I’m over the whole “everything must be complex” I want simple again. I want production to be simple and raw again. Everything is so over produced and technical it’s hard to get into the mood anymore. I don’t need my bass players going crazy with a slap bass every song. If I want that I’ll listen to primus. I play bass and when I listen to a song I don’t even wanna hear some crazy bass solo in the middle of a chorus.
Bass was not really a featured part of Police songs. It was "there", but most of the bass lines were quite simple. He was better than say, Michael Anthony, but clearly not the equal of Geddy Lee. Did Sting ever get a signature bass from Fender?
Well his police liens are very simple. When i was starting to play decades ago I had the greatest hits record and pretty much picked all the bass line in a single go. The problem is people mistake good bassist with advanced technical skills. But yeah in general people regard him as a good bassist.
Mate look at live shows from late 70s early 80s. Hits every note while bouncing around. He has an amazing sense of timing. Never overplays. Sings at the same time. I think he a very good bass player.
Have a look at the second half of the Synchronicity tour gigs where he's running round the stage with the electric upright on a strap playing it like it's just a normal bass.
The older I get the more I actually like Sting. I saw him open up for Grateful Dead in the 90's and never really got into The Police. All these years later and I can say I do listen to some of his stuff and don't reach to skip it.
There's some old quote from Sting that I always think about -- something to the effect of, "I'm a musician - if you hand me a tuba, I'll be able to make music with it."
I love how Sting play the bass. He can play the sofisticated bass lines, sometime simple lines and others complicated lines...but always with musicality
But have you ever really heard anyone call sting a ‘bassist’ period? No. He’s ’pop-icon’ Sting. Or ‘legendary frontman of the Police’. Or Agent Gordy, CIA operative. And although the quintessential image of Sting sees him holding a bass, I don’t necessarily think he’s often recognized as an amazing bassist. Which he is. I’ve been playing bass for 25 years, and I consider myself a ‘professional’ as I’ve done it professionally but I can’t write Sting-esque bass lines.
I did. I went to a bass convention in Italy it was February 14 2004. I had the luck to be able to talk 5 minutes with the main artist of the convention, and talking about bass players we agreed over Sting being a great bass player. The main artist was Micheal Manring
"Synchronicity II" has a great bass line, especially the way it "synchronizes" with the guitar....a great power trio moment. That being said, playing so-called simple bass lines...not every song calls for a Flea or a Geddy Lee. My late best friend was a great bass player, and frowned on "simple" bass parts, but I challenged him to play (correctly) ZZ Top's "Jesus Just Left Chicago", and he acknowledged that the TIMING and pace of such bad lines require discipline because keeping a one note rhythmic bass line going without unintentionally varying the timing is not easy
Myself and all my friends got up early to see Sting at Glastonbury in 1997 as he was playing at 12pm. We went exclusively to throw things at him. My friend threw a tin of hot dogs at him, but sadly missed.
Sting is a solid bassist,plays what is perfectly necessary and vocally incredible.Cannot believe there are morons out there saying he isn't all that,wow.
Most people don't realise that Sting's first influences were people like J.S. Bach. He revealed it during an interview with Rick Beato. He may have jazz chops and punk sensibility, but he does have a certain amount of classical study, too.
Any bassist who can sing lead vocals is an extremely capable player in my opinion. The knowledge of how simple and effective musical parts can become a part of a whole is a very important lesson to learn as a musician. A player’s worth is not gauged on their prowess in isolation, but how well they integrate into the whole.
Some of his basslines are simple but amazingly effective and moving. I prefer that to complicated lines that are just for showing off. Not to mention he's also singing and composing hit songs.
"Sting would be another person who's a hero. The music he's created over the years, I don't really listen to it, but the fact that he's making it, I respect that"
I have seen Sting live in concert, trust me he can play. I remember a long solo he did, very Jazz like while introducing every member of his band. Each of them was awesome🤟
Never forget that he's singing at the same time and often the vocal line has a rhythmic and melodic quality that's far removed from what the bass line is doing. The bass goes this way, the vocal goes that way. Well. Used to be like that in the good old days, that is...
its not just about technique, its also about feel and Mr Sumner had a great feel, especially when playing off the beat and making a modally complex, melodic bassline sound simple and effective.
