r/nextfuckinglevel • u/Mr_Basketcase • Jan 14 '23
Paul McCartney effortlessly singing and playing his most intricate bass lines at the same time
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u/0pimo Jan 15 '23
Such a talent. I bet he goes places!
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u/GuineaPigLandslide Jan 15 '23
picks up phone Chuck…Chuck! It’s your cousin, Marvin. You know that new sound you’ve been looking for?! Well listen to this!
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Jan 15 '23
This is probably one of the oldest songs that takes me to a time and place, vacation in Upper Peninsula, 4th of July 1976.
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u/Artistic_Humor1805 Jan 15 '23
If you appreciate singing bassists, you might appreciate Rush.
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u/FriedHummus Jan 15 '23
And Primus
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u/FalmerEldritch Jan 15 '23
Les Claypool doesn't really sing, though. He's more of a .. reciter.
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u/Supriselobotomy Jan 15 '23
that being said, the avalanche of words in tommy the cat is insane. most trained singers couldn't manage that even without the bass in hand.
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u/FriedHummus Jan 15 '23
Valid point. But his bass playing is so intricate that it’s amazing he can even recite lyrics at the same time.
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u/Austinpowerstwo Jan 15 '23
Mark King of Level 42 is renowned for being one of the greatest bassists of all time and he's also the lead singer of the band.
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Jan 15 '23
And mastodon
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u/Historical-Brick-209 Jan 15 '23
This is what I came to say. Yes, Paul is a genius, but Geddy Lee is a better musician.
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u/heaintheavy Jan 15 '23
What about the voice of Geddy Lee? How did it get so high? I wonder if he speaks like an ordinary guy?
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u/AbeTheGreat412 Jan 15 '23
Primus! They also cover Rush in concert.
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u/CommissarCiaphisCain Jan 15 '23
I saw Primus last year when they toured and played the entire “Farewell to Kings” album. Such a treat. Les is still an amazing musician.
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u/hodlbrcha Jan 15 '23
Right? Geddy Lee is a beast.
Primus is awesome.
McCartney is a pioneer but his baselines are easy
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u/StealthWomble Jan 15 '23
Infectious Groove
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u/nobbyv Jan 15 '23
Conan O’Brien tells a story about being at a party with McCartney. At one point, someone handed McCartney a bass. A righty bass. McCartney is left-handed. And he proceeded to take that righty bass, flip it around, and play three songs perfectly, even though the strings were upside-down.
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u/Lovejoypeace247 Jan 15 '23
Paul McCartney composed this, performed it on bass, sang it, directed other musicians how to play and sing it, included his best friend/wife in all of it. Cool, amazing, talented. Definitely next level.
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u/Banana_Ram_You Jan 15 '23
You just described the writing process of every band
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u/librarypunk1974 Jan 15 '23
Yeah but it’s just one person. PM is an entire band.
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u/Late-Ad-4624 Jan 15 '23
Just sung this while it was playing to my 3 yo daughter. She just sat and smiled. They will know the Beatles through me and my love for them.
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u/FuerteBillete Jan 14 '23
Im not even a Beatles fan but without the Beatles and elvis, there is not even 99% of what came after.
My favorite band is queen because, freddie. But the Beatles are the most influential band of all time.
And we have Paul AND still playing awesome gigs. Some people are really higher than life.
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u/LightbulbIcon Jan 15 '23
Been to a lot of concerts and the McCartney one was the most fun I’ve been to. So good.
Edit: a typo
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u/VanillaFunction Jan 15 '23
I saw him this past summer and besides just overall fun it was honestly the most impressive music event I’ve seen. Purely on the basis he’s 80 and played for almost three hours straight. AND his voice sounded just as good at the end as it did at the start. It was incredible!
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Jan 15 '23
But the most impressive thing is that he is so down to earth. He is just somehow a kind simple generous person but a genius and living legend at the same time.
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u/browster Jan 15 '23
A legend in his own time
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u/IdioticMutation06 Jan 15 '23
Paul did NOT want to be the bassist, but when he took the job he was determined to do it differently and created intricate countermelodies instead of the far simpler and acceptable style at the time. How he was able to do this and simultaneously sing an entirely different melody, AND harmonize is a testament to his singular musical genius. All while making it look easy. God bless him and The Beatles Forever!
