A Town Called Malice - How Did Bruce Foxton ACTUALLY Play That Riff?
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- Опубликовано: 9 июл 2024
- 'A Town Called Malice' by The Jam sounds easy. Then you try and play it. There’s something frustratingly tricky about it. We all tend to play it one specific way, but how does Bruce Foxton play it on the original recording? And should we even care?
Well, I’ve spent a couple of hours going over and over this riff, watching live versions by The Jam, watching the original video, extracting the audio, listening at a bunch of different speeds and today I'm going to share what I discovered!!
#thejam #talkingbass #basslessons
Timestamps:
0:00 Intro
0:46 The Riff Breakdown
1:42 Fast Swing
2:52 Left Hand
3:26 Fingerpicking
4:26 The Picking Mystery - Common Way
5:50 The Bruce Way!
8:32 Possible Hammer On
10:23 Other Ways
11:10 Who Cares!! 
Видеоклипы
Lesson material: www.talkingbass.net/a-town-called-malice-how-did-bruce-foxton-actually-play-that-riff/
Try playing it with all down strokes but when you play the first A note, play it as an open note on the A string. Then carry on as normal. It sounds more like it to me.
Im soooo glad bruce has got some attention. Probably the best/most skilled bassist in punk and new wave
Saw them live in 82 as a 16 year old ..The chemistry between all three of them was electric .When they had a single coming it was like a national event 😊
Thanks for highlighting Bruce Foxton; a constantly overlooked but great bass player.
Despite being an awesome band, The Jam were not well-known outside of the UK. I just checked wiki and their singles barely charted. The albums did a little better, which kind of makes sense, because those in other countries who were into 'alternate' bands like The Jam generally bought albums, not singles. The Style Council charted a little better, but still mostly under the radar.
In Australia, I only knew of them because we (being a small group of people, not the general populace) listened to a lot of British music. I had one friend in particular that would show up at school, super excited, waving the latest Jam cassette in his hand.
If they had been as widely known as Led Zep, The Who, The Rolling Stones, The Police, etc. then Bruce would have certainly got the accolades he deserves. His baseline for That's Entertainment just astounds me. He's pretty much playing lead guitar accompaniment to Paul's rhythm. But then he was originally the bands guitarist.
We had a number of Australian bands that were not well known outside of Australia during the 70s and 80s, but they were world class songwriters and musicians.
Anyway, nice to see him getting some love.
@@riley-arr-g I think that's what he's talking about.
Bruce Foxton plays, ‘…with a pick and a ton of conviction.’ Great summary! I’ve always played it as more a dotted rhythm (more swing), but you’re spot on, it’s kind of swingy straight (?!)
Bruce is an exceptional talent and as somebody has already stated his underrated. As a drummer he would be an absolute joy to jam play with.....I wish!
Sorry lil buddy, he was never a drummer…😔
@@4th_Lensman_of_the_apocalypse Correct little buddy but I am so as a drummer he would be a delight to play with.
@@haydoncooper3744 hey lil buddy, you forgot to like my comment!
Bruce was, and is, a great bass player and did a lot to make The Jam what it was, he's very underrated. Rick Butler did the same on the drums. All three of them made The Jam sound and it all ended tragically. Great video. One man does not make a trio.
BuCKler
Rick Buckler* not being an ass just correcting!
You are 100% right. I remember the day they announced the split. It was a very sad day for a generation. But not as sad as the music Weller has made since. The magic was the three of them.
Great to see Foxton getting much-deserved attention!
Long over due .
Bruce was an accomplished lead guitarist I think. He played guitar, and Weller played bass originally in the Jam. I always approach his bass lines from that perspective, and I'm pretty sure he hammers on to that B.
I've been playing this one for years because Bruce is probably the biggest influence on my playing, but I've never given it any thought about how he plays it. I play it by picking the D on the A string but only hammer-ons and pull-offs for the B and A, which is probably not correct but makes it easy for me to keep the speed up.
