![]() We recently spoke to Dougie Payne who plays bass in Travis and he said, “I saw the movie Standing In The Shadows of Motown and became utterly obsessed with James Jamerson. I started obsessively listening to his basslines.” PAUL MCCARTNEY BASS MOVIE He adds, “Then I heard a story about how he was playing on stage in a club once and Marvin Gaye arrived and physically dragged him off the come and play on his record in the studio. I’ve tried doing it myself,” Dougie joked, “And it’s just about impossible.” Jamerson was so steaming drunk that he played all the basslines lying down. This laidback style (not in the literal sense of lying down) and heavy Peter Hook-esque notion that the bass should be front and centre at the party and not just holding the drinks in the background, is something that has led Jamerson to cult hero status. Although he, along with fellow Motown legend Carol Kaye, are championed as two of the greatest bass players of all time by those in the industry, such was the nature of being a session musician for the eponymous hitmaking label, they haven’t received the wider credit that they deserve. In an interview with Tony Bacon, first published on Reverb, McCartney was more than happy to reveal just how much the cult figure influenced his style. “ became a bit more skilful, yeah,” he said. “I wouldn’t personally credit myself, but thanks for that. ![]() But part of it, I think James Jamerson, him and me, I’d share the credit there. Later adding that, as was the case for many other fans, Jamerson was a faceless sound to him for a lot of years. “James Jamerson became just my hero, really. I didn’t actually know his name until quite recently. James was very melodic, and that got me more interested.”Īnd the other bassist who McCartney took inspiration from was Brian Wilson. “Actually, he and Brian Wilson were my two biggest influences,” he added. “James just because he was so good and melodic. Brian would use, if you were playing in C, he might stay on the G a lot just to hold it all back, and I started to realize the power you had within the band.” Brian because he went to very unusual places. With a triumvirate of Brain Wilson, James Jamerson and Paul McCartney himself in the mix, you’ve just about encapsulated the sound of the sixties and some of the most seminal basslines that have ever been laid down. ![]() You can check out James Jamerson’s work on the Jackson 5’s ‘Darling Dear’ below it is undoubtedly one of the prettiest basslines that vinyl has ever struggled to contain in its grooves, with a fluency and intonation rarely heard today. It’s slicker than a penguin’s back and smoother than a hot-butter silk nightgown.She now lives in Covington with her husband, William Shockley, where they own a company that levels ground and prepares sites for construction. She never knew what happened to the bass until the late '70s when Rolling Stone reported that Paul McCartney had it. Last month, about 30 years later, Shockley and the bass were reunited in a remarkable interlude spent with McCartney, the former Beatle, at his studio in England. Sir Paul sang to her, posed for photos and even plucked a few notes of her dad's old part on ' Heartbreak Hotel'.
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