By the way, if you’d like the free tabs, notation and bass-less backing tracks I used in this video, just head to the site and download them here: becomeabassist.com/227-beatles-bass-lines
@The Upright Luthier - that's some pretty hardcore gatekeeping. And considering the number of very accomplished 'real' musicians who use tabs that I know, I disagree. 'Real' musicians use whatever tools and methods that work best for them, and for some, that includes tabs.
His bass lines got more intricate around the time the Beatles stopped performing live. He knew he wouldn't have to play the more sophisticated line and sing something completely different. James Jamerson wasn't singing a lead vocal while he played.
Not quite. This vid says Rubber Soul on; and both that one and the next, Revolver, were released before they (officially, at least) decided to stop touring. It does make you wonder, though, whether it might have been something they had already spoken about, when you think about how few of their "newer" songs made it into the live sets during the last few concerts...
@Kevin Michael Took ME a while, but I can do it proficiently enough! Was def HARDER than playing guitar and singing, but PRACTICE works! (just ASK Glenn, 'Know it all' Fricker! )
Paul was a guitar player and pianist prior to agreeing to play bass because the band already had John and George on guitar and because he was a guitarist and piano player, he wasn't going to deny his melodic tendencies because he now played bass, he just adapted the bass lines to be melodic. When he first started, he did what any guitar player would when first learning bass, he played root notes ( and then roots and 5ths). As he got comfortable on the bass, he made it his own...and we're glad he did!
Yes, Paul had an advantage 😂of playing the baseline along with the ability to play the melody. Other bassist have had such miraculous moments. Carol Kane in just about any work she did.
I have always felt that Paul was the greatest bassist of all time for any pop rock band. . We hardly talk about this special genius of the iconic man because normally it gets over shadowed with the other super human song writing abilities of Paul and the Beatles as a whole ..Paul plays bass, piano, uklelle, guitar leads, strums most intricate chords , plays drums .... GENIUS.unparalled
George hated the bass line of Something. He asked Paul to play a bass line as simple as the ones Paul always played on his own slow ballads, but Paul ignored his request. I always hear the line as a raised middle finger from Paul to George. Bass players love it though. They get to pretend to be as cool as the lead guitarist. For three minutes.
EDIT: I just saw that you made a similar claim on that video 10 days ago @jotcarey. I asked for a source then and you never replied. I’m afraid ‘Trust me bro’ is not a credible source. Original comment: Do you have a reliable source for that claim @jotcarey? Geoff Emerick tells the story of George asserting himself in the studio, but mentions nothing of Paul ignoring the request to play simpler, and if you listen to early rehearsals, Paul is definitely noodling pretty hardcore, so I wouldn’t be surprised if George told him to chill. And to my ear, the bass line serves the song really well. I explain in the video linked above. Also, the live recordings I’ve heard of George playing Something, the bass line is pretty much what’s on the original recording, so that indicates to me that he can’t have hated it _that_ much; otherwise he would have got his bassists to play something different/simpler.
While Paul is alive and still with us, someone needs to spend a couple of days with him going through a tonne of his lines and get Paul's thoughts on how and why he played what he did. He has a true gift of finding how to make songs extra special by doing many unconventional things but always leaving that famous McCartney signature all over them. We have no one coming through to replace this amazing genius when he's gone.
Jerry Rubin's series on Apple+ (I think) covers some of it - they go over some of the iconic songs with the multi-track tapes. Not exhaustive but that's an awful lot of stuff to drag someone through.
@@thosdot6497 Rick Rubin’s ‘McCartney 321’ on Disney. Before watching ‘Get Back’ I stumbled across ‘321’ and binged 3 episodes in one sitting. Brilliant. I hope they do more.
@@trapezoidspangle934 - thanks for the correction, my memory's getting kinda worrying these days! But yes, great show. I love it when people who know what they're talking about have access to the tapes (like Rick Beato sometimes), you can learn so much.
@@fortunatomartino8549 i never said you do, nor do you have to. it doesnt mean you need to come up with shitty conspiracy theories and go against literal facts all for the sake of discrediting them
Two items that you missed, which I've heard Paul McCartney report as being what really made a difference in his bass playing on records as of "Rubber Soul", was (1). how Brian Wilson, yes, even pre-"Pet Sounds" was arranging bass parts for The Beach Boys' records which knocked McCartney out - bass lines that implemented both alternate bass notes and very melodioc bass lines. (2). which inspired McCartney, going forward, to leave the bass off of the basic track on Beatles recordings and unlike all previous Beatles albums, to record his bass lines last, after all of the other music had been recorded. McCartney said this new recording techniqe gave him a lot of room to take his time and be more creative. And as you point out, the change in what Paul was doing on bass as of "Rubber Soul" is hard to miss.
It was Brian Wilson who came up with the insanely melodic bass line at the beginning of Good Vibrations, which was then played by Carol Kaye. She stated that she would never have come up with that line herself (watch the movie “The Wrecking Crew”). Her admiration for Brian was quite evident.
All My Loving is a great example of an early intricate bassline. The riff in Drive My Car was Harrison's idea, actually, and he had the idea by listening to Otis Redding's Respect.
The Night Before, She's A Woman, and Do You Want To Know A Secret are also pretty good examples of his early playing being somewhat interesting. Listening to the isolated bass track of Don't Bother Me was pretty shocking though, by far the most difficult bassline of any Beatles song up to that point in my opinion.
Paul may not have written the bassline for I Saw Her Standing There, but he deserves serious credit for pulling it off so well. I'm a pretty experienced bassist and I still struggle to play the whole thing flawlessly, not to mention singing lead over the whole thing
I just played it last night in our gig and I use a plectrum because the guitarist always wants to go about 6 beats faster than the Beatles played it. I can play it with my fingers but playing it with a plectrum allows me to play faster more easily. I can nail it that way. BTW: after trying out dozens of plectrums, I've found the Dunlop Prime Tone Sculpted Plectra 1.4 (with the raised dots for better grip) to be the best I've ever played with. It glides off the strings like ice and lets me play very fast with minimal effort. Try one out and see what you think.
A couple of other things to think about, when the Beatles first started to get big, Paul had only been playing bass for a relatively short time, taking over after Stu Sutcliffe left the band. So I'm guessing he was still finding lots of new things to do with the bass. And the other possible influence, when his lines got really good, was when they were transitioning from a live band, to being strictly studio. And even during the rubber soul and revolver time, the Beatles were still playing a lot of early material live, and a lot of the songs from those two albums didn't get played live. Once they were in the studio, he could spend more time perfecting his lines, and not having to worry about performing live!! I think once he had the freedom to spend more time, and not having to worry about live performances, it gave him the freedom to become the fantastic craftsman of bass that he is!! So, that's my two cents worth!! Not to say anything you said was wrong, I'm with you on it all, but I believe these are two more pieces of the puzzle worth thinking about on top of your analysis!! Great vid as always!! Keep up the great work!! 😀😀
I totally agree @scott ewen! From everything I read, it seems like Rubber Soul was the first time that the band members really started asserting themselves in the studio and really taking time to perfect the songs and production. Their reluctance to keep touring, I think definitely made a difference to the effort they started putting towards the recording process.
Yes, I've thought this - when they moved to the studios, the harmonies they sung likewise could become more complex - they poured all their musicality into the recordings, adding to it growing knowledge of the studio.
What is also remarkable is, Paul was a composer and preferred to sit at a piano or with a guitar and write songs, leaving less time to practise playing the bass.
yes - I agree. When playing live the intricacies of the bass line can be influenced by having to sing and play at the same time. In the early days a lot of songs that John was the lead on - Paul was doubling and/or singing harmony on.
3 other great early basslines: Do You Want to Know a Secret Don't Bother Me I'm Happy Just to Dance With You All 3 are George songs. Often when Paul didn't have to focus on singing, he went all-out on bass.
Yes, I just wrote that too about "Do You Want To Know A Secret" I would have to question anyone's credentials who would miss that song. Paul's playing is fantastic there. I loved that song ever since I watched that Beatles documentary from the 80s, the one with narration done from the actor who was the main actor in Clock Work Orange. McDowel, or something like that. But even as little kid, I remember hearing that on a TV show back then, and just loving that base line. During " you you you, and then that guitar arpeggio, and you you you.
I'm a loser is also a great bassline. It starts with the root and fifth "plodding" style, similar to Love Me Do, The Night Before, I Want To Hold Your Hand, etc. before going it an awesome driving line in the chorus.
His baselines weren’t boring in the beginning. Their early songs weren’t as sophisticated as they became later. So naturally, his bass playing became more sophisticated and complex also as the band progressed. However, he was always a solid melodic driving bass player.
