Top 5 Songs Where the Bass Line Is the Real Lead Singer

The vocals are fine, but the riff you're humming in the shower belongs to the person standing at the back of the stage.

1. 1

   Good Times — Chic

   Bernard Edwards wrote a bass line so complete that hip-hop built its first big hit, "Rapper's Delight," right on top of it.

2. 2

   Another One Bites the Dust — Queen

   John Deacon wrote it, and Queen's biggest-selling single rests on a riff anyone can recognize from three notes.

3. 3

   Come Together — The Beatles

   McCartney's slinky, swampy bass carries the whole song while Lennon sings strange lines that don't need to make sense.

4. 4

   Billie Jean — Michael Jackson

   Louis Johnson's bass line sounds like a nervous heartbeat, which suits a song about paranoia perfectly.

5. 5

   Hysteria — Muse

   Chris Wolstenholme plays a nonstop sixteenth-note riff so fast that bassists still use it to test themselves.