The acoustic bass (and sometimes the electric bass) has been a cornerstone of jazz for many years. It’s rare to find a jazz ensemble without a bass player.
With its distinctive look and rumbling lows, the instrument anchors music both rhythmically and harmonically; meaning, one could argue that the bass is even more important to a jazz group than the drummer.
Over the past century, there have been many world-class jazz bassists, but a few stand out among the greats. In this post, we’re going to learn about 21 of the greatest and most famous jazz bass players. Read on!
1. Paul Chambers (1935–1969)
Despite his short life, Paul Chambers was a great jazz musician — in particular, a master of jazz bass. He grew up playing baritone and tuba but learned the double bass in the late 1940s.
Chambers initially worked as a sideman for several important artists. In 1955, he joined the Miles Davis Quintet and played on iconic jazz albums, like Miles Davis’ Kind of Blue and John Coltrane’s Giant Steps, where the tune “Mr. P.C.” was specifically written for him.
He also collaborated with musicians such as Sonny Rollins and Cannonball Adderley, in addition to leading his own quintet. Sadly, Chambers passed away from tuberculosis at the age of 33.
2. Ray Brown (1926–2002)
Pittsburgh native Ray Brown was a key member of Dizzy Gillespie’s band in the 1940s, known for his powerful, swinging bass sound that helped shape the bebop style.
Brown played with numerous jazz legends, including Charlie Parker, Kenny Clarke, and Milt Jackson. Notably, he also performed with his one-time wife, Ella Fitzgerald.
He contributed to the landmark 1952 Gene Krupa-Buddy Rich project “The Drum Battle” alongside Oscar Peterson. Brown toured extensively with Peterson for 14 years before shifting his focus to studio work.
Later in his career, Brown formed the Ray Brown Trio and continued performing until his death in 2002, just before a concert.
3. Sam Jones (1924–1981)
After knocking around in New York in the 1950s playing with various outfits, Sam Jones settled in as Cannonball Adderly’s bassist, where he earned a stellar reputation.
He was renowned for his technical skill on the instrument and, along with Adderley drummer Louis Hayes, developed a reputation for staying in the groove.
Chet Baker, Wes Montgomery, Sonny Stitt, and even John Lee Hooker used him on recordings, as did many, many others.
Jones also acted as band leader with an assortment of his own groups where he showed off his formidable composition skills and even played jazz cello.
4. Jaco Pastorius (1951–1987)
Born in Pennsylvania to a jazz drummer, Jaco Pastorius played the electric bass and is hailed by many as the greatest ever to do so.
He’s one of a handful of musicians who reinvented his instrument. Pastorius played a Fender Jazz bass from which he’d removed the frets (with a butter knife, by some accounts), which gave his playing a distinct sound.
He did revolutionary things with his playing, joining Weather Report and Pat Metheny in the 1970s, and later leading his own band, Word of Mouth.
Despite his brilliance as a player and composer, a bipolar disorder diagnosis crippled his career, and Pastorius died due to a brain hemorrhage after a fight.
5. Esperanza Spalding (1984–)
Oregon-born Esperanza Spalding was a professional violinist before she was a teenager. Growing bored with the violin (and other instruments she taught herself to play), Spalding hit upon the bass and got hooked.
She’s recorded nearly 10 solo albums and received vast critical praise. Her first Grammy was for Best New Artist, and she shocked the world by winning over Justin Bieber, Drake, Mumford & Sons, and Florence and the Machine.
She plays acoustic double bass, acoustic bass guitar, and electric bass; and she also sings, racking up two of those Grammys for Best Jazz Vocal Album.
At age 20, she became an instructor at the Berklee College of Music. Later on, she taught at Harvard.
6. Charles Mingus (1922–1979)
Our next bassist, Charles Mingus, grew up in Southern California in a home where non-religious music was forbidden. Despite that, he discovered jazz and felt drawn to it immediately.
He learned the cello as a boy, then moved to the bass, where he was classically trained and was nearly instantly recognized as a prodigy.
Mingus played with bebop musicians like Lionel Hampton and Charlie Parker before becoming a renowned composer and bandleader. He elevated the bass from a rhythm instrument to a solo instrument in jazz.
Despite his volatile temper, he was a prolific composer until Lou Gehrig’s disease slowed him down. He left behind a significant body of work, including the 4,000-measure, two-hour piece “Epitaph.”
7. Ron Carter (1937–)
The iron man of jazz bassists, Ron Carter has played on more than 2,200 recordings throughout his storied career, making him the most recorded jazz bassist of all time!
The Detroiter is one of the few who, when you say “He’s played with everybody,” you mean literally everybody.
Among that vast number of recordings are names like Antonio Carlos Jobim, Miles Davis, Wayne Shorter, and Herbie Hancock. Oh, and Roberta Flack. He has also done considerable work with his own jazz groups.
Everyone knows that having Carter on the bass in your rhythm section means having an accomplished, versatile player everyone in the group can depend upon.
8. Stanley Clarke (1951–)
As a founding member (alongside Chick Corea) of the group Return to Forever, Stanley Clarke helped create a space in the jazz world for the electric bass.
A contemporary of Jaco Pastorius, Clarke made new rules for the instrument, but not dying early has allowed Clarke to expand the bass’ role even further.
He started as an accordion player before making his way to the bass via the violin and the acoustic bass. He’s since played rock and funk with Keith Richards of the Rolling Stones, Stewart Copeland of the Police, and Victor Wooten.
Clarke won an Emmy for writing the score for the TV show Pee-Wee’s Playhouse. He continues to write, score, and perform in various genres.
9. Scott LaFaro (1936–1961)
The short life of our next bassist, Scott LaFaro, started in New York state, where his father was a big band player. He became most closely identified with the Bill Evans trio, recorded with Stan Getz and Ornette Coleman, and toured with Chet Baker.
LaFaro was known for humming along with his bass as he played it. He was also widely respected for his technique on the bass, which most people called virtuosic.
Early in his short career, he drew comparisons to Paul Chambers. His future looked bright, as he was poised to become a new giant in the jazz world. Sadly, a car accident in 1961 took his life.
10. Jimmy Blanton (1918–1942)
Jazz double bassist Jimmy Blanton started playing bass at Tennessee State University after studying the violin. This background shaped his bass playing, influencing generations of jazz musicians.
Before Blanton, a bass solo was mainly about its rhythm. After all, it’s a part of the rhythm section, right? However, Blanton’s violin training led him to take a more melodic approach to the bass, and his solos reflected that.
Dying at the age of 23 meant Blanton only had about a two-year career. The fact that he overhauled the way players thought about the bass in this small amount of time is even more remarkable.
11. Dave Holland (1946–)
British-born Dave Holland taught himself many stringed instruments before he stumbled onto the double bass. He’d set his sights on the electric bass and soon discovered jazz.
In a twist of fate that marked a significant milestone in his career, Holland replaced Ron Carter in Miles Davis’ band — a decision that required him to part ways with Coleman Hawkins.
As a bandleader and sideman, Holland has spent time racking up credits with artists as diverse as Thelonius Monk and Bonnie Raitt. He is also well respected as a composer. Holland’s discography includes around 200 albums with his groups and with other acts.
12. Walter Page (1900–1957)
Growing up in Missouri, Walter Page played with local outfits at a time when the tuba was more common as the lower-register instrument.
By playing the bass instead and not wanting to play the same sort of oom-pah, he turned to the walking bass line that would become an integral part of jazz and swing music.
He didn’t invent the walking bass, but he certainly popularized it. During a 12-year stint as Count Basie’s bass player, Page made a name for himself. Aside from his time with Basie, Page acted as a bandleader with several outfits in middle America.
13. Oscar Pettiford (1922–1960)
The son of a Native American mother and an African American father, Oscar Pettiford’s Oklahoma roots involved singing and playing with the family band. He went on to play with Coleman Hawkins and Dizzy Gillespie.
Pettiford added the cello to his arsenal of instruments after he broke his arm and couldn’t play the bass. He substituted a cello for the lower instrument and eventually worked his way into being a pioneer of jazz cello.
Dissatisfied with the conventional methods, he took it upon himself to develop his own unique technique. This revolutionary approach challenged established norms and influenced the way the instrument played in jazz.
14. Slam Stewart (1914–1987)
As Paul Chambers had done, Slam Stewart sang along with his own playing when he used a bow for solos. This created an unusual sound that was readily identifiable as coming from Stewart.
Stewart’s real name was Leroy, but he got the nickname “Slam” from his playing. He sometimes slapped the bass strings, which sounded like a slam, leading fellow musicians to call him “Slam.”
He played with Art Tatum, Charlie Parker, Dizzy Gillespie, and many other big names in jazz while working as an in-demand sideman. He also recorded several albums with his own group, acting as the bandleader.