Paul had problems with his Hofner bass and couldn't play past the fourth fret without losing tune. His playing took off when he started playing the Rick. I used to study his playing and wondered the same but that's why. Paul also writes bass lines as if he was playing a piano. I think a majority of Beatles songs were arranged on piano. The bass line in Something is metaphysical and portrays the male voices concern before coming back again and reuniting with the female voice of the guitar on the songs motif. It's very beautiful to listen to Something and imagine a couple bickering back and forth until finally the lead guitar states her case in the solo.
Brian Wilson's influence on Paul's bass playing is often overlooked as it has in this video. Paul once remarked that he learned what a bass guitar could be after hearing Pet Sounds.
There was definitely a Brian Wilson/Beach Boys/Carol Kaye influence on Paul’s playing - especially when it came to albums like Sgt. Pepper. However, the time I’m mainly talking about, was pre-Pet Sounds which was released in May of 1966. It was actually Rubber Soul that inspired Wilson for a lot of Pet Sounds, which then deeply influenced Sgt. Peppers. Source: wearecult.rocks/11-things-you-probably-didnt-know-about-rubber-soul (Point #3)
@@BecomeABassist I understand that. But if you listen to Brian’s playing on, for example, ‘The Beach Boys Today’ (1965) you can hear the influence. Paul is and always was a huge fan of Brian Wilson, and vice versa. Perhaps it is because they were born on the very same day.
@@BecomeABassist Brian Wilson's style was evident long before Pet Sounds. Carol Kaye credits Brian Wilson for either writing out the charts or describing to her what he wanted. Yes, on much of Pet Sounds, it was Carol playing, but Brian directing.
I understand what you’re saying about the early period bass playing, but one of the main reasons Paul’s playing starting getting more adventurous was due to the recording technology in the studio improving. Paul didn’t waste his time getting complicated prior to Rubber Soul because no one really would’ve heard it. Having that been said, “I’ll Cry Instead” from the Hard Day’s Night album stands out to me as an early example of a solid bassline, especially on the part that starts just before John sings “And show you what your lovin’ man can do…” - Brilliant! Anyway, love the video and I’m looking forward to more!
I read somewhere that once they became a studio only band, Paul's bass would often be recorded last. So that means he would have had a finished track (minus bass) with which to play with and work out a bass part. If true, this would allow for a lot of experimentation and tweaking to get what he wanted for the song.
I did hear many years ago that Paul, not writing and reading music in a trained classical sense, would often sing some bass lines until he was happy and then transfer the ideas to the instrument. That would make sense when adding the bass to an existing idea or recorded track. The alternative would be where a distinctive bass part may have come to him earlier in the process and other parts fitting around it. The approach taken would, I imagine, be dependant to some degree on whether the basic idea for the song came from Paul himself or not. The evolution would continue with Wings as others have pointed out.
Hi Luke, I agree with what you say, but 3 other factors that affect a lot of the tracks are: 1. Marijuana 2.The Beatles weren't touring, so he didn't have to write a line he could sing along with. 3. They had more tracks to play with, so he was overdubbing the bass, not playing it with the drums and rhythm guitar, so could work out what best fit the music later. Cheers, Russell
I think the shift in bass styles goes from playing bass parts that support a chord structure to writing lines that are actually melodic hooks in the song. This was a huge development in the Beatles, the constant melody to melody approach to part writing. I think Ringo became that type of drummer as well.
Also pay attention to the space given to the bass. In earlier Beatles-songs, it’s mostly a classic rock sound with vocals and guitar up front, not giving the bassline much headroom for attention at all. If the bassline would have been more varied, it would most likely have crashed with something else. For later songs, the band is a lot more symphonic, the structure of the compositions are different, and the vocals and guitar give the bass a lot more space. The bass goes from having a purely fundamental functional role, to play a significant role in the contrapoint of the melody itself. In short: early songs with complicated bassline will sound messy, while later songs with simple bassline sounds incomplete.
Thank you. After not playing bass for several "decades" I've fallen in will a group of aging ukulele players and have become the bass player! In a little more than a year the basic stuff has come back to me, it's now automatic. You've inspired me to move forward and spice up all of my playing! After all it was the Beatles who inspired me to learn the guitar in the first place circa '63. 😉
Your basic 4-piece rock band has drums and 3 guitars - Lead, Rhythm and Bass. Even when The Beatles were still making records, I always said that Paul wasn’t just playing bass - he was playing “Lead Bass”. BIG difference. The way a Lead Guitar player would be all over the fingerboard, Paul would be as well with his bass part. Therefore, there would be TWO lead guitar parts at the same time, but one of them would be played on a bass guitar… and they WERE NOT THE SAME! That’s what made the difference.
I believe that Paul was/is one of the very best and most creative electric bass players ever. Proof of the Count Basie school of music: you don’t have to play so many notes if you know the right notes. Edit: your commentary and analysis are superb!
@@wheatonna Not sure why Harrison complained tho .. " Something" imo is not that busy a bass line . It suits the song perfectly , but maybe Harrison was just using that example to get back at Paul a little .. I dont know
One thing I love about Ringo is that he didn't overplay - never tried to show off. He gave each song exactly what it needed without drawing undue attention to himself. I think that's true of Paul's bass as well. A bassline shouldn't stick out but complement the song. I usually don't notice the bassline until someone points it out. And for a song like the iconic Love Me Do, anything but a very simple bassline would have overpowered it. And you know what? I think Love Me Do did okay for itself.
Why not try to listen to their song, "And Your Bird Can Sing", which for me is even a typical bass player will have to figure out the difficult bass progression before performing it live.
as a non musician opinion, I think anything people write musically is brilliant. it can be simple or more complicated. if it sounds good that is all that matters.
Savoy Truffle is another masterpiece. I learned when i was a kid and i it blows my mind, its really difficult (at that time i didnt ear the kind of intrincate notes that Paul usual record like a jam session, probably because it was). Couple of years laters i brought a Rickenbacker. The magic of learning again the songs, and find that signature sound is something i really recomend to any fan of McCartney and bass players. Also, Harrison did an amazing job on "old brown shoe" playing probably the Fender VI. George had a outstanding ability to mimic paul and john tec and ways of playing. What a great band. Great video man! V
Rickenbacker's are lovely, and have contributed to my favorite bass tones over decades. Paul's bright fuzz, Lemmy and Cliff Burton's rumble. They don't step all over the song, but they won't be ignored. If only the 4003 came in a "comfort model" I might actually buy one.
They may not all be iconic as standalone bass lines, but they are all EXACTLY what the song needed. As the songs got more complex, so did his bass lines.
Greatness was already in him. McCartney just needed that spark, that inspiration, to bring it out of him. Jameson did that. McCartney’s “Coming Up” live in Japan is just One great example of his innovative bass playing.
What you don’t seem to realize is that the “boring” base lines on the early songs are exactly what those songs needed. The arrangements of those simpler songs (including the bass) are genius. They’ve never been improved upon. Yes the bass lines became even more interesting but so did the songs.
I realize and agree with you Matt Michael - The bass lines in the early songs are 100% appropriate for those songs. I say as much in the video: "All iconic songs, and the bass playing IS good." But if you directly compare the bass lines specifically - which is what this video is about - the later McCartney material is definitely a lot more active and melodic, which suits the new style of songs the Beatles wrote. But then if I widen the scope of the video to talk about the songwriting as well as the bass lines, then the production would also need to be addressed as well, which would open up even more rabbit holes and it would become this ever-expanding behemoth.
Totally agree, The bass is there to accompany the song and in the earlier songs it does perfectly. It's one of the problems that bass players have. Often an elaborate busy bass line is not necessarily a better one. As Paul had so much influence in the beatles he could indulge himself in fancier bass playing. In other bands the bass player is often a lesser member, so the guitarists would exert more influence thereby not letting the bassist get above themselves. All my loving is a blinder of a bass line and it was early.
@@BecomeABassist I mostly agree with you but for example Paul's simple earlier bass lines are punchier than examples you played. They got rhythm. You can't reproduce those Paul's microseconds, I am afraid. Anyway, Thanks. Good work.
Thank you for this. I'm not a musician and I don't understand the technicalities, but I can hear the difference. I think that I've always listened to the bass since I was a teen listening to the Beatles and the Stones. When I came across Tal Wilkenfeld playing with Jeff Beck at Ronnie Scott's, I realised that the bass wasn't just there to provide a mostly musical beat.
There's no doubt that his bass lines became more involved, complex, and rich later in the band's history, but even early on he had some really solid and even iconic ones. A great example is the bass line for 'All My Loving'. It's so prominent and it's really a kind of walking bass line which no one in rock or pop was doing at the time, certainly not with the prominence of his part in the recording, nor the prominence of the band.
This reminds me of when I had a band, we were learning and playing Twist and Shout, our singer looked over at us playing and said everyone looks bored! We responded "we are bored!" lol
Great video! Just keep in mind that the most basic ones are also great bcs they are exactly what those songs needed. The rhythmic/melodic complexity doesn’t necessarily makes it better
This is not only one of the best music instruction videos I've seen, but one of the best insights into the magic of the Beatles' recordings. Well done.
