QueenZone discussion #500990
John Deacon, the bassplayer
| JDL2nd 01.04.2005 12:29 |
I think John Deacon is a wonderful bassplayer on the Queen records but sometimes a bad bassplayer on stage (live). He wasn't a very good bassplayer between 1978 - 1984 on stage. He plays too little or just nothing in some parts of song (!?). Examples : he doesn't play much in songs like Play the game, Sheer heart attack, Somebody to love, action this day and I'm in love with my car. I think his best moments on stage were between 1973 - 1977. On record he was absolutely great. Songs like under presure, dragon attack, another one bites the dust and the show must go on have great basslines. |
| wstüssyb 01.04.2005 12:30 |
Is this a Question? =) |
| JDL2nd 01.04.2005 12:37 |
well. What do you think about his bassplaying ? |
| wstüssyb 01.04.2005 12:43 |
Well Peronsally I like his style, Since I heard all the Queen songs and like most of them, I just Feel he was to quiet sometimes live, Unlike Led Zep (well seems like it on Bootlegs) Roger and John are more quiet in sound compared to Zep, where the Drums and Bass seem louder and Brian's Guitar is louder then Jimmys, so Personally my thoughts are they knew Brian was the sound of Queen and made his guitar a little louder then most bands guitar players. My favorite songs are written by John, so of course I like him =) |
| doremi 01.04.2005 14:55 |
I LOVE John's Bass playing, live and on record. Listen to him on the intro. to "Dragon Attack" on "Live At The Bowl"...talk about SMOKIN'! & ROCKIN'!, also on "Under Pressure" and on "Live At The Bowl", and several cuts on "Live At Wembley", especially AKOM. You can hear the audience clapping along with the rhythm. I mean the man is so underated. He's totally got it going on. |
| Vad 01.04.2005 15:34 |
Where's Deacon1stChoice when you need him? ;) He may clarify us some things... |
| Serry... 01.04.2005 17:06 |
Listen more carefully and you'd hear his bass lines on most of the songs on all lives in all periods. He's not a star, he probably hasn't a star charisma, but he's a very good bass player. |
| Deacons 1st Choice 01.04.2005 21:04 |
John played Bass very well as he knew the importance of WHEN to play, and when NOT to play. This may explain why the above comments in the first post seemed to say that John hardly played anything noteworthy in the later tours. The arrangements became much more simlified after the late 70's so naturally the basslines would change somewhat in style. Queen's best era ( for me anyway) was in the early days. The brilliant and beautifully complicated arrangements made Queen the standout that it was...and John was very much responsible for that on more levels then most folks are even aware of. He has done some stunning work, and even in the later eras he did some amazing stuff. John always insisted in quality and was extremly aware of all aspects of the recording and performance of the pieces. The man truly had total understanding and control of what he was doing and it shows very well in many recordings and performances. |
| JohnC 01.04.2005 21:57 |
<font color=#FF399> Linda Of The Valley wrote: Your points don't really make sense at all. I mean, the bass bits are fine on Play The Game...you're not meant to here too much of a bass player in songs and he can't just change the songs in 1978 - 1984 to put more bass in.... He played fine. I don't know that much about bass players...I could never tell a good player from a great one but I love Deacy!! :) He made some killer basslines!Always has to add something, make her point on something she doesn't know nothing about, just to talk... |
| Mr Mercury 02.04.2005 05:41 |
John Deacon has something that no other Bass player has - John Deacon's style. Nuff said. |
| Son Of Deacon 02.04.2005 14:06 |
John Deacon WAS a great player! I really wish he was touring with Queen. I loved his perm and fdootball shorts...........and his great basslines. |
| mike hunt 02.04.2005 14:52 |
john's slightly underated, as is roger and even brian. i don't think john's a all time great but desearves a bit more credit as a bass player. 'millionare waltz' liar, and later stuff like 'breakthru' show his talents. |
| Drowse 1 02.04.2005 23:16 |
