twistee said:

Larry can do that so well. it also comes across so well, because of the tone of his bass, he mixes the perfect combination of fuzz and compression and his tone just shines through any music. he sounded amazing during septimo with prince. i would give anything to see prince and larry in a power trio.
[Edited 4/5/09 5:56am]

TyphoonTip said:

NO i have not heard it... there is no music connected to the picture. therefore i make sense and you dont. case closed.

cheers!
~svn seven
[Edited 4/5/09 12:47pm]

Thank you ppl.It was a pleasure sharing thoughts with you.
Meet you soon on another topic.

Cheers.

JBK

No one has mentioned Lets Work. P is a great bassist with his own style. Characteristic of all his instrumental work, P has such a great ear, timing, compositionally brilliant mind and intuitive approach. He may not be as technically flawless as others but as a popular composer, there is no peer.

Has anyone seen the live Vegas version of Face Down on bass... incredible, sick!

thebanishedone said:

I would stick "Some Kind of Lover" by Apple 6 in there too. Wish he'd "cover" that one..or i could find his version somewhere... Brenda's just so..

Prince has always been one of my favorite bass players, and it isn't just because I'm a huge Prince fan. It's because of his phrasing, Larry Graham-esque rhythm, and interesting melodic choices. His use of ghost notes (I know, I'm copping a drumming term, but I think it's accurate) is my favorite thing about his playing.

Watch Victor Wooten's live DVD to see him give Prince props and perform "Let's Work", which has to be my all time favorite bass line. I'm trying to learn it by watching Victor play it since I've never been able to get it down from listening to the record.

Good call on "La La Laa He He Hee", even sped up, it's a very funky and melodic solo.

This is interesting:

squirrelgrease said:

I watched that expecting not to like it and was very surprised. This guy must have watched the Victor Wooten DVD because he adds a lot of Wooten-esque fills to Let's Work.

Nice job.

NightGod said:

Guy's got some chops. I was looking for the Wooten thing when I found it.

Hasn't Victor Wooten played with P before? I also like Meshell Ndegeocello's live version of Lets Work.

jdcxc said:

yeah he has, around one night alone times. 01/02

WetDream said:

Victor Wooten, in one of his instructional DVDs, starts out by talking about how he got hooked onto the bass...

In addition to referencing Jaco Pastorius and Stanley Clarke (who, of course, along with Victor Wooten and very very few others are in their own league), mentioned Larry Graham and the Prince Groove from Let's Work as demonstrating the style which you must play the notes, as well as the proficiency.

Victor is undoubtedly a fan. But let's be completely fair here. Prince knows how to groove with a bass, is an amazing jammer with it, and definitely knows his way around it. That doesn't mean that anybody is comparing him to the true legends who have devoted their lives almost exclusively to that single instrument.

To the person who asked earlier on this thread about the Rainbow Children bass playing, IIRC, Prince does 90% of the bass playing on the album with Larry showing up on just a few songs.

savoirfaire said:

Prince is not a virtuoso or master technician of the bass. But he has created some of the most compelling bass lines in modern popular music. There's always arguments between jazz purists, jazz fans and fans of popular music that miss the point. Prince has a genius musical mind that enables him to craft and compose brilliant music whether it be from the point of view of the bass, guitar, drums or keyboards.

Many great jazz instrumental musicians have tried to write great funk/rock/soul songs. Prince probably couldn't do what Victor or Jaco could do but they definately couldn't compose the music P has. Now give P 40 years of dedication to the sonic vocabulary of Jazz and sole dedication to one instrument and nothing would suprise me!

jdcxc said:

Yes...

Although Victor plays many original compositions, some pretty funky. But we're talking strictly bass player comparison.

His CD, A show of hands, is stunning. It contains the bass exclusively, no other instruments, and yet the album still feels full.
[Edited 4/5/09 22:26pm]

savoirfaire said:

Thanks, I have to check it out. I was a big Stanley Clarke (bassist extrordinare) fan starting from his School Days period, but I haven't heard his recent stuff.

natecstfhg said:

Billy's Sunglasses

Brofie said:

Genesia pointed out the instrumental outtake that is generally refereed to as "Climax", though it is actually untitled as far as I know - I believe that Climax is a bootlegger title. There are two versions, one has Prince playing synth, Linn percussion and bass. It has a very Stevie Nicks "Stand back" feel to it. The other is just the bass track to the same song. They clock in at about 4:45.

Billy's Sunglasses is so much longer, and more a guitar showcase, that I don't think it's what natecstfhg was referring to.

Since we're on the topic I wanted to point out one of my favorite bass parts from Prince - G-Spot. What at first seems to be a very simple part turns into something amazing because of his fills, especially towards the end. I'm sure many of you here have heard the circulating Prince version, as well as the isolated bass track. Amazing stuff, and yes, I love his playing on "Climax"...again a funky simple pattern with some incredible melodic and soulful fills.

This leads to my suggestion to Prince for members of Lotusflow3r....please record some musical clinics...you don't have to say a word, just let us see what you're doing on certain tracks. I'd be interested in seeing all instrumental parts. Since Lotusflow3r is meant to be interactive...how about teaching some of some of what you know?

NightGod said:

Clinics would be really cool. The thing is, I think Prince relishes his magician persona as much as anything else. He's more David Blaine than Penn & Teller.

squirrelgrease said:

... and there we have it.

Clinics would be really cool. The thing is, I think Prince relishes his magician persona as much as anything else. He's more David Blaine than Penn & Teller.[/quote]

That's true. Thank you for not mentioning Criss Angel!

Mind Freak

Genesia said:

No, I know what it is; I'm trying to figure out how to play it...