Entwistle´s answers alone are worth watching this video. Wonderful dry british humour. And what a genius on bass he was! He will always be one of my all time favourite bass players. RIP John, and thanks for all the great music and all the incredible bass lines you gave us.
He invented rock bass, he hoped he got it right, always tried to do better, and NEVER put himself above his fans. He was a humble genius. He always reached out with humility. I got to meet him, and for a guy who had anxieties around fans, he really made it known how much he valued us. I think he and Pete always knew The Who (like all bands) was nothing without fan support. I learned what bass guitar was sitting on my mom's lap at age 5, listening to her Tommy LP. "What's that Mom?" "I think that's a bass guitar." "Wow! I like that!" I didn't actually touch one until maybe 5 years later, and I was playing one in a packed bar 10 years later. It's been my calling ever since. I will never be famous, but I have entertained a good number of audiences, and I have felt something inside that I'll never be able to share unless I'm playing bass. If you've been there, you get it. It's amazing! If you haven't, I hope you enjoyed the show, and thanks for supporting local music!
I always think he'd be a rather standoffish, doesn't wanna be bothered person. But he probably had social anxiety like me and I'm pretty forward if someone is earnest enough .
@@Joetime90 He was standoffish only because he was shy. People have said he always had stage fright, I don't know. To me he never looked comfortable when he was fronting his own solo shows. To me he usually seemed uneasy at Who shows, except when he was really consumed with some amazing groove he was playing. But he also seemed so truly grateful to the fans who made his dream life possible that he fought through his social anxieties to show the fans his gratitude. That was the sense I got from him. I think Pete was like that too, only maybe he wasn't as socially anxious as Ox, just completely baffled as to why so many people were so crazy about them, and also truly grateful to the fans who funded his dream.
As with Keith Moon, no one can do what JE did. John was the sound of vision and genius. Too many bass players (and drummers) these days are the sound of the metronome, the sound of mediocrity. I'm really sorry that John's book never saw the light of day.
Jeez, Tapping, traditional fingerstyle and plectrum all in a couple of minutes. I've heard a couple of dozen of his live bass solos from the 90s (saw him live in '97), and I don't think a single one of his long solos was anything like another I heard - he's making this sh&t up on the fly! I cried when I head he had passed away, although I can't say the way he went was a surprise, with a snootful of coke and a stripper in his bed. At least he died with a big smile on his face, LOL!
Funny how I always thought he was 'big' as in 'tall'. He looked big on stage but I met Roger first and he is tiny. My wife was talking to him eye to eye and he was looking her in the eyes. She stands 4 foot 11 and a half inches tall, Roger was well dressed and his hair was extremely quaffed . Pete was a slime ball from the league of Aqualung and inbetween Roger and Pete in size. He looked almost frail. as if I could push a finger through his chest.
Never has there ever been...nor will there ever be a bass player like John. His style of playing is so unique and his skills are one-of-a-kind. I've seen John 3 times with The Who and once with Ringo's All-Starr Band. John Entwistle...bass genius.
@@BobInKC1 That's probably part of why The Who were described as "a lead singer, a lead guitarist, a lead bassist and a lead drummer, all fighting for attention".
It's good to see this when John had a chance to perform on his own. I don't think I've ever seen a solo stage performance with focus of audience and cinematographer on him alone.It's so cool how he answered every question thoughtfully. He was truly a musician of immense talent. He had a beautiful speaking voice!
@@NoOne-kr4jc funny how he would say that. The reason the band kept reforming was because John was broke. 50 room homes. Fleets of cars. 200 pairs of shoes. No offense to John but I doubt if sculpting would have supporting such a lifestyle. Maybe instead of spending 2 for every dollar made he should have used his downtime from The Who to follow his true passion.
Much like Keith he was the perfect fit for the perfect band. Who knows what either would have been somewhere else. Funny thing is Page wanted those two to be part of LZ.
The incredible thing about the Ox was that he just kept getting better and better! I saw the JEB in the mid-90’s, holy mackerel! John’s right-hand speed was simply unbelievable! RIP Ox, you’re sorely missed!
What a blast to discover this video in the wee hours. I was there at MI that night (and asked Mr Entwistle the question about his songwriting on 'It’s Hard'). It was a memorable evening, 30+ years ago, and a real honor to hear the Ox play.
Pete is quite two-faced Roger was in awe of Keith and John. Compare interviews and Pete changes with what his interviewer wants to hear. In a magazine he says Hendrix was an imitator of other guitarist in 89 on stage he says there was no one like him before or since. Then they played 'Hey Joe'. I hated to see Pete jumping around with an acoustic guitar while rhythm guitarist Steve Bolton stood to a corner of the stage, I also hated to see back vocals and a horn section. Like a bad version of 'White City"
THE WERE A BAND THAT SHOULDN'T HAVE WORKED BUT MAN FROM 65 TO 81 THEY WERE THE BEST LIVE ROCK BAND EVER WATCH THE 1970 ISLE OF WIGHT GIG THEY ARE MAJESTIC THE POWER AND THE GLORY THAT IS THE WHO
or get a copy of the Amsterdam show in '69 and listen to the first track "Heaven and Hell" . I heard it and cursed why they hadn't released it. Two years later came Live at Leeds and again, 'Where is Heaven and Hell ? "Quadrophenia didn't have room for it Finally it was on the boot but we had to wait decades for a complete version of the show with "Heaven and Hell ". The boot shows paled in comparison to live Quadrophenida live. Despite all the coke and brandy he was fantastic live. In the 80's I believe he took a dip by pushing his pre-amp and perfecting his tapping and pull-of techniques. It was lightning fast but it wasn't what I wanted in a bass guitar.
as he is my idol i watch all of his content or as much of it as i can find and watch it all multiple times there just isnt really anyone who interests me as a novice bass player
Innovative to say the least, John's talent as a musician and song writer was a big part of the success of The Who. More times than not I thought John was the lead guitarist of the band, took the bass to another level altogether
Just a fantastic hour!! Amazing playing - and brief but dry & witty answers to some great questions. To think that most music journalists described JAE as the “quiet one” just shows how little of the man or the band dynamic they understood. Seems like the tales of band tensions were actually under-played with the Who - where for many other more “legendary” rivalries they were often exaggerated for dramatic effect. For me without doubt one of the two greatest Rock bass players of my lifetime, along with Jack Bruce.
