9 Landmark Bass Lines of the 1990s, from Punky Funk to Grungy Rock to Raging Rap-Metal to Proggy Be-Bop

The Nineties brought about an evolution in popular music. Grunge took over the airwaves, and elements of punk rock and heavy metal popped up everywhere you turned. As popular music moved in a more D.I.Y. direction, bass lines never lost their groove. The below bassists all added a unique ingredient. Heck, some of the songs were even written around the bass line, if you can imagine it! Let’s look at nine iconic bass lines of the 1990s, listed in chronological order.

1. “The Sinister Minister” by Bela Fleck and the Flecktones, bassist Victor Wooten

The lone single from their debut album, “The Sinister Minister” utilizes elements of jazz, bluegrass, be-bop, funk, and blues while Victor Wooten holds down the bottom. 

Wooten wrote in 2008’s The Music Lesson: A Spiritual Search for Growth Through Music, “Music touches people’s emotions in a way that nothing else can. When people find a musician they like, they are usually fans for life. If they like the musician and his Music, they will open up their hearts to whatever that musician has to say. It matters not what country the musician or the fan comes from. Music is a language that all understand. It goes beyond and breaks down barriers. This makes the musician very powerful, and with power comes responsibility.” 

2. “Tommy the Cat” by Primus, bassist Les Claypool 

Claypool talks about this bass line in the book Primus, Over the Electric Grapevine: “I had this bass part that I really liked. This sort of freight train sounding bass part. I remember playing it for this woman from a band, who I was kind of going out with, and she was like, ‘Oh my god, it sounds like something moving slow and low to the ground. So I got to kind of thinking about it, and I had this whole ‘Say baby’ thing in my head – Say baby, do you want to lay down with me? And I was like, ‘How can I say that?’ Because I was never one to write songs about partying or ‘Who’s that sexy chick?’ That’s not my thing. But, I loved that ‘Say, baby, do you want to lay down with me?’ How can I make that something that reflects something that I would do, and not a song about just, ‘Hey, let’s go f—.’ So I thought of this whole tomcat character and him seducing this very voluptuous vixen.”

3. “Give It Away” by Red Hot Chili Peppers, bassist Flea 

Every bit of the neck is used on this one. Flea supplies the framework for this song, which grooves all day long. The music was developed from a jam session between Flea and guitarist John Frusciante. Drummer Chad Smith and singer Anthony Kiedis fleshed out the rest of the song by chanting “Give it away” repeatedly. The song evolved into the iconic lead single from Blood Sugar Sex Magik.

4. “Jeremy” by Pearl Jam, bassist Jeff Ament 

In the May 1994 issue of Bass Player magazine, Ament said, “We knew it was a good song, but it was tough getting it to feel right for the chorus to sit back and the outro to push over the top. The tune went from practically not making it on the record to being one of the best takes. I’m not sure if it’s the best song on the album, but I think it’s the best take. On ‘Jeremy,’ I always heard this other melody in the choruses and the end, and it never sounded good on guitar or bass. So we brought in a cello player, which inspired a background vocal, and those things made the song really happen. Most of the time, if something doesn’t work right away, I just say f— it—but this was an instance when perseverance paid off.”

5. “Killing in the Name” by Rage Against the Machine, bassist Tim Commerford

This song was originally an instrumental. It was the opening song of the band’s first-ever performance on October 23, 1991. The eventual lyrics were inspired by the Los Angeles riots in response to the Rodney King beating. Some of those that work forces are the same that burn crosses refers to a link between the Los Angeles Police Department and the Ku Klux Klan.

6. “Sabotage” by Beastie Boys, bassist Adam Yauch 

Yauch played the bass line in the studio, prompting the remaining band members to join in on their respective instruments. In the 2020 Beastie Boys Story documentary, Adam Horovitz said the lyrics were a fictitious rant about how their producer “was the worst person ever, and how he was always sabotaging us and holding us back.”

7. “Longview” by Green Day, bassist Mike Dirnt 

Dirnt revealed in the November 1994 Bass Player magazine, “We had the drum part and chords worked out, but I hadn’t come up with a bass line. One night, I dropped acid, and I was playing my bass flat on my legs. Bill came in, and I said, ‘Dude, check out this bass line!’ It all came to me in one go. We let the rest of the song come very naturally, too. A lot of people seem to get a kick out of the sound – and they really notice the bass.”

8. “Only in Dreams” by Weezer, bassist Matt Sharp 

Weezer is mainly known for snappy, quick bursts of pop-rock majesty like “Buddy Holly,” “Hash Pipe,” and “Beverly Hills.” But this eight-minute track from their debut album is an epic display of quiets and louds, a dynamic journey that finally concludes with a profound bass statement. Matt Sharp’s bass line in “Only in Dreams” doesn’t resolve to the key’s tonic until the song’s very last note.

[RELATED: 5 Epic Songs from Rock Artists Not Known for Epic Songs]

9. “Interstate Love Song” by Stone Temple Pilots, bassist Robert DeLeo

DeLeo came up with the first version of the song as a bossa nova. His brother, guitarist Dean DeLeo, told Blender magazine in 2005, “We were in Atlanta touring Core, and Robert was playing around with the chords and the melody in a hotel room. I had a feeling about that song immediately.” When Scott Weiland heard the song, the vocalist hummed along and turned what was originally the song’s intro into a chorus.

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