Well, being a drummer myself it's imperative that in any band the bass and drums need to work together. I tend to listen to John's bass playing a little more on all my bootlegs and let me tell you something kid, the man has "chops." He is a consumate professional and as I was telling MY bassist the other day, he RARELY makes any mistakes live and his style of playing compliments each and every song live. VERY under rated talent. He knew when not to overplay and just keep the bottom end solid. Remember, when Brian goes into a solo, John and Roger don't need to overplay or show off, just keep up the pace. But what do I know, I'm only 39 and can't compete with a 16 year old. |
| mike hunt 03.04.2005 00:50 |
i agree, john is a solid bass player, i think 'your my best friend' is another example of john playing the parts but not showing off, actually all queen members were like that, by the way, i'm far from 16 buddy, not to far behind you at 39, i'm 33. |
| ANAGRAMER 03.04.2005 03:33 |
Belive me, this man is THE most tasteful bassplayer in the world, but, you may notice that, on the less successful records (TG It's Cmas etc) there is a lack of imagination in the basslines |
| mike hunt 03.04.2005 04:39 |
i totally disagree, the game was great, bassline were also great, 'dragon attack' 'bites the dust' and 'crazy,' all have great basslines, also 'sail away' john sounds good. |
| deleted user 03.04.2005 06:04 |
I love John's bassplaying. He's great! And a very very good bass player. I also love almost all of his songs. He was a great music composer! |
| DeaconJohn 03.04.2005 07:01 |
John Deacon played for the song. He is one of the most underrated bassplayers out there. The reason why he didnt go playing Mark King style slap bass solos or Jaco-type 16th lines? Because the songs didnt need that! If any bass players out there get themselves up to a standard where they can perform, and more importantly, write, basslines as tasteful as John's, then they will be doing very well indeed. |
| bassist08 03.04.2005 13:43 |
John was and (I'm sure still is), a wonderful bassist. He wrote many of, well all of my favorite bass lines. And be being a bassist myself I can say that he had to be skilled have you ever tried to play the bass lines for "Fairy Fellers Masterstroke", or "Millionaires Waltz"? They're insane! John was my inspiration for taking up bass and I'm greatly in debt to him for helping me find the initiative to play my self. |
| JDL2nd 03.04.2005 14:14 |
Great friends from queenzone.com, it's very interesting to see your opinions about his bassplaying. Some people might think that when your 17 (not 16, not anymore, you are not able to give your opinion about this bassplayer. Let me tell you something : I'm a drummer for a long time and I play in a rockband. I've also played saxophone for a couple of years, I can play keyboard a little bit and I write my own songs... so don't write that I can't have a good opinion about his bassplaying because I'm "only " 17 years old. I am critical and I don't say he's extremely good just because I love Queen. |
| Drowse 1 03.04.2005 22:01 |
You DON'T have a good opinion about his bass playing. You totally panned him by saying he was a bad bassist from 78-84 and that he wasn't very good live. |
| Lennart Heim 04.04.2005 07:35 |
Yeah, it doesn't make sense. John Deacon is a great bass player. Just watch the Hammersmith '75 video. He's able to play all kinds of hard stuff. Also, on records, he didn't just play a bunch of root notes. Play the game got a nice bass line (try to play that one) and the bass on Sheer Heart Attack is played by Roger. And that last one isn't bad either, it just fits well with the punk inspired type of song. |
| merc 04.04.2005 08:54 |
I also agree, the opinion expressed by JDL2nd is not brilliant. But wait, he plays a little bit of keyboard!!! Shit, he must know what he's talking about then! Just because John didn't have huge bass solos similar to Brians, or parade around the stage like Freddie, doesn't mean he was shit. If you look at other bass players out there, many of them just chill out on stage, with a few obvious exceptions. John did what was necessary, and he did a fine job. I personally think that the way John was on stage provided a good balance for the band. He showed that he didn't have to try and keep up with Freddie to have an effect. |
| Mexcal 04.04.2005 10:20 |
