List of Bass Singers in Non-Classical Music

Check out this list of well-known bass singers in non-classical music. See if your favorite artist made the cut!

Rock

There are many bass singers who have made their mark in the world of rock music. Some of the most famous include Paul McCartney, Geddy Lee, and Roger Waters. These bass singers have brought their own unique style to the music they create.

Geddy Lee

Geddy Lee Weinrib, better known as Geddy Lee, is a Canadian musician, singer, and songwriter. He is best known as the lead vocalist, bassist, and keyboardist for the Canadian rock band Rush. Lee joined Rush in 1968 at the age of 15, taking over from original bassist and frontman Jeff Jones. With Lee on bass, Rush went on to become one of the most commercially successful and critically acclaimed rock bands of all time.

Lee’s stage presence has been described as outgoing and lively. In contrast to common stereotypes of rock musicians, he is noted for his clean-cut image and his use of a single black Rickenbacker 4001SLE Bass during live performances. His bass playing style— which relies heavily on artificial harmonics, pick slaps, and quick bunched notes—has inspired many other musicians such as Les Claypool of Primus and Cliff Burton of Metallica.

Cliff Burton

Cliff Burton (February 10, 1962 – September 27, 1986) was an American musician, best known as the second bass guitarist for the American thrash metal band Metallica from December 1982 until his death in September 1986. Burton joined Metallica in 1982 and performed on the band’s first three studio albums: Kill ‘Em All, Ride the Lightning, and Master of Puppets. He also received credit for writing parts of those albums. Burton died in 1986 after being thrown from a tour bus in Sweden during Metallica’s European tour.

John Entwistle

John Alec Entwistle (9 October 1944 – 27 June 2002) was an English bass guitarist, singer, songwriter and film and television actor. In a career lasting more than 40 years, Entwistle was best known as the original bass guitarist for the English rock band the Who. He was nicknamed “The Ox” because of his strong influence on the band’s sound and his solid appearance.

Entwistle’s instrumental approach used pentatonic lead lines, and a then-unusual treble-rich sound created by turning up his amplifier to full volume and using close microphone technique to achieve heavy distortion. He was one of the first English rock bassists to show interest in using electronic effects such as fuzz bass. During his time as a member of the Who, Entwistle wrote or co-wrote (usually with Pete Townshend) some of their most famous songs, including “Boris the Spider”, “My Generation” and “Won’t Get Fooled Again”.

Jazz

Bass singers are the lowest-voiced type of singer. In Jazz, the bass singer usually has a range from the second E below middle C to the E above middle C (i.e., E2–E4).

Charles Mingus

Charles Mingus was an American jazz bassist, composer, and bandleader. Mingus’s compositions incorporated elements of blues, gospel, and bebop, and were noted for their innovation and power. He was also a groundbreaking bandleader, who often showcased the talents of musicians such as Eric Dolphy, Jackie McLean, Miles Davis, and Duke Ellington.

Jaco Pastorius

Jaco Pastorius (December 1, 1951 – September 21, 1987) was an American jazz bassist who was a member of Weather Report from 1976 to 1981. He is considered to have changed the vocabulary of the electric bass. His style was greatly influenced by Cuban percussion, rhythm and melody. He was inducted into the DownBeat Jazz Hall of Fame in 1988, one of only seven bassists so honored (and the only electric bassist).

Stanley Clarke

Clarke was born in Philadelphia and he began playing the double bass when he was eleven. He attended the Juilliard School, but did not complete his degree as he decided to pursue a career in music. He recorded his first album in 1971 and has since released over thirty albums. He is one of the most influential bass guitarists of all time and has played with some of the biggest names in Jazz, including Chick Corea, Return to Forever, and Herbie Hancock.

Funk

These are some of the best funk bassists that have ever lived. If you are a fan of the genre, then you will know many of these famous bassists. Bootsy Collins, Flea, and Verdine White are just a few of the many iconic bassists on this list.

Bootsy Collins

Bootsy Collins (born William Earl Collins on October 26, 1951) is an American musician and singer-songwriter. He is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, inducted in 1997 with 15 other members of Parliament-Funkadelic. Born and raised in Cincinnati, Ohio, he fronted The Pacemakers from 1968 to 1971 before joining James Brown’s band the same year. He then moved to Parliament-Funkadelic in 1972. Collins has been credited as one of the architects of P-Funk. He was both a solo artist and bandleader throughout the 1970s and 1980s, scoring ten top ten hits on the R&B singles chart, including three number ones: “Stretchin’ Out” (1977), “Bootzilla” (1978), and “Jam Fan (Hot)” (1982).

Bernard Edwards

Bernard Edwards (October 31, 1952 – April 18, 1996) was an American bass player, singer, songwriter and record producer, best known as a member of the band Chic. He is credited with writing “Everybody Dance” and “Le Freak”, co-writing “I Want Your Love” and producing records for Sister Sledge, Carly Simon, Roberta Flack and Diana Ross. Edwards’ work with Chic has been honored with induction into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame.