Keep in mind too that McCartney wrote half the songs of a very melodic band so melodic bass lines seemed like a natural progression. You can even see the songwriting process using only his bass in "Get Back"
he just played a simple 4/4 blues, everyone leans it by there 2nd week of playing bass/guitar. there was no process. beatles fans smh. in fact, the only reason that song (indeed, the album) is even listenable is because billy preston's playing. he shaped those lifeless dead-end songs into records. even the beatles said so
The bass Paul plays throughout Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band has always mesmerized me. It is fantastic start to finish. Apparently Paul laid those tracks last (where one would typically think the bass would be recorded first with ant or all rhythm tracks) in just a few sessions, and it sort of makes sense, as the bass makes the whole thing gel.
I love, 'Love me do' it's my all-time favourite Beatles song; and maybe it is that elementary bassline that makes it work. So, if that simple bassline is underpinning the song's overall make-up and character, then as simple as it is; one could argue that the simplicity is in fact genius.
Dude, after the intro of this video I was literally thinking: “There’s no way he’ll mention a major change in Paul’s playing without bringing up the conspiracy theory”, and then you did! You have earned a follow from me sir. Very awesome video!
Great video. I'm a bass player and a McCartney fan and he's always been one of my favourite bassists. But I think there's another major influence on his bass playing that you haven't mentioned, and that's Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys. Brian was also an excellent singing bass player and he created beautiful melodic bass lines on his records like "Pet Sounds". But the real key to the beauty of these McCartney/Wilson bass lines are how they blend with the vocal harmonies on top. Nobody else can get close to the Beatles and the Beach Boys when it comes to this.
Paul started playing bass when they kicked out their bass player because he stunk, and no one else would do it. I think he was about 18 when he got his first bass. The early songs were so simple that all the guitar parts were very basic. They emulated their idols with a basic R&B/pop sound, but it was their chord changes later on that added more flavor, along with some unique harmonies, that changed rock n roll. Paul's background as a guitarist bled over into his bass playing as he got more intricate, he often played bass lines as if they were a counter-lead. I totally agree that this lead some truly awesome and amazing bass lines in the later songs, like Penny Lane and Hey Bulldog! Great take on this, my friend. Sir Paul is one hell of a gifted musician.
It’s cause he started really being influenced by the master session musicians of the day like you’ve sighted James Jamerson and Carol Kaye. Having a great ear for music particularly melody you’re naturally going to evolve quickly. In his case he just became a very well rounded multi-instrumentalist. Edit: btw that cool iconic bass line he played early on he nicked from Chuck Berry
Man that was a masterclass. Please make a similar episode for Gene Simmons KISS and how his phenomenal basslines of the 70's went into root notes in the 80s and his original style comeback in Revenge 1992. Thank you!
Couldn't advocate drug use, but without those "three words" there's a huge gap in a lot of mid to late 60s music. Hahaha Do drugs and melt into a mess or one in a million becomes a genius. Not worth the gamble. Become a genius in some other way. Cheers
I love Paul's bass lines from Rubber Soul on. I think of Rubber Soul as the emergence of the real Beatles- that is, the mature Beatles. The first hint of that was 'Yesterday'. And Paul's bass lines are not just great melodies. They are a beautiful interesting harmonious part of the wider composition. Like a line from Beethoven's ninth symphony would be. And they have the feel of interesting storytelling. Ringo's drumming on their mature music was also very interesting and sophistocated. They set such a high standard for interesting sophistocated music, all while writing perhaps the greatest lyrics in the history of the English language. And what a tone from Paul's bass!
I think "singability" and earworm are the key phrase when it comes Jamerson-ish bassline, and yet, for their complexity they still work with the rest of the band/tune and not fight for the limelight
I wonder how much influence George Martin had on those early basslines too. I’m reading a book at the moment that talks about how in the early days Martin was quite traditionally minded and the Beatles were scared to question his instructions until a bit later on.
There may well be an element of that as well @Superdelphinus - Rubber Soul was apparently the album where the members of the band started to assert themselves a little more and take more time in the studio, so you may well be on to something there.
Glad you said Rubber Soul was the turning point. I'm not a musician, but when I first heard the bass line on Nowhere Man (my older sisters had all the LPs until Pepper) it changed the way I listened to music forever. It's good young musicians study McCartney, as a baton is passed down from blues and jazz, through Motown and soul, and onto nowadays.
Like Paul's bass playing, Ringo and George's playing became more melodic over time too. Don't know if that was influence from Paul, or the fact that they were strictly a studio band and could spend time working out more intricate parts that they didn't need to re-create on a stage.
I think it’s important to keep Paul’s age in mind when discussing the first few Beatles albums. He was born in 1942, making him 21-22 years old when the first four albums were released. I’d say his playing was exceptional for that era of rock music.
EXACTLY...he was almost 2 years younger than John...in the early 20s that makes a difference...by the time Paul hit his mid 20s his genius flourished all over their music
This was so cool! I just stumbled upon this vid, and appreciate the insights. After seeing Paul on his recent Got Back tour, I’ve been obsessed with his playing. I’ve always liked it, and was a huge Wings fan (and of course, Beatles formed the soundtrack of my young life). His bass parts make tunes feel great. I wondered if Jamerson was an influence on him, so it’s great having that validated. I’m hoping Sir Paul is with us for a few more decades. He’s so special and truly magical 🥰
Very enjoyable, you’re a cool dude and kudos for learning all Paul’s jams. One thing I kept waiting for you to mention is that he didn’t have to sing and play live gigs anymore during that Rubber Soul swing. That in itself changed a whole dynamic and his recording ability to improve his skills and showcase the bass separately. Not to mention all the influences that were going on around him with the talent the world was giving us with other music geniuses.
Aa always an interesting and great video. Paul McCartney is one of my all-time favorite bass players, the Beatles discography is a bass school with something for every level. I like his early bass lines too, Macca is a master of playing for the song and he played functional yet elegant with subtle finesses. Already on the early Beatles albums, he showed his melodic side on Please Please Me, Do You Want to Know a Secret and All My Loving, the last mentioned song is one of the greatest walking bass lines in my opinion
I beg to differ, one of my favourite bass lines by Paul is 'A Taste of Honey'. Yes, I know. Not their original song, PM for some reason has hardly played it since, but it's so jazzy and cute.
I found it interesting to learn that, at least on later albums, they added the bass towards the end of recording, allowing Paul to take his time crafting the bass line.
Wow, worth the wait! Absolutely fantastic video Luke. You really did a great job dissecting Paul's development. I really enjoyed this one. Always great to learn how the masters do it. Paul redefined the role of the bass for so many. Wonderful lesson. And Arnie was all over it!
Paul's early bass lines are the perfect gateway to learning bass. Then he went back to the old way when he played on All Together Now which to me is one of his best bass lines which is not as easy as it initially sounds. I love playing it.
I agree @Mike Close - Paul always played exactly what the song needed. It's just that the later lines from Rubber Soul onwards needed something a bit more melodic and interesting than the earlier songs.
After hearing the bass played “out of the pocket” on The Beach Boys album “Pet Sounds,” I’m sure Sue Paul was greatly influenced by Carol Kaye’s incredible bass playing. That style of playing is all over Sgt. Pepper, and later recordings.
As an OG Beatles fanatic, I was going to add the things you missed, but you you didn't miss anything. It always amazes me how guys born after the Beatles had broken up are experts on par with those of us who watched the Beatles on Ed Sullivan, February 9th, 1964!
In the 60s, bass was not really considered a lead instrument. It was just there to give the bottom a bit of movement. Paul was one of the first to start using more melodic bass lines and it only got better from there. He was a (the) major factor in that movement.
You can't sing lead vocals while playing McCartney's bass lines easily, it takes a lot of effort to learn. All my loving took me weeks to learn how to play while singing.
Because the Hofner violin bass is a BADLY designed instrument, period. If you ever play one, you’ll soon realize that it is EXTREMELY unbalanced and prone to neck dive, it is difficult to set up and intonate properly compared to other basses, the strings are tightly spaced and thus unnecessarily difficult to play, and its tone is rather flubby and mediocre even at its best. Yes, it is lightweight and unique looking, but that’s about all you can say for it. It would no doubt be TOTALLY forgotten by now if it weren’t for the fact that Paul McCartney played one, and virtually NOBODY is beating down the doors today to get them, apart from maybe PM impersonators playing in Beatles Tribute bands like Rain or The Fab Four.
