Bands with BASS!

[jawillroy]

Speaking as a bass player, NO bassist should go without listening to:
The Minutemen. ("Double Nickels On The Dime" is essential listening.)
Nomeansno. ("Live and Cuddly" is the best live album I've ever heard, bar none.)
The Rolling Stones. (Wyman's style is an epic demonstration that in the service of the song, less is often best.)

[Runesmith]

You can't go wrong with New Wave. Some of the most creative bassists ever in that genre. Here's a list of bands and recommended songs:

The Jam - "The Eton Rifles," "Start"
Duran Duran - "The Reflex," "Last Chance On The Stairway"
The Cure - "Jumping Someone Else's Train," "Love Song," "Accuracy," "Other Voices," "Let's Go To Bed" (this one has a six-string bass!)
The Power Station - "Get It On (Bang A Gong)"
King - "Love and Pride"
King Creole & The Coconuts - "Endicott," "Stool Pigeon"
Japan - "I Second That Emotion," "Gentlemen Take Polaroids" (fretless bass!)
Paul Young - "Come Back and Stay"
Specimen - "Kiss Kiss Bang Bang"

[jawillroy]

Joy Division, too: interesting work high on the neck.

[b4mv]

Hey, thanks a lot guys. great suggestions.

Anyone know of anything a tad heavier though? In the mean time, all of this will be passed along.

[jawillroy]

Heavy? I'll give you heavy.

Black Flag circa 1984; anything Kira was playing bass on.
The Rollins Band prior to 1994: anything with Andy Weiss playing bass.
50 Foot Wave any and all.
The Jesus Lizard EVERYTHING. Best rhythm section of the nineties.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mIERMxKaKCQ

[Mega-Tallica]

Atheist and Spiral Architect are two more that come to mind. SA are almost TOO progressive for me, but there's no denying that they are extremely talented musicians and have very prominent bass lines.

And might as well throw Control Denied and Death in there too and maybe Pantera? Since Dimebag rarely had an overdubbed rhythm guitar during his solos, the bass would play rhythm and can clearly be heard in a lot of their songs. And say what you want about them, but Primus' music pretty much revolves around the bass.

[Runesmith]

Heavier music? Stolen Babies. Like Oingo Boingo on drugs!

[sonicnerd23]

Hey, thanks a lot guys. great suggestions.

Anyone know of anything a tad heavier though? In the mean time, all of this will be passed along.

Heavier, you say?

Has he tried out Iron Maiden?

Seriously, it's like Steve Harris is the band's fourth guitarist.

[soup567]

Anything by the band Morphine is real bass heavy.

Good
The Saddest Song
You Speak My Language
Buena
All Wrong
Thursday
Honey White
Yes
I Had My Chance

[killer_roach]

Heavier, you say?

Has he tried out Iron Maiden?

Seriously, it's like Steve Harris is the band's fourth guitarist.

I thought I recommended Megadeth earlier, as Ellefson is a similar sort of bassist, but it appears I hadn't. Oops.