Louis Johnson

Louis Johnson (born Louis Arthur Johnson) was an American bass singer and bass guitarist. He is best known for his work with the Brothers Johnson and as a session musician with numerous artists including Michael Jackson, Quincy Jones, George Benson, Donna Summer and James Brown. As a member of the Brothers Johnson, he recorded the hits “Strawberry Letter 23”, “I’ll Be Good to You” and “Ain’t We Funkin’ Now”. As a session musician, he played on Paul McCartney’s “Coming Up”, Quincy Jones’ “Body Heat”, Michael Jackson’s “Off the Wall”, George Benson’s “Give Me the Night”, Donna Summer’s “Bad Girls” and James Brown’s “Living in America”.

R&B

There are many popular R&B songs that have been performed by bass singers. Some of these bass singers have even gone on to have successful careers in the music industry. Here is a list of some of the most popular R&B bass singers.

James Jamerson

James Lee Jamerson (January 29, 1936 – August 2, 1983) was an American bass player. He was the uncredited bassist on most of the Motown Records hits in the 1960s and early 1970s, played on thirty-eight number-one pop hits on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. He was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2002. As a session musician he played on twelve other US number one pop hits.

Bootsy Collins

Bootsy Collins (born October 26, 1951) is an American musician and singer-songwriter. Collins is a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, inducted in 1997 with 15 other members of Parliament-Funkadelic. Born in Cincinnati, Ohio, he began his career as a bassist in the early 1970s with James Brown’s band, The J.B.’s, appearing on Brown’s 1971 album, Soul on Top.

Collins launched his solo career with the release of his debut album Bootsy? Player of the Year in 1977. He released several successful albums throughout the 1970s and 1980s including The One Giveth, The Count Taketh Away (1982), This Boot is Made for Fonk-N (1982) and His Funkness Majesty Busmaster Boogie Woogie Band (1985). In 1991 he released his first solo album in six years entitled Back from the Dead which contained the single “I’d Rather Be with You”.

Collins has played on some of the most influential funk and hip-hop recordings of all time including Parliament’s “Give Up the Funk (Tear the Roof Off the Sucker)” and George Clinton’s “Atomic Dog”. He has also collaborated with numerous artists including Deee-Lite, 2Pac, Snoop Dogg and Buckethead.

Verdine White

Verdine White (born July 25, 1951) is an American musician, songwriter, record producer, and a founding member of the group Earth, Wind & Fire. Verdine is the younger brother of Maurice White (Earth, Wind & Fire’s founder and primary songwriter). As a bass guitarist, Verdine has played on numerous EWF recordings and has been vital to the band throughout its existence. He has also appeared on Morris Day’s albums.

Country

Victor Wooten

Victor Wooten (/vuːtn/; born September 11, 1964) is an American bass player, composer, author, producer, and recipient of five Grammy Awards. He has been the bass guitarist for Bela Fleck and the Flecktones since 1995, with whom he has recorded twelve albums. His solo recordings include A Show of Hands (1996), Soul Circus (2003),Palmystery (2008), Sword & Stone (2010), Words & Tones (2012). His memoir, The Music Lesson: A Spiritual Search for Growth Through Music (Victor Wooten with Steve Bailey, Gotham Books; Reprint edition, 2009) has been published in 14 languages.

Michael Rhodes

Michael Rhodes is an American bass singer. He is best known for his work in country music, but has also sung in other genres including rock and roll, gospel, and blues. He has released several albums and singles, both as a solo artist and as a member of various bands. Rhodes was born in Yazoo City, Mississippi, and grew up singing in church. He began playing bass guitar in high school, and after graduation, he moved to Nashville to pursue a career in music. He quickly found work as a session musician, playing on records by artists such as George Jones and Waylon Jennings. In the early 1980s, he joined the country rock band The Highwaymen, which also featured Willie Nelson, Johnny Cash, and Kris Kristofferson. The group had several hit singles, including “The Highwayman” and “Desperados Waiting for a Train”. Rhodes continued to play with various artists throughout the 1980s and 1990s, including Ringo Starr, Emmylou Harris, Dolly Parton, Vince Gill, and Brooks & Dunn. In recent years, he has mostly retired from performing and is now focusing on songwriting.

Dave Pomeroy

Dave Pomeroy is an American bass singer, composer, producer, arranger, educator, and author. He is a four-time Grammy nominee and a member of the Nashville Music Hall of Fame. Pomeroy has released more than twenty albums as a leader in a wide variety of genres, including jazz, rock, country, folk, and blues. He has performed and recorded with some of the most acclaimed artists in the world, including Dolly Parton, Emmylou Harris, Vince Gill, Steve Winwood, Alison Krauss, Béla Fleck, Chet Atkins, and many others.