How to play like JJ Burnel of The Stranglers - Bass Habits - Ep 57

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#jjburnel #thestranglers #punkrock

[@PaulDelBelloYT]

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[@void0094]

One of my favorite bands and what a weird band. Much older drummer, a '60s keyboard player, melodic dirty upfront bass and a guitarist and lyricist writing about much deeper and intelligent stuff than typical punk.

[@NewFalconerRecords]

They'd been around the traps for a while (as the Guildford Stranglers) that's what was great about the punk movement, it gave opportunities for slightly older players to change their style and focus in on what was happening. Elvis Costello, Joe Strummer of the Clash, Ian Dury, Debbie Harry, the Police, Chrissie Hynde, Lemmy and Motorhead, Dave Edmunds... all these people who were way beyond the age of teenage punk rockers, could slot in a find a place due to having talent and a bit of depth to their life experience. But yes, the Stranglers were one of the oddest on paper. And they had a lot of depth.

[@foppishdilletaunt9911]

Good Old Jet - with lead vocals, lead guitar, lead keyboards and of course lead bass someone had to keep the corners nailed down. Cheers !

[@peteweeden556]

Love The Stranglers and JJ's playing!

[@stevecann8948]

JJ best bass guitarist ever

[@leonline3424]

Never was a punk band , he is one of the most underated bass players from one of the most underated bands!!

[@ottodidakt3069]

They where a Punk band, it's most of the others that weren't, they didn't claim that title tho and they didn't need to lock themselves up such a tight appellation !

[@jamestaylor3715]

One of the best bloody punk bands in the world

[@stephenbennett1643]

@@ottodidakt3069 Watch the interveiw with JJ, Baz, Jet, on TV AM / Good Morning Britian , about 8-10 yrs ago. Soon as the interveiwer states they were punk, Jet, immedietley jumps in and states they were not a punk band !! They were actually dubbed as punk by the music press, as when asked the band said they didn't have an image ! And simply because they wore black and "Doc Martins " they were labelled as punk " The words of the band themselves" They simply emerged during that era ! But fitted in very well.

[@almklit]

@@ottodidakt3069 Absolutely, in 1975/76 they gigged nearly every night and were very much on board with the Punk ethos (before they were signed) until a new set of rules developed surrounding Punk and resulting squabbles and infighting with the other bands who they were all friends with at one time. So I guess they went and did there own version.

[@almklit]

@@stephenbennett1643 JJ has been said to have considered himself a Punk, Jet Black was older than everyone and he himself was probably not, early on in 1975/76 they gigged nearly every night and were very much on board with the Punk ethos (before they were signed) until a new set of rules developed surrounding Punk and resulting squabbles and infighting with the other bands who they were all friends with at one time. So I guess they went and did there own version.

[@cricketexplained8526]

I met JJ a couple of times at a gym about 15 years ago. He was leg-pressing a shitload of weight. We chatted a bit, a nice bloke.

[@realweezergaming]

It is true!! JJ did have a blown speaker cab throughout the 70s and most of the 80s. It was pretty essential to his tone.

[@realweezergaming]

My source is that my dad saw them several times in the early 80s, by the way.

[@PanekPL]

​@@realweezergamingis your dad a gear tech?

[@mjh5437]

@@PanekPL No,but he does have X-Ray Spex

[@PanekPL]

@@mjh5437 DAMN! Good one

[@LeeHutchingsdrumsUK]

JJ Burnel was a classical guitarist (up to Grade 5 - I think.) So he knows music theory. A great musician for sure.

[@handymanthatcan7380]

Not much music theory at grade 5. Grade 6 and above include performance and theory.