wstüssyb wrote: Well Peronsally I like his style, Since I heard all the Queen songs and like most of them, I just Feel he was to quiet sometimes live, Unlike Led Zep (well seems like it on Bootlegs) Roger and John are more quiet in sound compared to Zep, where the Drums and Bass seem louder and Brian's Guitar is louder then Jimmys, so Personally my thoughts are they knew Brian was the sound of Queen and made his guitar a little louder then most bands guitar players. My favorite songs are written by John, so of course I like him =)You can't compare Roger and John with John Bonham and John Paul Jones, there's too much difference between them |
| NOTWMEDDLE 04.04.2005 13:42 |
Deaky is my favorite bass player ever. Listen to his solos on Liar, The Millionaire Waltz, Dragon Attack, Under Pressure, Breakthru. His bass work was what got me into playing bass more. He alternates betwwen pick for fast numbers then fingers for slow numbers. |
| mike hunt 04.04.2005 13:57 |
i agree, someone mentioned steve harris from iron maiden. i loved maiden as a kid, i know all their stuff, in my opinion steve harris does some impressive things but the reason why i don't he's the best is because he does the same sounds over and over, john does all different kinds of music, like hard rocking 'great king rat' sounds alot like maiden, ballads (best friend) pop (aobtd) you get the point, so yes, because of his ability to change styles i feel he's underated. |
| The King Of Rhye 07.04.2005 05:48 |
I think our man Deacy is definitely underrated....quite a good bass playe indeed....I havent heard anybody else say this, but at times I think I hear a Motown/soul kinda influence in his playing.....I suppose that would make sense, given that The Opposition played a lot of covers of that type of stuff..... |
| Benny Faye 07.04.2005 16:37 |
Well, the whole soul/motown thing is only natural. And it does give him a certain edge. But, all in all, my favourite thing about Deacy's playing was his precision. BoRhap is a good example, as said by Brian May himself, of course. |
| brENsKi 07.04.2005 17:43 |
isn't the title of this thread a little misleading? surely the thread starter could be done for fraud? "John Deacon, the bassplayer" is not very accurate - i'd have to say we'd have to go back at least EIGHT years to hear him play ANY bass |
| ANAGRAMER 07.06.2005 13:33 |
mike hunt wrote: i totally disagree, the game was great, bassline were also great, 'dragon attack' 'bites the dust' and 'crazy,' all have great basslines, also 'sail away' john sounds good.TG it's C=thank god it's Christmas - bassline dreadful I agree with your comments on The Game album - basslines and awsome bass sound make the album |
| PainPleasure 08.06.2005 00:46 |
John was a great bass player. He always did fine. |
| dimcyril 08.06.2005 06:20 |
mike hunt wrote: i agree, john is a solid bass player, i think 'your my best friend' is another example of john playing the parts but not showing off, actually all queen members were like that, by the way, i'm far from 16 buddy, not to far behind you at 39, i'm 33.YOUR BASSIST? Since when did the bassist belong to the drummer???? bassists have feelings too you know |
| dimcyril 08.06.2005 06:21 |
Drowse 1 wrote: Well, being a drummer myself it's imperative that in any band the bass and drums need to work together. I tend to listen to John's bass playing a little more on all my bootlegs and let me tell you something kid, the man has "chops." He is a consumate professional and as I was telling MY bassist the other day, he RARELY makes any mistakes live and his style of playing compliments each and every song live. VERY under rated talent. He knew when not to overplay and just keep the bottom end solid. Remember, when Brian goes into a solo, John and Roger don't need to overplay or show off, just keep up the pace. But what do I know, I'm only 39 and can't compete with a 16 year old.sorry that post should have gone with this one. your bassist etc etc |
| Penis - Vagina 07.09.2005 20:50 |
I wonder if anyone else ever noticed a little mistake in 'Under Pressure' at MK? At about 17 seconds into it (On Fire CD/DVD version, which starts with high-hat) he hits a wrong note.. or rather stays with the same one in sequence where a change is supposed to be heard. On the DVD it looks like he almost trips at this point, so it's understandable :) Edit: I found another thread where this is mentioned, shortly after posting: /queenzone/398580.html I think that settles it. EVERYTHING has been discussed already. I'm retiring to the Personal section exclusively. |