@@tikvision Yes, although Paul clearly had (and STILL has) a genuine affinity for his Hofner, as he did go back to the Hofner on “Get Back,” even in spite of pleas from bandmates and people in the studio to use his Rickenbacker. He did go back to the Rick for the Wings years, but he still seems to use the Hofner in concerts to this very day. One possible reason: He did say at one point that he found the Hofner to be easier to play and lighter weight than the Rick. These factors were probably important at that time since “Get Back” was originally conceived to herald a return to live performance. In the end, as we know, The Beatles couldn’t agree on a format or a venue for the planned concert, and George Harrison returned to the band on the condition that they NOT perform live in front of an audience, and so The Beatles resigned themselves to performing on the rooftop of Apple HQ.
@@rudygracia5573 it think they sound very good plus Paul still uses the Hofner. As for being stockhead heavy that’s no different to any semi-acoustic guitar when doesn’t stop them from being popular. The reality is if they were as available as fenders and Gibsons there would be a lot more people playing them. The same goes for Ricky’s the lack of supply made them a non-starter even for people that would have wanted one. I see way more Hofners these days than I saw in the 60’s and 70’s basically I never saw any Hofners back in the day and to this day I’ve never seen a Ricky in a shop.
I respect Paul and The Beatles. Wouldn't say I'm a HUGE fan but I recognize their impact on Rock n Roll. What I love about Paul is the number of my favorite bassists that cite him as their main influence. You can really tell it too! All of them have what I like to call that "singing bass". Gene Simmons, dUg Pinnick, Billy Sheehan, Tom Peterson, etc.
Very good video. I admittedly have not read the nearly 600 comments so I apologize in advance if someone else has brought up Brian Wilson and his bass playing/arrangements on “Pet Sounds”. Paul has admitted that this album was highly influential to his bass playing, particularly Brian’s use of other notes in the chord rather than the root in his bass lines. This is particularly noticeable in Paul’s bass playing on “Sgt. Peppers”.
Yep, I heard about, it was session bassist Carol Kaye who played those parts on Pet Sounds, she influenced Paul among others. Paul definitely loved the album, he talked a lot about it. He said he got John hooked on it. But then, Rubber Soul was recorded PRIOR to Pet Sounds, and it inspired Brian to be more creative. Who then recorded Pet Sounds and in turn influenced Paul!
The "before & after" example you showed with You Won't See Me, how the bass line could have been played but how it actually was with Paul adding beauty to the line's function reminded me of the scene in Amadeus where Salieri has written a piece of music to welcome Mozart to the emperor's court, and Mozart takes the tune's simple structure and makes it beautiful. :)
Paul took over the bass in the Beatles. He originally played guitar. The 4 strings on a bass are tuned to the same notes as the 4 lowest strings on a guitar, one octave lower. So its only natural for a guitar player to play the "bass notes" of the guitar chords on the bass, and to add in the percussion aspects of the beat. Remember too, in the early 60s Beatles music was listened to on transistor radios, AM car radios, and small record players that teens got for christmas to play in their own rooms. Very few Beatles fans had a 50W per channel stereo with 15" woofer speakers, and no one had headphones - in other words MOST of the Beatles fans could not even HEAR the bass unless they were at a soda shop with a quality juke box. All that started to change in the mid sixties, when older people were buying Beatles records, and the Beatles quit touring and every thing after that was a studio album.
Very interesting 🙂I was thinking about the Paul is dead conspiracy thing first or playing around with drugs. But basically, the whole Beatles' song writing became more complex starting with Rubber Soul or at least Sgt.Pepper, didn't it? Thanks for the good advice and A:B comparison. This is quite helpful!
Two major reasons in my opinion: 1. They transitioned from a touring band to more studio recordings where it could be crafted to more complex works 2. Around the mid to late sixties rock and pop music in general started a radical shift towards more complex and revolutionary compositions and different innstrumental timbre. Being on the cutting edge of this, the Beatles followed suite.
I think its important to remember on the earlier stuff Paul had only just really started playing bass a lot more, they had a bass player a keyboard player and a different drummer until they returned from Germany to record their first record. I think part of this is just Paul moving on from being a guitar player that plays bass because the band needs someone to; to Paul becoming a bass player.
Very true. I play bass, and have done some concurrent singing from time to time. It definitely cuts your attention in half between the two efforts at first.
It was related to it but that wasn't the full story. John and George both changed their guitars and went for different sounds and the boys started experimenting with various new non- rock band instruments including George Martin's classical piano skills.
The reason the base line complexity changed was the first 67 songs were written and performed by Paul McCartney and after that Billy Shears wrote and performed the bass lines.
By the way, if you’d like the free tabs, notation and bass-less backing tracks I used in this video, just head to the site and download them here: becomeabassist.com/227-beatles-bass-lines
Great video !!!!!! Thanks. Have a look at the serie McCartney.3.2.1. Incredible serie about Paul's sound.
Good yes. John GREAT. F Paul
there's nothing wrong with roots and fifths if they suit the song. complexity is not the best fit for every song.
Do John Paul Jones 🙏
@The Upright Luthier - that's some pretty hardcore gatekeeping. And considering the number of very accomplished 'real' musicians who use tabs that I know, I disagree. 'Real' musicians use whatever tools and methods that work best for them, and for some, that includes tabs.
His bass lines got more intricate around the time the Beatles stopped performing live. He knew he wouldn't have to play the more sophisticated line and sing something completely different. James Jamerson wasn't singing a lead vocal while he played.
Not quite. This vid says Rubber Soul on; and both that one and the next, Revolver, were released before they (officially, at least) decided to stop touring. It does make you wonder, though, whether it might have been something they had already spoken about, when you think about how few of their "newer" songs made it into the live sets during the last few concerts...
@@soundaffects8352 True but they didn't really play songs from those albums live.
@Kevin Michael Took ME a while, but I can do it proficiently enough! Was def HARDER than playing guitar and singing, but PRACTICE works! (just ASK Glenn, 'Know it all' Fricker! )
@Kevin Michael Yes. I typically play two bass parts for a song. The easy one for when I’m singing and the better one for when I’m not.
@@soundaffects8352 Rubber Soul was the first album he used his new Rickenbacker.
Paul was a guitar player and pianist prior to agreeing to play bass because the band already had John and George on guitar and because he was a guitarist and piano player, he wasn't going to deny his melodic tendencies because he now played bass, he just adapted the bass lines to be melodic. When he first started, he did what any guitar player would when first learning bass, he played root notes ( and then roots and 5ths). As he got comfortable on the bass, he made it his own...and we're glad he did!
Exactly. You just owned this guy's video! 😆
@@ride8575 ✌
Yes, Paul had an advantage 😂of playing the baseline along with the ability to play the melody. Other bassist have had such miraculous moments. Carol Kane in just about any work she did.
Paul essentially developed his bass lines from standard rhythm section stuff into true counter melodies centered around the root and 5th.
@@buffybrown1619 And Carol was a session guitarist as well.
I have always felt that Paul was the greatest bassist of all time for any pop rock band. . We hardly talk about this special genius of the iconic man because normally it gets over shadowed with the other super human song writing abilities of Paul and the Beatles as a whole ..Paul plays bass, piano, uklelle, guitar leads, strums most intricate chords , plays drums .... GENIUS.unparalled
"Something" is his absolute best. It's so much more than a bassline. It's a full countermelody.
I agree 100% @Jason Remy - I even made an entire video dedicated to that single line: th-cam.com/video/qnW0pdocT40/w-d-xo.html
interesting as I believe George thought he overdid the bass on Something..
George hated the bass line of Something. He asked Paul to play a bass line as simple as the ones Paul always played on his own slow ballads, but Paul ignored his request. I always hear the line as a raised middle finger from Paul to George. Bass players love it though. They get to pretend to be as cool as the lead guitarist. For three minutes.
EDIT: I just saw that you made a similar claim on that video 10 days ago @jotcarey. I asked for a source then and you never replied. I’m afraid ‘Trust me bro’ is not a credible source.
Original comment:
Do you have a reliable source for that claim @jotcarey? Geoff Emerick tells the story of George asserting himself in the studio, but mentions nothing of Paul ignoring the request to play simpler, and if you listen to early rehearsals, Paul is definitely noodling pretty hardcore, so I wouldn’t be surprised if George told him to chill. And to my ear, the bass line serves the song really well. I explain in the video linked above.
Also, the live recordings I’ve heard of George playing Something, the bass line is pretty much what’s on the original recording, so that indicates to me that he can’t have hated it _that_ much; otherwise he would have got his bassists to play something different/simpler.
@@BecomeABassist Geoff Emerick accounts are not trustworthy whatsoever
While Paul is alive and still with us, someone needs to spend a couple of days with him going through a tonne of his lines and get Paul's thoughts on how and why he played what he did. He has a true gift of finding how to make songs extra special by doing many unconventional things but always leaving that famous McCartney signature all over them. We have no one coming through to replace this amazing genius when he's gone.
Jerry Rubin's series on Apple+ (I think) covers some of it - they go over some of the iconic songs with the multi-track tapes. Not exhaustive but that's an awful lot of stuff to drag someone through.
