"Bass players call from all over, wanting to know what type of equipment I use, what type of bass, what kind of strings-- things like that. I'll tell them, but that's not what's important; it's the feel. The strings don't make the sound, it's the feel. It's all in here, in the heart."
- James Jamerson, 1979
Most of the classic 1960s and early 1970s R&B and pop hits you remember very likely feature James Jamerson on bass. He was among the uncredited studio musicians Motown referred to as the “Funk Brothers”. A partial studio list included The Supremes, The Four Tops, The Temptations, The Jackson Five, Little Stevie Wonder, and the list goes on and on. In the 1970s Jamerson played bass on Marvin Gaye's iconic “What’s Goin’ On” album, and many more. He used primarily a Fender Precision bass, and very heavy-gauged strings. He had a melodic method which almost formed a “duet” with the vocal track; and almost never changed his bass strings. He felt the resulting neck-warping warmed the tone of his basses.
A long and permanent victim of alcoholism, James Jamerson died in 1983 at the age of 47. He has since been posthumously inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, and the Fender Hall of Fame.
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