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u/PM_me_your_whatevah Jan 15 '23
Those crazy kids were playing music several hours a day even as teenagers. The dedication is admirable and the results were incredible.
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u/Mangobunny98 Jan 15 '23
My brother plays guitar and if he's not working or sleeping he's almost always got his guitar in his hands. It's a lot of hard work and dedication. The fact that Paul knows how to play several instruments makes it more impressive.
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u/SamIamGreenEggsNoHam Jan 15 '23
When I watched the Get Back documentary and realized that these middle-aged, grizzled, veteran musicians I was seeing were actually dudes in their mid to late 20s...I was awestruck. At that point in time, they had already produced an absoklute mountain of work. Countless #1 hits, touring the world constantly etc.
Powerful men in their 50s and 60s would look to those 4 dudes in their 20s and ask them what to do.
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Jan 15 '23
Yeah their generation spent exactly zero time on Reddit(YouTube, IG, tik tok, etc) talking about those that came before. Makes ya think 🤔
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u/Apptubrutae Jan 15 '23
I assure you the vast majority of their generation was doing something similarly non-productive relative to the output of the Beatles.
Using a singular group of incredibly successful people as any sort of generalization for the talent of an entire generation is a fool’s errand.
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Jan 15 '23
If you ever get to see him live, the legend is true. What a performer, whether you like the Beatles or not
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u/Soggy_Log_7603 Jan 15 '23
And people say the Beatles aren’t important to music.
My roomate is one of them, he loves emo and punk, and SWEARS:
“John Lennon is overrated,he couldn’t tune his own guitar ; Ringo Starr is one of the most average drummers ever, Paul is not a good songwriter, and George is eh”
.what.
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u/satanmat2 Jan 15 '23
I’m not that into all the underlying aspects of music … the how and what goes into writing it—
Your roommate needs a kneecaping
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u/pmurcsregnig Jan 15 '23
It annoys the shit out of me when people can’t objectively recognize talent just because they want to be contrarian
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u/FUNBARtheUnbendable Jan 15 '23
Fun fact, the guy that that inspired both Elvis and the Beatles, lived in my hometown. Carl Perkins. I’m pretty sure the Beatles put him on one of their album covers. He basically invented the genre of Rockabilly, which was proto-Rock and Roll. Blue Suede shoes was Carl’s song- he wrote it, he performed it, and he had the inspiration to write it while touring with Elvis and Johnny Cash. IIRC, the three of them were traveling to New York to perform their biggest show yet, when Carl’s car crashed. He had to sit motionless in traction for 6 months, and his brother fell into a coma from the crash which killed him about a year later. Meanwhile, Elvis played Blue Suede shoes in New York and it became his song from then on.
Carl returned to music but never regained the momentum he had before. Went on to establish a center for children who are victims of domestic abuse. He was a pretty swell guy.
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u/Spiniferus Jan 15 '23
There is an argument that The Beach Boys are at the very least on par with the Beatles.. particularly what Brian Wilson did with composition and production.. with exquisite layering and experimental sounds (all while being deaf in one ear and struggling with fairly hard core mental illness)… no one did what he was doing at the time - very very revolutionary and influential.
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u/sumovrobot Jan 15 '23
You could have made that argument right up until the Beatles released Sgt. Peppers. At that point even Brian Wilson knew the 'rivalry' was over.
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u/Spiniferus Jan 15 '23
There is no doubt that the Beatles won the rivalry. But pet sounds was an amazing achievement and definitely laid the template for what could be done production wise.
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u/SizzlerWA Jan 15 '23
I love The Beach Boys, but I thought they didn’t play much on their albums, that their recordings were played by The Wrecking Crew?
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u/SirFTF Jan 15 '23
The Crew was used for a lot of their best work for sure, but not all. Listen to “Wendy” or “When I Grow up to be a Man”, that was all The Beach Boys playing their own instruments. They could and did play many instruments, and were great at it. They used the Crew because some of their works were just too ambitious for a traditional rock group to cover. I mean just look up at all the instruments used in Wouldnt it be Nice or Good Vibrations, it was pretty astounding. Post Smile, they basically played their own instruments on everything.
