Best of 2016: The Top 10 Bass Videos

Out of the 365 or so videos we’ve shared this year, we have a lot of favorites. But the “Best of” lists include only 10, and are always ranked by No Treble reader views.

Here are the top 10 most watched bass videos for 2016. Enjoy!

Brian Wilson and Carol Kaye: Good Vibrations

1. Brian Wilson and Carol Kaye: Good Vibrations

Carol Kaye is a living legend of the bass who played on countless recordings with memorable bass lines. One of those is “Good Vibrations”, and we’re lucky enough to have found this clip of Kaye and Beach Boys mastermind Brian Wilson playing through the tune as a duet…

Tal Wilkenfeld: Under the Sun

2. Tal Wilkenfeld: Under the Sun

Back in March, Tal Wilkenfeld visited Paste Studios in New York and recorded this live performance of “Under the Sun”. Like the Tal’s solo performance of “Chelsea Hotel”, we once again get to experience not only her bass playing, but also her vocals…

Jaco Pastorius: Musicians Institute Master Class

3. Jaco Pastorius: Musicians Institute Master Class

A little over a year ago, Musicians Institute discovered a video in their vault of Jaco Pastorius’s appearance during a master class, which took place in the mid-80’s. Earlier this year, they posted the entire video, where Jaco fielded questions from students and more…

Dirty Loops: Over the Horizon

4. Dirty Loops: Over the Horizon

It had been a while since we’d seen a video by Dirty Loops. That ended in March when the band released this video – anchored by bassist Henrik Linder – performing “Over the Horizon”…

Jeff Healey with Marcus Miller: See The Light

5. Jeff Healey with Marcus Miller: See The Light

Ian Pettersson has sent us a handful of great videos, and he just sent us another. “An old one, but I hadn’t seen it before,” Ian said. “Jeff Healey with Marcus Miller ripping it up. Awesome performance!”

James Taylor with Leland Sklar: Your Smiling Face, Live 1988

6. James Taylor with Leland Sklar: Your Smiling Face, Live 1988

Kevin was going through my records one weekend and realized just how many of them feature the tasteful bass lines of Leland Sklar. Of course, that sent him into a Sklar phase on YouTube, which led him to this great version of James Taylor’s “Your Smiling Face” from 1988…

Gracie and John Patitucci: I’ve Just Seen A Face

7. Gracie and John Patitucci: I’ve Just Seen A Face

We love bass and vocal duets, and this one is special. John Patitucci sat down with his daughter Gracie, who goes by Gra Music, for a gorgeous cover of the Beatles classic “I’ve Just Seen a Face.” Patitucci lays down the perfect groove and fills to flesh out the arrangement while allowing Gracie to sing…

VoBa Sound Experience: Dazed and Confused

8. VoBa Sound Experience: Dazed and Confused

We saw some seriously great bass and vocal duet videos over the course of 2016. This one was sent in by bassist Roberto Pace, who performs with vocalist Chiara D’Emilio in their duo, VoBa Sound Experience. Here’s their interesting arrangement of Led Zeppelin’s “Dazed and Confused”…

Octavision: Three Lives

9. Octavision: Three Lives

Victor Wooten stunned the bass playing world this year when he sat in with a new progressive metal band known as Octavision. So if you’ve ever wondered what Vic would sound like in a metal band, the wait is over…

Federico Malaman: I Love You, Giant

10. Federico Malaman: I Love You, Giant

Federico Malaman sent me this video to share. “This is a song of mine, dedicated to the great Jaco Pastorius!” he said. “I composed it after watching the Jaco film. Hope you like it.” We loved it. We think you will too…

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