Bob Babbitt passed away in Nashville on Monday at the age of 74. Many may not have heard of him, but if you're a bassist (as I am), you know his work. And if you have two ears, you've heard it.
Babbitt was a member of the Funk Brothers, a floating band of master studio musicians who helped shape the sound of Motown, not to mention pop, soul, funk, and rock and roll on in to 2012.
Think of the tunes Babbitt made his own, with a trademark "fat" sound that was both rhythmic and melodic: "Tears of a Clown," by Smokey Robinson; "Agent 00 Soul" and the imperious "War," both by Edwin Starr; the madcap "Cool Jerk," by the Capitols; "(I Wanna) Testify," by the Parliaments; "Mercy Mercy Me," by Marvin Gaye; "Band of Gold," by Freda Payne; "Ball of Confusion," by the Temptations; "Then Came You," by Dionne Warwick and the Spinners (what a great track).
As a bassist, I would give my right [body part] and throw in my left one for free, if I could just have thunk up the bass line for Stevie Wonder's "Signed, Sealed, and Delivered."
I learned how to play bass from tracks like that. Here's why it's good. Bass playing is melody, harmony, and rhythm all at once. Melody and harmony: Babbitt's bass line never follows Stevie's melody (that's the trick), instead finding simple but brilliant ways to counter it; it goes up and down scale during the verse, and finds a foundational groove during the chorus. Rhythm: If there was ever a solid lock between a drummer and a bassist, a syncopated backbeat to rock the continental United States and Europe, Wonder/Babbitt on "Signed, Sealed, and Delivered" is it.
Well done, Brother. Babbitt's discography is here: http://www.bobbabbitt.com/disc.htm .
Contact John Timpane at 215-854-4406 or jt@phillynews.com, or follow on Twitter @jtimpane.