You should look at more of Bruce Foxton's work, Down in a tube station at midnight, Butterfly Collector, Tales from the riverbank, and Eton Rifles as well as others. He is a very underrated but hugely influential bassist
Oh, nice to see Bruce getting some bass love. So many good bass lines, and this song is so good. Really great lesson Mark, and I love how you break it down to different ways of playing. And I dig the blue background. Nice change and really nice shade of blue. Thanks for the lesson! Cheers!
Bruce and Rick were the backbone of The Jam. So inventive and vibrant. It ended all too soon.
Recently saw them on tour in Burnley. As I'm a beginner on bass, to was fascinating to watch Bruce play that riff, if only to show I have a lot of improving to do :-)
I love the level of details that videos like this go into, the picking pattern and such. Almost everyone in the audience thinks I'm playing guitar.
I love Bruce. I describe him as being simultaneously flowing and staccato!
Can't you just ask Bruce? 😊
Yeah, he lives near Guildford now.
Definitely need a 1to 1 for this. Bruce has not been well recently, it would be good to see him demonstrate his riffs while he's still around.
Where's the fun in that?
@@Smelter57- I hope he is feeling better as I'm going to see From The Jam tmrw night lol 🤣
He’s not up to much. Sad he’s unwell. It’s not a difficult bass line the timing is a pain in the verses.
i just heard The Jam for the first time last week, thought to myself "this is a bass driven band" and here we are
Try singing the lyrics and performing at the same time too.
Bruce Foxton only sang backing vocals on this, but I'm so glad that I got to see them live many times. The energy and passion those three guys produced on stage was electric. That's why so many guys around 60 still cherish those days. Nice to know people are still digging the old breed. I had a black Rickenbacker and Vox AC30, was what my first pay checks went on.
I'm actually a guitarist, but a huge fan of the Jam growing up. I actually pretty much ignored Weller's playing and listened to the bass and drumming. Great bassist, nice bloke, too.
One of my Bass heroes Bruce!! And I learnt this, my own way in the 80s, I think I used to do it with the hammer on, but it was a long time ago 😊
Very well explained Mark. Thanks 🎸
Been struggling with getting the right feel for a while. The solution for me was moving from fingers to a pick, and using the the hammer on to get the swing on the B. Greta tutorial, thank you.
Thanks for the lesson. All Mod Cons, what an album that is!
It's my favourite, not one duff track.
@darrenleiberman6250 Quite agreed...it's a masterpiece. "Sound Affects" is also one of my personal favourites as well. ❤
AMC so bloody good.
Not even a bass player but this was a fantastic watch. Now subscribed!
Not just a 'Motown throwback' but a straight copy of I'm ready for love by Martha Reeves and the Vandellas...but you can love both.
You are absolutely right, thanks for the lead.
Good stuff thanks. Love his bass playing
Looking forward to giving this a whirl, Thanks Mark
Good job! Thanks for sharing. I Always had trouble with that riff. It's definitely trickier than it sounds. I think Bruce playing the hammer on is feasible.
Great vid Mark! I'm liking the blue more, but that could also be because it really made the Fender stand out brilliantly.
Thank you, great suggestions
Yes, thank you, had trouble getting this to sound right.
So many classic riffs are based aound the 5 and 7 frets of the e and a strings. This is one of the best.
Great video. It’s amazing how many bass players play the intro with a minor note. Drives me mad.
Great song. And bass line!
This background looks better than the first green one.
The way you describe the riff at the opening of the video reminds me of "It's My Life" by Talk Talk. Should be relatively easy, but it manages to trip up lots of players.
New background looks good man.
Great Stuff 👍
Foxton was definitely one of the best Bassists.
love this song thanx
Great riff, great video. As long as it grooves, people don't care in my world of cover playing
Awesome song 🎉
Weller and The Jam is the same as Sting and The Police. They both were the principal visionaries of their bands and just wanted to expand their repertoire.
New background still epic!!
Brilliant.
Great deep dive into this riff, Mark. Lust for Life next? ;) The background looks really good.
Top geezer. See you next week.
Nice background setup buddy. Look at you. Big timer!