Very tasteful, serves the song, great note choice, great tone, understands use of space. And creates beautiful counterpoints to the main melody. And some of his lines are quite complex too eg Spirits in the material world.
I love his bass playing and muted tone! I know people that stage hand for him his road crew and they said he was quiet and said very little to them yet he payed and fed them very well so they liked him!
I’ve honestly never heard anyone say Sting was a bad bassist, like yeah some of his bass lines aren’t the most technical but a lot of them are really damn good. Just listen to songs like Demolition Man (my personal favourite riff from him), Walking On the Moon, Next to You, Synchronicity, Can’t Stand Losing You, Born in the ‘50s and It’s Alright For You. Masterful playing right there
Bass on "Demolition man" is actually Danny Quatrochi, Sting's tech. Hugh Padgham said that Danny overdubbed few things, because Sting just wouldn't want to correct some mistakes and somehow Danny ended up playing Demolition Man all the way through.
I loved his bass work on the Regatta de Blanc album so much that it inspired me to play the bass later on. Even though he’s usually associated with his old 50’s P bass, I’ve heard he played an Aria on that album.
In all fairness he only played what works best to enhance the song which he did amazingly. He's a phenomenal musician and songwriter AND he was singing while he played!
I suggest checking how many covers of Sting's bass lines have been performed by excellent bassists. That says a lot about his playing abilities and creativity on bass.
Sting has got *it* when it comes to mapping your bass lines around lead vocal. It is like trying to pat your head and rub your tummy at the same time. I can overlook his instrument simplicity as I take in the whole deal that is Sting.
the thing you forgot is: it's definitely difficult how sting can pöay basslines and sing at the same time with bass parts that night not be amazing but often counterpoint the vocal melody. keeping that polyphony going ans still singing so great and grooving good is astonishing.
Sting is a bass for chrissakes! I actually met him in mid summer 2013 after he dined in a friends restaurant. Got a photo and went to the gig later that evening. He wasn’t as tall as I thought he’d be. He was soft spoken and wife Trudi was lovely too. It’s bizarre meeting the man that wrote some of the biggest hits in pop history and was part of one of the greatest trios of all time, The Police. Sting is a legend, Blue Turtles is one of my favorite albums of all time.
He was also very strategic in his playing to make room for his singing... similar to how Geddy Lee would playing simple notes while singing a note and more complex fills while not singing a note.
Whaaat? Who’s saying this about Sting? I think he writes really good bass parts. They’re simple but show a knowledge of songwriting, composition, and harmony. He also writes the song, the lyrics, sings the lyrics while playing bass, and wrote most of the chord progressions. All credit to Andy Summers for putting his stamp on the songs but Sting did all the heavy lifting.
Never heard Sting being called a "questionable" bass player...
NOBODY ever
He’s not questionable but I think he’s often forgotten
Yeah this was bizarre. Looks like he might be running out of video ideas for this series
Only by nomarks with questionable accents
Worse, he's a sellout. Early Police was at least interesting.
He has enough of complex basslines, and the simple ones are delivered flawlessly, obviously a genius man
Whilst singing at the same time! I’ve seen him live and I was stunned at his effortless coordination.
While singing over them. I’m not a huge fan of The Police, but it’s hard to argue Stings ability as a musician.
Fallout has a cool bass part
I’m over the whole “everything must be complex” I want simple again. I want production to be simple and raw again. Everything is so over produced and technical it’s hard to get into the mood anymore. I don’t need my bass players going crazy with a slap bass every song. If I want that I’ll listen to primus. I play bass and when I listen to a song I don’t even wanna hear some crazy bass solo in the middle of a chorus.
Truth is the simple ones are just the most popular… but then again, many of Flea’s most popular bass lines are his simplest ones too…
Sting is an incredibly talented bass player and when you put the singing together with the bass playing and he's nearly a unicorn.