As his hearing got worse his sound seemed to follow suit. There's no question he was the greatest rock bassist who ever lived, and his technique remained unparalleled, but al those effects he added really took away from the definition of his sound. It's interesting to see him switching back and forth between singers and a pick.
His style and ability were outstanding. But his tone in the 70's-80's with the Alembic basses and the Sunn amps was much better, I think. The later digital distortion with modulation made it sound very fizzy.
I bet it sounded much better there, bearing in mind chorus effects are to create stereo in a mono instrument, then all we can really hear is the sound in what seems like a muddy mono mic up, a lot of the sound will be getting phased out for us
I’ve always like his Live at leads era sound with the P bass and hiwatts. Much more natural with less effects and it makes you appreciate just how good he was to sound that great with such a simple sound.
When I saw the 'Oo live recently, what surprised me most was that the bass playing of The Ox was more conspicuously absent than Moon's drumming, to my ears, musically speaking. That says a real, real lot about his impact on some of the most powerful music ever produced. Rock in perpetuity, John Entwistle!
Let’s hear it for “Artie” the very loud square drummer! And this guy named “John somethingorother” we found him in the parking lot right before the show. Turns out…he’s pretty good. Thank you.
Remember seeing The Who at Wembley Arena in 2000 as a 14 year old (my first ever rock concert) and still to this day arguably the best I've ever been to, Entwistle's musicianship in particular was my standout memory from it all especially his solo during the song *5:15* he absolutely blew my mind and in a band full of high quality musicians he stood out and and largely drove the bands entire sound, this is an exceedingly rare compliment for Bass player's.
This great thanks for posting this M.I. I was there! and got to ask a question (36.05). My year at M.I. (G.I.T.) was a seminal time musically for me, such memorial year with terrific guests. (Is the Jeff Baxter seminar up at all?) The things I learnt there are still feeding into my music 32 years later. Thank you M.I.
I struggled to learn the bass. Then I heard Quadrophenia and I wanted to give it up and play guitar. It is a much easier instrument. I didn't. I simply learned by Chris Hillman with the Byrds, and Steve Stills, then Roger Glover and finally Geezer Butler before I took on Entwistle again. This lot's likely never heard of Steven Severin but I like him a whole lot.
It’s a shame that some of his best playing is at the end of this video that starts at 1:02:30. More precise playing like he was known for. Great Q&A between playing. Loved the guy, RIP
Saw him only twice once as John Entwistle at the House of Blues Hollywood, and with the Who at the Hollywood Bowl... He was the G O A T... OX is The G O A T. . RIP
@@theoriginalmisfittoys3784 YEPPERS I REALLY ENJOYED ENTWISTLE'S EFFORTLESS ABLITY TO REALLY PLAY THE BASS GUITAR .IT IS AMAZING.I CANNOT IMAGINE THE WHO WITHOUT HIM,AS I COULDN'T AFTER KIETH MOON'S DEATH , RINGO'S SON PROVES TO BE VERY GOOD.
This isn't about W H O your personal, (often bias, narrow minded & uneducated tastes), favourite bassist is, but rather giving due respect to those who continued to pioneer the electric bass guitar, beyond atypical & traditional drum/bass, rock & roll>rock rhythm section. ☆ Do your homework & quit flunking class. 📚
Robert Fripp considered Jeff Berlin as "too busy" a bass guitarist style-wise when Bill Bruford brought him to an audition for the Discipline band in 1980. John Entwistle's even more so than Berlin.
In the mid 90s I was part of an amateur astronomy group in Glen Ellen, CA. One of our members was a middle-aged guy with a long beard who wore Grateful Dead T-shirts. He talked about making telescopes and using electronics to guide them. His name was Ron Wickersham; Google him if you have the time, because he's an interesting character. I was soon to learn that Ron was the cofounder of Alembic guitars, and that he had spent some time working on developing electronics for the Alembic basses that Entwistle played around that time (along with Stanley Clarke and others). I was invited to tour the Alembic facility, and I got to meet the other cofounder, Ron's wife. In no time at all the technical talk went right over my head, but it was fun to see the different woods that were going to be used to make guitars and basses, and to see the kinds of bells and whistles the instruments had. I heard Entwistle had LEDs on the neck of the guitar that were placed at the frets so he could see where they were in the dark. A unique experience.
I love the WHO, but it’s hard to imagine these guys sitting alone practicing for hours when they had Moon around joking and partying every minute of everyday. It is amazing they are very good.
Great video, thanks for sharing! Aside from being a huge influence on my playing, he was the first person I ever saw using Trace Elliot amps...which is all I play through. They're getting a little long in the tooth, but I can't get the tone I like with anything else.
I couldn't get close to the Who but I was Hammerjacks in Baltimore and then I managed a seat in the balcony at The Bayou in Washington. I just missed seeing him enter for the show. A guy took a Polaroid of him and it was just appearing when I walked up.
This is 2 Kool!!! Been a fan since I was 10. I would have live to seen John in a situation like this, I loved how he said at the beginning how he never prepares for these things, either it will be great or it will be crap! Rock In Power, Thunderfingers !!!!