So many excellent bass lines from Bruce.
Thank you!
One of my fav basslines,...and very well explained too. 👏👏👏
Can I make a request?
The verse bass work is even better :)
I found the best way to play it (for me anyway) was to play the first three D's (same fingering as you) with downstrokes, the B as an upstroke, the A as a downstroke, but then play the second three D's as UPSTROKES, then B upstroke, A downstroke (as before) and the last B as an upstroke. This sets me up to play the D downstrokes again on the next cycle. I find this flows really comfortably, especially at tempo. Not sure if that's exactly how Bruce plays it, but it gets me through my gigs without tying myself in knots. What threw me for a long time was trying to play it as if it were a straight 8 tune rather than swung, so I used to play all the Ds as downstrokes, and it felt really awkward. Hope this helps some of you. If not, don't shoot me, it's just my opinion.
Anything with the Jam is great
It's great to see Bruce getting some attention but like others have said he plays it with more swing. Check out the superb performance on The Tube.
What are Dan Hawkins’ thoughts on this Foxton foray?
Not a bass player but sit the pick between the E and A string, down on the A and up on the E. helped with the rhythm and worked for me
I saw Bruce Foxton with Stiff Little Fingers and he was ridiculously good playing the sort of stuff he was known for at a much faster pace not exactly Matt Freeman fast but SLF were no slouches and he played with them three times as long as The Jam
Great riffs
A min Pentatonic pattern 5
Or G mixolydian due to b7
I usually count 2 and 3 and 2 again but don't play on last 2 count as pause.
Lay back to swing and listen out for closed hat by drummer and shimmer on it .
Back when the jam hit,I was rocking an Arbiter rick copy, so they got my attention obviously
When this track came out, it just made sense with the hammer ons ,using both hands for attack
Maybe it's just an "of it's time" thing?
Btw I'd discovered ibanez by then
The blue is a nice contrast, especially with the black shirt that lets you focus on the bass.
All Mod Cons is still one of my favourite albums and I'm 60.
In my experience Bruce is vastly underrated as a bass player. He is just top draw at what he does in the same way as Flea is also a master at his style of playing. There are no rules as far as I am concerned. Just for the record, he doesn't know it but Bruce was my bass teacher when I was a budding young fledgling bass player. I sat for hours listening to The Jam trying to learn his bass lines. Thanks Bruce PS I just watched a recent From The Jam video and it definitely looks like Bruce is picking up & down AND hammering on and off the A & B
'Fire & Skill' thats how the Jam played, said so on Pauls Vox ac 30, even though he was using Vox 125 heads with 2 x 12 cabs an ported bass bottoms by this time .
'Fire n skill' was on the front of his Selmer amp, very early doors, late 76 early 77.
Steve Craddock put it on one of his amps a few years ago, he's a great player but my mam has more fire
🎯 The Gazillion dollar question 🍻
A touch of palm muting helps me get closer to Bruce's original tone when playing this. Especially for the intro and breakdown section after the middle 8. Gives it that bit of "wooliness"
This Bass line always reminds me of “ Black is Black “ by Los Bravos.. and I can imagine someone starting with “ Town like Malice “.. then subconsciously slipping into Black is Black 😉😂
I’ve always played the opening on the A string alone, it’s a stretch, but works nicely,the A achieved in part by pulling off as much as picking. On the recording Bruce played a Rivoli semi- acoustic which is a 30” scale, which would have made it less of a stretch to play on the A.
Nice lesson thanks. Bruce is a fantastic bass player. How about a lesson on the Nice n Sleazy bassline from The Stranglers?
JJB--another fantastic bassist!
Great username! Love The Fall.
Totally agree.JJB another fantastic bass player and inspiration for me back in the day.
Bruce an inspiration and all time favourite on the old four stringer.
I have always wondered if he recorded with a Fender Precision for sound but played a Ricky live for the look?