He’s a proper gentleman as well! He helped us raise thousands for a children’s hospice in Newcastle. An all round decent geezer!
He not only played but when I saw him live he played an Ibanez frettless and sang without even looking at his hands.
An uptight without looking
I mean... looking at a fretless bass is pointless, causewhat you gotta trust is you muscle memory and your ears.
@@joaoaugustolandim yeah kinda the point without frets haha
I had no idea people were even questioning stings playing ability. I've never been the biggest police fan, but he's a fantastic bassist
He is very mid bassist. Not shitty, but not special
I think it's more from the music videos, e.g. Message In A Bottle
Music nerds from the golden age of prog rock have the bad habit of considering anything short of a once in a lifetime virtuoso a shit musician.
@@sidneyadnopoz3427um but Police had plenty of proggy stuff. I mean they were one of the bands to influence that 80's RUSH sound
Bass was not really a featured part of Police songs. It was "there", but most of the bass lines were quite simple.
He was better than say, Michael Anthony, but clearly not the equal of Geddy Lee.
Did Sting ever get a signature bass from Fender?
Sting is a awesome bass player and he can also sing and play complex bass lines together
Sting is a very nice person, he’s just very reserved and shy around people…also he’s an amazing bassist
"Is Sting a twat" in the "research" portion cracked me the hell up. Love your videos.
I second this comment. 😂
He wasn’t a twat. He just never got used to two others guys so headstrong AND could back it up with their talent
I couldn’t stop laughing 😂
He can even play UPRIGHT bass while SINGING. Man is got chops.
And once bought his first fretless bass, and one and played on stage the same day. Thats pretty ballsy.
Not only an amazing bass player but also a competent guitarist
I'm listening now to the album Outlandos d'Amour on vinyl and it is great! Including in the Behs playing. Very appropriate and cool.
nobody has ever questioned stings bass playing
They definitely have.
Well his police liens are very simple. When i was starting to play decades ago I had the greatest hits record and pretty much picked all the bass line in a single go. The problem is people mistake good bassist with advanced technical skills. But yeah in general people regard him as a good bassist.
I think you forget how good he is at singing and playing two very different parts simultaneously...
I can’t believe how hard that is, I’ve tried for years and my brain still can’t get it right. Everyone makes it look so easy 🤯
**cough** **cough** James Hetfield **cough**
@@arjunmukherjee3347😂
@@Sparkofhope621 you have to try to figure out where all the bits line up with each other, like where the note changes come in the words
Tough songs to sing even without a bass
Bro he's so groovy while singing he's unmatched rather than questionable
I’ve always been impressed with how Sting is able to play over some pretty complex bass parts actually.
Mate look at live shows from late 70s early 80s. Hits every note while bouncing around. He has an amazing sense of timing. Never overplays. Sings at the same time. I think he a very good bass player.
Dude does all that with a Fretless too! So obviously the chad can play
Spot on .
He also looks like what early 90s action figure designs were based on, which should be worth bonus points since all the above is true
Have a look at the second half of the Synchronicity tour gigs where he's running round the stage with the electric upright on a strap playing it like it's just a normal bass.
I like Sting's basslines. I think they sound really cool!
they are actually pretty decent tho@@dontgetonthebuscliff1126
@@dontgetonthebuscliff1126Why is it so hard to believe that Sting has cool bass work? It's evident.
ignorant people blinded by flashy meaningless fast playing ahahhahaah@@WilDBeestMF
The older I get the more I actually like Sting. I saw him open up for Grateful Dead in the 90's and never really got into The Police. All these years later and I can say I do listen to some of his stuff and don't reach to skip it.
Yes cause the Dead music is so much more 'musical'
He played fretless bass in tune while he sang and the same time. Superpowers.
“Is sting a twat” my absolute fav moment on ur channel so far
how dare you question sting
All hail sting
Exactly
this dude is either running out of ideas, or just dumb lol
Easily, the bloke is an arse. I used to know his first son. The way he treated him is unbelievable.
but you didn't think twice in clicking the video right? his strategy worked
There's some old quote from Sting that I always think about -- something to the effect of, "I'm a musician - if you hand me a tuba, I'll be able to make music with it."
