I love me a good rhythm section, and think we should have a thread celebrating them.

Have at it. Thrill us all with the good stuff. Shoot the shit.

Roger Glover and Ian Paice.

They're often overshadowed by the guitar players and the great songs but Brian Downey and Phil Lynott are an absolutely killer rhythm section. Both really unique players and they had that thing that only happens when two people have been playing together since they were kids. On the early albums you can hear them finding their own voice on their instruments as well as coalescing as a unit. By Nightlife, they were really just completely locked in with each other and stayed that way for the rest of the band.

I’m very fond of many rhythm sections, though most of the ones I admire most aren’t exactly underrated (Watt/Hurley, Bonham/JPJ, etc.).

Rourke/Joyce seem to often get dismissed as the least important parts of The Smiths, so they are my (first) nomination.

jfv wrote: Sat Jun 11, 2022 4:25 pm
Rourke/Joyce seem to often get dismissed as the least important parts of The Smiths, so they are my (first) nomination.

This.

Also, Riley and Roland...

Leslie Langston and David Narcizo.

ErikG wrote: Sun Jun 12, 2022 6:11 am Leslie Langston and David Narcizo.

Yes! Kind of have to be, given the song structures.

Picking any Fall rhythm section might seem a little bit of a thankless task (given the relentless lineup churn), but for my money, the Simon Wolstencroft and Steve Hanley pairing held it down together admirably for a good 10+ years, over a Fall period that I really loved.

Ben Shepherd and Matt Cameron. I like so many Shepherd basslines, yet often overlook him.

Ficca/Smith. The guitar work of Verlaine and Lloyd get a lot of the attention in Television, but the rhythm section also plays some intricate stuff on those albums (see: bassline on "Venus").