John McVie/Flea
 

Ok, so it's a rainy night here in California, and I've been on a Red Hot Chili Peppers kick lately and listening tonight to Dani California, I realized that Flea's bass playing reminds me of John McVie. Very melodic and all over the music. I love both players & bands. Any thoughts?

I'm not sure I would have thought to compare the two, but Flea certainly is a talented bass player!

They're both very melodic, Flea is more up front and busier though while John likes to keep it subtle.

I would disagree about keeping it subtle! Depending on the song, John has been both up front or behind the beat. "Miles Away" is a perfect example of John just going to town with a driving riff. This happens to be one of my favorite Fleetwood Mac performances ever filmed!



Another impressive and more recent John bass line is "Come." I can respect a musician who has the intrinsic musicality to know when to step it down when it suits the song, e.g., "Dreams," which has a monotonous two-note bass line; anything more would have spoiled the atmospheric simplicity of the song. Flea strikes me as someone who has more aspirations as an individual personality within the band, which results in occasional over-the-top bass line histrionics. Still, his talent is undeniable- definitely one of the best out there.

Great post, thanks!
I had never seen the Miles Away clip. It's great, John is definitely plugging away & I have always enjoyed Bob Welch's singing. When I first got into Fleetwood Mac in 1975, I went out and bought Future Games which I really enjoyed.

Subtle in the sense that it blends in so well. I mean it's busy stuff and super melodic but it's still very much "for the song" and not obstructive. Say You Love Me is a great example!

SYLM is my favourite ever ever thing to play on bass. Ever.

:D
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