@@thosdot6497 Rick Rubin’s ‘McCartney 321’ on Disney. Before watching ‘Get Back’ I stumbled across ‘321’ and binged 3 episodes in one sitting. Brilliant. I hope they do more.
@@trapezoidspangle934 - thanks for the correction, my memory's getting kinda worrying these days! But yes, great show. I love it when people who know what they're talking about have access to the tapes (like Rick Beato sometimes), you can learn so much.
It’s called genius.
Also xfactor.
Not much to discuss.
Justin Chancellor is awesome... Tool
The McCartney bassline that stands out to me is Rain from 1966. It's sounds like something John Paul Jones would have played in 1971.
Yes, Session players
@@fortunatomartino8549 dont tell me you actually think a session player played the rain bass line
@@JFFM730
I don't worship Beatles
@@fortunatomartino8549 i never said you do, nor do you have to. it doesnt mean you need to come up with shitty conspiracy theories and go against literal facts all for the sake of discrediting them
It's probably likely,it was John Paul Jones...Decca session player .
Lennon once said that Paul was the most innovative bass player he ever knew.
I'm sure Klaus Voorman didn't take it as a slight. Then I wonder how many bass-players John actually knew at the time he said it. Bill Wyman, I guess.
And I once said that I don't give a shit.
@@adriantrusca1245 looks like someones getting their panties in a twist over someoine having an opinion
@@adriantrusca1245cool
Two items that you missed, which I've heard Paul McCartney report as being what really made a difference in his bass playing on records as of "Rubber Soul", was (1). how Brian Wilson, yes, even pre-"Pet Sounds" was arranging bass parts for The Beach Boys' records which knocked McCartney out - bass lines that implemented both alternate bass notes and very melodioc bass lines. (2). which inspired McCartney, going forward, to leave the bass off of the basic track on Beatles recordings and unlike all previous Beatles albums, to record his bass lines last, after all of the other music had been recorded. McCartney said this new recording techniqe gave him a lot of room to take his time and be more creative. And as you point out, the change in what Paul was doing on bass as of "Rubber Soul" is hard to miss.
Totally agree and surprised Wilson wasn't mentioned in the vid.
Wilson was a genius and I think Carol Kaye played a lot of those lines.
That would be Carol Kaye playing for Brian Wilson.
It was Brian Wilson who came up with the insanely melodic bass line at the beginning of Good Vibrations, which was then played by Carol Kaye. She stated that she would never have come up with that line herself (watch the movie “The Wrecking Crew”). Her admiration for Brian was quite evident.
Can’t believe he doesn’t mention that Paul started dubbing over his lines, that’s the biggest reason
All My Loving is a great example of an early intricate bassline. The riff in Drive My Car was Harrison's idea, actually, and he had the idea by listening to Otis Redding's Respect.
Wouldn't call it intricate. It's essentially just quarter notes landing on each beat.
It’s just a walking bassline
I agree, this lad is way off…
@@oggabob Yeah and it's a pretty good one. It's more melodic than most walking lines.
The Night Before, She's A Woman, and Do You Want To Know A Secret are also pretty good examples of his early playing being somewhat interesting. Listening to the isolated bass track of Don't Bother Me was pretty shocking though, by far the most difficult bassline of any Beatles song up to that point in my opinion.
He initially played bass like a converted guitar player, which he was. He completely absorbed his role, and took it to another level.
role
@@richsackett3423 Thanks. I'm a grammar nazi as well. Guess that one got away😊
@@camc5483 More of "yo dude you dropped something" than anything.
No doubt, he simply refused to be a just time keeper. His personality wouldn't allow it.
Paul may not have written the bassline for I Saw Her Standing There, but he deserves serious credit for pulling it off so well. I'm a pretty experienced bassist and I still struggle to play the whole thing flawlessly, not to mention singing lead over the whole thing
Of course @Nick Chambers - he definitely plays/sings it incredibly well.
Do you play with a pick? I can't do this one up to tempo with my usually two finer technique.
I just played it last night in our gig and I use a plectrum because the guitarist always wants to go about 6 beats faster than the Beatles played it. I can play it with my fingers but playing it with a plectrum allows me to play faster more easily. I can nail it that way.
BTW: after trying out dozens of plectrums, I've found the Dunlop Prime Tone Sculpted Plectra 1.4 (with the raised dots for better grip) to be the best I've ever played with. It glides off the strings like ice and lets me play very fast with minimal effort. Try one out and see what you think.
whatever. it is very trendy to praise his lame bass work.
@Lolo How can it be stealing if he's given credit to the source?
A couple of other things to think about, when the Beatles first started to get big, Paul had only been playing bass for a relatively short time, taking over after Stu Sutcliffe left the band. So I'm guessing he was still finding lots of new things to do with the bass. And the other possible influence, when his lines got really good, was when they were transitioning from a live band, to being strictly studio. And even during the rubber soul and revolver time, the Beatles were still playing a lot of early material live, and a lot of the songs from those two albums didn't get played live. Once they were in the studio, he could spend more time perfecting his lines, and not having to worry about performing live!! I think once he had the freedom to spend more time, and not having to worry about live performances, it gave him the freedom to become the fantastic craftsman of bass that he is!!
So, that's my two cents worth!! Not to say anything you said was wrong, I'm with you on it all, but I believe these are two more pieces of the puzzle worth thinking about on top of your analysis!! Great vid as always!! Keep up the great work!! 😀😀
I totally agree @scott ewen! From everything I read, it seems like Rubber Soul was the first time that the band members really started asserting themselves in the studio and really taking time to perfect the songs and production. Their reluctance to keep touring, I think definitely made a difference to the effort they started putting towards the recording process.
Yes, I've thought this - when they moved to the studios, the harmonies they sung likewise could become more complex - they poured all their musicality into the recordings, adding to it growing knowledge of the studio.
What is also remarkable is, Paul was a composer and preferred to sit at a piano or with a guitar and write songs, leaving less time to practise playing the bass.
yes - I agree. When playing live the intricacies of the bass line can be influenced by having to sing and play at the same time. In the early days a lot of songs that John was the lead on - Paul was doubling and/or singing harmony on.
@@iamtheralwus I think Paul playing piano as a child helped his bass playing. He’d play at family sing-a-longs.
3 other great early basslines:
Do You Want to Know a Secret
Don't Bother Me
I'm Happy Just to Dance With You
All 3 are George songs. Often when Paul didn't have to focus on singing, he went all-out on bass.
Yes, I just wrote that too about "Do You Want To Know A Secret" I would have to question anyone's credentials who would miss that song. Paul's playing is fantastic there. I loved that song ever since I watched that Beatles documentary from the 80s, the one with narration done from the actor who was the main actor in Clock Work Orange. McDowel, or something like that. But even as little kid, I remember hearing that on a TV show back then, and just loving that base line. During " you you you, and then that guitar arpeggio, and you you you.
I'm a loser is also a great bassline. It starts with the root and fifth "plodding" style, similar to Love Me Do, The Night Before, I Want To Hold Your Hand, etc. before going it an awesome driving line in the chorus.
Ask Me Why good too
Now that you mention it... i'm happy just to dance with you has a very catchy lively bass line
@@surfdigby Yes, I'm a Loser really swings in that Chorus.
His baselines weren’t boring in the beginning. Their early songs weren’t as sophisticated as they became later. So naturally, his bass playing became more sophisticated and complex also as the band progressed. However, he was always a solid melodic driving bass player.
Paul had problems with his Hofner bass and couldn't play past the fourth fret without losing tune. His playing took off when he started playing the Rick. I used to study his playing and wondered the same but that's why. Paul also writes bass lines as if he was playing a piano. I think a majority of Beatles songs were arranged on piano. The bass line in Something is metaphysical and portrays the male voices concern before coming back again and reuniting with the female voice of the guitar on the songs motif. It's very beautiful to listen to Something and imagine a couple bickering back and forth until finally the lead guitar states her case in the solo.
He plays an open E on one of the BBC versions of Hippy Hippy Shake, and it’s halfway down to E-flat. THUNK!
There are plenty of early Beatles basslines that went way past the fourth fret, so….
Brian Wilson's influence on Paul's bass playing is often overlooked as it has in this video. Paul once remarked that he learned what a bass guitar could be after hearing Pet Sounds.
There was definitely a Brian Wilson/Beach Boys/Carol Kaye influence on Paul’s playing - especially when it came to albums like Sgt. Pepper. However, the time I’m mainly talking about, was pre-Pet Sounds which was released in May of 1966.
It was actually Rubber Soul that inspired Wilson for a lot of Pet Sounds, which then deeply influenced Sgt. Peppers.
