Basslines #7: John Gustafson plays the iconic intro to Roxy Music’s last great single, Love Is The Drug – but he was never officially in the band.

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Basslines #6: “The incomparable James Jamerson,” as he was first credited on this album’s sleeve notes, was the beating heart of Motown’s house band The Funk Brothers. Even when he was blind drunk.

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Basslines #5: Peter Hook’s basslines with Joy Division don’t just anchor the songs – they often provide the lead melody.

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I’m not going to present a case to reappraise the underrated musical genius of Captain Sensible, but this bassline is iconic.

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Frankie Valli & The Four Seasons – The Night (more…)

Lou Reed – Walk On The Wild Side (more…)

Lee Perry’s song Dreadlocks In Moonlight was originally intended for Bob Marley & The Wailers – until a chance meeting at his studio in Jamaica.

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I bloody loved The Cramps the moment I heard them. They had all the energy, lo-fi spirit and antisocial appeal of punk – channelled into rockabilly.

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Roxy Music first recorded Grey Lagoons in 1971 but left it off their debut album a year later, only to re-record it for their second.

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Hey Joe is not just a classic, but a genuine rock standard, with at least a hundred versions. This is one of my favourites, by blues guitarist Roy Buchanan.

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