RIP Chris Squire

[ilan]

He was a big influence on me growing up listening to prog in the 70's and learning to play bass. Fragile blew me away. I think I have listened to Heart of the Sunrise and Roundabout like a billion times, until I completely worn off the vinyl.

[Dave W]

Sad news. RIP.

[Rob]

  RIP

[gweimer]

Very sad news.  I remember talking to the late Paul Goddard in August of 2013 and he stated that Chris Squire was his biggest influence.

I heard the news on my drive home.  Sad day, indeed.  As everyone has said, Squire influenced scores of bass players (if not all) beyond the realm of prog.  He's always been a big influence on me.  That comment from Paul Goddard makes his solo on "Another Man's Woman" make a lot of sense now.

[Pekka]

Sad news, one of my greatest inspirations ever. He was the reason I had to have a Rickenbacker (Geddy and some others helped also but Chris was most likely their excuse too) and as a honour to him I will have a two pickup Telecaster bass in my arsenal sometime in the future. That's a promise.

"The Yes Album" was a first time I heard Chris playing and that distinctive sound was a revelation for a 15 year old back in 1991. Here's a lost classic sleeper from that album and also one where he plays that white Telecaster. Love the coda where he just lets it rip.

Rest in Peace The Fish.

[gweimer]

To me, Chris Squire will always be the best of the prog bassists, and one of the best bassists in general.  He knew when to open it up, and knew the value of 'thump, thump, thump".

This has always been one of my favorite Yes songs, and it's one that Squire takes full composer credit.

[gearHed289]

RIP Chris. Thanks for everything. I posted this yesterday on Facebook:

Chris Squire - I've had a lot of musical heroes over the years, but Chris is possibly the one I aspired to be most like. The backup singing "lead bassist" who brought attention to an instrument that was so often overlooked. This man could play one note, and you knew it was him. He played every note like he meant it, because he DID. The authoritative tone and melodic style that launched a thousand bass players around the world. I'm sad that he's gone, but glad that he didn't have to suffer long. I wish to just celebrate his life from here on forward, and I aspire to keep his spirit alive through my own music. It's time for everyone to step it up, because there's now a gigantic hole in the bass player universe.

[hieronymous]

Nice words from Geddy Lee: "Simply put, he was one of the greatest rock bassists of all time." Kind of surprised that they never met.

http://www.rush.com/chris-squire-1948-2015/

[Pekka]

I was surprised too about that.

Here's a great photo from 1974 with five of Chris' basses at the background. 3 Ricks, Tele and the Jazz.


Another from the same sessions with Guild, Dano 6-string bass and the Ampeg Baby Bass (?):

[uwe]

I guess there is treble in paradise now.  Clank loudly in peace, Chris.

Heard it this morning, 67 is young and dying of a rare and incurable form of leukemia had nothing to do with the baroque lifestyle he (had once) entertained. Just tough luck. I saw Yes two or three years ago, we were close to the stage, you could hear the backline and in that his Ric dominated the mix like maybe Ted Nugent's Birdland used to dominate it in the 70ies. The man did not only tower with his sheer Henry VIII physical size, but also with his bass playing. It was more than authoritative, it was commanding! And though a pro for so many decades, he played with a certain wild abandon, bum notes and all, très cool.

I preferred his testosterone-charged bass playing even to JAE's - John would often play introvertly for himself, Chris was "wham, bam, I am the band, you better listen!"

Very much your "70ies excess rock star turned grizzled elder statesman", they don't make them like him anymore.

[nofi]

i saw yes touring in support of the the yes album  many centuries ago. after all this time it is still in the top three shows i've seen. they were opening for emerson lake and palmer who were equally stellar. fyi lake played a jazz bass that show.

[slinkp]

This was the song that introduced me to them...  Anderson-less I realize now... but what a great opening bass riff.

[uwe]

Nofi and his dark past.  The mind proggles. 

And finally someone who not only admits to seeing ELP, but also liking it. 

I saw ELP on their last (or was it the penultimate one?) reunion tour. They played well, but you could see that Lake's heart was no longer in it (if it ever was, he's a folkie at heart) and after an hour or so, their muscular "prog on steroids" had overstayed its welcome with me, they can become harsh-sounding after a while.

[Pekka]

This was the song that introduced me to them...  Anderson-less I realize now... but what a great opening bass riff.

A great song too and one of the few he played on his non-reverse Thunderbird. "Drama" is a great album where Chris seemed to be working especially hard. Great basslines and backing vocals.

[gweimer]

Nofi and his dark past.  The mind proggles. 

And finally someone who not only admits to seeing ELP, but also liking it. 

I saw ELP on their last (or was it the penultimate one?) reunion tour. They played well, but you could see that Lake's heart was no longer in it (if it ever was, he's a folkie at heart) and after an hour or so, their muscular "prog on steroids" had overstayed its welcome with me, they can become harsh-sounding after a while.

My first time seeing Yes might well have been that same tour, as openers for ELP.  I loved both bands.  I saw each a second time, on different shows.  ELP supporting Brain Salad Surgery, and very good.
I saw Yes again for Relayer, from the fourth row.  Simply astounding.  Squire liked to play in one rhythm, sing in another, and move in a third that was somewhere in between the two.  He drove me nuts....as did Anderson, who seemed to lilt around the stage and always looked as though he was too far from the mike for his vocal queues, but always seemed to show up in front of the mic when duty called.