Also sounds like the ‘concert at the Palace Ballrooms’ intro from “The Blues Brothers”…..which I think is a version of ‘Time is Tight’…..anyway, very similar, defo got that ‘Stax’ sound :)
Kind of a clone of Booker T's "Time is Tight" into Otis's "I can't turn you loose".
I played this song few years ago with a band on a gig
I find that I will regularly come up with a riff playing it one way, then change how I play it as I find an easier or more economic ways of playing it according to what follows that riff in the song
I always played it with my forefinger left hand across both the E and A string and just had to lift the pinky on and off. And Up down up on the A and up on the E.
I've been inclined to think for quite some time that Foxton was hammering down on the B note, which to me make's it easier to be fluid with the repetitive riff at a high tempo.
Brilliant - Beat Surrender next?
great bass player
isn`t this based on you cant hurry love by the supremes?
I have read Bruce used Rotosound Tru Bass strings for the recording although I'm not sure which bass he used as video shows him playing an Epiphone Rivoli but in Funeral Pyre video he's playing a Rickenbacker but he recorded it using his P bass. All Mod Cons is The Jam's best album, Bruce's bass lines drive the music along
Rotosound Swing Bass strings were his choice on all of his Precisions and Rics. TCM was recorded with the Precision, there's quite an obvious drop in half way through the bass solo part
His genius is in what he doesnt play, will take years to learn that.
Thank you for easy for eyes new backgroud 😅
really interesting, like somebody else said just ask bruce, maybe even get him to play it on your channel sure he’d be up for it ...i play bass like eric morecombe...playing all the right notes ...but not necessarily in the right orderr.. .drummmmmmmmtissssh..thats all folks
How many beats per minute? On close caption it says 2011. I slowed it down to 50% speed and I still can’t tell. Thanks in advance.
lol. It's 201 bpm
I play it all on the A string. I find it easier.
Me too
We play this quite often and I must admit I dread it coming up. It's easy enough in theory, but I just don't get the feel or consistency I'd like. Hopefully this helps!
Same here. It's one I look forward to playing but it always gets a good reaction
I'm nearly 60 and I still have forgiven Weller for breaking up The Jam. 😂
............. I think it was his Dad.
Haven't ?
Style Council were better
I remember at the time Jam fans hated Style Council with a passion. It was almost as if he went in the complete opposite direction just to emphasize the break and let everone know he wasn't coming back. He took a lot of shit for it.
The riff is great, one of the fastest dancefoor fillers ever.
@dondesmond7969 - I was one of those Jam fans... never a fan of the Style Council (what a stupid name) 🙄
Really like the blue backdrop, Mark. Good choice on the P-bass. It made me think of Joe Dart and his sound. Maybe a Vulfpeck song in the future?
he played it - it great! no mystery
Interesting, the hammer-ons do sound like they are closer to the original sound on the record. They seem to hang on for a fraction longer.
What's an 8th note? Is it a quaver?
I stopped listening to/playing most rock (got more into Jazz/RandB) but this clip came out 45 years ago and its still as impressive as it was in '79 and on my playlist....the Jam was a GREAT live band....thank you for introducing them to bassists who never heard of them or Bruce......this clip is great example of how they were live
ruclips.net/video/AybWSdEbafA/видео.html
From strictly the sound of it, it seems obvious to me that it’s a hammer on. I also wonder if there’s a pull off immediately after the hammer on? He could be combining those with some grazing, ghost note picking, too.
❤
How bruce played some of these lines and sung harmonies i dont know...for me it's an up stroke for the B just seems to flow and sound clearer (my hammer ons are particularly weak though)
I play it with my thumb it sounds spot on .
The Chris Squire of Punk.
It always sounds muddy when I play it. I think I'll try the hammer on to see if that cleans it up. Should be played on a Rickenbacker 😊
bin schon ziemlich gespannt. Gruß aus Berlin 🤘
simple. efficient .
I've always played it using a hammer-on. Just seemed like the natural way to play it.
To think feel Caribbean and you moved to London listening to swing the bear at time was inspired by musicians like bob Marley at time of making .
Speed. I've seen the Jam live quite a few times BITD.