Overplayer / Underplayer

[Hyfi]

I have been wanting to make this comp ever since we talked about Bass players last year. My list was deemed all Overplayers by Swish. Dusty then asked if all the others are Underplayers. These two words stuck in my head. There are lots of good bass players who get little or no credit while there are others we all know. Some of these tracks my be real familiar, but most are from my own collection.

One of the greatest Underplayers in MHO would be Greg Lake. He has one of the most beautiful and emotional voices for a guy. Another bassist/vocalist I like is James Dewar from Robin Trower fame. His voice is also captivating while his bass playing is not overdone.

There are also those players that we mainly hear as Overplayers but still have tracks as Underplayers. Stanley Clarke would be one of the main guys here. Others would be Tony Levin, Jon Camp(Renaissance), Chris Squire, and Mark Egan. Other guys just cant seem to go any slower than a mile a minute. Jeff Berlin(Bruford) is one as well as Stuart Hamm, and Michael Manring (although he is calm on Michael Hedges recordings).

This is a collection of some of my favorite tunes or artists featuring great bass. I tried to find as many of the "Overplayers" underplaying as to shed some light on their slower tasteful music. Some are not well known at all like Jimmy Charleson(Carl Filipiak Band), Martin Dresdin(Focus) and Craig Herlihy(YokeShire).

The hardest thing about making this comp is trying to figure out a good sequence. I settled on starting out slow with some Underplaying and working my way through the Overplaying. The comp ends with an overplayer underplaying on a track with nothing but bass.

Here's the play list if anyone is interested:

Jaco- Pat Metheny- Mark Egan
Lisa- Stanley Clarke- Stanley Clarke
Focus II- Focus- Martin Dresdin
Little Girl- Robin Trower- Rustee Allen(bass)- James Dewar(vocals)
It Hurts- Greg Lake- Greg Lake
Nature Boy- Annie Haslam- Jon Camp
Heartbeat- King Crimson- Tony Levin
America- Yes- Chris Squire
Flyin’ East - Fourplay- Nathan East
Blue Entrance- Carl Filipiak- Jimmy Charleson
Egocentric Molecules - Jean-Luc Ponty- Ralphe Armstrong
Call of the Wild- Stuart Hamm- Stuart Hamm
Cruel & Unusual- Michael Manring- Michael Manring
Sample & Hold- Bruford- Jeff Berlin
Shape of a Dancer- YokeShire- Craig Herlihy
Just My Wish- Carl Filipiak- Jimmy Charleson