Source: wearecult.rocks/11-things-you-probably-didnt-know-about-rubber-soul (Point #3)
@@BecomeABassist I understand that. But if you listen to Brian’s playing on, for example, ‘The Beach Boys Today’ (1965) you can hear the influence. Paul is and always was a huge fan of Brian Wilson, and vice versa. Perhaps it is because they were born on the very same day.
@@BecomeABassist Thank you for mentioning Carol Kaye
@@BecomeABassist Brian Wilson's style was evident long before Pet Sounds. Carol Kaye credits Brian Wilson for either writing out the charts or describing to her what he wanted. Yes, on much of Pet Sounds, it was Carol playing, but Brian directing.
I understand what you’re saying about the early period bass playing, but one of the main reasons Paul’s playing starting getting more adventurous was due to the recording technology in the studio improving. Paul didn’t waste his time getting complicated prior to Rubber Soul because no one really would’ve heard it. Having that been said, “I’ll Cry Instead” from the Hard Day’s Night album stands out to me as an early example of a solid bassline, especially on the part that starts just before John sings “And show you what your lovin’ man can do…” - Brilliant! Anyway, love the video and I’m looking forward to more!
It’s extremely difficult to pull out fresh insights about the Beatles..well done!
Thanks so much @John Jarvis!
Yeah this was excellent
I can't believe you put out a beatles bass video and not mention rain. And day tripper is one of the best rock bass lines ever.
I read somewhere that once they became a studio only band, Paul's bass would often be recorded last. So that means he would have had a finished track (minus bass) with which to play with and work out a bass part. If true, this would allow for a lot of experimentation and tweaking to get what he wanted for the song.
Makes sense
I did hear many years ago that Paul, not writing and reading music in a trained classical sense, would often sing some bass lines until he was happy and then transfer the ideas to the instrument. That would make sense when adding the bass to an existing idea or recorded track. The alternative would be where a distinctive bass part may have come to him earlier in the process and other parts fitting around it. The approach taken would, I imagine, be dependant to some degree on whether the basic idea for the song came from Paul himself or not.
The evolution would continue with Wings as others have pointed out.
Hi Luke,
I agree with what you say, but 3 other factors that affect a lot of the tracks are:
1. Marijuana
2.The Beatles weren't touring, so he didn't have to write a line he could sing along with.
3. They had more tracks to play with, so he was overdubbing the bass, not playing it with the drums and rhythm guitar, so could work out what best fit the music later.
Cheers, Russell
The bass line in You Won't See Me has always been one of my favorites. You can definitely feel the James Jamerson influence.
I think the shift in bass styles goes from playing bass parts that support a chord structure to writing lines that are actually melodic hooks in the song. This was a huge development in the Beatles, the constant melody to melody approach to part writing. I think Ringo became that type of drummer as well.
Also pay attention to the space given to the bass. In earlier Beatles-songs, it’s mostly a classic rock sound with vocals and guitar up front, not giving the bassline much headroom for attention at all. If the bassline would have been more varied, it would most likely have crashed with something else.
For later songs, the band is a lot more symphonic, the structure of the compositions are different, and the vocals and guitar give the bass a lot more space. The bass goes from having a purely fundamental functional role, to play a significant role in the contrapoint of the melody itself.
In short: early songs with complicated bassline will sound messy, while later songs with simple bassline sounds incomplete.
Thank you. After not playing bass for several "decades" I've fallen in will a group of aging ukulele players and have become the bass player! In a little more than a year the basic stuff has come back to me, it's now automatic. You've inspired me to move forward and spice up all of my playing! After all it was the Beatles who inspired me to learn the guitar in the first place circa '63. 😉
Paul also had some INCREDIBLE bass lines with WINGS!
Silly love songs ❤
The Wings recordings were his best.
To me, the one bass line that sums up Paul's insanely great bass playing post Rubber Soul is the bass line to Rain.
Absolutely! Rain and Paperback Writer are the standouts for me.
All My Loving was his first kickass bassline
Rain is Ringo at his best too!
Your basic 4-piece rock band has drums and 3 guitars - Lead, Rhythm and Bass. Even when The Beatles were still making records, I always said that Paul wasn’t just playing bass - he was playing “Lead Bass”. BIG difference. The way a Lead Guitar player would be all over the fingerboard, Paul would be as well with his bass part. Therefore, there would be TWO lead guitar parts at the same time, but one of them would be played on a bass guitar… and they WERE NOT THE SAME! That’s what made the difference.
I believe that Paul was/is one of the very best and most creative electric bass players ever. Proof of the Count Basie school of music: you don’t have to play so many notes if you know the right notes.
Edit: your commentary and analysis are superb!
Excellent Basie namecheck 👌
'Something' is an outstanding bass line with all the right notes, but it's not a good example of 'less is more'. Harrison complained, even.
@@wheatonna Not sure why Harrison complained tho .. " Something" imo is not that busy a bass line . It suits the song perfectly , but maybe Harrison was just using that example to get back at Paul a little .. I dont know
One thing I love about Ringo is that he didn't overplay - never tried to show off. He gave each song exactly what it needed without drawing undue attention to himself. I think that's true of Paul's bass as well. A bassline shouldn't stick out but complement the song. I usually don't notice the bassline until someone points it out. And for a song like the iconic Love Me Do, anything but a very simple bassline would have overpowered it. And you know what? I think Love Me Do did okay for itself.
Well observed, Dave. Thank you!
Why not try to listen to their song, "And Your Bird Can Sing", which for me is even a typical bass player will have to figure out the difficult bass progression before performing it live.
as a non musician opinion, I think anything people write musically is brilliant. it can be simple or more complicated. if it sounds good that is all that matters.
Outstanding, Luke, one of your best.
Around 1965 Paul's creativity may have benefitted from other agencies.
Glad you said this so I didn't have to!
And possibly from California ?
I mean, it's definitely possible @Richard Cornuelle. Haha!
I believe a Mr Dylan introduced them to epod.
@@lyndamcardle4123 No, Maui waui maaan!
Savoy Truffle is another masterpiece. I learned when i was a kid and i it blows my mind, its really difficult (at that time i didnt ear the kind of intrincate notes that Paul usual record like a jam session, probably because it was). Couple of years laters i brought a Rickenbacker. The magic of learning again the songs, and find that signature sound is something i really recomend to any fan of McCartney and bass players. Also, Harrison did an amazing job on "old brown shoe" playing probably the Fender VI. George had a outstanding ability to mimic paul and john tec and ways of playing. What a great band. Great video man! V
Rickenbacker's are lovely, and have contributed to my favorite bass tones over decades. Paul's bright fuzz, Lemmy and Cliff Burton's rumble. They don't step all over the song, but they won't be ignored.
If only the 4003 came in a "comfort model" I might actually buy one.
They may not all be iconic as standalone bass lines, but they are all EXACTLY what the song needed. As the songs got more complex, so did his bass lines.
I agree 100% @davidthomas6000
Greatness was already in him. McCartney just needed that spark, that inspiration, to bring it out of him. Jameson did that. McCartney’s “Coming Up” live in Japan is just One great example of his innovative bass playing.
What you don’t seem to realize is that the “boring” base lines on the early songs are exactly what those songs needed. The arrangements of those simpler songs (including the bass) are genius. They’ve never been improved upon. Yes the bass lines became even more interesting but so did the songs.
I realize and agree with you Matt Michael - The bass lines in the early songs are 100% appropriate for those songs. I say as much in the video: "All iconic songs, and the bass playing IS good." But if you directly compare the bass lines specifically - which is what this video is about - the later McCartney material is definitely a lot more active and melodic, which suits the new style of songs the Beatles wrote.
But then if I widen the scope of the video to talk about the songwriting as well as the bass lines, then the production would also need to be addressed as well, which would open up even more rabbit holes and it would become this ever-expanding behemoth.
I know bassists who call that playing 'boring' and try to put Jaco Pastorius into simple songs
Totally agree, The bass is there to accompany the song and in the earlier songs it does perfectly. It's one of the problems that bass players have. Often an elaborate busy bass line is not necessarily a better one. As Paul had so much influence in the beatles he could indulge himself in fancier bass playing. In other bands the bass player is often a lesser member, so the guitarists would exert more influence thereby not letting the bassist get above themselves. All my loving is a blinder of a bass line and it was early.
Totally agree. All you have to do is listen to the song. It works - and that's all that counts. Every album sold and is still selling in the millions.
@@BecomeABassist I mostly agree with you but for example Paul's simple earlier bass lines are punchier than examples you played. They got rhythm. You can't reproduce those Paul's microseconds, I am afraid. Anyway, Thanks. Good work.
I'll tell you something about that Beatles Hofner bass. The intonation was unsuable above the 5th fret. That's why he didn't play up the neck.
Thank you for this. I'm not a musician and I don't understand the technicalities, but I can hear the difference. I think that I've always listened to the bass since I was a teen listening to the Beatles and the Stones. When I came across Tal Wilkenfeld playing with Jeff Beck at Ronnie Scott's, I realised that the bass wasn't just there to provide a mostly musical beat.
