# Lead vocalists who play bass- rare? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 1, 2006, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944 "2006-05-01T13:25:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 1:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/1 "2006-05-01T13:25:12Z")
Just caught Motorhead’s “Ace of Spades” on VH1 Classic, which got me to thinking about lead vocalists who play bass, and if this is rare, or if I just have a bad memory. All I could come up with are Lemmy and Paul McCartney. Are there many others? Are they more common than a lead vocalist who plays drums? ---
**Author:** ![wheelie](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/b4bc9f/32.png) [@wheelie](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/wheelie)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/2 "2006-05-01T13:40:12Z")
**Geddy Lee** of Rush & **Sting** of The Police come to mind. ---
**Author:** ![fishbicycle](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/aeb1de/32.png) [@fishbicycle](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fishbicycle)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 1:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/3 "2006-05-01T13:48:31Z")
**Jack Bruce** is another. ---
**Author:** ![Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/e99b99/32.png) [@Diogenes\_the\_Cynic](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Diogenes_the_Cynic)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 1:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/4 "2006-05-01T13:49:26Z")
Tom Araya of Slayer. Kip Winger. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 1:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/5 "2006-05-01T13:52:27Z")
Many heavy metal acts, especially in death metal have lead vocalists that play bass. Dimmu Borgir and Deicide both spring to mind. ---
**Author:** ![Cluricaun](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/bb73d2/32.png) [@Cluricaun](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cluricaun)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 1:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/6 "2006-05-01T13:53:28Z")
> [@Diogenes the Cynic](#): > > Tom Araya of Slayer. > Kip Winger. This is the first time in recorded history that these two have been mentioned in the same thought… ---
**Author:** ![WordMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e8c25b/32.png) [@WordMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WordMan)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 2:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/7 "2006-05-01T14:08:59Z")
**Sheryl Crow** often plays bass when she performs live, as well as guitar and piano. As a rule, playing bass and singing is considered hard work - locking in on bass (a requirement) and stretching it out and emoting on vocals (also a requirement) can run counter to each other. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 2:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/8 "2006-05-01T14:09:41Z")
Roger Waters of Pink Floyd. Greg Lake of Emerson Lake and Palmer, though Lake also played guitar. John Entwistle of the Who also sang lead for them from time to time (on his own songs), and was a successful solo artist. ---
**Author:** ![roger\_thornhill](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/d9b06d/32.png) [@roger\_thornhill](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/roger_thornhill)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 2:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/9 "2006-05-01T14:10:37Z")
It just wouldn’t work. Take **AndyPolley** , our resident bass player. He’s so darned cool, a ‘poet warrior’ for pete’s sake, that he’d hardly utter more than two or three words in a whole day. How the heck can you expect that type of person, being, whatever, to sing the lyrics to some ephemeral mundane song, when what they comprehend and conceive of the cosmos is best expressed, if at all, by a primal grunt, or a flick of a sweat-daubed brow before it is wiped clean by a groupie? Get real, man. And Paul McCartney is the friggin’ Peter Pan of bass players, dude. Leave that commercial mummy’s boy out of any genuine discussion of bona fide bassists. Yeah? Right. ---
**Author:** ![Nonsuch](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nonsuch/32/2922_2.png) [@Nonsuch](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nonsuch)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 2:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/10 "2006-05-01T14:12:17Z")
Roger Waters plays bass while singing. Colin Moulding, bassist of XTC, also sang on the numbers he wrote. ---
**Author:** ![yBeayf](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/y/e274bd/32.png) [@yBeayf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/yBeayf)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/11 "2006-05-01T14:14:52Z")
And Les Claypool. ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/12 "2006-05-01T14:26:04Z")
Nick Lowe, Aimee Mann, Matthew Sweet, Laura Love, John Wetton, Chris Hillman, John Lodge. ---
**Author:** ![Wee\_Bairn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/90db22/32.png) [@Wee\_Bairn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wee_Bairn)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 2:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/13 "2006-05-01T14:26:29Z")
Ok I guess the answer to my question is “not rare at all”- thanks for the responses. I guess drummers are more rare- all I can come up with are Phil Collins in Genesis, and Don Henley? ---
**Author:** ![Crotalus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/crotalus/32/41_2.png) [@Crotalus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crotalus)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 2:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/14 "2006-05-01T14:29:57Z")
Randy Meissner, Tim Schmitt, Mike Reilly (Pure Prairie League). And I would like to add: every band I’ve played in over the course of 35 years of performing. Playing bass while singing lead is more difficult tham singing while strumming a six-string, but it is not a rare skill. ---
**Author:** ![K364](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/k364/32/5_2.png) [@K364](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/K364)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/15 "2006-05-01T14:30:24Z")
“The Band” had three lead singers: Rick Danko, their Bassist, Levon Helms (drummer) and Richard Manuel (keyboards and drums) In “The Weight”, Levon Helms sings the first 3 verses, then Rick sings the verse “Crazy Chester followed me…” He also sang lead on “Stage Fright” and many others. ---
**Author:** ![An\_Arky](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/87869e/32.png) [@An\_Arky](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/An_Arky)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 2:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/16 "2006-05-01T14:34:57Z")
**Rob Grill** of **The Grass Roots** **Phil Lynott** from **Thin Lizzy** **Doug Pinnick** from **King’s X** **Suzi Quatro** **Dusty Hill** from **ZZ Top** sings quite a few of their songs **Mark Hoppus** from **blink-182** …to name a few… ---
**Author:** ![Annie-Xmas](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/ecc23a/32.png) [@Annie-Xmas](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Annie-Xmas)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 2:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/17 "2006-05-01T14:45:49Z")
> [@Wee Bairn](#): > > Ok I guess the answer to my question is “not rare at all”- thanks for the responses. I guess drummers are more rare- all I can come up with are Phil Collins in Genesis, and Don Henley? Karen Carpenter and Ringo Starr. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/18 "2006-05-01T15:06:39Z")
Drummers who were lead vocalists: Levon Helm of the Band, as mentioned, is a drummer. Robert Wyatt of Soft Machine and Matching Mole. ---
**Author:** ![Thudlow\_Boink](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/thudlow_boink/32/320_2.png) [@Thudlow\_Boink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Thudlow_Boink)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 3:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/19 "2006-05-01T15:52:25Z")
> [@Wee Bairn](#): > > I guess drummers are more rare IANAD, but I suspect this is partly because it’s hard to do the lead singer job of being a frontman and interacting with the audience from behind a drum set, and partly because it’s harder to belt out the tunes while playing drums than while playing other instruments (though sax players have it even worse). Anyway, in addition to the many already mentioned, I can think of Michael Been (of The Call), Tony Scalzo (of Fastball), and, in the early days, Brian Wilson (of The Beach Boys) as lead vocalist/bassists, and Kelly Keagy (of Night Ranger) as another lead vocalist/drummer. ---
**Author:** ![Snooooopy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ee7513/32.png) [@Snooooopy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snooooopy)\ **Post date:** [May 1, 2006, 4:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944/20 "2006-05-01T16:13:40Z")
Grant Hart of Hüsker Dü drummed and sang. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/lead-vocalists-who-play-bass-rare/354944.md?page=2)