I remember the first time I took notice of a bass line on a song.
I mean, really heard it.
My parents owned the Jesus Christ Superstar double album, and it was played constantly in our house.
One day, when I was around 8 or 9, the title track was playing and I was sitting and listening to it.
When suddenly, I became aware that the bass guitarist was playing some incredible lines down at the bottom, particularly on the verses and the repeating choruses at the end.
I was almost entranced by it. Listening now, it is easy to see why.
Bassist Alan Spenner is playing out of his mind and is absolutely putting on a clinic. It was an awakening for me.
From that moment forward, whether I knew it or not, I would be drawn to songs with great bass lines for life.
There are plenty of factors that cause me to gravitate toward certain songs, artists, and genres – not just bass. That said, if a song does happen to have a great bass line, or even just spotlights the instrument for a moment, there is a good chance I will like said song, if not love it or in some cases become totally obsessed with it.
I have assembled a playlist of songs that have cracked the Billboard Hot 100 that have bass lines, passages, riffs, et cetera that have grabbed me and pulled me in over the years.
And below, I have expounded further on some of the ones that have had a particular impact on me. All the songs on the playlist are from 1966 to 1983. I most certainly recall many great bass lines in the ensuing years, particularly in alt rock/modern rock in the 90s, but many of them did not chart on the Hot 100 due to a number of factors, so I decided to cut this list off at the early ‘80s.
The list is in chronological order.
This is not a list of greatest or most iconic bass lines or greatest bass players of all time, but rather just some of my personal favorites.
And, I limited it to the Billboard Hot 100, as a way of focusing on the mainstream realm of pop/soul/rock.
Finally, let me be clear that zeroing in on one instrument is not meant to diminish the importance of the vocalists and other players on the song.
It’s just that, for today, it’s all about that bass. (Yeah, I had to do it.)
The full playlist is posted at the end of the article.
Let’s begin!
Reflections
Diana Ross & the Supremes
1967
Hot 100 Peaked at #2
The first time I heard James Jamerson’s name was in the early 90s, when a good friend of mine and amazing bass player enlightened me to the fact that Jamerson was behind so many of those foundational bass lines on countless Motown hits. His revelatory playing took what the electric bass guitar could do on a standard pop hit to a whole new level and unlocked a world of possibilities for generations of players to come. The list of prominent bassists that attest to his profound influence on their playing is seemingly infinite.
I find the bass lines he crafted for so many of those Motown hits to be nearly intoxicating. I have an entire Jamerson playlist that I turn to when I need to satisfy the cravings. Even after hearing it countless times, his work on Gladys Knight & the Pips’ blistering version of “I Heard It Through the Grapevine” still sends me through the roof.
My earliest memory of one of his bass lines, however, is the haunting opening tones of “Reflections”. It sets the mood immediately, before any note is sung, and from there the bass is relentlessly driving the feel and groove without ever overpowering the song or overshadowing its stars. It’s perfect Motown and perfect Jamerson.
Nobody But Me
The Human Beinz
1967
Hot 100 #8
This cover of an Isley Brothers song was this Youngstown, Ohio band’s only hit. The bassist, listed as Mel Pachuta, goes way beyond the call and shines in a way that never distracts from the song, but rather propels it to its giddy greatness. There is something happening there at the bottom that one would not normally hear from the multitude of garage bands that populated the U.S. charts post British Invasion, and it unfolds in multiple stages.
Initially, it’s a solid, pulsating 8th note pattern, joined only by drums, nothing fancy, but it still pops out and gives the track great energy. There’s a nifty syncopated pattern that glides through the chorus, and then it gets downright funky underneath the guitar solo, while never losing the discipline of the groove.
By the end of the song, he’s gone next-level, motoring around in double time like it’s a Gospel revival. It really does make me want to get up and shout.
Midnight Confessions
The Grass Roots
1968
Hot 100 #5
Meant to be a west coast take on Motown, the bass is a vital factor in making that happen with this song. The opening line hooks you in right out of the gate. The song manages to be both desperate and fun at the same time and the driving yet bouncy patterns on the verses and chorus provide the foundation for that.
There is some debate as to who played bass on this song. The Grass Roots often didn’t play on their recordings and were replaced by L.A. session musicians who years later became increasingly referred to as the Wrecking Crew. This was common practice at the time. Some sources list the group’s bassist/vocalist Rob Grill as having played it, but two prolific and top-of-the-class session bass players have laid claim to it, and it would make sense that it was one of them.