"Can Sting actually play bass?"
Bro's never heard Walking On The Moon
I love how Sting play the bass. He can play the sofisticated bass lines, sometime simple lines and others complicated lines...but always with musicality
I’ve never heard anyone call Sting a bad bassist
But have you ever really heard anyone call sting a ‘bassist’ period? No. He’s ’pop-icon’ Sting. Or ‘legendary frontman of the Police’. Or Agent Gordy, CIA operative. And although the quintessential image of Sting sees him holding a bass, I don’t necessarily think he’s often recognized as an amazing bassist. Which he is. I’ve been playing bass for 25 years, and I consider myself a ‘professional’ as I’ve done it professionally but I can’t write Sting-esque bass lines.
@VynylFantasy I never knew until this short! Just knew him as that insufferable narcissist who sings
I did. I went to a bass convention in Italy
it was February 14 2004. I had the luck to be able to talk 5 minutes with the main artist of the convention, and talking about bass players we agreed over Sting being a great bass player. The main artist was Micheal Manring
@@mipmipmipmipmip EXACTLY!!
@@Biondo30Hz Michael Who?
“Is Sting a twat” lol’d very hard at that
Canary in a Coal Mine has a sick bassline.
Man why would anyone doubt Sting's Bass?
Being in a pop band sometimes brings doubt to musical ability especially with bassists
@@yourlocalryanpop…. He play like 200 different stile between 1978 till 1983 but ok…
Just to make a funny little video? Don't overthink it!
Mainly because they don’t have a clue about music and/or musicians.
@@Franky997 yes he is definitely a musician.
More importantly than stings bass skills, is his ability to knife fight without a shield, and in undies, very lethal
Winner of the most Geordie thing I'm going to read today 😂 howay ya bastads
@@restojon1it’s a reference to David Lynch’s Dune movie
@@marcsullivan7987 ahhh, I shall have to watch that then. Thank you.
@@restojon1watch the Spicediver fan edit. It's a very slick version and available I'm the Tube.
@@restojon1to be honest I think that scene in Dune was based on a night in the big market.
"Synchronicity II" has a great bass line, especially the way it "synchronizes" with the guitar....a great power trio moment. That being said, playing so-called simple bass lines...not every song calls for a Flea or a Geddy Lee. My late best friend was a great bass player, and frowned on "simple" bass parts, but I challenged him to play (correctly) ZZ Top's "Jesus Just Left Chicago", and he acknowledged that the TIMING and pace of such bad lines require discipline because keeping a one note rhythmic bass line going without unintentionally varying the timing is not easy
He's not about flair, but he's a hell of a bass player + songwriter
I've literally never heard anyone question his abilities. He's great.
He can play amazing basslines while singing at the same time.
Spirits in the Material World
Finally more videos! Thx 🙏🏻
Myself and all my friends got up early to see Sting at Glastonbury in 1997 as he was playing at 12pm. We went exclusively to throw things at him. My friend threw a tin of hot dogs at him, but sadly missed.
Sting's concept of tempo, rhythm and harmony are way beyond some people's understanding
And he sings while playing the bass live.
The guy is a true musician. Not only can he play bass, but he sings at the same time. Not an easy thing to do.
everytime i get the notification for another one of these videos its another bassist i never couldve guessed would be here
Sting is a solid bassist,plays what is perfectly necessary and vocally incredible.Cannot believe there are morons out there saying he isn't all that,wow.
Most people don’t realise the guys a jazz bassist. He started his career in last exit, which was a fusion group at Newcastle I think
Most people don't realise that Sting's first influences were people like J.S. Bach. He revealed it during an interview with Rick Beato. He may have jazz chops and punk sensibility, but he does have a certain amount of classical study, too.
@@35milesoflead I just remember him talking about RTF and Stanley Clarke
I'm pretty sure that the entire band are classically trained.
Stewart Copeland when to see him play and knew he was the man for the band.He just had so much charisma.
The bass line in ‘every little thing she does is magic’. Enough said. Sting can not only play, but compose great bass.
