While many still are unfamiliar with the late great bassist James Jamerson, generations of music lovers can surely name countless hit records he played on, primarily doing session work at Motown Records in Detroit. Born on this day in 1936, Jamerson’s remarkable career was tragically cut short due to his struggles with alcoholism that led to his untimely death in 1983 at the age of 47.
Though often uncredited, it was Jamerson’s bass playing that helped define the soul and R&B sound of Motown. A member of the group of session players known as The Funk Brothers, Jamerson’s contributions to such classics as “My Girl” by The Temptations, “You Can’t Hurry Love” by The Supremes, “Shotgun” by Junior Walker & the All-Stars, “Dancing In The Streets” by Martha & The Vandellas, “I Second That Emotion” by The Miracles and scores of others helped solidify Motown as Hitsville U.S.A.
Jack Stratton of Michigan-based funk outfit Vulfpeck put Jamerson’s bass expertise on visual display through a series of videos he created. Stratton “transcribed [and] then played the [bass] line on a similar setup as Jamerson (p-bass [Fender Precision Bass] with labellas [La Bella Strings] and mute)” to create the visual animations. The basslines played on Marvin Gaye & Tammi Terrell’s recording of “Ain’t No Mountain High Enough,” Stevie Wonder’s versions of “For Once In My Life” and “I Was Made To Love Her” can be “seen” in action below:
