Home » Jazz Musicians » Carol Kaye

Carol Kaye

Throughout the 1950s Kaye played bebop jazz guitar in dozens of nightclubs around Los Angeles with many noted bands including Bob Neal's jazz group, Jack Sheldon backing Lenny Bruce, Teddy Edwards and Billy Higgins.

By her own account Kaye got into lucrative studio work "accidentally" in late 1957 with Sam Cooke. A few years later, when a bass player failed to show for a session at Capitol Records in Hollywood, she was asked to fill in on what was then often called the Fender bass.

Throughout the 1960s, she played bass on a significant percentage of records appearing on the Billboard Hot 100, although she was almost wholly unknown to the general public at the time.

Kaye played bass on many of the Beach Boys hit recordings, including "Good Vibrations", "Help Me, Rhonda", "Sloop John B" and "California Girls". She worked on Brian Wilson's ill-fated but legendary Smile project (and was present at the "Fire" session in late November 1966 when Wilson reportedly asked the studio musicians to wear toy fire hats). Kaye's work also appears extensively on well-known television and film soundtracks from the 1960s and early 1970s.

She worked under most of the leading producers and musical directors in Los Angeles during that era, including Brian Wilson, Michel Legrand, Phil Spector, Elmer Bernstein, Lalo Schifrin, David Rose, Dave Grusin, Ernie Freeman, Hugo Montenegro, Leonard Rosenman, John Williams, Alfred, David Axelrod and Lionel Newman.

Kaye played the bass tracks on several of the Monkees hits, did soundtrack work (including sound effects on bass guitar) for a young Steven Spielberg and tracks for Quincy Jones.

women like ...Fender bass player Carol Kaye ...could do anything and leave men in the dust.
Quincy Jones

Kaye performed on several American television themes including the Quinn Martin produced Cannon, The Streets of San Francisco, Mission: Impossible, M*A*S*H, Kojak, Get Smart, Hogan's Heroes, The Love Boat, McCloud, Mannix, It Takes a Thief, Peyton Place and the Cosby Show. She is credited with performing on the soundtracks of Hawaii Five-0, The Addams Family and The Brady Bunch along with Ironside, Room 222, Bonanza, Wonder Woman, Alias Smith & Jones, Run for Your Life and Barnaby Jones.

Beginning in 1969, she wrote How To Play The Electric Bass, the first of many bass tutoring books and DVD Courses. She gave lessons to thousands of students, including John Clayton, Mike Porcaro, Alf Clausen, Tony Sales, Karl E.

Read more

Tags

2
Radio & Podcasts

New Releases, Birthday Shoutouts Plus Oscar Winning Songs Written By Women

Read "New Releases, Birthday Shoutouts Plus Oscar Winning Songs Written By Women" reviewed by Mary Foster Conklin


This broadcast presents new releases from Sean Nelson's New London Big Band, violinist Leonor Falcón, The DIVA Jazz Orchestra and vocalists Jesse Palter, Jeanie Perkins, Sally Terrell, with birthday shoutouts to bassists Carol Kaye and Mimi Jones, pianists Renee Rosnes, Jessica Williams and Hiromi plus vocalists Sarah Vaughan and Virginia Schenck, among others, with a set of award winning movie songs penned by women to celebrate the Oscars in the first hour. Thanks for listening and please support the artists ...

Read more articles
88

Interview

Ace of Bass: Carol Kaye

Ace of Bass: Carol Kaye

Source: All About Jazz

One of the most recorded bassists in history, she has a purported 10,000-plus tracks to her credit

You may not know Carol Kaye's name, but you know her work. You've probably heard at least a few dozen examples, and all the words, too. She spent the '60s as the most requested session bassist in L.A., playing on many of the tracks and albums that form the American pop canon: the Beach Boys' Pet Sounds, Ray Charles, Sam Cooke, the Righteous ...

379

Music Industry

Carol Kaye First Call L.A. Studio Bassist

Carol Kaye First Call L.A. Studio Bassist

Source: All About Jazz

Carol Kaye worked extensively with Phil Spector, Brian Wilson, Lee Hazlewood, and other top producers in the 1960s, although she was a straight jazz player when she started guesting on rock dates in the late 1950s.

She received the Lifetime Achievement Award from the Pittsburg Jazz Society, “Outstanding Dedication to Bass Performance & Pedagogy" and Lifetime Achievement Award from Bass Player Magazine in 2008. Kaye received the Esteemed Hollywood Composers-Arrangers Award, as well as the Touchstone Pioneer Women in Music ...

Music

Recordings: As Leader | As Sideperson

SMILE

Capitol Records
2004

buy

Picking Up On The...

Groove Attack Productions
1995

buy

How To Play The...

Justin Time
1970

buy

Similar

Get more of a good thing!

Our weekly newsletter highlights our top stories, our special offers, and upcoming jazz events near you.