15. Charlie Haden (1937–2014)
Composing and playing for more than 50 years, Charlie Haden developed a style of playing many consider to be revolutionary.
He’s one of the few bassists who helped change the role of the instrument in jazz. He moved fluidly between playing accompanying figures and executing more melodic lines on the bass.
He played with the Ornette Coleman Quartet for almost a year before drug addiction problems forced him to bow out to try to get clean. He did and returned to the jazz scene, both playing and composing.
He formed the Liberation Music Orchestra, a group where he worked to play free jazz and create political music.
16. Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen (1946–2005)
Our next bassist, Niels-Henning Ørsted Pedersen, hailed from Denmark. His virtuoso playing made him a standout in his native Denmark.
When big names came through that part of the world, they often hired him for their shows. As a result, he ended up playing bop with many of the greats.
Pedersen played in nightclubs as a teenager and went on to play for more than 400 recordings, many with jazz pianist Oscar Peterson, whose music was notably fast. Keeping up with walking bass lines at Peterson’s blistering speeds made Pedersen a revered player.
Other big names for whom Pedersen played include Sonny Rollins and Dexter Gordon. He also led his own band, Steeplechase.
17. John Patitucci (1959–)
Next, we have John Patitucci, a popular jazz bassist from the 1980s and ’90s. He has long played with Chick Corea on both acoustic bass and six-string electric bass.
Many bass players consider Patitucci to be the top six-string bass player in the world. He’s performed or recorded with Wynton Marsalis, Herbie Hancock, and Pat Metheny, and worked on many film scores.
Outside of jazz, Patitucci has recorded with Toni Tenille, Warren Zevon, and Pink Floyd’s Roger Waters. He has also performed bass concerti with symphonies worldwide.
Patitucci currently teaches at Berklee College of Music faculty after a 10-year stint as a professor at City College of New York.
18. Eberhard Weber (1940–)
German bassist Eberhard Weber made significant contributions to jazz. His unique approach brought the bass to the forefront, using it as a melodic and solo instrument, not just for keeping time.
One of Weber’s major innovations was his use of an electric upright bass, which he helped design. This allowed him to experiment with new sounds and techniques, expanding the bass’s role in jazz music.
His work with the European jazz ensemble, the Jan Garbarek Group, and his solo projects have showcased his ability to blend different musical styles, from classical to avant-garde jazz.
19. Charnett Moffett (1967–2022)
American jazz bassist Charnett Moffett made a big name for himself in the jazz world, playing both the double bass and the electric bass with great skill.
He’s known for his distinct bass playing — he doesn’t just stick to the background; instead, he often brings the bass to the forefront, playing it as a lead instrument.
Moffett is also one versatile musician. Whether it’s bebop, fusion, or free jazz, he can do it all. This has made him a sought-after musician and enabled him to play with many big names in jazz, like Wynton Marsalis and Ornette Coleman.
20. Anthony Jackson (1952–)
Hailing from New York, Anthony Jackson is known as “one of the masters of the instrument.” He has had a long career as a session musician, performing with artists across various genres.
Jackson is the brains behind the six-string contrabass electric bass. This invention has allowed him to explore new horizons in terms of tone and range, making him a trailblazer in the field.
Jackson gained fame for his use of a pick and flanger pedal, especially on the O’Jays’ 1973 hit “For the Love of Money.” This innovative approach pushed the boundaries of bass playing and introduced new sounds to popular music.
21. Steve Swallow (1940–)
Closing this list is Steve Swallow, an American jazz bassist and composer known for his mastery of the electric bass guitar.
Swallow began his musical journey with piano and trumpet but found his true passion with the double bass, performing early on with notable jazz musicians like Paul Bley and Art Farmer.
In the mid-1960s, Swallow switched from double bass to electric bass, one of the first jazz bassists to do so. Though controversial at the time, he saw the electric bass’s potential to transform jazz and has championed the instrument ever since.
Over the years, Swallow has performed with many greats in the jazz world, including Gary Burton, Carla Bley, and Pat Metheny.
Summing Up Our List Of The Famous Jazz Bass Players
Every player is different, and each one brings their own contributions to the jazz world. While this list doesn’t include every great jazz bassist, it doesn’t diminish their importance.
However, these 21 famous jazz players represent a diverse array of jazz styles. Each of them contributes something valuable to the genre through their talents and innovations.
Their work shows us the vast range and depth that jazz can offer, and we hope you have enjoyed learning about it!
