Bass Man | Louis Johnson

It's about time we took a look at the people behind the funktastic bass lines that feature in so many of the great songs we play here on VibeRide, and so here goes. First up, it's Louis Johnson.

I first heard Louis Johnson when I borrowed The Brothers Johnson album “Light Up The Night” from a friend of mine several years back. As I sat and listened to "Stomp", one of the hits off the album, I found myself impulsively thumbing-along to the bass line on an imaginary bass guitar I didn't even know I had! Then came the bass solo and I was blown away. It was the funkiest thing I had heard in my life and, quite simply, it made me feel happy - and so I was hooked. I skipped back through the CD again and again to listen to that solo, each time turning the volume up just a little more in an attempt to really feel each and every slap, pluck and twang.

Soon after my friend lent me Michael Jackson's "Off The Wall", which Louis Johnson features heavily on and my musical mind moved into a new space. I loved it and I wanted more of this new "funky" sensation. I decided there and then that funk was where I wanted to go and I haven't looked back since.

Louis Johnson's bass playing thrust me into a world of funk and his bass lines on “Stomp” and Michael Jackson's “Get On The Floor” were the twin engines on the jet-pack I took off with.

Before we get into some biographical information about Louis Johnson, here's a clip, which can only be described as mesmeric, of the man himself slapping a bass guitar to within an inch of its life. Simply brilliant.



Information about Louis Johnson (on the web at least) is a little hard to come by, but the following is from Wikipedia and appears to give an adequate account of him as a musician.

Louis Jagger Johnson was born on April the 13th, 1955, in Los Angeles, California. He is best known for his group The Brothers Johnson and his session playing on several hit albums of the 1970s and '80s including the "best selling album of all time" Thriller. His signature sound is from the Music Man StingRay bass which Leo Fender especially made for him to first use and then promote; and from his slapping technique.

His work appears on many well-known records by prominent artists. Johnson played on Michael Jackson's albums Off the Wall, Thriller and Dangerous, and hit songs "Billie Jean" and "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough". He also played on George Benson's Give Me the Night. He was one of three bassists on Herb Alpert's 1979 album Rise, which included its top-10, Grammy-winning disco/jazz title-track. He was also the bassist on Earl Klugh's 1976 jazz/pop album "Living Inside Your Love" and 1977 jazz/pop album "Finger Paintings", as well as Quincy Jones' 1975 Mellow Madness.

Due to his distinctive style, he was nicknamed "Thunder-Thumbs". Many slap bassists have been given the moniker, but Johnson was the original. His slap bass playing arrived soon after Larry Graham brought it into the mainstream, and both are considered the "grandfathers" of slap-bass playing.[citation needed]

His slap bass lines figure prominently in his work with Stanley Clarke on the Time Exposure album, his work with Grover Washington, Jr. (Hydra), George Duke (Guardian of the Light, Thief in the Night), Jeffrey Osborne (Jeffrey Osborne, and Stay with Me Tonight).

An excellent example of his thumb playing can be heard on the Earl Klugh song "Kiko". Without any plucking at all, Johnson sets a complicated funky bass line using a combination of counterpoint slapping with right hand using right thumb, counterpoint with left hand middle finger as a mute tec., called a slap choke, thus creating a percussive sound like drums, adding to the bass notes. His style incorporates more funk plucks in combination with his thumping, which along with the Music Man StingRay sound gives a very funky, unique sound.

The following is a list of some of the artists Louis Johnson has recorded and performed with over the years:

Anita Baker, Aretha Franklin, Billy Preston, Bill Withers, Björk, The Carpenters, Donna Summer, Earl Klugh, Gábor Szabó, George Benson, Gene Van Buren, George Duke, Grover Washington, Jr., Herbie Hancock, The Jacksons, James Ingram, John Mellencamp, Kenny Loggins, Michael Jackson, Natalie Cole, Patti Austin, Paul McCartney, Peabo Bryson, Peggy Lee, Pointer Sisters, Quincy Jones, Sister Sledge, Stanley Clarke, Stevie Nicks, Stevie Wonder, Sweet Comfort Band, and the Temptations.

For more video of Louis Johnson, check out VibeRide's YouTube channel

Gary