I love "Norwegian Wood"--it's like a jam recorded in a living room. Two acoustic guitars atop a bass through a 50-watt amp.
His bass on "Taxman" was very intricate as the bridge comes up. It almost "trills" which is so good
There's no doubt that his bass lines became more involved, complex, and rich later in the band's history, but even early on he had some really solid and even iconic ones. A great example is the bass line for 'All My Loving'. It's so prominent and it's really a kind of walking bass line which no one in rock or pop was doing at the time, certainly not with the prominence of his part in the recording, nor the prominence of the band.
This reminds me of when I had a band, we were learning and playing Twist and Shout, our singer looked over at us playing and said everyone looks bored! We responded "we are bored!" lol
Great video!
Just keep in mind that the most basic ones are also great bcs they are exactly what those songs needed. The rhythmic/melodic complexity doesn’t necessarily makes it better
This is not only one of the best music instruction videos I've seen, but one of the best insights into the magic of the Beatles' recordings. Well done.
Keep in mind too that McCartney wrote half the songs of a very melodic band so melodic bass lines seemed like a natural progression. You can even see the songwriting process using only his bass in "Get Back"
he just played a simple 4/4 blues, everyone leans it by there 2nd week of playing bass/guitar. there was no process. beatles fans smh. in fact, the only reason that song (indeed, the album) is even listenable is because billy preston's playing. he shaped those lifeless dead-end songs into records. even the beatles said so
@@newagain9964 Did you even listen to the song? There was more to the bass than what you claimed. Don't lie.
@@dogg-paws obviously, u don’t play music. Or at least do not understand it.
James Jamerson. Definitely a bass God. When Paul copied, he went for the best.
I always loved the baseline from "With A Little Help From My Friends", but it's seldom mentioned as a masterpiece. Why?
The whole of Pepper is full of amazing bass lines, but agree, his bass on With a Little Help.. really adds so much bounce, what a joy!
The bass Paul plays throughout Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band has always mesmerized me. It is fantastic start to finish. Apparently Paul laid those tracks last (where one would typically think the bass would be recorded first with ant or all rhythm tracks) in just a few sessions, and it sort of makes sense, as the bass makes the whole thing gel.
I love, 'Love me do' it's my all-time favourite Beatles song; and maybe it is that elementary bassline that makes it work. So, if that simple bassline is underpinning the song's overall make-up and character, then as simple as it is; one could argue that the simplicity is in fact genius.
Dude, after the intro of this video I was literally thinking: “There’s no way he’ll mention a major change in Paul’s playing without bringing up the conspiracy theory”, and then you did! You have earned a follow from me sir. Very awesome video!
Great video. I'm a bass player and a McCartney fan and he's always been one of my favourite bassists. But I think there's another major influence on his bass playing that you haven't mentioned, and that's Brian Wilson and the Beach Boys. Brian was also an excellent singing bass player and he created beautiful melodic bass lines on his records like "Pet Sounds". But the real key to the beauty of these McCartney/Wilson bass lines are how they blend with the vocal harmonies on top. Nobody else can get close to the Beatles and the Beach Boys when it comes to this.
Chris White from the Zombies got pretty close as a whisker close. Listen to the Odyssey and the Oracle.
Was it really Brian or was it Carol Kaye?
With his many contributions to all aspects of the art and entertainment world we often forget how innovative his bass playing is.
The lines are amazing, but imagine singing lead vocals at the same time. Makes it even more amazing.
I bet nobody else has noticed how so so underrated Paul McCartney was.
Paul started playing bass when they kicked out their bass player because he stunk, and no one else would do it. I think he was about 18 when he got his first bass. The early songs were so simple that all the guitar parts were very basic. They emulated their idols with a basic R&B/pop sound, but it was their chord changes later on that added more flavor, along with some unique harmonies, that changed rock n roll. Paul's background as a guitarist bled over into his bass playing as he got more intricate, he often played bass lines as if they were a counter-lead. I totally agree that this lead some truly awesome and amazing bass lines in the later songs, like Penny Lane and Hey Bulldog! Great take on this, my friend. Sir Paul is one hell of a gifted musician.
It’s cause he started really being influenced by the master session musicians of the day like you’ve sighted James Jamerson and Carol Kaye. Having a great ear for music particularly melody you’re naturally going to evolve quickly. In his case he just became a very well rounded multi-instrumentalist.
Edit: btw that cool iconic bass line he played early on he nicked from Chuck Berry
Man that was a masterclass. Please make a similar episode for Gene Simmons KISS and how his phenomenal basslines of the 70's went into root notes in the 80s and his original style comeback in Revenge 1992. Thank you!
Three words...L-S-D. You're welcome.
Couldn't advocate drug use, but without those "three words" there's a huge gap in a lot of mid to late 60s music. Hahaha
Do drugs and melt into a mess or one in a million becomes a genius. Not worth the gamble. Become a genius in some other way. Cheers
When you see someone confusing words with letters you realize what kind of damage drugs can do.
@@guitaristssuck8979
🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
@@guitaristssuck8979 HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAAHA
No. Paul McCartney died in 1966 and was replaced with Billy Shepherd (William).
That's why he sounds so different from Sgt. Pepper and on.
I love Paul's bass lines from Rubber Soul on. I think of Rubber Soul as the emergence of the real Beatles- that is, the mature Beatles. The first hint of that was 'Yesterday'. And Paul's bass lines are not just great melodies. They are a beautiful interesting harmonious part of the wider composition. Like a line from Beethoven's ninth symphony would be. And they have the feel of interesting storytelling. Ringo's drumming on their mature music was also very interesting and sophistocated. They set such a high standard for interesting sophistocated music, all while writing perhaps the greatest lyrics in the history of the English language. And what a tone from Paul's bass!
I think "singability" and earworm are the key phrase when it comes Jamerson-ish bassline, and yet, for their complexity they still work with the rest of the band/tune and not fight for the limelight
Do you think Paul’s evolving piano playing could have had an influence on his bass lines?
lady madonna is a good example
I wonder how much influence George Martin had on those early basslines too. I’m reading a book at the moment that talks about how in the early days Martin was quite traditionally minded and the Beatles were scared to question his instructions until a bit later on.
There may well be an element of that as well @Superdelphinus - Rubber Soul was apparently the album where the members of the band started to assert themselves a little more and take more time in the studio, so you may well be on to something there.
Glad you said Rubber Soul was the turning point. I'm not a musician, but when I first heard the bass line on Nowhere Man (my older sisters had all the LPs until Pepper) it changed the way I listened to music forever. It's good young musicians study McCartney, as a baton is passed down from blues and jazz, through Motown and soul, and onto nowadays.
Like Paul's bass playing, Ringo and George's playing became more melodic over time too. Don't know if that was influence from Paul, or the fact that they were strictly a studio band and could spend time working out more intricate parts that they didn't need to re-create on a stage.
I think it’s important to keep Paul’s age in mind when discussing the first few Beatles albums. He was born in 1942, making him 21-22 years old when the first four albums were released. I’d say his playing was exceptional for that era of rock music.
EXACTLY...he was almost 2 years younger than John...in the early 20s that makes a difference...by the time Paul hit his mid 20s his genius flourished all over their music
This was so cool! I just stumbled upon this vid, and appreciate the insights. After seeing Paul on his recent Got Back tour, I’ve been obsessed with his playing. I’ve always liked it, and was a huge Wings fan (and of course, Beatles formed the soundtrack of my young life). His bass parts make tunes feel great. I wondered if Jamerson was an influence on him, so it’s great having that validated.
I’m hoping Sir Paul is with us for a few more decades. He’s so special and truly magical 🥰
Very enjoyable, you’re a cool dude and kudos for learning all Paul’s jams. One thing I kept waiting for you to mention is that he didn’t have to sing and play live gigs anymore during that Rubber Soul swing. That in itself changed a whole dynamic and his recording ability to improve his skills and showcase the bass separately. Not to mention all the influences that were going on around him with the talent the world was giving us with other music geniuses.
Aa always an interesting and great video. Paul McCartney is one of my all-time favorite bass players, the Beatles discography is a bass school with something for every level. I like his early bass lines too, Macca is a master of playing for the song and he played functional yet elegant with subtle finesses. Already on the early Beatles albums, he showed his melodic side on Please Please Me, Do You Want to Know a Secret and All My Loving, the last mentioned song is one of the greatest walking bass lines in my opinion
I beg to differ, one of my favourite bass lines by Paul is 'A Taste of Honey'. Yes, I know. Not their original song, PM for some reason has hardly played it since, but it's so jazzy and cute.
I found it interesting to learn that, at least on later albums, they added the bass towards the end of recording, allowing Paul to take his time crafting the bass line.