[@robertlimburn469]

JJ got me into bass after asking my uncle what the instrument in the band was from his old record player I love all the fills and the way he leads the band without JJ the Stranglers would have been nothing oh and Dave RIP

[@mg8224]

Im thinking to buy bass cuz of this dude. Legendary band

[@laundryisevil9240]

I did❤

[@Kats072307]

I bought a bass because of Carlos D (Interpol), and fell in love with JJ (Stranglers) afterwards

[@liamjay6844]

Ah great to see JJ on here! Hope you can cover Bruce Foxton and Stuart Morrow someday.

[@markfoggy9933]

JJ, absolute legend really nice guy as well. I knew Dave as a regular in my local pub, later years. They would play before a tour. Talking with Dave about songwriting I talked about Powder Finger and one night when I got home late on a Sunday, they did a cover of it for me. I actually had a few meetings with JJ before I realised who he was. Just a nice guy who loved Bikes.

[@johnnorris1128]

The Stranglers one of my favourite bands .

[@monty6545]

Wow that feeling when i put on some early Stranglers , put the cans on , plug in the bass and Go Buddy Go !!

[@loveliness1219]

Please do Paul Gray from The Damned

[@rapeter3382]

started playing with pick because of jj burnel. epic sound. thanks for this chapter.

[@laundryisevil9240]

I started playing bass because of JJ..end of story

[@bepivisintainer2975]

Bass is loud? no it ain't. It just as loud as it supposed to be :-) Burnell, one of my fav bass players.

[@craignightingale8022]

It's this one that finally made me hit subscribe! Been waiting for JJ. Mate, it would be great if you could do Bruce Foxton some time.

[@Mrmikey0909]

Foxton is a fave.

[@fredblogd8448]

Bruce Thomas would be good

[@cricketexplained8526]

Thanks for the video. To add for anyone now curious to explore, sometimes JJ and Dave on keys achieved two *different* layers of melodic genius at the same time. Example, the middle of Nuclear Device. Or, how JJ would put in a complicated bass part while the keyboard was simple (like the middle of Tank or the end of Genetix). That was a big part of their appeal.

[@SKYSAW59]

One of greatest British bands of ALL time!

[@louphi3]

Great video about jj burnel my absolute heroe

[@qwargy]

Such and amazing and unique sound. Never forget hearing 'Walk on by' for the first time aged 17 and thinking "What is this??" I doubt that sound could ever be replicated.

[@anttherubbishdrummer.8513]

Really enjoyed that. My favorite band of all time. Thank you for taking the time to cover JJs playing.

[@timothytodd4555]

Such an innovative bass player, the king of barbarian bass!! JJ Is amazing

[@simonpennington]

Excellent video thanks. If you love this sound there’s so much to discover in JJ’s bass over the years, from grinding groove like Goodbye Toulouse to stunning solos in Genetix. The band has also used interesting time signatures (Peasant in the Big Shitty, Golden Brown) and lyrics about everything from Nostradamus to genetic engineering to the revolution in Iran. I’ve loved them for years, always seen them as the thinking man’s hooligan band, dark and rowdy, yet highly intelligent and never far from their sense of humour which has got them in trouble a few times. Hope this gets a few folks dipping into the back catalogue and discovering some treasure

[@CB-qy1bb]

"thinking man’s hooligan band, dark and rowdy" perfect description!

[@cannotfindmyshoes3]

They are, and always will be, my favourite band. Long-live JJ, Hugh, Baz and the other 2 youngsters. 🖤

[@k-chill8428]

I wasn't a huge Stranglers fan but his sound was influential when I was learning to play bass . Not sure where and when he said it, but he claimed to turn the mids up all the way so he could hear himself over the band while practising.

[@yup334]

i'm pretty sure jj burnel has said in a interview that only the first album was recorded with a busted speaker. he didn't realize it was broken until they finished recording and moving forward he tried to emulate that sound.

[@jfc8593]

Thanks a million Paul, You're amazing! I asked you for JJ Burnel just a few days ago :) My favourite band ever (among many others of that era). Before he picked the bass, JJ was a classical guitarist. The band towered well above other punk bands of the time, their musicianship was impressive. JJ has influenced many bass players among whom Simon Gallup. His solo on Walk on by is stunning. Have seen them live at least twenty times since 1980 and their show last November in northern France was stunning. RIP Dave...

