Gene Simmons wanted to play the bass in a straightforward manner from the beginning. He claims, “I’ve always been a pragmatist.” “Reality is paramount.
When I was little, I saw that everyone aspired to play the guitar, so I started by learning a few chords. However, since there weren’t many bassists, I decided to learn the instrument since it would help me get into a band, which was what I truly wanted.
It was simple to concentrate on Ace Frehley’s pyrotechnic lead guitar, Peter Criss’ wild fills, and Paul Stanley’s soaring vocals amidst Kiss’s kabuki costumes, flare, and explosions. However, many of the band’s Klassics were supported by Simmons’ basslines.
This idea that everyone in a band could be a star was the original-cookie cutter design that other bands seem to ignore, he explains. Those bass riffs that the guitars would jump on and double up on are all the parts that became Firehouse and Love Her All I Can.
However, he goes on: “I never really wanted to be a bass virtuoso, and I don’t consider myself to be one. Showoffs in music bother me. Memorable things pique my interest far more. For me, it adds to the pleasure of music. There aren’t many bassists that stand out.
Nevertheless, he has unintentionally influenced several aspiring four-string players. “I don’t care,” he responds, “but I don’t mean this to be flippant.” Around the world, the man who invented hamburgers is revered. They would never make a hamburger if you attended a French cooking school, but who the hell puts frog legs in their mouth? I would never desire any more credibility than to be a Burger King Whopper.
“You can be a jazz musician and be respected by musicians, but the rest of the world doesn’t care,” he says. We’re going to play a game where you have to name a jazz musician who has significance. John McLaughlin, perhaps? He is an excellent player.
I have a question, though: can you hum any of the songs he has ever performed on a solo? Obviously not. With all due respect, I don’t care about that music; it’s only meant to showcase your skill. Writing a nice, straightforward tune or riff is the toughest thing to do, and it’s incredibly challenging.
The jazz boys and Jaco Pastorius are only two of the many incredible bassists. Or musicians like as Flea, who is exceptionally skilled on his instrument. However, I can’t recall any of his songs. Furthermore, I dislike the sound of a bass being smacked.
Simmons goes on: “Clapton said something really profound before he became popular and was regarded as ‘God’: ‘The hardest thing to do is to know what notes to put in a solo, and what notes not to put in a solo.'” Sometimes if it’s shockingly simple, barely moving at all, but I can hum it; that’s what matters, because it’s memorable.
“In my opinion, McCartney is the most influential bassist. I think the greatest praise I can give Paul McCartney is that you can recall the bass playing in almost every Beatles song.
The bass doesn’t move too much. The railroad track that the train travels on is the one that the bass and drums lock into. The Beatles and Paul McCartney were more akin to a string quartet, in which the violin and cello each have their own tune, but AC/DC arguably do it better than anyone else in that style and genre.
The bass was playing melodies together with the other instruments. The drums weren’t attached to it. The compositions I came up with were supposed to be so memorable that people thought, “Well, maybe the guitars should double up and play those bass parts.”
These riffs were created by McCartney and occasionally by Lennon.