13 Bass Playing Lead Singers

As anyone who has listened to my original songs here at The Cavan Project knows, singing is not my strong suit, but where it gets even worse is when I try to play bass and sing. I simply can’t. The science behind it is that the bass is a rhythm instrument while the voice is a melodic instrument, and trying to do them at the same time can be “pat your tummy, rub your head” difficult. That’s not to say impossible as the following list of talented bass playing lead singers proves!

To me the really interesting ones in this selection are people like Mark King, Geddy Lee, Jack Bruce and Sting where the songs they are playing have quite complex bass lines that really are in a completely different space to where the vocal melody lies.

1. Geddy Lee (Rush)

2. Jack Bruce (Cream)

3. Sting (The Police)

4. Benjamin Orr (The Cars)

5. Phil Lynott (Thin Lizzy)

6. Mark King (Level 42)

7. Lemmy Kilmister (Motorhead)

8. Paul McCartney (The Beatles)

9. Nick Lowe

10. Justin Curry (Del Amitri)

11. Steve Kilbey (The Church)

12. Suzi Quatro

13. Richard Hell & The Voidoids