Unquestionably one of the BEST‼️✨
He serves the songs well, plus the fact he has to sing during playing also kinda explains the easier lines.
Any bassist who can sing lead vocals is an extremely capable player in my opinion. The knowledge of how simple and effective musical parts can become a part of a whole is a very important lesson to learn as a musician. A player’s worth is not gauged on their prowess in isolation, but how well they integrate into the whole.
Sting is a genius on bass- he's singing while playing absolutely polar opposite rhymes to what he's singing.. That's unbelievable talent ❤
Shows WCW Sting 😂
Man hes still wrestling
Wrestler Sting is out here taking 630s through a table and jumping off tall platforms at like 57 years old.
Was looking for this comment lol
Sting is one of my all time favorite bass players!!!
Sting’s musicianship is insane
His bass lines may not be technically mind boggling but they are perfect for the song he’s playing. Simply beautiful…
I’ve never heard anyone doubt stings bass playing ability, dude rocks
If you've been watching him since 1979 and seen him live three times like I have then, YES, the dude can play. Fretless I might add.
Hats off to any bassist who can sing and play bass at the same time.
Stings timing on Bass is exceptional!!!! And to sing whilst playing these Bass lines !WoW!!!
Sting is a genius, and his bass playing rocks the house.
The fact that he can play a line like *‘Spirits In The Material World’* and sing is what’s amazing about Sting.
Above that, he WROTE that ahit!
SitMW is what got me "hearing" bass. I'm trying to transcribe it and I was like 12 years old at the time.
This.
Some of his basslines are simple but amazingly effective and moving. I prefer that to complicated lines that are just for showing off. Not to mention he's also singing and composing hit songs.
"Sting would be another person who's a hero. The music he's created over the years, I don't really listen to it, but the fact that he's making it, I respect that"
Spirits in a material world, those who know will know how hard that is to play properly
I mean, the man is a stellar behs player, period! Lmao. There is no question the man has some of the best bass lines/playing heard on pop radio!
I have seen Sting live in concert, trust me he can play. I remember a long solo he did, very Jazz like while introducing every member of his band. Each of them was awesome🤟
Sting has incredible talent as a vocalist, writer & player.
Who had a doubt about that?!!! Playing bass like he does and singing at the same time is actually a proof that he's a awsome bass player...
Never forget that he's singing at the same time and often the vocal line has a rhythmic and melodic quality that's far removed from what the bass line is doing. The bass goes this way, the vocal goes that way. Well. Used to be like that in the good old days, that is...
Yeah not everyone is McCartney
@@cesarcastillo7129 Or Jack Bruce, for that matter. Or Geddy Lee.
@@renderizer01 damn right
"Spirits In The Material World" is a killer bassline.
Canary in a Coal Mine is one of my favorite songs by The Police, I feel it's totally overlooked too.
Singing and playing bass well is very hard
Fuck yeah! Sting is an incredible bassist , and very skilled.
its not just about technique, its also about feel and Mr Sumner had a great feel, especially when playing off the beat and making a modally complex, melodic bassline sound simple and effective.
When the World Is Running Down is my favorite Sting bass line.
Sting is a great Bassist
Very tasteful, serves the song, great note choice, great tone, understands use of space. And creates beautiful counterpoints to the main melody. And some of his lines are quite complex too eg Spirits in the material world.
Meet Sting 2 times loading in his tour bus in the mid 90’s.
He was kind and friendly.
I love his bass playing and muted tone! I know people that stage hand for him his road crew and they said he was quiet and said very little to them yet he payed and fed them very well so they liked him!
I’ve honestly never heard anyone say Sting was a bad bassist, like yeah some of his bass lines aren’t the most technical but a lot of them are really damn good. Just listen to songs like Demolition Man (my personal favourite riff from him), Walking On the Moon, Next to You, Synchronicity, Can’t Stand Losing You, Born in the ‘50s and It’s Alright For You. Masterful playing right there
Great choices Andrew. I’ve been a fan of The Police since they arrived on the music scene. Sting is a genius IMO.
