10 Awesome Bass Performances by Duran Duran’s John Taylor
by Annie Zaleski June 20, 2017 3:57 PM

At Duran Duran concerts, chances are at some point you’ll hear frontman Simon Le Bon leading a chant of “Play the f–king bass, John! Play the f–king bass, John!” This isn’t a case of intra-band turmoil, however: It’s a complimentary rallying cry for stalwart bassist John Taylor.

The Birmingham, England, native is one of the most talented bassists around – a player’s player, as evidenced by the hundreds of YouTube clips featuring musicians filming themselves recreating his bass lines to Duran Duran hits and deep cuts alike.

The secret to Taylor’s success? Much like Duran Duran, he keeps pushing forward and isn’t afraid to take chances or try new things. Plus, his inventive bass parts are an amalgamation of disco and rock ‘n’ roll grooves – studied and deliberate without losing the loose, danceable feel required for Duran Duran’s music.

Chic‘s Bernard Edwards is an inspiration, of course – Taylor has cited him as an idol many times — and Taylor added in a 2015 Bass Player interview that Paul McCartney, James Jamerson and George Murray (a bassist with David Bowie circa the mid-late ’70s) were influences.

“I’ve never liked bands where the bass just sits behind everything,” he added. “Lots of famous players are entirely uninteresting to me because their bass parts lack musical imagination. I know that not everyone is a James Jamerson, but you have to make the music move – and nothing does that more than bass.”

Here are John Taylor’s 10 best bass lines – a subjective list that could easily contain double or even triple the number of tracks.

Click here to see the Ten tracks chosen by Diffuser