Steve PMHRock Music has continued to be a presence in the musical world for roughly 70 years now.
They’re certainly been different instruments introduced into the rock genre. Mostly, though, rock bands are made up of guitar, drums and bass.
The bass guitar and the musician themselves that play the bass can be overlooked and sometimes even ignored as not as important as the singer or the lead guitar player.
Listening to music over the years, I have found myself drawn to that rock song that features the bass as an instrument that should be a focus of the song and not just the background sound.
You can do a list of 100 songs or more where the bass plays a lead or a prominent role in the track.
You can also go to different genres such as rhythm and blues, jazz and Top 40 for some brilliant bass work.
This list will be limited to rock and roll and we will go no higher than 17 songs.
I will throw in some honorable mentions in my closing thoughts but the 17 songs that I will soon list are my top choices.
These are my Top 17 bass songs in rock music.
BOMBTRACK – RATM
Opening track from Rage Against the Machine’s debut album. It was released in 1992.
Tim Commerford’s bass line opens the song and the bass is out front throughout. The title comes from the idea that Bombtrack means the greatest track.
The bass gives the song great power as it partners with Zach De La Rocha’s political lyrics and Tom Morello’s unique guitar sound.
The sounds mixed together create a truly impressive song and this was a preview of what was to come for this band.
MOUNTAIN SONG – Jane’s Addiction
Mountain Song was the first song that Jane’s Addiction wrote as a band. It was released on the album Nothing’s Shocking in 1988.
Eric Avery was the bass guitarist and his bass line opened the song with Dave Navarro soon joining in on guitar.
The bass here is not in the forefront as much but it’s crucial to the quality of the song and it’s definitely one of Jane’s Addictions finest efforts.
CANNONBALL – The Breeders
This was The Breeders big breakout song from their album Last Splash which was released in 1993.
The bass line played by Josephine Wiggs starts out the song along with the drums.
Kim and Kelly Deal’s guitars soon join in. The bass line is heard clearly throughout and it anchors the track.
Cannonball did very well for The Breeders reaching a high of 44 on the Billboard charts.
LONGVIEW – Green Day
Drums and bass open Green Day’s breakthrough song from their third album, Dookie.
You hear Mike Dirnt’s bass riff along with drums for the first minute before Billy Joe joins in with lyrics and then some guitar.
The song then closes with Dirnt’s bass line along with some guitar riffs.
Longview received heavy play on MTV and the music video station is largely credited with breaking the band to the general public.
The song is also an excellent showcase for the Green Day bassist.
I AM ONE – The Smashing Pumpkins
This song was the first single released from The Smashing Pumpkins debut album Gish in 1991.
D’Arcy Wretzky, the bass player for the band has a short solo late in the song which breaks up the song nicely.
Her bass and Jimmy Chamberlin drums kick the track off with raging guitars coming in soon after.
One of the few songs co-written by Billy Corgan and James Iha, as Corgan dominated the songwriting for The Smashing Pumpkins.
A great effort by the band and a nice showcase for D’Arcy’s playing.
WOULD? – Alice in Chains
This song which has a great opening bass riff by Mike Starr, first appeared on the soundtrack to the film Singles, then appeared on Alice in Chains’ second album, Dirt.
What is unique about this song is the use of two singers (Layne Staley and Jerry Cantrell).
When Cantrell is singing his parts, you hear just Starr’s bass and drums. When Staley sings, the guitar comes in.
This song was written to honor Andrew Wood, who was the lead singer of Mother Love Bone.
He had passed away of a heroin overdose in 1990. Sadly, both Layne Stanley and Mike Starr have since died due to drug overdoses.
AROUND THE WORLD – Red Hot Chili Peppers
The only bassist to make this list twice, Michael Balzary, better known as Flea of the Red Hot Chili Peppers.
He is in the spotlight on Around the World as his bass riffs kick the song off.
Flea wrote the bass riffs himself and his playing is featured throughout the song.
Around the World was a success for The Red Hot Chili Peppers as it reached 16 on Billboard’s Mainstream Rock Tracks Chart.
MYSTERY ACHIEVEMENT – Pretenders
I had considered choosing another Pretenders song for this list.
My City Was Gone has a great bass riff to start the song. I chose Mystery Achievement instead as I like the faster tempo.
This song starts with pounding drums initially and then Pete Farndon jumps in with a steady bass riff that stands out for the whole song.
Sadly, as in other bands on this list, Farndon was kicked out of the band and then soon after overdosed on heroin.
BURNING DOWN THE HOUSE – The Talking Heads
A great song by the Talking Heads which was on their fifth album, Speaking In Tongues.
Tina Weymouth’s bass playing along with Chris Frantz’s drumming gives the track a funky sound.
This makes sense as some inspiration came from music from Parliament-Funkadelic.
This sound was well received as Burning Down the House was Talking Head’s highest charting song in the United States. It peaked at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100.