It's Alright For You was performed by Copeland on all instruments except guitar solo part
Bass on "Demolition man" is actually Danny Quatrochi, Sting's tech. Hugh Padgham said that Danny overdubbed few things, because Sting just wouldn't want to correct some mistakes and somehow Danny ended up playing Demolition Man all the way through.
@@willprince643 indeed. Sting was high on coke during the sessions
Came here to say canary in a coal mine is the best police song! Glad you mentioned it, the bass is so good in that song!!
Unfortunately it's also a rip off of another song.
@@Basslessonsuk What song does Canary rip off?
@@Basslessonsuk what’s it a rip off of ?
Bob Segers' "Get out of Denver": ruclips.net/video/9WWHdBuOC6Q/видео.html@@Thomas.harding
Bob Segers' "Get out of Denver": ruclips.net/video/9WWHdBuOC6Q/видео.html@@secularZoo
Nobody has ever said Sting can’t play bass. Sting is a jazzer at heart who writes and performs excellent pop music.
Dude the bassline in “Spirits in the Material World” is insane
I loved his bass work on the Regatta de Blanc album so much that it inspired me to play the bass later on. Even though he’s usually associated with his old 50’s P bass, I’ve heard he played an Aria on that album.
In all fairness he only played what works best to enhance the song which he did amazingly. He's a phenomenal musician and songwriter AND he was singing while he played!
Hell, what a great short 👍😂
I suggest checking how many covers of Sting's bass lines have been performed by excellent bassists. That says a lot about his playing abilities and creativity on bass.
Hahahah I love this series. Never stop, Danny!
His bass line on When the world is running down on the Certifiable live gigs is 🔥
I know this song thanks to the sydney millenium soundtrack, a snippet of it appears in the first seconds
THE CURE BEHS TONE!!!
Simon Gallup! Big fan of his!
Sting has got *it* when it comes to mapping your bass lines around lead vocal. It is like trying to pat your head and rub your tummy at the same time. I can overlook his instrument simplicity as I take in the whole deal that is Sting.
When Sting appeared on Zappa's Broadway The Hard Way on a version of Murder By Numbers he actually seemed really chill.
Was this ever in question? Man, he plays way off the beat, sings and never gets lost. He's kind of incredible.
He can play bass very, very well. I’ve seen him live and watched him jam out, which is something he doesn’t do in most of his recordings.
the thing you forgot is: it's definitely difficult how sting can pöay basslines and sing at the same time with bass parts that night not be amazing but often counterpoint the vocal melody. keeping that polyphony going ans still singing so great and grooving good is astonishing.
You did Copeland dirty with that clip! Also the man picks with his thumb, which I do, so it's nice to not feel alone.
Sting is a bass for chrissakes! I actually met him in mid summer 2013 after he dined in a friends restaurant. Got a photo and went to the gig later that evening. He wasn’t as tall as I thought he’d be. He was soft spoken and wife Trudi was lovely too. It’s bizarre meeting the man that wrote some of the biggest hits in pop history and was part of one of the greatest trios of all time, The Police. Sting is a legend, Blue Turtles is one of my favorite albums of all time.
He can play Bass. You dont need fancy technics to play an Instrument.
Or fancy techniques.
His playing is not about impressing, it's purely in service of the song. I WISH I learned the value of this earlier as a guitar player.
Just started valuing this myself recently and it's made learning stuff by ear and picking up on why songs are the way they are so much easier some how
Bruh who would question this man hes literally legendary
He was also very strategic in his playing to make room for his singing... similar to how Geddy Lee would playing simple notes while singing a note and more complex fills while not singing a note.
Whaaat? Who’s saying this about Sting? I think he writes really good bass parts. They’re simple but show a knowledge of songwriting, composition, and harmony. He also writes the song, the lyrics, sings the lyrics while playing bass, and wrote most of the chord progressions. All credit to Andy Summers for putting his stamp on the songs but Sting did all the heavy lifting.
Gordon is an excellent musician. Bass, guitar, keys and probably a bunch of other stuff.
He shouldn't have worn yellow n Black that day