The Who- Baba O'Riley- John Entwistle's isolated bass (live) HQ SOUND
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- Опубліковано 5 лют 2025
- John "The Ox" Entwistle's isolated bass track from "Baba O'Riley", performed live by The Who at Shepperton Film Studios, May 25 1978. (Taken from "The Kids Are Alright" bonus dvd.)
![The Who - Baba O'Reily -- In [High Definition] HD! -1979 - The Kids Are Alright](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/kX-bVeojLEA/mqdefault.jpg)
His bass playing was so badass it was blowing frames away in the film camera
I think it's because his fingers move so quick they generate radiation and this possibly vaporised the frames away LOL.
Heyy
💥💨🤣
I waited on him at a restaurant, served him wine and food. Got him to autograph Live at Leeds, which I rushed home and got. The greatest rock bassist of all time.
You lucky dog!
Was it hard to contain your enthusiasm while waiting on him?
It's funny cuz I've read stories here and there where even the biggest celebrities get that starstruck feeling when they meet their idols. You'd think they'd be immune to it due to their celebrity status but it's not actually the case.
Is Paul McCartney
@@ThePotatoMan-to1vf you must be joking
Chris Squire
i notice a lot of comments on how bored john looks but i am noticing some subtle euphoric expressions. he's really loving parts of it. john is one of the best bass players ever.
He's not bored. He's breathing. Breathing is essential.
When he had Keith, Roger, and Pete flying around like banshees he needed to be the cool one!
@@philmanson2991 Bit like how Charlie Watts was the most placid out of the Stones when the rest were leaping about on stage.
@@MuttleyVonErich00 Charlie Watts WAS the "Human Metronome!"
@@MuttleyVonErich00 Bill Wyman 'leapt around'?
When it finished, I said out loud to myself "Any questions?"
All of the questions are answered with either: “right hand technique” or “yes, there’s a hammer on there as well” 😆
I don't think you did.
Entwistle was my first bass hero, an inspiration to start playing. I´ll never be tired to hear him! Sorry I can´t play along anymore due problems on my hands and arms. RIP and thanks, John!
I aspire to be john one day
The Who: One lead singer. One lead bassist. One lead drummer. One genius songwriter and rhythm guitarist.
Was the rhythm guitarist not penning a witty tome about paedophilia??...
Pete is the lead guitarist.
Absolutely true, Phil. Mister Thunderfingers. What a fantastic band. One of my favorites.
@@FrankyGotTheBill Barely. His guitar parts were more rhythm than lead most of the time.
One pedo
This sounds exactly like my bedroom when I was a teenager. No wonder my parents were annoyed all the time
Try the Bass intro to Runnin with the Devil, over and over. Thats an a$$ beating. E E E E E ....etc (ok, so it Eb)
This track would have to be the main reason that no one wants to play bass. It can be so much more (as was their other tracks).
Yeah dude..I totally get you
I would imagine your memory has slightly waned, seeing as how you remember your teenage self sounding exactly like prime entwistle, I would hope that your folks having heard this talent of yours so intimately, would have been supportive (best case scenario, encouraging/enabling/invested) and tolerant in spite of any assumed generational disconnect be it musically or culturally, lastly I would hope that You went on to pursue peers of an equal calibur to cook with and at the very least, joined high school jazz band. Hands down best non-professional bassist I have ever seen and got to experience up close and personally, since he was a grade above me and shared a mutual drummer friend, was a guy named zak Pitts who accredited his PHENOMENAL technical mastery over the bass (slap, with a pick, without one, 5 string or 4, even owned and could play a short necked fretless 4 string very well) all to two things, obsessively practicing every possible chance, and the more structured and disciplined nature of jazz band (playing with a multitude of people and instruments, reading non-tablature sheet music, and of course, the inherently unique and technical nature of jazz as a genre)
@@davy-jonesdevil-fruit7606 I just meant a single bass guitar playing. take your ritalin
The Who: lead guitar, lead bass, lead drums, lol.
rhythm guitar , lead bass guitar
John = lead (base) guitar, Pete= rhythm guitar, Keith=lead drums, Roger=vocals - The Who,
Lead singer
Umm this bass isn't doing anything lead. It's all rhythm.
Dead - are you joking? 3:44.
