Ongoing History of New Music

Ongoing History Daily: An unwanted bass player for the White Stripes

One of the more interesting things about the White Stripes is that there’s a singer, a guitarist, a drummer–and that’s it.  What’s missing from this mix?  A bass player. This really, really bugged a guy named Steven McDonald.

He loved the White Stripes’ White Blood Cells album but the fact that there aren’t any bass lines drove him nuts.  That’s probably because he plays bass in an LA band called Redd Kross and a rock song without a bass line just ain’t right.  So back in 2002, Steve took White Stripes songs, adding in his bass line and posting the results online.

The results were surprisingly good and Jack White thought re-interpretations of his songs were okay.  They may still exist somewhere online, but good luck finding them.

Click here for yesterday’s Ongoing History Daily.

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 39965 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

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