All hail, John McVie!

[EveryHour]

I have a weakness for bass, and I CANNOT STOP obsessing over the absolute brilliance and total emotion and feeling of John's playing lately. I truly feel he is one of the greatest players who ever lived, and it's so easy for him to get overlooked (even by us a lot of the time ) because of the powerful talent and personas of Chris, Stevie and Lindsey (and even Mick). His unassuming and quiet attitude IS indeed part of his personal charm, so I don't really WISH him to be more outgoing...I just wanted to bring him to the fore for the duration of this thread! Today I was most obsessed with his playing on the album version of Rhiannon. Holy sh*t!

Any particular performances that blow your mind?

Let's pay tribute to the one and only Mr. McVie.....

[diamondsnake]

Speaking of which, am I the only one who can't get enough of the bass parts on Smile at You? I know they are hard to hear due to the extreme overproduction by someone who will remain nameless!

[DeadliestPoison]

I LOVE him on "Smile At You." I think the bass drives the song. It's really neat hearing the DVD-A Center Channel of it, as it's only John's bass. I nearly died when I heard it.

I'm also a big fan of his parts in GYOW and Rhiannon.

I love John.

[SteveMacD]

John totally rocks. And, I have to say that he's gotten SO much better over time. As for "Smile At You," his playing on that just shows how important he is to the band's sound.

[face of glass]

My appreciation for John has just increased over the years. My friend once compared a song to a car; the drummer is the wheels, the guitarist/keyboardist is the engine and the bassist is the suspension. And the singer is the bumper sticker or the rear view mirror.

John has always been capable of capturing the soundscape of FM into his playing. In the build-up of the old live “Rhiannon� he doesn’t need to do anything but to strike his bass once or twice per bar and it’s just perfect.

Like Lindsey said, it can be very easy to underestimate what John does. (I’m not too sure about that McCartney/Mingus comparison.) But that’s what happened to me and I’m still trying to understand his contributions. So this list is a Rumours line-up only; for Pre-Rumours I could only add “Hypnotized�. But that’ll change.

“Rhiannon� (live and studio)
“I’m So Afraid� (minimalism counts)
“Go Your Own Way� (as important as Mick’s drums)
“The Chain� (duh and duh)
“Oh Daddy� (“works, I guess�. What an understatement!)
"Brown Eyes" (whoah)
“Beautiful Child� (especially the verses)
“Tusk� (duh again)
“Caroline� (if it is him)
“Illume� (makes the groove)
“Smile At You� (naturally)

And on it goes.

[4Buck]

All of the above --- but my current fave is Stevie Nicks' ANGEL on the new TUSK CD. This gem has gargantuan bass sound now that it's been digitally remastered.

I enjoy McVie's versatile, supple bass lines. This rhythmic/melodic great always plays with an understated elegance.

John McVie never ceases to amaze!

[jwd]

Where's the bowing emoticon when you need it! All hail John McVie!

[DeadliestPoison]

Originally posted by face of glass

“I’m So Afraid� (minimalism counts)
“Oh Daddy� (“works, I guess�. What an understatement!)
“Tusk� (duh again)
“Illume� (makes the groove)

I forgot about those! "Angel"'s pretty good, too. Hell, I love anything the man does.

[TwistedGypsy]

I know "The Chain" is the most obvious and I really can't think of others right now (too tired). But everytime I hear The Chain I turn the bass solo up full blast, bob the head and rewind and bob my head some more. It gives me chills! I love when he said during the Tusk Doc. (i think), "Can we play now?" And that is what John is all about and God Bless him for it!
Brittany

[golden braid]

I love the bass on the version of Second Hand News on the Rumours bonus disk. It makes the song sound so cool.

[DownOnRodeo]

The bass on the chorus of Seven Wonders.

The bass all through (and especially at the end) of SYLM.

[DrummerDeanna]

Dude...John KICKS ASS!!!

I even made a sign for him when I went to the El Paso, TX show..he got a good chuckle out of it...Lindsey found it amusing and Mick, when introducing the band pointed at me and said, "Ahhh...look John, they love YA!"

It was a ton of fun and then after the show one of the roadies ran out and began shouting into the crowd, "WHERE'S THE GIRL WITH THE SIGN??" At that moment I dropped the sign behind some speakers, he said he'd get it and then said, "here, John wanted you to have these..." And he handed me two bass picks with his sig etched in gold and fm etched on the other side...very very cool...

After the show I waved at him as he drove by in the car...the driver actually stopped, John rolled his window down and like waved and said thanks or something...twas very very cool...

He's my favorite bass player...the mellow/laid back dry sense of humor thing is just way cool!

[DownOnRodeo]

Originally posted by DrummerDeanna
I even made a sign for him when I went to the El Paso, TX show..he got a good chuckle out of it...Lindsey found it amusing and Mick, when introducing the band pointed at me and said, "Ahhh...look John, they love YA!"

It was a ton of fun and then after the show one of the roadies ran out and began shouting into the crowd, "WHERE'S THE GIRL WITH THE SIGN??" At that moment I dropped the sign behind some speakers, he said he'd get it and then said, "here, John wanted you to have these..." And he handed me two bass picks with his sig etched in gold and fm etched on the other side...very very cool...

Awesome story Deanna!
I got to talk to John briefly by getting him to sign the Cool Water B-Side, which he seemed pretty surprised I had! He was so funny and easy to talk to. He said 'They really lowered the levels (of his singing'. I said 'Damn them!' lol. And then he finishes signing and leans into me and says 'But I think it was for the best!' and gives me a wink and smile. lol, what a champ! So humble.

[EveryHour]

Originally posted by diamondsnake
Speaking of which, am I the only one who can't get enough of the bass parts on Smile at You? I know they are hard to hear due to the extreme overproduction by someone who will remain nameless!

THAT performance is utterly mind-boggling!

[darklinensuit]

Originally posted by DrummerDeanna
Dude...John KICKS ASS!!!

I even made a sign for him when I went to the El Paso, TX show..he got a good chuckle out of it...Lindsey found it amusing and Mick, when introducing the band pointed at me and said, "Ahhh...look John, they love YA!"

It was a ton of fun and then after the show one of the roadies ran out and began shouting into the crowd, "WHERE'S THE GIRL WITH THE SIGN??" At that moment I dropped the sign behind some speakers, he said he'd get it and then said, "here, John wanted you to have these..." And he handed me two bass picks with his sig etched in gold and fm etched on the other side...very very cool...

After the show I waved at him as he drove by in the car...the driver actually stopped, John rolled his window down and like waved and said thanks or something...twas very very cool...

I was there & I can personally vouch that Deanna made out with the guy after the show. (Okay, that part is made up. )
I love the remastered Dreams!

- Jake