Funny how the studio version of this song (and most other songs too) is super simple, yet live he goes ballistic.
I heard that Keith Moon was better when drumming with the others because he needed the other guys to respond to to really get going. Maybe it was similar for Entwistle?
His bass playing thankfully became more ballistic in the studio from ‘The Who by Numbers’ onwards, and although the albums without Keith Moon are often derided, his bass playing is at its best on them. Makes me wish that he had been on more stuff in the 80s but his bass playing started to found awful by the 90s - mainly due to the effects he would use
I never knew he was that great.
Isolation rocks.
ah yes, enslaved bass
Listen to my generation bass covers, not sure if there is an isolated track like this but it's great.
can confirm isolation no longer rocks
@@JordanJ1263 it has taken me two or three weeks to realize isolation does not rock
Hey this means something very different now.
I modeled my bass playing after two people; Paul McCartney, and John Entwhistle. Was fortunate to see both of them play live
If you could somehow manage to mix the timing and dynamics of Entwhistle with the melodic creativity of McCartney, you’d be unstoppable.
@@bderrick4944Yeah, that would be a hell of a bassist, if ever there was one!
One of the most aesthetically pleasing basses EVER, pure class
That straight face through whole video, and then after song he drinks on a straw. He was just a pure bad ass
+John Mirra The bottles attached to John's mic stand contained white wine and brandy...
SOUTHERN COMFORT AND BRANDY
He cracked a smile at around 5:43 or so. But you can tell he's laughing at the riff hah
the best was.you knew when keith and john were about to smash and explode .John with a straight face .would just keep playing .but he would just start stepping back and to the side like nothing was going on .like nothing was going on .same facial expression.I have a book the who's auto biography .from their start (DETOURS) to (HIGH NUMBERS) to the (WHO) when band members would squabble with each other .after enough John was like the bouncer where he would OX them back in line .John was great .but it's sad .believe it or not john never really made the money he should have .partly his fault .but nevertheless .the OX will be and is missed
@@roberttolassi8683 and he died the classic rock star death. In Vegas, in bed, with a hooker and cocaine. (also a heart condition)
I think I speak for all rock bassists in the world when I say that even as a teen with an Acoustic 350 amp run through enormous speakers, you tried to get this guy's sound as best you could, and hope you could even come close to his mastery. Chris Squire, too, for all you Prog lovers out there. The Ox, indeed!
Everything about this style is godlike. The way he holds that bass..........wow
This is absolutely awesome! Look at his face, he was so relaxed, unbelievable. The man was amazing, outstanding!! John was powerful, untouchable! No words...The Ox!! The best bass player the world ever seen, without a shadow of doubt!!!
"The bass is not meant to be heard, it's meant to be felt"
@@lebidule john entwistle
@@lebidule pretty sure
lebidule i think it was more an abstract thing. You shouldn’t take it literally. Im guessing you aren’t a native English speaker?
Obviously he meant that he believes ithe bass should be totally silent at all times.
Kevin R. Like Metallica when Newstead was there.
Man, he had fingers of steel!
The bass he's using here is an Alembic Explorer - a style he helped design. It was auctioned off in 2003 and brought £50,000.
It's a beautiful bass, and it certainly provides a nice comfortable spot to rest your arm.
@The Fitz:
But it will never sound the same . . .
some of those basses and guitars cost 25-30k out the door l believe. Jerry Garcia's Alembic was beautiful.
@@seamusrmful Phil Lesh has played Alembics too, even his Guild Starfire bass was completely overhauled by Alembic. Great instruments
Bucky O'Donnàighle Stanley Clarke played and still plays Alembics pretty much his entire career. They’re beautiful instruments just out of reach financially for most.
You can hear all of the really quick passing notes isolated like this....that somehow get buried and lost in the live or even recorded mixes...I love that 'practically drumming' he does on his right .... the mans a total genius... no wonder hes mine and a million other bassists Inspiration :)
I love how Ringo plays the Bass🤘🏻🤘🏻🤘🏻
I-
@@thegreenmanalishiyamadori371 He must be speaking in code. 😂
uM tHAtS nOt RiNgO
😅😅😅😅😅😅😅😅
@@Chad_Sandridge75 - It's because John holds a strong resemblance to Ringo.