[@mickcrocodiledundee6353]

Thank you so much Paul, JJ is one of my favourite players. Great video! You're and BassBuzz are the best bass KZbinrs in my book.

[@Kubox93]

In 2007 my mom has taken me to stranglers show, then i heard JJ bass tone... it was stunning... now im playing bass ;)

[@lassetellmannen895]

I really like that series. Coming up next: Stuart Morrow (early New Model Army) ?

[@paulbartholomew3334]

This is a great video. JJ is still a hero!

[@jerrybailey5797]

The Stranglers in there early days are the best , from 77 to 80 /82

[@daveg5340]

What a band! I've seen J J Burnel play with the Stranglers in the 2000s or 2010s.

[@luvstellauk]

Back in the late 70s when I was 15 JJ was my hero, I always wanted to play bass like him, sadly I just can't play with a pick, my wrist get sore and my thumb and first finger lock up, playing with my finger is no problem though, strange.

[@thomasfioriglio]

Another fantastic profile from an unsung bassist. This is why I subscribed. Keep them coming Paul!

[@markmilner842]

That was great. Can you do one of these for Graham Maby, who played bass with Joe Jackson? Thanks for these videos!

[@thomasfioriglio]

YES!! I second that!

[@martinheath5947]

Great suggestion 👍

[@aux1dubsys]

Definitely! Or perhaps Horace Panter from the Specials.

[@martinhackett7259]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/sJXQqmlrqb52pdk

[@musiccollector4716]

Great video paul👍

[@intheshadows..2107]

Thanks for the video. Love the early Stranglers songs. Bass is amazing my 1st lp of them was Black and white and loved it. Yet the bass on the Raven is smoother but even more lethal, Baraque Bordello, Genetix a fantastic LP.

[@bosher11]

JJB inspired me to play the bass back in '78. Still dig that tone. My own tone is somewhere in between JJB and DUg

[@robertjung4001]

Thanks, Paul! Great video!

[@garybridge-ku7bf]

Really enjoyed this upload' thanks for including Fools rush out' a very underated track.

[@paolozak3014]

Yes, the infamous green Fender Precision in the very beginning, then that gorgeous iconic black one for many years. After that a Wal mk1 (can be seen in the Bear Cage video) for some of Raven & Meninblack. Next was a Yamaha BB (La Folie, Feline with flatwounds - sounding really good). Then he shortly played a Fender Mustang live before switching to that ugly Steinberger L2. Luckily he reverted back to the Fender Precision, but not for too long. And finally and strangely settled down to that so-so Shuker copy of a Fender Precision, since the karaoke-stranglers have paved their not so interesting way to keep gigging and make a living of it.

[@jfc8593]

Hey there, the "so-so Shuker copy of a Fender Precision" as you're calling it is actually a JJ Burnel signature bass to whose design he contributed and it is way lighter than a Fender Precision and is thus a lot more convenient for somebody who's been on stage for decades. As regards their "not so interesting way to keep gigging" what I can tell you is that I have been following them and seeing them on stage since the early eighties and have always enjoyed seeing them live. Being a fan since I was a teenager, I have to admit I was a bit disappointed by the Paul years but Baz is an amazing performer, JJ has been singing again (which he didn't during the Paul era) and they're still amazing live. Toby and Jim are great. Last but not least, their last album, Dark Matters, is a true gem. Long live the stranglers! :)

[@paolozak3014]

@@jfc8593 yes fair enough ...but just fair

[@djaxupjazz]

super series Paul, thanks a lot for your work

[@Klaus80804]

Great video again Paul. JJ Burnels early sound was always one of the sounds I was looking for to achieve. Got close at times, but could never 100% nail it. Funny, the first video sequence you show at min 0:34 is from a concert I was in Munichs Alabama Hall in Germany in the 80s. I remember being disappointed as JJ played a Fender Mustang Bass and had a much more mellow bass tone. The roughness was gone, and the Stranglers in total seem to have adopted to the sound of the 80s softer music.