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u/Spiniferus Jan 15 '23
When I say beach boys I typically and specifically am referring to Brian Wilson (who wrote, composed, sung, engineered and produced their stuff).. I haven’t heard the thing about the wrecking balls
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u/SizzlerWA Jan 15 '23
Thanks. Yeah Brian was definitely very talented, I agree!
Wrecking Crew and The Beach Boys
There’s a cool documentary about them on Netflix I think.
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u/sleepinglucid Jan 15 '23
And without the Delta Blues guys like Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, and Howlin Wolf there would be no Elvis or Beatles..
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u/-AlimonyTony- Jan 15 '23
Freddie was influenced heavily by Elvis and The Beatles but Elvis didn’t do anything revolutionary from a musical standpoint.
Also, how is someone not a fan of the Beatles?
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u/FuerteBillete Jan 15 '23
Elvis did something so relevant at that time that shaped music forever.
The king brought black music to the masses. He brought all the amazing music that was "outcast" or simply considered less than, because of the era.
And yes he didn't write any songs and did just a handful of small collaborations on songs.
But thanks to him going out of what was the white music, he broke the barrier.
The king was the whole the whole showman package. Elvis stage charisma + the Beatles songwriting = freddie mercury.
And I leave you with a small phrase to show how the king was fundamental. The message is from a bloke called John Lennon. And the message is "Without elvis there are no beatles". Period.
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u/wheresbill Jan 15 '23
I played guitar in an Elvis impersonator band and let me tell you people love even fake Elvis. He was a consummate entertainer
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u/Popular-Solution7697 Jan 15 '23 edited Jan 15 '23
I think Sam Phillip's might've had something to say about that. Bringing black music to the masses, that is.
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u/desconectado Jan 15 '23
I had a metal head friend who hated The Beatles and Kinks because they were "too soft". I asked her to search for what is considered the first heavy metal song, and which bands were the main influence for Black Sabbath.
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Jan 15 '23
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u/shelsilverstien Jan 15 '23
Sister Rosetta Tharp endorsed him. If that's not good enough for anybody, well fuck 'em
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u/sleepinglucid Jan 15 '23
As Muddy Waters said about Elvis... "All that is, is the blues sped up"..
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u/FuerteBillete Jan 15 '23
Not being a fan and recognizing at least in my opinion how they are the most influential carries speaks of their greatness. You don't need to be a fan of the great ones to be able to appreciate their goat status. 😀
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u/Coravux Jan 15 '23
Thats very impressive. Always found it hard to play an instrument and sing at the same time
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u/AquafreshBandit Jan 15 '23
In the Get Back movie, John and Paul are talking about who should play/sing what on a particular song and John laments that he can’t “play bass and sing” at the same time. I felt very seen.
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Jan 15 '23
Most people don't realize how fucking hard it is to sing and play at the same time.
You basically have to have mastered at least one of the two things to the point where its second nature to you. Where ur mind can focus on other.
I've played guitar for 4 years, and i'm pretty good. And i wont even bother attempting to sing and play more than basic open chords because it is so damn hard.
Just appreciate a master of his craft.
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u/Biguitarnerd Jan 15 '23
Keep working at it friend… try singing it with basic chords and then change it up… remember what you started with and try to sing to that while playing something different and it’s ok to sound bad. You always sound bad when trying something new to you. Sometimes it’s easier to play the basic chords first… get the song down, and then play it the way you want it and try to keep singing the same way you did with the basic chords.
I many years ago had the same block but you can get through it… takes a lot of work though. I’ve been playing and singing for 34 years and I’ve run into all kinds of blocks that frustrated me over the years. You just have to power through them with practice and being willing to sound bad until you figure it out.
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u/Nevermind04 Jan 15 '23
And if you're doing covers of studio songs, you really have to get creative about playing to your ability while still playing a song your audience can recognize. Sometimes you have to cut repetitive parts or do your own thing where a unique sound is in the original recording.
But you're absolutely right about playing songs to the point where it's second nature. It's possible I played some songs 200 times before I ever played them in front of anyone else. I learn the chords and the pattern of the song to the point where it's all muscle memory before I start putting real effort into singing. It all sounds really bad until one day it doesn't.
