Bass playing developed through the years, as a combination of the advancement of playing skills and the rise of new technologies, such as the upright bass pickups, solid-state amps for bassists, the invention of the electric bass by Leo Fender, etc. One of the biggest changes for upright bassists was the switch from gut to steel strings. Gut’s lower tension allowed for higher action and more acoustic volume, a prime concern in the days before amplification. The thump, fast decay and organic richness of gut are characterized by the tone of Paul Chambers, to whom we dedicate this article in the series on bass players.
Paul Chambers is one of the most influential and most recorded bassist ever. His dominant presence on the jazz scene in the fifties and the sixties secured him an iconic place in music history. Chambers recorded some dozen albums as a leader or co-leader, and prolifically as a sideman notably as the anchor of trumpeter Miles Davis's "first great quintet" (1955-63) and with pianist Wynton Kelly (1963-68). The sound of his double bass opens Miles’ 1957 album “Kind of Blue,” the biggest-selling jazz album of all times, and one of the most influential records in modern music. On the record, as well as on any other record in which Chambers participated, one can hear his perfect time and intonation, and virtuosic improvisations. His sophisticated approach to walking through changes, iconic bass grooves, and creative presence on the original recordings of standards such as “All Blues,” “Freddie Freeloader,” and “Giant Steps,” helped in defining the role of the bass in modern music. On top of all, there is that big, fat, warm, juicy sound.
Paul Chambers was the bridge between the pioneering innovations of pre-bop bassists like Jimmy Blanton and Oscar Pettiford and the iconic bass players of the 1960s and 70s, like Scott LaFaro, Ron Carter, and Stanley Clarke. His importance is so huge that his fellow musicians called him ‘Bird of the Bass,' implying that his significance in jazz is equal to that of saxophonist Charlie “Bird” Parker. The critic Ryan Madora wrote: “Chambers’ walking lines display a deep knowledge of melody, harmony, and voice leading, particularly in how he always seems to be “one step ahead” by implying the upcoming chord in a progression… From a rhythmic standpoint, he defines the quarter-note feel of a walking line with the greatest of ease. There’s a sense of motion to his playing, making the listener feel like the band is being pushed along with the momentum of each attack. “ Chambers could even play bowed solos and still sound exciting. That’s why his name pops up very often and on astonishing number of benchmark records such as the aforementioned Miles Davis' “Kind of Blue,” John Coltrane's “Giant Steps,” Thelonious Monk's “Brilliant Corners,” Sonny Rollins' “Tenor Madness” and Oliver Nelson's “The Blues and the Abstract Truth.” There’s absolutely no surprise in the fact that he was a sideman on over 200 albums from the hard bop era and beyond.
Many musicians wrote songs dedicated to Chambers. Long-time fellow Davis bandmate, pianist Red Garland, wrote the tune "The P.C. Blues", and Coltrane's song "Mr. P.C." is named after Chambers. Tommy Flanagan wrote "Big Paul", which was performed on the Kenny Burrell and John Coltrane Prestige 1958 LP. Max Roach wrote a drum solo called "Five For Paul", on a 1977 drum solo LP recorded in Japan, and Sonny Rollins wrote "Paul's Pal" for him as well.