[@donnix768]

Brunel’s tone is incredible, NICE AND SLEAZY is one the greatest bass lines ever, one of my favorite lines to play. As far as his tone, I would put it right there with Krist Novoselic, legendary.

[@hughzapretti-boyden9187]

How you can mention Novoselic us beyond a joke!😂😂😂

[@paulschnyder938]

He also built suspension bridges.

[@cannotfindmyshoes3]

😆😆😆🤣

[@CatBlackGuitars]

Wow what an amazing episode. Thanks for this.

[@Ben_Mdws]

Very comprehensive - thank you dude

[@davidreichert9392]

I just discovered your channel and I absolutely love it, some very great bass insight. Also you seem to like a lot of the same bassists that I do.

[@nodirips_8537]

Great J. J Burnel !

[@Augenleberwurst]

Fantastic video. You even broke down JJs favorite intervals. Great work!!!!!! Only disagree with 2 minor things. You can get similar effects with a J-Bass and ... the early keyboards (esp. overdriven e-piano style) by Dave contributed a lot to the heavy sound, as well.

[@willtupholme378]

Nice vid! Thanks!

[@maxp5988]

Thanks so much Paul, this is great. You have covered so many of my bass heroes already (Simon Gallup, Peter Hook, Phil Lynott) and now JJ, the man that inspired me to learn the instrument for myself. Your channel is such a great resource, I have learned so many songs playing along with you (and have even treated myself to a very stylish "More Bass" t-shirt). Just as a bit more information about the bass that JJ now plays (as seen at about 1 min 27 seconds in your video). It is a Shuker bass; JJ Burnel Signature model that he had made (by Jon Shuker) to his own spec (it is basically a much upgraded version of the original P basses that he started with). He has been playing these since 2006. I have one of these basses, it is a beautiful piece of craftsmanship, sounds and plays great and is a big help in getting closer to JJ's amazing bass sound.

[@scotty6346]

JJ Burnel and Richard Searle (Doc and the medics and Corduroy) are my most rated bass players.

[@electricdon1]

Fantastic analysis

[@urrrccckostan]

I downloaded the Ampeg SVT plugin and I got a pretty close JJ Brunel sound with a Yamaha BB bass.

[@BrianAchterberg928]

I saw an interview with JJ once and he said that he took a razor blade and put slices in the speakers and speaker cones to get that distorted sound he had.

[@mrpopparouni8571]

Loving your videos! Would be great if you could do one of these on the early New Model Army bass player, Stuart Morrow, or maybe Rob Wright from NoMeansNo, who is another incredible pick player.

[@jimmytgoose476]

Rob Wright = Bass Jesus .

[@mikesmith8187]

Check out Jean Jaques Euroman cometh album for more of JJs work. I saw The Stranglers 9 time whenever they played at Guildford in Surrey.

[@whatsitwhosit]

Nice vid.....dig the tee shirt..."be seeing you"

[@vicesquadpunk]

Excellent brother ❤️🔥

[@PaulDelBelloYT]

Cheers guys! Hope everything is going great 🖤

[@garybeswick5169]

Thank you , thank you , thank you !! X

[@Crowley2979]

Fantastic bassist and probably my favourite. I think the Stranglers were were sui generis - not punk, or prog , or anything A heavy Doors is the closest ?

[@Vearus08]

Can you do John wetton? (King Crimson, Asia, Mogul Thrash)

[@DannyBoi2112]

YEEEEEES!!!

[@cannotfindmyshoes3]

Everytime you did a morcel of NMH, it would have been good and even more demonstrative of his genius, if you'd just played the introduction Bass solo , right at the beginning of the song. I can't believe you didnt use that bit.

