The songs John Paul Jones called “paradise” for bass players
When looking at the legendary status of Led Zeppelin, John Paul Jones really was the secret ingredient throughout their career.
He was always fairly reserved when he was onstage, but when he wasn’t at the back of the stage trying to lock in with John Bonham, he was in the studio crafting some of the greatest sonic flourishes they ever had. But would you expect any less recognition from someone who was known for only being the bass player by the average Zeppelin fan?
Let’s face it: bass has never been the coolest instrument. When talking about the construct of a rock and roll outfit, most people are better off talking to the guitarist and frontman before they even start giving a shit about the bass player. Of course, there are exceptions like Paul McCartney and Sting, but if you remove Jonesy from any Zeppelin album, it was going to be impossible to replace his sonic footprint.
Outside of being a bassist, his role onstage and off came from using every instrument he could get his hands on. There’s no replacing the chilling sensation when the flutes come in on ‘Stairway to Heaven’, and the keyboard textures that he put into the song ‘Thank You’ is what makes the whole thing feel like a dream half the time. But it’s not like he neglected his role as a bassist during that time, either.
The role of any good bassist is to support the rest of the band from down low, but what Jonesy did took things to a new level. There are plenty of Zeppelin songs that were his handiwork like ‘Black Dog’, and when listening to ‘Immigrant Song’, he is flying up and down the scales throughout every single chorus. If there was one place that he was going to learn his trade, it was going to be Motown.
There was no shortage of great artists on those early Motown tracks, and as far as Jones was concerned, he was in heaven learning every lick he could, saying, “Motown was a bass player’s paradise, because they’d actually found a way to record it so that you could hear every note. The Motown record that really impressed me was ‘I Was Made to Love Her’ by Stevie Wonder. When it came out, I just couldn’t believe it. Some of the Motown records used to end up as sort of concertos for bass guitar.”
And while Wonder had countless bassists on his records like Bob Babbitt, there’s no replacing what James Jamerson could do whenever he got that bass in his hands. It wasn’t the most impressive tone in the world, but the way he pushed the music forward on other tracks like ‘Ain’t No Mountain High Enough’ is a masterclass in how to construct a bassline around two powerhouses like Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell, which is all the more impressive knowing that he played most of his basslines with one finger.
Jones isn’t alone in thinking that, either. The biggest names in the bass community, like Brian Wilson and Paul McCartney, had nothing but good things to say about Jamerson, and even listening to some of the other strands of rock and roll, artists like Ozzy Osbourne found subtle ways of incorporating that kind of walking bassline into songs like ‘Crazy Train’ over the years.
So, despite the bass being demoted as a less cool guitar by the masses, any Motown record has a solid chance of having one of the greatest basslines you have ever heard. It was all a playbook for what pop music could be, and Jones was ready to take notes whenever he looked at a new single.
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