Cover illustration made with an AI image tool, chosen and framed by the editor.
A playlist for…
Great Bass Lines
From “Stand by Me” to “Hysteria”: the bass lines that show up again and again in fan polls and critics’ lists, plus a few we couldn’t leave out. Roughly in release order, about two hours.
- Length
- 2h 09m
- Tracks
- 28
- Energy
- Lively
- Vocals
- Mixed vocals
Mostly songs with singing. YYZ and Teen Town are instrumental.
Listen on SpotifyPublished October 29, 2026
A great bass line is the part you can hum after the song is over. This playlist collects the ones people keep naming, from Ben E. King’s “Stand by Me” to Muse’s “Hysteria,” roughly in the order they came out.
We checked six lists before picking: two fan polls, Sky Arts’ 2025 poll of 2,000 music fans and MusicRadar’s 2011 readers’ poll, and four lists by writers at BBC Music Magazine, NME, RouteNote and eMastered. Four songs turn up on four of them: “Under Pressure,” “Walk on the Wild Side,” “Love Will Tear Us Apart” and “Roundabout.” Every song we found on at least two lists is here, and ten picks from a single list fill out the rest.
It moves across a lot of styles: Motown and soul, funk, disco, prog, post-punk, alternative rock and metal.
Turn the bass up.
Tracklist
Side A
- 01Stand by MeBen E. King2:55
- 02My GenerationThe Who3:20
- 03Come TogetherThe Beatles · Remastered 20094:20
- 04Ramble OnLed Zeppelin · Remaster4:34
- 05I Want You BackThe Jackson 52:56
- 06Thank You (Falettinme Be Mice Elf Agin)Sly & The Family Stone4:51
- 07What's Going OnMarvin Gaye3:53
- 08RoundaboutYes · 2024 Remaster8:36
Chris Squire on bass. One of four songs that appear on four of the six lists we checked. [source 1] [source 2] [source 3] [source 4]
- 09Smoke on the WaterDeep Purple5:42
- 10Walk on the Wild SideLou Reed4:16
Herbie Flowers’ bass line, on four of the six lists, including No. 4 for NME. [source 1] [source 2] [source 3] [source 4]
- 11MoneyPink Floyd6:20
- 12Low RiderWar3:11
- 13The ChainFleetwood Mac · 2004 Remaster4:30
John McVie’s bass line. No. 2 for BBC Music Magazine. [source 1] [source 2] [source 3]
- 14Teen TownWeather Report2:52
Side B
- 15Psycho KillerTalking Heads4:21
Tina Weymouth on bass. No. 3 for NME and No. 9 for BBC Music Magazine. [source 1] [source 2]
- 16Stayin' AliveBee Gees4:44
BBC Music Magazine put it at No. 3. [source]
- 17Good TimesChic · 2018 Remaster8:06
- 18Another One Bites the DustQueen3:35
John Deacon’s bass line. No. 1 in Sky Arts’ 2025 poll of 2,000 music fans, and No. 1 for BBC Music Magazine. [source 1] [source 2]
- 19Love Will Tear Us ApartJoy Division · 2020 Remaster3:28
Peter Hook’s bass line. On four of the six lists, and No. 2 for NME. [source 1] [source 2] [source 3] [source 4]
- 20YYZRush · 2011 Remaster4:26
Geddy Lee. No. 2 in MusicRadar’s 2011 readers’ poll. [source 1] [source 2]
- 21Under PressureQueen & David Bowie4:06
On four of the six lists: No. 3 in Sky Arts’ poll, No. 4 with MusicRadar’s readers and No. 5 for BBC Music Magazine. [source 1] [source 2] [source 3] [source 4]
- 22Town Called MaliceThe Jam2:53
- 23Billie JeanMichael Jackson4:54
No. 2 in Sky Arts’ 2025 poll. [source]
- 24Blue MondayNew Order · Original 12-inch7:29
- 25Give It AwayRed Hot Chili Peppers4:43
- 26Come as You AreNirvana · Remastered3:39
- 27SchismTool6:48
- 28HysteriaMuse3:47
No. 1 in MusicRadar’s 2011 readers’ poll, which drew about 10,000 responses. [source]
Total2h 09m
At a glance
- How long is the “Great Bass Lines” playlist?
- 2 hours 9 minutes, 28 tracks, played in the order listed.
- Does it have singing?
- Mostly songs with singing. YYZ and Teen Town are instrumental.
- Where can I listen to it?
- On Spotify, as a public playlist. Anyone can see the tracklist there, and playing it needs the Spotify app or web player.
- Who made it?
- It was picked, put in order and listened through by the editor at A Playlist For…. Software did not choose the songs.