Carol Kaye has a royalty check posted on her website as proof that she played on the recording, but Joe Osborn has listed it on his credits. The incurable nerd in me desperately wants to get to the bottom of this and procure a definitive answer, but I’m going to suppress the urge and just enjoy that wonderful bass line. Am I though? By the time you’ve read this, I’ve probably gone back down the rabbit hole.
Good Times Bad Times
Led Zeppelin
1969
Hot 100 #80
I sometimes find myself imagining what it would have been like to put on Led Zeppelin’s debut album, never having heard the band prior and have this come exploding out of the speakers as the first song. The band is fully formed, fully visualized from the very start, and all four members combine their brutal forces to create what I can only describe as a musical supernova. That includes bassist John Paul Jones, who is flat out dealing from start to finish.
He created the riff he shares with Jimmy Page on the opening verse, and those little bass breaks at the end of the chorus just kill me, not to mention that punishing bass line underneath Page’s devastating guitar solo. In general, his lines and riffs captivate me more than pretty much any other hard rock bassist.
Page, Plant, and Bonham have each been practically deified in the rock world over the years and I get why, but meanwhile, Jones is not in the conversation nearly enough.
It was my unbelievably good fortune to meet him once backstage after seeing him live when he was promoting his solo album Zooma, around 2000. I was completely flummoxed and couldn’t find the words to express what I wanted to say, which was how great I thought he was.
Everything that came out of my mouth felt like gibberish, but what I attempted to convey in so many convoluted words was that even though he never got the same attention as the other members of Zeppelin, those who were really listening knew that his contribution was foundational to the band’s sound. I felt like a total idiot, but he was modest about it and truly gracious.
Cottage Cheese
Crow
1970
Hot 100 #56
Crow was a down and dirty biker band out of Minneapolis, Minnesota that had one top 40 hit– the greasy “Evil Woman (Don’t Play Your Games With Me).”
“Cottage Cheese” was their follow up single and my older brother Greg purchased it and played it constantly. One of my earliest memories of music grabbing a hold of me and practically taking over my body is dancing around like a maniac to this as a 5-year-old. I didn’t put it all together as a kid, but listening as an adult, the bass guitarist, Larry Wiegand, is doing the lion’s share of the heavy lifting on this thing (although the longer version includes a drum solo).
His bulbous, rumbling bass lines bulldoze their way through the song like a 70s NFL fullback, wiping out everything in their path. At the same time, he shows tremendous dexterity in the instrumental bridge and what amounts to a bass solo before the vocal returns. Just like 5-year-old me, I can’t get enough of this. Definitely check this out if you’ve never heard it but be warned that it could make you want to get into a barroom brawl, so we remind you to please enjoy responsibly.
Funk #49
James Gang
1970
Hot 100 #59
My brother Greg’s record collection strikes again. It was my senior year in high school. Greg unearthed “James Gang Rides Again” from his peach crates, and I found myself hearing it for the first time. The song that nailed me to the wall was “Funk 49.” I can’t say that the bass guitar stood out initially. I just loved the song period, and well, Joe Walsh.
Then something fortuitous happened. After years of getting cranked up to 11, one of Greg’s stereo speakers gave out. With only the left speaker working, whatever had been panned to the right in the recording process would not be heard, which presumably was Joe Walsh’s guitar, as it was just plain gone.
This left Dale Peters’ wonderfully crafted bass line fully exposed, nimbly weaving its way up and down through the changes, and I was totally into it. It forever changed the way I heard the song, and I am better for it.
Shining Star
Earth, Wind & Fire
1975
Hot 100 #1
Bassist Verdine White takes no prisoners on this scorching #1 hit, deftly laying down rubbery funk like it’s a weapon. And just when I think I can’t take anymore, the song arrives at the chorus, and what’s that he’s playing? Tenths? Oh my. I have no defense for that. Every bass player I’ve ever worked with knows that a well-placed tenth (playing two notes an octave and a third apart at the same time, or in succession but letting the first one ring out) is my kryptonite.
They’ve got me. Verdine doesn’t know me, but he has driven me to my knees and beaten me. And I will gladly let him do it again and again.