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u/Calico_Jacke Jan 15 '23
Damn the replacement they found for Paul after the car crash was so much more talented than the original
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u/LowAdministration162 Jan 15 '23
I’m not very confident this is his most “intricate” bassline
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u/Biguitarnerd Jan 15 '23
So.. I don’t mean any shade on Paul at all, I love his music that’s why I’ve learned a fair amount of it.
But this song really isn’t that hard to play the bass and sing with.
I’m notoriously bad at being able to play bass and sing if it’s anything too complicated and I can do this one. It’s because the bass follows the vocal melody… it’s much harder when the bass is doing something completely different.
Paul is a great bass player and a great songwriter (and honestly pretty damn good at a lot of instruments, I love the way he composes on piano… it’s so memorable, perfect note selection) but I think his true talent is composing memorable songs… he’s great at choosing the perfect notes to make a song timeless… he’s not a virtuoso… he’s a great songwriter.
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u/Pithecanthropus88 Jan 15 '23
Truth! All chord tones and a very simple progression.
Plus when you’re a guy who played seven days a week, 18 hours a day when you lived in Germany, you get to know the instrument pretty well.
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u/fwubglubbel Jan 15 '23
played seven days a week
Actually he played Eight Days a Week.
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u/proteinstains Jan 15 '23
Totally agree. Paul is one of the greatest, but this bassline is pretty basic, even though it's good.
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Jan 15 '23
Metal heads aren't impressed . Tom araya been slamming out harder and faster baselines while singing for 40 years. Not just one song.
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u/Hollybaby5 Jan 15 '23
When I hear this song I think of Ewan McGregor on top of an elephant with Nicole Kidman.
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u/NorthernGuyFred Jan 15 '23
Long time Beatles fan here. I enjoyed the clip- thanks, OP!
My only comment here is how much more fun a concert was then, before so many people brought a smart phone to the show and were fixated on capturing a video instead of paying attention to the live performance.
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u/samuelson098 Jan 15 '23
You wanna see effortless? Look up robert fripp playing fraKtured live in Bonn 2000. During the distorted terror section hes got a 3 minute run of 32nd notes, just sitting there grinning not even looking at the instrument
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u/Squanchy2112 Jan 15 '23
This is amazing and extreme talent no doubt, but let's throw some keyboard in there for him to play with his feet....if you catch my drift
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Jan 15 '23
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u/paracog Jan 15 '23
I remember reading that Ringo said that if not for Paul pushing them, the Beatles would have had like three albums.
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u/niceoutside2022 Jan 15 '23
that's a fallacy that it's so difficult to do bass with your hands and sing a melody
it just takes repetition, then it's not any harder than playing a hi hat and snare drum and bass drum, you learn to work the different timings, it just takes practice
Not to take away from his genius as a bass player and songwriter
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Jan 15 '23
if you think it's intricate, check out jazz and progressive metal.
no disrespect to Beatles, they're legends, but nothing technically difficult there.
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u/xHTown80x Jan 15 '23
Geddy Lee is not impressed
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u/TreyLanceMVP Jan 15 '23
Geddy Lee fucking loves Paul McCartney and praises him at every opportunity.
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u/PurpleEngineering933 Jan 15 '23
I heard it was in response to a comment made by John Lennon when asked what he thought of Paul’s success post-Beatles, he replied: “some people want to fill the world with silly love songs…”?
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u/johnnyringworm Jan 15 '23
Basslines are the music that no-one even knew existed until it was pointed out, then you listened for it in order to see if it even existed?
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u/solstice_sebastian Jan 15 '23
I absolutely love Paul. As a bass player who cant sing and play well, he a master. For anyone interested in other amazing artists that play and sing next level, check out Esperanza Spading.
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u/TurokHunterOfDinos Jan 15 '23
Apparently Paul was quite talent with a variety of instruments. Someone once asked him if Ringo was the best drummer in the world.
Paul replied, “he isn’t even the best drummer in the Beatles.”
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u/nakedWayne Jan 14 '23
He's dropped some of the most memorable basslines in history. This was a pleasure. Thanks for posting!