[@hermask815]

Nice, but not Nice’n’Sleazy? Best Bassline ever.

[@stuartmaxwell8917]

Paul, please do a lesson on Tank! Thank you!!!!

[@phillkeegan9116]

Out of all the Bass instructors on KZbin your are the best and most interesting.

[@takeonemusic5537]

amazing Paul ,great videos! I've seen you a couple times play with your band in east Switzerland. Great band and great bass playing

[@PaulDelBelloYT]

Thanks so much! We've just came out with a new record, you should check it out!

[@ramonemiliogomezjorge8557]

can you talk about Fred Smith from television?

[@craignightingale8022]

Oh shit yeah, that would be a good one. Fluid as hell!

[@fkat1666]

Have you done Bruce Foxton bass habits??

[@garyhitchcock3828]

Great Bass tone 1st 4 albums but that was about it ...Flogging a dead horse since the mid 80s to date tbh RIP Jet & Dave

[@herb79]

JJ used a large Gibson Heavy pick; black of course.

[@davidhenderson6354]

Great review - but you missed a trick - comparing to 'The Doors' - the Doors didnt have a bass player! 🙂 it was the left hand of the keyboard player who would play very much in sync with... the right hand of the keyboards - but it does demonstrate the tightness with the keyboards..

[@richardgrant418]

Jean Jacque was GREAT 👍 Does anyone know - in Hz - what is the lowest note he got from his guitar? I’m guessing around 30 or 35 Hz The reason I’d like to know - I’m building a pair of speakers and I want to make sure that they are capable of playing the lowest notes of bass guitar like JJB

[@GrandmaRose9000]

He DOES look like a cross between Dee Dee Ramone and Paul Simonon. Once you see it you can't unsee it.

[@lucaspina2637]

Vogliamo il video su Maroccolooooo

[@jonathona2983]

I had never heard of this band or the bass player but now I’m interested! I’d still say my first recommendation for a video is Jared Followill of Kings of Leon because he has a distinct sound-something not very common with bass players recently. The whole album Because of the Times is a bass masterpiece in my humble opinion. Every song has an interesting and memorable baseline.

[@cricketexplained8526]

You are in for a treat. The first 5-6 albums from 1977 onwards have some incredible bass playing. The way JJ follows or trades off with the keyboards is sometimes mind-blowing.

[@Nickflatpick]

❤️🏴‍☠️👏👏👏

[@michaeldean7220]

One of the greatest bass tones ever and the way it worked with the keyboards was awesome. Aside from an aggressive attitude and a propensity to get into scrapes calling them punk is a bit of a push. They could actually play their instruments very well, write decent songs and were not focussed on piercings, spitting or just swearing on TV for shock value.

[@jimmytgoose476]

Piercings , spitting and swearing was pretty much exclusive to the Pistols , arseholes that they were .

[@SvenTviking]

Found out that Dave Greenfield lived about 259 yrds from me, about a month after he died from Covid.

[@p3xrr]

Please, make "How to sound like Water (Ghost BC)"

[@livianegidius9772]

When you have 9dan karate master as a bass player.Besides , he is classical trained guitarist .Grown up with their music

[@cannotfindmyshoes3]

@livianegidius9772. 🤔 Are you just writing down your wandering, dis-jointed thoughts to yourself ? You should write a book !

[@seawolf7218]

Fucking best band in the world better than all the soft punk bands of the 70s

[@VuotoPneumaNN]

You should do an episode on Godflesh's GC "Benny" Green.

[@jimmytgoose476]

That would be short : p bass, HM2, BEAD and lots of bottom /mid . I saw his set up when my old band supported them ; nice guys 🙂

[@VuotoPneumaNN]

@@jimmytgoose476 Yeah, but him and Justin often play different parts, it'd be cool to analyze his composition techniques.

