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Originally Posted by Jemwielder
I find your poll to be interesting in the sense that it's like apples and oranges...... no scratch that, apples and salmon. In short I'd like to give all of you a little comparison. Perhaps Yngwie Malmsteen or Bob Dylan? See what I mean, you can't choose because great musicianship transcends style.
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Exactly - that was my whole point.
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Originally Posted by Jemwielder
Ok ok if we're gonna get nit-picky and bring technique into the debate then the choice is obvious. I just think that such a comparison is far too colored by peoples preference in styles of music. A great comparison could be the time honored one between Victor Wooten or Marcus Miller. Or if you prefer rock bassists how about Cliff Burton or Billy Sheehan or Bynoe and Sheehan. Or perhaps Tony Levin and Chris Squire, that's a tough one for me personally because I like how both of them play. |
I disagree thoroughly. I don't think it's an obvious choice at all. I know one totally amazing funk bass player in my home town who's been studying Bootsy's style (amongst many others of course) for all his adult life - and he still can't nail the Bootsy groove. He might not play at a million miles an hour but he makes each note count in a way that none of the other players you mention can. Similarly, I like Patitucci for his mellow jazz stuff as opposed to the fusion fretboard burns I've seen him do with Chick Corea (I'm sure I saw him using all 4 fingers on his right hand in some of the more frenetic songs...) He blew me away live but its the slow stuff such as 'One More Angel' that made me realise just how amazing he really is. Both of these guys made an impact on me as a _guitar_ player that players like Sheehan or Burton could never do.
Finally, I also think that there are LOTS of people out there whose musical views are not so 'coloured' as to be unable to appreciate both of these fine musicians, and to make sweeping statements about people's inability to make such a comparison (or appreciation, perhaps a better term) due to their own musical preferences is quite presumptous. Your example of Malmsteen against Dylan is a good example. To me, Dylan had the creative spark of a true poet, whereas Malmsteen churns out harmonic
minor scales at a million miles an hour. Technically astounding but to my ears, utterly sterile. I can appreciate superfast technique as much as the next guy, but I'd rather listen to Al-Dimeola doing it on his acoustic and making it sound like the most beautiful thing you can imagine.
I think true musicianship transcends technique, and that's why I mentioned these two bass players. Sorry, must stop sounding so serious! It was supposed to be a bit of lighthearted fun.....
Cheers,
Dave
