Adam interview in Geddy Lee’s Book Of Bass

[Edge_Orchestra]

Geddy Lee (Rush) has a great new book called Geddy Lee’s Big Beautiful Book Of Bass.

Loads of pix and stories about his bass collection, history of bass guitar and manufactures and interviews with some musicians — Asking how they came to play bass and their collections. Fun stuff. Lots of legends... INCLUDING Adam Clayton.

I think the book is around $65. Kindle version is a more affordable $12.99

 

[Muad'zin]

Hmm, Adam is obviously a famous bass player, courtesy of being part of a famous band, if not the most famous one still active. But a legend of bass........

 

[Mac_Fly]

Hmm, Adam is obviously a famous bass player, courtesy of being part of a famous band, if not the most famous one still active. But a legend of bass........

I used to work with a bass player. This guy would eat, sleep, drink, live bass guitars. Just about the only thing he would talk about. His philosophy in evaluating a musician in a band was on how well the band is being served by what that musician is doing, by how they perform and what they are bringing to the table.

I suggested to him that Adam Clayton is probably considered a lesser musician, a joke to most people as a bass player. He responded "not in the bass community he's not" and then went on to elaborate on what Adam does that is not so easy to emulate as people might think.

Well, no matter how one feels about Adam's playing (legend or not), he certainly does a bang up job for U2.

 

[Hewson]

if not the most famous one still active.

 

[DaveC]

Hmm, Adam is obviously a famous bass player, courtesy of being part of a famous band, if not the most famous one still active.

 

[Hewson]

Flea was next on my list.

 

[DaveC]

i desperately need to find out where i can buy that sweater.

 

[Hewson]

He probably knitted it himself. Man of many talents.

 

[DaveC]

https://middleofbeyond.com/products/krampus

 

[Hewson]

Cheap

 

[DaveC]

no u

 

[Muad'zin]

I used to work with a bass player. This guy would eat, sleep, drink, live bass guitars. Just about the only thing he would talk about. His philosophy in evaluating a musician in a band was on how well the band is being served by what that musician is doing, by how they perform and what they are bringing to the table.

I suggested to him that Adam Clayton is probably considered a lesser musician, a joke to most people as a bass player. He responded "not in the bass community he's not" and then went on to elaborate on what Adam does that is not so easy to emulate as people might think.

Well, no matter how one feels about Adam's playing (legend or not), he certainly does a bang up job for U2.

Well, he obviously fits the band. And I for one would never call him a joke. I've done my fair share of soundengineering and stagehanding at live shows and I know a Rule No. 2 bass player when I see one. Adam is not and seems to aim for being the solid dependable rock bottom of the band. Which is what I would aim for myself if I were a bass player.

But his parts are easy to play and seem to evolve a lot of the same thumping 8th note patterns. I've once read that the biggest obstacle to U2 trying to reinvent their sound over the years, and I think this is true for Radiohead as well, is the rhythm section. Bono can sing differently (Lemon comes to mind, I couldn't believe it was him first time I heard it), Edge can easily sound different, he just has to change gear, for a drummer to sound radically different takes a lot of effort. And Adam has always sounded like Adam on every U2 record. As I said Radiohead has the same problem, which is why they experimented more with drum loops and bringing in a 2nd drummer. And even there Colin Greenwood still sounds like Colin Greenwood.

And all that's excluding the fact that after having listened to hundreds of U2 live bootlegs I've noticed that Adam seems to be the one who fucks up most.

So, being the right person at the right spot in his band, yes. Legend of bass? I'm still awaiting further evidence.

 

[Mack_Again]

Hmm, Adam is obviously a famous bass player, courtesy of being part of a famous band, if not the most famous one still active. But a legend of bass........

dude you're forgetting Les Claypool

 

[Mack_Again]

I do agree with Muad'zin, the band's fundamentals do always lie on bass or rhythm section. Miles Davis' reinvention was most drastic in rhythm section as well, considering he replaced Dave Holland, a mainly double-bass based player with Michael Henderson, a Motown player touring with Stevie Wonder. same goes with drummer, he initially hired Jack DeJohnette earlier in his electric period but eventually replacing him with some rock/funk drummer (including Tiki Fulwood from Funkadelic) and finally Al Foster, who can ultimately lie down some beats. U2 did that, sort of , when they played on top of drum loops in the 90s.