He always made playing so incredibly well look so incredibly simple. One of my all-time favorite bass players. Thanks for sharing this.
With the track isolated I can hear nuances to his playing I miss in the mix. Just an incredible musician. Can you imagine being the other half of a rhythm section with Keith Moon?
Buelligan88 I couldnt imagine being in that position but, safe to say that the Ox was more than up to the job!
Nuances? Like the difference between being hit with a bat and being run over by a truck!
The Ox was their anchor
Yeah, John had a lot to make up for, and he did big time.
@@randalscandal1588 John was the best musician in the group.
'Eminence Front' is another outstanding bass track that uses just about every technique that's physically possible to use in one song!
He was like that
I love the way it all looks so effortless. Barely an emotion on his face.
@@musicman843 We were obviously listening to two entirely different songs...
I just watched a video interview of Pete here on UA-cam where Pete said, referring to The Who, that he couldn't have done it without John, that he would not have done it without John.
THAT, is high praise indeed.
Keep in mind he hand made his 1st bass. True pioneer!! 🤘
He’s basically playing lead guitar, on a bass. And Townsend is playing the rhythm
slowest lead ever.. a effin boring as shit
yup
@@kdlittlehawk check out his solos on youtube ua-cam.com/video/0vKPyTyYO0M/v-deo.html
and ua-cam.com/video/TUs8Pr3Ny2A/v-deo.html his solo starts at the 6 minute mark
No, he's not playing lead guitar. He's playing melodic bass. He is not a lead instrument. That's not how any of this works.
@@sunkintree townsend himself said john started playing lead bass since the late 60s
His facial expression seems like all he can hear is what we hear and he’s just bored af
That's the cool thing about him. He looks bored playing even the solos on my generation
That was Entwhistle's trademark --- he always looked bored to tears. Of course that repetitious song always grated on my nerves. I imagine it did his too, given all the times he had to suffer through his part.
He just looks bored cause he's thinking when is this thing gonna be over so I can get back to my Hookers and Coke...
iirc, this was his least favorite song to play
I enjoy playing bass and I never smile without resason while playing or show facial expression as if I'm feeling the notes it looks dumb asf. It's just really your personality.
That's the thing about John....classically trained, he was all business. And the coolest thing about him was his apparent nonchalance as he played. But, he was very focused and precise with what he wanted to deliver on bass to the song. One can clearly see his mastery of his instrument, but the "okay, I'll do it if I must" aura he displayed was priceless!
I was just rocking out to "Who's Next" yesterday. Still just as good today as it was in 1971.
One of the essential albums, right there alongside Skynyrd's "Pronounced" and Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon."
Yeah one of my fav the Whole Album not a bad song on it .
John Entwistle always looks bored. It's his non flashy English Style. I saw him play a bar in West Chicago with his band. It's no mistake he's called "Thunder Fingers" as his thrashing finger plucks was like being hit with a machine gun. The Who realLY lost a piece of their magic when he passed away.
+mjb0183 The stones Bassist is the same way..
+gewglesux bill wyman isn't anything special, can't compare to the ox
Moon and Entwistle. The greatest Rock and Roll rhythm section of all time.
And he died in the most Rock and Roll way possible. He had a heart attack while literally snorting coke off a hookers ass.
Hercules Rockerfeller god bless him, though I've preferred the ass 😂
John McVie gives off a similar vibe, imho. As did to a pretty good extent, John Paul Jones. I'm a yank and when I'm playing bass and getting into it I'm always swaying around to the music, which gives off a more camp vibe lol.. and wastes energy. The most the 3 guys aforementioned usually would do would be tap their feet
Never got into The Who, but I do appreciate their musicianship.
try with "The Who Sell Out" LP!
One word for you, dear: QUADROPHENIA.
They must be devastated
Their live records blow away anything done in a studio. Check out Live at Leeds, Hull, and Tanglewood.
your joking ?
Bass is SO under-appreciated. It's a music drug. Do you REALIZE how much it IS this song? Soak it up!
That tone is so crisp and rough, I love it
The quiet one was anything but when it came to his flying fingers on the bass. I always thought of him as the rock holding down the 4th corner of the picnic blanket in the gale. And he was...solid as a Rock. I took an army of musicians to replicate what he did for the Who all those years. Miss you, John!!!!
