Can you say biased? I know I can say it and admit to it.

I became a bass player for life after watching a clip on MuchMusic in the 80′s where Geddy Lee from Rush was standing behind a great wall of keyboards slamming out a great bassline. I never thought bass could be played that way with such drive and melody.

The song was “Marathon” and it is from Rush’s “A Show of Hands” live set. Still one of my favourite records of all time. So going to spend this week reflecting on some of the great singing Bass Players.

I mention Geddy Lee. His driving lines and ability to play a constant busy pace while singing over top of it is frankly frightening. There are so many great rush songs where frankly he just destroys. Having seen him live I was in a constant state of amazement through the whole show. The Rush catalogue has so many high points, many featuring the great Lee at work.

Glenn Hughes is a jack of all musical trades legend. More known for his voice than anything, Glenn’s tenure with Deep Purple cemented him as one of the most brilliant vocalists/bassists ever. He moved on to work with Black Sabbath as a singer for a brief time then on to other projects including a brilliant successful solo career which continues. Hughes was very open about his substance abuse problems which inspired many to get help and move forward. Much of his recent music thankfully features his great bass playing at the forefront of the mix. Check out “Soulmover” on YouTube for a kick ass song with a kick-ass video. 

Geddy Lee and Rush appear regularly on Sirius 19 The Boneyard and also Sirius 15 Classic Rewind. Glenn Hughes will turn up once in a while on Sirius 14 Classic Vinyl with Deep Purple and Sirius 16 Deep Tracks. On Deep Tracks I have heard some old tracks with an earlier band, Trapeze  as well as the Deep Purple stuff he is on.