Today we celebrate the birth of one of the greatest
composers in music history, as well as one of the greatest bass players of all
time, Led Zeppelin’s John Paul Jones. He is largely responsible for laying the
foundation of some of the greatest Zep songs alongside John Bonham but what many
people don’t know is that all the mandolins, recorders and subtle layers on the
Zeppelin albums are actually Jones as well. The man is one of the busiest men
in all of music!
He is a producer, a
session man and has been featured on a variety of other artist’s albums from Foo
Fighters to Heart and has played live with the likes of Govt Mule, Phil Collins
and Ben Harper. Among his other talents, he plays the mandolin, piano, guitar
and mando cello and god knows what else.
His intensity, sincerity and all around musical-ness is
evident as soon as you pop in a Led Zeppelin album and hear Black dog, Heart
breaker, How Many More Times, etc. He drives the songs home with infectious and
swinging bass lines the like of which was never heard before.
Both he and drummer John Bonham had a love of Motown’s
music, soul, and funk and it definitely shows up in many zeppelin albums, just
listen to Ramble On, the bass line is unmistakably groovy and distinctly
influenced by the Stax sound. It also happens to be my favorite bass line of
all time.
What makes him so special is not only his innate musical
sensibilities, but also his versatility and ability to weave through pop
culture unnoticed yet be incredibly influential at the same time. I could spend
the rest of the article just listing the names he’s worked with in one facet or
another. If I was to ask you what to Peter Gabriel and The Butthole Surfers have
in common, the answer would be John Paul Jones.
Jesus, every time you turn around, the guy is into something
new and he’s 67! Crimeny!
If you want to know to rock, study the man and see what it’s
all about!* He has been an influence on Geddy Lee, Flea, Gene Simmons, Les
Claypool, and just about any bass player you can shake a dead cat at. Why? Because
he is just so damned good at what he does. Innovative and yet in the pocket. Stylish
yet aggressive. He adds so many layers of sound yet he does not overburden the
music with it. He knows precisely where to be and how to get there. This man is
probably my biggest influence and in my opinion, one of the people most
responsible for most of the music we listen to today. And so I say Happy 67th
birthday John Paul Jones!
*Here is one of his more current projects, Them Crooked Vultures featuring Dave Grohl ( Foo Fighters) and Josh Homme ( Queens of the Stone Age)
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