I was a bass player singer songwriter in bands for 15 years. The guy that inspired me to play bass was McCartney, but Entwistle was up there, along with Redding, Jamerson, Jones, Squire, Clark, Pastorius, Cetera, amd some I'm forgetting.
Geddy
the thing which amazes me is that the whole bass part only requires you to play THREE notes. but John fills up the emptyness of the original baseline and almost turns it into an improvised solo! simply incredible!!
huge talent gone but always remembered
He was the first bassist that I really took notice of when I was young and first getting into music. I had never heard the instrument used in that way before. Amazing player he was.
Funny how much he hated playing this song. I remember in an interview he said how boring it was to do.
+Justin Crawford That was Magic Bus...
He does look bored, what sounds really exciting to the fan can be really tedious to the musician.
He spoke about how he told Pete, "Have the fucking roadies play it." because how boring he found the song to play.
I'll bet the people who have boring minimum wage jobs who paid big bucks to see him play didn't care if he was "bored." Been a Who fan for 35 years, but I don't care if someone's bored or not. They better come through. Sort of like a brain surgeon or car mechanic who says, "Oh, well, I'm bored today." TS. ;)
Donald Miller If you are a who fan like you say than you needn't say all those words because Entwhisle can play like a god. I'd scrape together all my money to see a bored Entwhisle play.
My favorite Bass players in no particular order:
Geddy Lee
John Entwistle
John Paul Jones
Les Claypool
Crazy Wild Card:
Ray Manzarek Although not a bass player he played bass. Truly unique.
47 years ago this came out. I bought the LP as soon as it came out. Decades ahead of its time.
Easy to see why this is the favorite bassist of Lemmy and Geddy Lee.
Your favorite bassist’s favorite bassist.
Never a big Who fan, but I know talent when I see it and hear it...This guy was a monster!!!!!!!
I don’t look that relaxed even when I’m sleeping.
The Ox playing the bass as only he could. RIP John Entwistle.
I’m really glad such a huge effort was made to restore this for future Who fans, but it’s not my favorite demonstration of Entwistle’s genius, and _he was a genius,_ no doubt! “Baba O’Reilly” doesn’t give him much scope for inventiveness bc he’s basically endlessly repeating the same intervals (F, down to C, down to B flat, up to tonic), although he does find ways to add some embellishments. Thanks for going to so much trouble and uploading this!
Love the vocals coming through his pickups!
John was the best bass player to every play even to this day you will not not find anyone who compares!!
The sigh at 3:40 with his nonchalant demeanor cracks me up, it's like John's like well shit now I have to use 2% of my power here soon.
What a gem... I ALWAYS wanted to hear the isolated bass on this song !!!!!!!!!
For a guy who just wrapped up one of the baddest songs in all of rock and roll, he still manages to project an unassuming air of having fried up a batch of chips at a fast food joint.
A force of nature. May his musical genius be with us for all tine. Long Live the OX!
love how it says ox cam in bottom right
I prefer his nickname "Thunderfingers"
Hamish Priddle ... Not to be confused with "Thunderlips". Lol
When I was 13 years old, I was taking bass lessons and someone lent me their Meaty Beaty disk and I heard My Generation for the first time. I never took another lesson again!
Anyone who saw these guys in the '70's has not been the same since.
Agreed. I changed. A lot !
John owes me a right hand RTR speaker 35+ years ago. I was in college in '85 and had a pair of RTR speakers and my room mate had a small marshal amp for his bass so we set them up in series. The doors opened outside so we set the speakers on the balcony and sat in the parking lot one Saturday drinking beer and generally annoying the hell out of any students silly enough to be studying. At a certain point in Baba O'Riley (you know the one) it ended up ripping the bass fabric in the RTR. They didn't have that model so when I got it replaced I had a mismatched set for years.
Unsure when this was filmed but, Goddamn! His SOUND is huge! The sustain, the clarity is his invention I am absolutely sure of. I like the body shape of his electric bass because it offers him a rest for his right arm which, technique-wise, might allow his fingers to literally run rampant over the strings with precise 16th and 32nd note runs. Here I am after many years now looking into this cat after intense study of guys like Jemmott and Rainey but Entwistle was definitely funky. Wish I had the scratch to have me a bass made to those specifications. It's like Darth Vader radar notes to the brain or something.