Don’t Leave Me This Way
Thelma Houston
1976
Hot 100 #1
Henry Davis of LTD rolls out a beast of a disco bass line on one of the greatest, most emotionally powerful recordings of the era. So much going on down there, and it comes off so effortless that it’s easy to miss until the funky 8th note octave pattern really comes thumping out at the end to deliver the knock out punch.
Everybody Dance
Chic
1977
Hot 100 #38
If James Jamerson is my #1, and he is, then Bernard Edwards of Chic is my #2. Where to begin with Bernard? So many earth-shattering bass lines. I almost can’t contain myself just thinking about it. I know “Good Times” features one of the most influential and iconic bass lines in the history of pop music, and my personal obsession with it runs deep. It involves a disco at a youth hostel in Budapest, Hungary in the late 80s, but we’ll save that story for another time.
As much as “Good Times” and its historically important bass line are embedded in my soul, I want to instead highlight “Everybody Dance,” a lesser-known Chic song I became acquainted with later in life that features bass shredding that registers at least an 8 on the Richter scale. Bernard just obliterates those instrumental breaks and the choruses at the end, and if it doesn’t get you out on the floor shaking your money maker until it nearly falls off, then something is dead inside of you. If you really want to go turbo, listen to one of the extended versions.
You’re the One That I Want
John Travolta and Olivia Newton John
1978
Hot 100 #1
I talked about this in the comment section when Tom Breihan covered this song his “The Number Ones” column, and I’ll share it again. Around 15 years ago, I was sitting outside an Outback Steakhouse in Denver, Colorado, waiting for my nephew and his family to arrive. “You’re the One That I Want” was playing out of a speaker overhead. I had heard the song so many times through the years, but as I sat there that night, it was as if the bass line of the song decided to reveal itself to me. I heard it like I had never heard it before, and it was stunningly good. (I did some online sleuthing, and it looks like it was David Hungate of Toto who played it.)
I became completely zoned in on every nuance, every note of that bass part, to the point where nothing else in the song, or the world around me mattered. When my people arrived, I tried to explain to them what I had just experienced, but for them it just confirmed what they already knew. Their uncle was weird.
Since that day, when the mood strikes, I hit play on the song to get my fix of that rollicking bass line. I had never heard anyone else talk about it, so I thought maybe it was just me. Then about 3 years ago, I was with a bunch of musicians getting ready for a rehearsal and out of the blue, the bassist asked if any of us had ever noticed the bass on “You’re the One That I Want” and then started talking about how great it was. I felt seen.
Glide
Pleasure
1979
Hot 100 #55
I freely admit that I had never heard “Glide” in my life until the disco mavens in the comment section of The Number Ones inspired me to do a deeper dive on disco and funk, back when Tom Breihan was covering the late 70s in his column at Stereogum. I felt like I had hit the lottery when I came across this song, an unjustly overlooked funk gem.
The bass line is simply jaw dropping. Nathaniel Phillips slaps, pops, and hammers his way to immortality non-stop for 6 minutes and 28 seconds, and I truly never want it to end. And yes, those are double stop tenths on the verse, as if I wasn’t already completely smitten.
Spirits in the Material World
The Police
1981
Hot 100 #11
By my senior year in high school, I could recite every song from every Police album, in order. I was obsessed with them. Their blend of rock and reggae, with the melding of the members’ distinct talents and musical vision, was unlike anything else I was hearing at the time. With its existential lyrics and a downbeat that still loses me, the fact that a song like this could be heard on the radio feels like a miracle. The raw power of Sting’s repetitive bass line perfectly underlines the song’s dark despair and its search for greater meaning. I’m in.
Forget Me Nots
Patrice Rushen
1982
Hot 100 #23
No, I don’t need flowers to remember. All I need is Freddie Washington’s legendary bass line. My list would not be complete without this tighter than tight jam.
Rio
Duran Duran
1982
Hot 100 #14
Last year, I was on a website where bass players were discussing the hardest songs they have had to play at gigs. “Rio” came up a few times, citing the complexity of John Taylor’s bass line. This was news to me. I went and listened to the song, and I was stunned by his level of virtuosity. John Taylor is a monster.
How had I missed it? Even though I really liked some of their songs, I think I basically still saw Duran Duran as pretty boy pop stars first and foremost. They were not just that at all, and attuning my ears to the searing hot bass line on this song certainly changed my perception.