[@jimmytgoose476]

Its definitely not as simple as it sounds . Justin is a decent drummer but one of the reasons they use a machine is because he had rhythms in his head that he couldn't play . First time i saw them was supporting Napalm in 1989 and they were astonishingly good ; i saw them maybe 6 or 7 times over the next 3 years and they were always great . They deserve their legendary status 🙂

[@eymerichinquisitore9022]

Una curiosita, visto il tuo accento, ti chiami Paul come Di Anno che era inglese oppure fai come Damiano che passato il confine sul palco ormai parla solo inglese? Possibile che i Rammstein parlano la loro lingua fino in capo al mondo e noi ci dobbiamo far riconoscere ovunque per il nostro provincialismo? Posso capire i Maneskin ma vale anche per quelle poche band italiiane serie che hanno passato l oceano. Cacchio che nervi. Comunque mi ha fatto piacere che degli Stranglers hai preso a modello solo brani del loro periodo migliore. Dopo The Raven mi uscirono dal radar. Un boomer inacidito ma felice. 😂

[@kameronwraithd.k.5363]

What a great groove! can you make next of Dion Lunadon of APTBS?

[@doodleydoo2369]

Wait... Was he playing a Mustang there in the beginning???

[@herb79]

Yep, a black Fender Mustang with white pickup guard, used in during the 1985 tour only I think. I have one just like it and it plays great.

[@Freddy-Da-Freeloadah]

Best Bass Players: JJ BURNAL, & Ferdinand Richard (Etron Fou Lelublan) IMHO

[@paolozak3014]

Well done ! But Jet Black’s drumming wasn’t always that light…

[@colinjames2469]

Blown speaker is true mate

[@johnsinth8261]

time to cave in my amp a little

[@hyomaaiiroofficial]

Bonasera

[@karollipinski76]

Nice. Let someone post a lesson on Dave Greenfield's sound.

[@cricketexplained8526]

Yes.

[@johncheston5862]

Have you watched this? kzbin.info/www/bejne/qJndk2aBocygnMU

[@skipkent617]

IMPORTANT POINT: Don't use your pinky. JJ almost never used his, and this becomes a deciding factor in accurately capturing some of his faster and arppegio-laden riffs such as my all time favorite, "Tank". Not using the pinky on that song forces you to leap and slide around the fretboard a bit in a way which, if you get it right, sounds WAY more like JJ than some of the demo's you hear on the 'tube where fleet-fingered players employ their pinkies 'correctly' but miss the visceral, karate-inspired sound of JJ.

[@stevereynolds8596]

You mention they had a keyboard player but omit the name Dave Greenfield. who was the least remembered backbone of any music group ever. I know the video's about bass but who was driving?

[@kentwood9821]

Another rule: DON'T USE YOUR PINKY! JJ almost never does, leading to creative patterns sliding up, down and around the neck, and a tight-fisted sound that just doesn't happen the same way with deft usage of the pinky. Get primal and let your fret hand move as it needs to Grip the notes as you need them without using your pinky and let the muso's grimace all they want as their faces melt! Here's a great reference video: kzbin.info/www/bejne/iYHSl3uQjNKKbZI Another here, playing Tank, doing the iconic arpeggio licks sliding around, no pinky: kzbin.info/www/bejne/eJCZpqmepLBlbNU There is NO OTHER WAY to play that song! 😄

[@jugalo_deathcock7317]

Oh yeah, I've come again to request Alex Webster. This will continue.

[@joshua-danielcartwright6476]

Please could you do a 'how to sound like Mike ness of social distortion

[@PurityVendetta]

You forgot to mention that JJ started out as a classical guitarist which is a huge influence on his musical style. The achieve his early distorted sound you have to use some distortion. I overdrive a 4x12 cab once and it sounded right but it was a borrowed cab and I not a shit so I stopped. If you think you can achieve that level of distortion just by hitting the strings hard with a pick you're talking bs.