SUCK MY KISS – Red Hot Chili Peppers
This track is from their fifth studio album, Blood Sugar Sex Magik released in 1992.
This is Flea’s second appearance on this list as his bass line is featured in this song and his aggressive playing gives it an incredible sound.
The song peaked at #15 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart.
They have performed this song hundreds of times in concert as it is definitely one of their most popular songs.
SCHISM – Tool
This is truly an incredible song and I am not a huge Tool guy. Justin Chancellor opens the song with an almost spooky bass riff.
Maynard and Adam Jones join in with guitar and vocals as the intensity increases.
The bass is an important part of this song and it sets the mood. This was a track on their studio album, Lateralus which was released in 2002.
The band plays an extended version of Schism in concert.
It is hard to pick but I think this is my favorite song on this list. I could change my mind tomorrow but right now, Schism is number one of 17.
JENNY WAS A FRIEND OF MINE – The Killers
A great song by the Killers which was released in 2004. It was included on their studio album, Hot Fuss.
It was co-written by Mark Stoermer who is the bassist for the band.
A strong bassline is featured throughout the track. Even though this is one of The Killers most beloved songs, it was never released as a single.
REGRET – New Order
A beautiful song that New Order released in 1993 off their album, Republic.
Regret became the highest charting single for New Order in the United States, peaking at #28 on the Billboard Hot 100 chart.
Peter Hook’s bass playing is a highlight as he has a solo around the middle of the song.
One of my favorites and great bass work by Hook on this song. Sadly, Hook and the rest of New Order are no longer together having split up for good in 2007.
NATIONAL ANTHEM – Radiohead
No, not “Oh say can you see” for the Americans reading this.
This is a song by Radiohead and it was included on their studio album, Kid A which was released in 2000.
Colin Greenwood is the bassist for Radiohead, but Thom Yorke who is the lead singer actually played the bass on the studio recording.
Yorke wrote the bass line when he was 16.
What is interesting about this song is the bass is the featured instrument for a good part of the song until the brass section comes in with an aggressive sound.
The bass is still very much a part of the track and it makes for an interesting mix of loud horns and a repetitive bass riff.
LOUNGE ACT – Nirvana
One of the shorter songs that I have on my list, clocking in at a brief 2:38.
It was included on Nevermind, Nirvana’s breakout album and I feel it’s overlooked as there are so many good songs on that record.
Krist Novoselic opens with a killer bass line, and then is joined by Kurt and Dave Grohl on guitar and drums.
Novoselic says that he was influenced on this song by the band, The Shocking Blue, a Dutch rock band from the 1960s.
The bass is not as prominent in the remainder of the song but it established the tone of the song early.
Definitely underrated and the bass opener is a big reason why.
LOVESONG – The Cure
The highest charting song by The Cure, reaching #2 on the charts.
It was included on the Cure’s eighth album, Disintegration which was released in 1989. The song is built around a striking bass riff played by Simon Gallup.
When Robert Smith is singing early in the song, Gallup’s bass along with drums are the only instruments heard.
This is one of The Cure’s biggest songs and it has been covered by other bands numerous times.
The band 311 covered Lovesong and released it as a single in 2004. Adele covered it as well on her album 21.
NEW YEARS DAY – U2
A breakout song for U2 as it was their first single from their studio album, War. The song is driven by the powerful bassline of Adam Clayton.
Clayton’s playing is prominent all through the song, especially later in the track where he plays along with Edge’s piano.
The song made the top 20 on some charts and it made it to #53 on the US charts.
New Years Day is a U2 concert staple with Clayton’s distinctive bass riff kicking the song off.
New Years Day made Rolling Stone’s top 500 songs of all time, coming in at #435.
Conclusion
That is my 17 best rock songs with bass.
Some honorable mentions have to include Hysteria by Muse, Jeremy by Pearl Jam, Should I Stay or Should I Go by The Clash, Epic by Faith No More, Electric Feel by MGMT and Every Breath You Take by the Police.
Just to name a few, of course, as I am sure anybody reading this article has many songs that could be considered for this list.
The fact is there are many great bass players in the different genres of music.
Rock and Roll has literally hundreds of musicians over the decades that have been or still are incredible bass players.
Such artists who were not mentioned on this list but I would be remiss in not mentioning include; Mike Gordon from Phish, Kim Deal from the Pixies, Les Claypool from Primus, and Roberto Trujillo from Metallica.
I could name many more but you get the idea. Many of these artists are rich and famous and had wonderful careers.
I do feel for the bass player as sometimes he or she can be overlooked as to what makes a band and a specific song a success.
Some I am sure do not worry as they do not mind being somewhat behind the scenes.
I am sure that there are a few that wish they would get a little more credit or a little more time in the spotlight.
The next time I am at a concert, I will definitely pay a little more attention to the bass player as I appreciate the contribution he or she makes to that band.
They might not be the glamorous player but they are very important to the band and I hope these musicians get the credit they deserve.
