“The Greatest Rock Bassist” for Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Flea

Guest on a recent episode of Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson’s “Where Everybody Knows Your Name” podcast, Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Flea openly revealed who he thinks is “the greatest rock bassist.”

During the conversation, Anthony Kiedis’s buddy then praised former Beatle Paul McCartney, calling him an incredible musician and explaining what he thinks makes him so special. The bassist of the “Californication” band said:

“I think Paul is the greatest bass player in rock. He’s just amazing. I mean, there are so many great players, in different ways, but the way Paul plays bass is lyrical and melodic, and it’s just beautiful. One of the things I heard was that he would add the bass later. In a band like mine, sometimes the song starts with the bass lines, so the bass lines come first, or the music comes first.”

Speaking to Ted Danson and Woody Harrelson’s podcast, Flea went on to say, “I think when Paul and John and George were writing songs, Paul would add bass. And after multi-tracking came along, they would play live and add it later, like on ‘Sgt. Pepper’s,’ where the melody is already there. So Paul creates a kind of counter-melody, where the bass becomes a melody instead of just a rhythmic element, and it’s incredible. He’s amazing.”

The praise from Flea, who headlined the Olympics closing ceremony alongside the Red Hot Chili Peppers, comes just months after Paul McCartney was crowned the UK’s first billionaire musician.