Isn't the bass line of Silly Love Songs the coolest McCartney bass line ever?
GREAT bass line,I've been working on that one on my bass for the past month.The Wings was a fantastic McCartney era,timeless!
Wow, worth the wait! Absolutely fantastic video Luke. You really did a great job dissecting Paul's development. I really enjoyed this one. Always great to learn how the masters do it. Paul redefined the role of the bass for so many. Wonderful lesson. And Arnie was all over it!
Thanks so much @Thomas Fioriglio! And I guess Arnie must really love Paul's playing. lol
My all time favorite bassist. I never get tired of listening to his melodic bass lines
Love the video keep them coming ! I’ve always been fascinated by Paul’s base playing and you did a great job covering it
Paul's early bass lines are the perfect gateway to learning bass. Then he went back to the old way when he played on All Together Now which to me is one of his best bass lines which is not as easy as it initially sounds. I love playing it.
You should have included Maxwell's Silver Hammer.
Genius bass lines by GEORGE HARRISON.
The bass line in I'm a Loser is pretty great. That was in 64 on Beatles for Sale
Bass lines are there to complement the tune; Macca's lines were perfect from day one, and if you hadn't realised, he wrote the Bass Bible.
I agree @Mike Close - Paul always played exactly what the song needed. It's just that the later lines from Rubber Soul onwards needed something a bit more melodic and interesting than the earlier songs.
After hearing the bass played “out of the pocket” on The Beach Boys album “Pet Sounds,” I’m sure Sue Paul was greatly influenced by Carol Kaye’s incredible bass playing. That style of playing is all over Sgt. Pepper, and later recordings.
Absolutely @Dean Evangelista. You can totally hear that on songs like With A Little Help From My Friends.
Personal favorite will always be Dear Prudence, just such a catchy line
As an OG Beatles fanatic, I was going to add the things you missed, but you you didn't miss anything. It always amazes me how guys born after the Beatles had broken up are experts on par with those of us who watched the Beatles on Ed Sullivan, February 9th, 1964!
In the 60s, bass was not really considered a lead instrument. It was just there to give the bottom a bit of movement. Paul was one of the first to start using more melodic bass lines and it only got better from there. He was a (the) major factor in that movement.
Paul’s bass lines changed after he listened to Pet Sounds. The album that changed the way bass was played ever after.
You can't sing lead vocals while playing McCartney's bass lines easily, it takes a lot of effort to learn. All my loving took me weeks to learn how to play while singing.
I’ll never understand why the Hofners never became popular considering how popular and influential the Beatles were
Because Hofner's don't sound very good,and they feel awkward in the hands,not comfy.VERY narrow neck.I've played em all.
Because the Hofner violin bass is a BADLY designed instrument, period. If you ever play one, you’ll soon realize that it is EXTREMELY unbalanced and prone to neck dive, it is difficult to set up and intonate properly compared to other basses, the strings are tightly spaced and thus unnecessarily difficult to play, and its tone is rather flubby and mediocre even at its best. Yes, it is lightweight and unique looking, but that’s about all you can say for it. It would no doubt be TOTALLY forgotten by now if it weren’t for the fact that Paul McCartney played one, and virtually NOBODY is beating down the doors today to get them, apart from maybe PM impersonators playing in Beatles Tribute bands like Rain or The Fab Four.
They dont sound strong enough. Even McCartney stopped using his in favour of the rickenbacker.
@@tikvision Yes, although Paul clearly had (and STILL has) a genuine affinity for his Hofner, as he did go back to the Hofner on “Get Back,” even in spite of pleas from bandmates and people in the studio to use his Rickenbacker. He did go back to the Rick for the Wings years, but he still seems to use the Hofner in concerts to this very day. One possible reason: He did say at one point that he found the Hofner to be easier to play and lighter weight than the Rick. These factors were probably important at that time since “Get Back” was originally conceived to herald a return to live performance. In the end, as we know, The Beatles couldn’t agree on a format or a venue for the planned concert, and George Harrison returned to the band on the condition that they NOT perform live in front of an audience, and so The Beatles resigned themselves to performing on the rooftop of Apple HQ.
@@rudygracia5573 it think they sound very good plus Paul still uses the Hofner. As for being stockhead heavy that’s no different to any semi-acoustic guitar when doesn’t stop them from being popular. The reality is if they were as available as fenders and Gibsons there would be a lot more people playing them. The same goes for Ricky’s the lack of supply made them a non-starter even for people that would have wanted one. I see way more Hofners these days than I saw in the 60’s and 70’s basically I never saw any Hofners back in the day and to this day I’ve never seen a Ricky in a shop.
I respect Paul and The Beatles. Wouldn't say I'm a HUGE fan but I recognize their impact on Rock n Roll. What I love about Paul is the number of my favorite bassists that cite him as their main influence. You can really tell it too! All of them have what I like to call that "singing bass".
Gene Simmons, dUg Pinnick, Billy Sheehan, Tom Peterson, etc.
Very good video. I admittedly have not read the nearly 600 comments so I apologize in advance if someone else has brought up Brian Wilson and his bass playing/arrangements on “Pet Sounds”. Paul has admitted that this album was highly influential to his bass playing, particularly Brian’s use of other notes in the chord rather than the root in his bass lines. This is particularly noticeable in Paul’s bass playing on “Sgt. Peppers”.
Yep, I heard about, it was session bassist Carol Kaye who played those parts on Pet Sounds, she influenced Paul among others. Paul definitely loved the album, he talked a lot about it. He said he got John hooked on it. But then, Rubber Soul was recorded PRIOR to Pet Sounds, and it inspired Brian to be more creative. Who then recorded Pet Sounds and in turn influenced Paul!
All the Beatles' brains were blown by Pet Sounds...as we're many bands! Great album
I like his early bass lines too. Paul's bass playing on "Do You Want To Know A Secret" is fantastic. Always loved that one, and I am a guitar player.
Cool that Paul plays a “wrong “ note on the bridge…although it still works:)
amazing how he played such melodic lines while singing that well.
The "before & after" example you showed with You Won't See Me, how the bass line could have been played but how it actually was with Paul adding beauty to the line's function reminded me of the scene in Amadeus where Salieri has written a piece of music to welcome Mozart to the emperor's court, and Mozart takes the tune's simple structure and makes it beautiful. :)
Paul took over the bass in the Beatles. He originally played guitar.
The 4 strings on a bass are tuned to the same notes as the 4 lowest strings on a guitar, one octave lower. So its only natural for a guitar player to play the "bass notes" of the guitar chords on the bass, and to add in the percussion aspects of the beat.
Remember too, in the early 60s Beatles music was listened to on transistor radios, AM car radios, and small record players that teens got for christmas to play in their own rooms. Very few Beatles fans had a 50W per channel stereo with 15" woofer speakers, and no one had headphones - in other words MOST of the Beatles fans could not even HEAR the bass unless they were at a soda shop with a quality juke box.
All that started to change in the mid sixties, when older people were buying Beatles records, and the Beatles quit touring and every thing after that was a studio album.
Very interesting 🙂I was thinking about the Paul is dead conspiracy thing first or playing around with drugs. But basically, the whole Beatles' song writing became more complex starting with Rubber Soul or at least Sgt.Pepper, didn't it? Thanks for the good advice and A:B comparison. This is quite helpful!
Two major reasons in my opinion:
1. They transitioned from a touring band to more studio recordings where it could be crafted to more complex works
2. Around the mid to late sixties rock and pop music in general started a radical shift towards more complex and revolutionary compositions and different innstrumental timbre. Being on the cutting edge of this, the Beatles followed suite.
I’m a guitar player mainly but playing along to Rubber Soul on bass is such a rush I love it man
I think its important to remember on the earlier stuff Paul had only just really started playing bass a lot more, they had a bass player a keyboard player and a different drummer until they returned from Germany to record their first record. I think part of this is just Paul moving on from being a guitar player that plays bass because the band needs someone to; to Paul becoming a bass player.
And let's not forget that Paul had to SING and play those bass lines simultaneously
Very true. I play bass, and have done some concurrent singing from time to time. It definitely cuts your attention in half between the two efforts at first.
@@kenberlin Another bass player who plays difficult lines and sings simultaneously is Mark King, from Level 42
You completely brushed over "eight days a week", but that has a great bassline.
Thanks - before this video, I wasn't aware that the big style shift coming with Rubber Soul was related to the Bass Lines.
It was related to it but that wasn't the full story. John and George both changed their guitars and went for different sounds and the boys started experimenting with various new non- rock band instruments including George Martin's classical piano skills.
The reason the base line complexity changed was the first 67 songs were written and performed by Paul McCartney and after that Billy Shears wrote and performed the bass lines.
lol - I made that joke in the video @eurdymaverickmentor
When young Paul sang and played saw her standing there it was absolute beast mode. The Rain on rubber soul. Then Wings was a whole nother level.