As promised, here is the full list:
And as a bonus:
Here is my James Jamerson playlist:
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Great collection, RB! Any set that starts with “Reflections” has my attention then and there.
Some of these songs I don’t know (Cottage Cheese, for starters) so I look forward to listening to your playlist.
And now, for some reason, Kool and the Gang’s “Ladies Night” is playing in my head, even though you didn’t cite it. Guess the bass has a mind of its own.
Thank you, cst! Listening to “Ladies Night” now, and I had forgotten about that bass line. That’s a great one!
As an aside to our coaching staff heading out to a football clinic in Las Vegas,
I got tickets to a Kool and the Gangs’s performance there.
We were dancing in the aisles all night.
A side note, one of the people behind us asked if we would sit down
and we all turned at once and said “If your hear at and R&B concert and you
think everyone should sit down, you’re at the wrong venue!”
You’re absolutely right! They were wrong.
I spent a long time trying to learn and play the bass line to Forget Me Nots and never quite got it. That’s when I knew being a professional musician wasn’t in the cards for me.
Yeah, that’s a rough one to attempt! I wouldn’t be too discouraged.
I got the notes and chords down but I couldn’t make it flow. It always sounded stiff and mechanical. Made me think of that quote “I can play the notes but I can’t make music.”
This is excellent, rollerboogie. I listened to my parents’ copy of “Jesus Christ Superstar” a lot as a kid, too, and I’m sure it had something to do with me gravitating towards bass.
I only know The Grass Roots hits so I don’t really know if Rob Grill can play that creatively, though we shouldn’t doubt it, but it really sounds like Joe Osborne to me. Who knows?
Never heard the Crow or Pleasure tunes before. They’re both gnarly. In a good way.
For me it was Dee Murray’s playing on Elton John’s live album “11-17-70” and “Chicago IV,” which was a live album, too. Plus, The Who’s “Won’t Get Fooled Again,” The Beatles’ “Something” and “I Want You (She’s So Heavy),” and Nilsson’s “Jump Into The Fire.” I’m sure there are more but these come to mind.
Thanks for getting the day off to a basstastic start!
Re: Chicago: It always felt like Peter Cetera was underrated as a creative and inventive bass player. You don’t often hear his name in that context.
Agreed. Before he went gentile balladeer, he could really rock it out both vocally and on bass. Underrated, indeed.
I was hoping you would check in v-dog and was interested to know what songs you might bring up, knowing you are an accomplished bass player yourself. Can’t go wrong with anyone of the first 3. I was not familiar with “Jump Into the Fire”. Listening now, and that is a great one, just such a thick sound on the bass. Powers the whole song.
Exactly! I especially like when it sounds like he’s detuning the E string. And who needs a second chord when one will do and you have a groove like that?
A quick example of Dee Murray….
https://youtu.be/s5EbECPUO88
The bass playing on “Something” is incredible.
Nice! There’s little that gets my body moving more than some tasty bass.
I’ll have to check out these picks later. For now, I’ll just leave this here…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6x3QtLCAPp8&list=OLAK5uy_mtBkzwdkdy6kMSNhx6OZPoPcfJO9KOjho
Yes, please!
Great subject and playlist with a few I’m not familiar with like Human Beinz and James Gang. It’s been my musical accompaniment to work this afternoon, paying extra attention to the bass lines.
Reflections might be my favourite Supremes song and it may be due to not discovering it til only a few years ago so it still feels fresh but I prefer Gladys’ version of Grapevine to Marvin’s.
Never heard Crow before either and I can’t help feeling that their chart career may have been derailed as a result of calling the follow up to their only hit ‘Cottage Cheese’. Regardless of how good it may be, that name isn’t a winner.
I’ll give the James Jamerson playlist a go tomorrow. Heard his name mentioned in respect of influencing Paul McCartney’s playing.
As a Brit I’ll put forward Joy Division / New Order for having the bass as a vital and very prominent component of their sound. Peter Hook has said Age of Consent is his favorite so here you go;
https://youtu.be/hZXxmhok1AU
Oh, nice call on New Order. Wasn’t familiar with this song, and I am digging it. A lot of great bass players in those early 80s UK bands.
Now David Hungate can stop approaching total strangers on the street about his participation on “You’re the One I Want”.
Love this!
