5 Bass Solos Every '70s Diehard Should Hear

The bass is an often overlooked instrument that doesn't get the same kind of spotlight the lead guitar does, but it's a vital part of any band, bridging the gap between the rhythm of the drums and the melody of the guitar, vocals, and other instruments. The bass can also stand on its own as a solo instrument in the hands of the greats like John Entwistle of the Who or Jaco Pastorius of Weather Report. Bass solos may not be nearly as prevalent as guitar solos, yet there are some masterful ones from the 1970s that every diehard fan of the decade should definitely hear.

Choosing these solos was no easy feat. The 1970s was a decade with many brilliant bass players in a variety of genres — from rock to funk to free jazz — who helped transform the instrument's role. They no longer simply kept the beat and instead blasted to the forefront with brilliantly intricate and soulful playing that rivaled lead guitar. To that end, we feel we've brought together the best of the best that include short but jaw-dropping solos and extended playing that display the bass's full potential.

John Entwistle is considered one of the greatest, if not the greatest, rock bassists of all time by fellow musicians, fans, and critics. He was voted "Bassist of the Millennium" in a Musician magazine reader poll in 2000. Known as "the Ox" and "Thunderfingers," Entwistle's style of playing masterfully combined rhythm and melody and often took a lead role in the band's music, especially in songs like "The Real Me" and "5:15" from 1973's "Quadrophenia," where Entwistle produced the best bass riffs around. While Entwistle's playing on the band's albums, which he once compared to "tapping a typewriter" (via Bass Player), is an unmistakably driving musical force, it's live shows where he got to cut loose with extended bass solos.

A prime example of this is Entwistle's soloing on the Who's "My Generation" from the band's 1970 album "Live at Leeds." Although the song was first recorded in 1965 (and was the first rock song to feature a bass solo), Entwistle was famed for his improvisational skills. These are on full display in the 1970 recording. His soloing is dense, trebly, overdriven, super aggressive, and veers between thundering low notes and blisteringly fast runs. It's a bass solo for the ages.

Chris Squire was a founding member of the groundbreaking progressive rock band Yes, and his signature bass playing helped shape not only the band's sound but prog rock in general. The band's fourth album, "Fragile," was their breakout effort in the U.S. in 1972 with the Top 20 hit "Roundabout." The album also featured a truly unique song, "The Fish (Schindleria Praematurus)," that showcased Squire's bass playing. The entire song could be described as one long bass solo.

"Fish," a reference to Squire's nickname, is mainly an instrumental centered almost entirely around his effect-heavy bass playing. Squire, who penned the tune, uses guitar-like natural harmonics, a complex time signature, and a layered sound achieved through multi-tracking that showcases what the bass is capable of achieving. The entire song, besides percussion and brief vocals, is all bass. It's a song (and solo) that celebrates the bass and should be played on repeat by all the '70s diehards out there, especially if they're prog rock enthusiasts.

Jaco Pastorius called himself the greatest bass player in the world, and he wasn't far off the mark with many fans and critics agreeing with the assessment. With his booming fretless bass that he called the Bass of Doom, Pastorius was a prodigious player. Before his tragic death in 1987, he performed as a solo artist, with '70s free jazz giants Weather Report, and on collaborations with Joni Mitchell, Pat Metheny, and Herbie Hancock, among others. It was with Weather Report that one of his finest bass solos was recorded.

"Slang," from the band's 1979 live album "8:30," is a tour de force of bass playing that has been described by Apple Music as a fusion of sax great Charlie Parker, James Brown, and Jimi Hendrix. The song, which is subtitled "Bass Solo," is simply that, but it's so much more. Pastorius used live tape loops to build a sonic masterpiece that quotes everything from Hendrix to "The Sound of Music" in a funk-filled stew of a tune with harmonics, fast runs, and lots of reverb. It's a bass masterpiece that will leave you breathless every time you hear it.

William "Bootsy" Collins helped revolutionize funk bass in the 1970s as both a solo artist and with other musical legends. He cut his teeth playing with James Brown in the early 1970s, where he helped funk up Brown's sound to the hilt. Brown was infamous for running a tight ship with his band, and Collins bristled under these strictures. By 1972, he had joined forces with George Clinton as part of Funkadelic and Parliament. It was with his own Bootsy's Rubber Band (part of Clinton's P-Funk collective) that you'll find some of his finest solos.

While Collins' bass takes center stage on albums like 1976's "Stretchin' Out In Bootsy's Rubber Band," it was live during that decade where he really let loose with his bass solos. For instance, "I'd Rather Be With You," from the band's performance in Houston, Texas, in 1976, goes from slow jam to spacey, bass effects-heavy funk freakout. Collins starts with a deep thumping groove before going full psychedelic with a multi-layered fuzz explosion. It demonstrates his mastery of funk with a soloing style that rivals the best guitar solos of the era.

Like Yes, Rush pushed the bounds of what rock 'n' roll could achieve. This power trio from Toronto were all virtuosos of their chosen instrument. And while drummer Neil Peart may have sometimes overshadowed guitarist Alex Lifeson and bassist Geddy Lee with his pyrotechnics, the other band members were and are among the best around. A prime example that demonstrates the group's absolute mastery of their instruments can be heard on "La Villa Strangiato" from Rush's 1978 album "Hemispheres."

The song not only includes one of the best drum solos of the '70s, it also features a short but mind-blowing bass solo from Lee beginning at the 6:09 mark in the song. The solo is intricate yet funky, sweeping yet only about five seconds long. Of the "La Villa Strangiato," Lee admitted it was one of Rush's most difficult to play. "That was a song where I would have to say our ideas exceeded our ability to play them," Lee told The Guardian in 2018. Lee may be overstating his case. Repeated listens of his bass solo and the others in this list prove that he and the other bassist were true masters of their craft and created the very best bass solos of the 1970s.