1978
His tone is amazing. Such a great bass tone. I've tried to duplicate it, with roto sound round strings, while running my Rick 4001 in stereo, using one amp for the neck pickup, and a second amp for the bridge pickup. And still, I can't quite capture that amazing tone.
Horns.
As a former bass player, I can tell you that most people do NOT appreciate what is being done for/to/at them. Unless you screw up. THAT they get immediately. I took up bass thinking, well, it's a bigger guitar with two less strings (usually). How hard can it be? So, so wrong. Turned out I had to go back and really learn the fundamentals of music theory just so I could keep up, which made it worthwhile. And if you ever listen to Hendrix, just remember to pay attention to the bass player who has to keep up with him. Entwisle was awesome.
Right. I always say Hendrix's bassist had to beable to rein in an extremely spirited guitarist.
I wouldn't say that Noel Redding was, er, reining in Jimi but rather keeping up with him. While I'm here, I think it was Mitch Mitchell that once said of opening for The Monkees: "Jeeze! And people thought WE did drugs!!"
LOL on the quote. No, he was reining him in at the end of every solo! LOL Hendrix could get away with himself.
Ok, I can see that. Stevie Ray needed that kind of restraint also back when he was always baked. Uh, got to feed SRV once when he did a weird AA appearance at the rehab from Hell where I was, basically, the kitchen.
keep up with Jimi? try just staying on the same stage with Jimi
by the end of his career, he had done shows so many times, he probably told his tech, "wake me up when the show is over".he certainly was a master of his instrument.
I Love how John Entwistle does that sliding motion on his Bass's Fingerboard at 2:51
Bass guitar is my all time fave. I can’t play at all. The man makes it look easy and I absolutely love it! 🦋🌺
Then u will love The Real Me on Quadrophenia .It was recorded after Tommy .
1:24 you're welcome
This should have more votes.
The Who had one of the greatest drummers and bass players of all time. Entwistle played better lead than a lot of 60’s guitarists.
Ladies and gentlemen, on bass guitar, the timekeeper of the band, The Ox.
haha yes! because the timekeeper sure as hell wasn't Mooney!
Man, i hope the other cameras are somewhere online too. Thx for posting
As a frustrated former bassist. Pure genius.
It's amazing how he makes some of these faster passages look completely effortless.....
He looks pretty bored until the end.
It's still great to hear him and see exactly what he's doing with this fingers.
Thanks for posting this.
One of the BEST rock bass players to ever pick up a four string guitar!!! Super GOOD............ This band is amazing!!!!!
Taking the bass for a walk. Man he’s a great bass player.
Watching from Greece.hi everybody.
One of the best bass player ever.period.
His fingers did all the talking.
and the walking
Could hear this all day, what a musician he was
He is so fast that he damaged the frames....
Garegh62 WTF are you talking about? Not fast? Sloppy? Ha! Squire and Geddy are awesome but so is the Ox.
@Garegh62 You don't understand much here do you? It's true that Geddy and Chris were among the tops but know who THEY worshipped? Yep, John Entwistle. From Geddy Lee to Geezer Butler with the likes of Steve Harris, John Myung, Chris and Cliff Burton have ALL been inspired by John. Do a little research and learn what different kind of great bass playing can sound like. Entwistle was right up there with those guys if not above them. Him and John Paul Jones were practically in a league of their own.
@Garegh62 I feel pity towards your parents for not being able to raise you as a good person, but rather as a douche-bag who lacks the capability for an intellectual discussion but rather uses vulgarity to spout meaningless insult. May you grow into a better person someday.
@Garegh62 wow
@Garegh62 real class act!
Damn. He’s much more precise than I gave him credit for. 🙌🏻
For him. It's like standing.
Oh I've been looking for this. I really would like to hear Ent's performance on My Generation. It is my favorite element of the song.