I was inspired by this story Diane Warren told an interviewer. Warren was window shopping. “I Get Weak” was playing over the PA. She noticed a pair of teenage girls were singing along. Warren told them: “You know, I wrote that song.”
The girls responded: “Yeah, surrrrre you did.”
I’m proportionally outraged that Joy Division/New Order were snubbed by the RRHOF. I can’t decide if “Age of Consent” or “Love Vigilantes” is my favorite New Order song. Both of them are mildly underrated in terms of popularity, even among New Order fans, seemingly. Both songs are swamped by “Blue Monday” and “Bizarre Love Triangle”. Sofia Coppola put “Age of Consent” to good use in the Marie Antoinette trailer.
I love Pete
In the same way that a disturbing amount of causal music fans believe that “Rescue Me” is an Aretha Franklin performance:
I can’t tell you the number of times I’ve heard people say, “That bass on “I Want You Back” is phenomenal! James Jamerson really cooked on that one!”
Nope. Another guy..
Wait, what? Who was primarily a saxophone player?
It gets tricky when any session players are involved in a recording. They rotated in and out, often going uncredited and Motown didn’t always keep the best records, so confusion can abound frequently. I actually didn’t know who played bass on I Want You Back until you brought it up just now. I knew it didn’t sound like a typical Jamerson line.
The Fontella Bass/Aretha Franklin gaffe is less understandable, but I am not one to judge when it comes to ignorance. Until Tom’s column I thought Leo Sayer was black.
Kind of a rushed day today, but I can’t wait to get into those playlists. I know most of the songs (not “Cottage Cheese”, however,) but I will be listening to them in a new way. Thanks!
Your bluegrass covers list came up on another post the other day, and I had to listen to it again. Thanks for all of your hard work compiling these.
You got it, ltc. I love doing it and it makes me happy when someone listens and connects with a playlist.
I have over 20 of your lists saved to my Spotify favorites.
Woah!
I have a ton of holiday ones. I mean, who else is putting together Christmas Celtic instrumentals?
You were the one that got me started on those about 3 or 4 years ago! I’ve been coming up with new ones every year since and it’s a joy to do it.
That makes me so happy.
Larry Bird and Paul Pierce, every December?
(Ducks to avoid incoming fruit barrage)
🥰
Need I say more??!! I wuvs you rb, it’s like you could’ve been my ghostwriter in my exuberance on the glory that is a beast of a bassline. Only you put it much more eloquently. 🤗
John Paul Jones was the first Bassist to really grab BabyDutch’s ear. I must’ve only been 4 or 5,when I first heard ‘Whole Lotta Love’, and I still get the exact same reaction when John joins Jimmy at the beginning of that song all these years later – ‘That sound, is, beyond, amazing.’ The low rattling thunka-thunka-thunk, what a sound. Soooooo good.
I was still too young to have much of a clue who these players were, and what all the musical components of a band were, I just knew I was obsessed with these low tone foundational melodies. BabyDutch definitely dug The Police tunes though, Rolling Stones ‘Miss You’ was a highlight on the radio for me, and disco grooves fascinated me to no end. I love how you mentioned Don’t Leave Me This Way and Forget Me Nots specifically, as those were also 2 basslines that really stood out to me back then. I’ve only recently been taking the time to match James Jamerson’s name with the Motown songs he played on, it’s just astonishing the volume of his musical contributions.
Then of course I discover John Taylor’s work getting hooked on Duran as a 9 year old, and that sealed the deal. The realization as a 10 or 11 year old of how his idol, Bernard Edwards, was the man behind all those Chic grooves, totally blew my mind. All these bits starting to fall into place educating myself was a thrilling journey for me, honestly. I distinctly remember writing in my journal when I was barely 12 or so how I loved how you could actually sing along to John Taylor’s bass lines they were so distinctive and memorable, like they were their own song. And realizing THAT was the key to my bass fascination. So nerdy, but I felt so mature realizing that!!!
That’s not to say I don’t equally adore Michael Anthony’s fillings-rattling thudding monotonous bass in most Van Halen songs either – big, full beefy foundation that perfectly complemented Eddie and Alex’s playing.
It is indeed all about the bass. 😁
I’ve been in day long meetings all week, so this was a fun read to catch up on, thx rb!
I’d be remiss if I didn’t mention Boogie Oogie Oogie’s bassline, my goodness that song and that bassline just totally consumed BabyDutch, I could not get enough of that bassline.
