermelon man has a pretty good groove going so i'm gonna have to transcribe that soon. A lot soul,hip hop,Rnb stuff also has a fair amount of funky grooving bass stuff like Beyonce's Deja Vu, Work it out or Love on top.

On another note, if anyone knows how to get a bass synth sound like on Love on Top or like on Chaka Khan songs then please let me know cus I absolutely love that sound and am willing to spend money on a pedal for it. Hopefully I won't get loads of messages back telling me to buy a Moog

 

[Holdsg]

I'd buy a microKorg keyboard to play synth bass before I'd by a moog. that's just me.

 

[captaineo]

My favorite is probably Tower of Power's "What is Hip?". Rocco Prestia's basslines are just pure funk.

Tower of Power's "What is Hip?" would be my vote too...ONLY because it made such a HUGE impact in my life as a bass player. Other influential favorite lines for me are (and I know some of y'all won't consider these funk) Every Little Thing She Does is Magic by the Police and Aeroplane by The Red Hot Chili Peppers.

 

[straycat113]

Very rarely do I get sucked in by a Bass line and these aren't funk, but two of my all time favorites are Longview by Greenday and the Bass in the beginning of Sweet Child of Mine.