"Best bass player in Rock 'n' Roll....ever, no contest"
Lemmy
Yep Lemmy did say that and he always gave the world the raw truth and never said what people wanted to hear fuck I hate drugs I thought John Entwistle another victim of drugs cocaine induced heart attack they were at the hard rock in Vegas getting ready to another world tour I had tickets too I was 21 I am what I hate a drug addict I don't understand why people can't like the way they are me I am just another pimple on the ass of the earth but people like John Entwistle the baddest bassist and Keith Moon Morrison,Hendrix and Joplin and countless other's are true gems on this shit hole earth are hard to find and for me it's kinda important for me to hear all this great music that gives me a reason to keep on going instead of giving up
Dan Scibek 😢
@@snowbird3067 if youre trying to say that this bass line is easy, then yes i think that is one of the more easier basslines by the who, you should listen to wont get fooled again bass track, or my generation bass track, or the real me
@@danscibek1590 and also Kurt Cobain, its sad because Kurt started heroin as a pain relief for a stomach illness, and became addicted very quickly
@@DannyBoi2112 yes he did
Man, what a tone! That’s the one I always strived for.
I had bought his solo album. He had a dozen or more songs. Hard to remember now since it was over 35 years ago but I think one of them was called "I believe in everything". I don't really remember but he was known for his silent stance while Roger Daltrey was swinging his Mic around, Pete Townsend was doing that arm swing and destroying his guitar on stage, Keith Moon was going nuts on the drums at times, blowing them up. I think Entwistle had to play the innocent stand their expressionless to get attention because how do you compete with three lunatics on stage, not so much Daltrey but the other two for sure
That's exactly what made The Who so great. The lunacy and splitsecond catch of Moon's drumming was held to earth by one of the greatest bassists ever. Sure there are others who might be/have been more technically accomplished, but nobody knew how to control chaos with his instrument like The Ox did.
Reminds me of Bill Wyman of the Stones. Not so much the virtuosity but the stoic stance, the ground on which everything else is built. Rock solid. Job to do. Love that about those guys, both of them.
I had no idea he was fitting this many strums and notes in this song. I will never hear it the same again. Wow!
Would love to hear the isolated Moon drums on this.
@@DrLove911 Feck off.
The Kids Are Alright DVD. Special Edition has all four cams.
@Troy Staunton I don't have Moon's skills so a shed ain't gonna do shit.
@@MrGb1965 I'm talking audio tracks, not video.
Just another day at the office, huh? What a great musician.
@@WayneDisney-t6i Just another tricky day.
2:05 - his eyes as if: "Oh, Roger's done "I FARM FOR MY MEALS" properly!"
What I notice is how anxious John seems here. Those deep breaths he takes to settle into the situation. I think that’s probably stress. He’s trying to calm himself.
R.I.P Ox. The world hasn't been nearly as good for the past 17 years without your skill!!
its the SOUND and tone from the Alembic that really makes his playing sound incredible.......even just one solitary note just RIINNGGGS with attitude and authority....and there is an overdriven growl, buzzing strings....excessive compression....lots of top end...everything that a multitude of bass players never strive to incorporated in their sound.....pretty much everything a Bass SHOULD be.....Entwhistle, Geddy Lee, Chris Squire, Billy Sheehan...Stanley Clarke....these guys ATTACK their instruments in the most expressive way possible even when playing only one note per bar.....and that's why they are GREAT in the mix of whatever it is they are playing.
The man with 100 fingers.
One of the very best bassists ever to come out of England....
The man who invented Lead Bass player
Simply the best
trufiend138 I’ll agree with you
Let’s say rock lead bass
I needed to see this more than i could ever imagine. Wow.
Sunn made such good amps. Shame they are not made anymore.
Had an Alpha 212r. Best solid state amp I ever owned bar none.
Used to love John’s playing, I listen to it now and nothing.
Thanks for sharing! He has some amazing technique!
Also: I never knew Hans Gruber had a bass career before taking over Nakatomi Plaza ;)
No wonder John said he was a bit bored. He could play this stuff in his sleep
Watch his fingers dance is amazing
Thanks for posting this. Good insight
Of course John always looked bored- most of the bass parts required, in most of the songs, were quite simple and straightforward in order to keep them solid. But one listen to his bass solo in the original studio version of 'My Generation', is more than enough to demonstrate what a superb bass player he actually was!
Listen to "The Real Me" from the beginning of Quadrophenia.That bass is AMAZING