BabyDutch had good ears! I came very close to adding Boogie Oogie Oogie to the list. That bass line from Janice Marie-Johnson is a classic.
Heck yeah, Dutch. That is all spot on stuff! You were putting the pieces of the bass puzzle together at a impressively young age. I absolutely love it!
A great old school rap bass line from Doug Wimbish
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DwRXI-y6M9o
Ack!!! No kidding, how did I not know that was Doug Wimbish on White Lines??!! Thank you for that, zeusaphone.
I now of course have to post this link with John Taylor doing his best White Lines groove. Believe it or not, ‘White Lines’ has been a permanent fixture in Duran’s live sets for 30 years now. It is fantastic to hear live. 🥰
https://youtu.be/Ah4f62bYAcw
Good one! This recently popped back up, as it was featured in the trailer for the recent Oscar-bait cinematic masterpiece Cocaine Bear. I built a whole playlist of cocaine related songs around it.
+1 for Cocaine Bear.
I like Cocaine Bear. But what a strange coda for Ray Liotta.
Bless Noah Baumbach for making Liotta look like the great actor he was in Marriage Story.
That cocaine playlist is a fun one.
Glad you liked it! I still revisit it from time to time. It was fun to put together.
Great list, Roller! As one of the elder statesmen in the group, I well remember
your first few picks.
I would add Archie Bell and the Drells opening riff to “Tighten Up” as one of the great bass lines. If that didn’t get your feet moving, I don’t know what would. Also, Sly and the Family Stone’s “Dance To the Music” when they sing “I’m gonna add some bottom so the people can’t go and hide”.
Thank you, DanceFever and yes to both of those. The Sly song is where mt got the tagline for this article, I believe.
Sometimes I’m convinced that no one reads my dumb little preambles. Thanks for noticing!
I loved it!
Bringing back memories, I almost forgot the last week of a great blues bar in our fair city brought in Commander Cody and the Lost Planet Airmen (Google that kids).
They were doing a live recording of them in concert and we were having a blast.
During the break, I approached the person playing the bass and said how much I admired his playing and said “Most people don’t understand how the bass player is the key to the whole song.”
He grabbed me and hugged me and said “You are so right, brother”.
That is a beautiful story and encapsulates everything I was attempting to say.
Awesome Article rollerboogie! I’m glad that my vinyl collection made it Into your story! I was surprised however, that you did not mention one of the most famous bass lines of all time. “Papa was a Rolling Stone” by the Temptation’s! Since this was Motown, James Jamerson was most likely behind this song too!
Welcome, Cool It Leroy!
Heck yeah! Welcome, bro! Seeing that screen name here absolutely made my day! “Papa Was a Rolling Stone” has a classic bass line for sure. As for who played on it, as is often the case, a search on the internet leads to a lot of confusion, but it doesn’t look like it was Jamerson. I saw 3 different names mentioned in a quick search. According to one story, Jamerson was originally part of the session but got angry that he was told to play the same line over and over again and walked out of the session. That sounds very plausible. The whole thing seems to be a mystery still to this day.
Hey RB!! I’m glad you enjoyed my screen name! I had to do it! One possibility, who could have played bass on that song, is Kern Brantley from the Motor City! But nobody seems to know for sure. Why the mystery?
Apparently there were 4 bassists listed on the album but not credited for the individual songs. Add to the fact that the songs are often recorded multiple times or re-recorded, and it can get confusing to even the players themselves trying to remember who did what years later, being that they played on thousands of songs over the years. Motown itself did not keep great records of who played on each session or song, which certainly doesn’t help clear things up either. Some songs have a signature style which makes it more obvious who did it, but even then, it’s not always correct.
And with Jamerson, it doesn’t help matters that he sadly passed away in 1983.
As I’m reading, I’m thinking “PleaseIncludeSting..PleaseIncludeSting” – thank you for the shout-out. Was wondering if you’d choose “Walking On The Moon”, as that’s the bassline that Sting says he likes the best.
Excellent article, sir. I’m listening to the playlist as I type.
The first bass line that come to mind when I specifically think of one (which I do not, often) is “Tighten Up” by Archie Bell & the Drells, though I guess as cool as it is, it’s pretty repetitive.
https://youtu.be/twy4vVs0tnU
I am not familiar with this game, but I would have played it endlessly for the music alone.