Carol Kaye (née Smith; born March 24, 1935) is an American musician. She is one of the most prolific recorded bass guitarists in rock and pop music, playing on an estimated 10,000 recordings in a career lasting over 65 years.

Kaye began playing guitar in her early teens; after some time as a guitar teacher, she began to perform regularly on the Los Angeles jazz and big band circuit. She started session work in 1957, and through a connection at Gold Star Studios began working for producers Phil Spector and Brian Wilson. After a bassist failed to turn up to a session in 1963, she switched to that instrument, quickly making a name for herself as one of the most in-demand session players of the 1960s, playing on numerous hits. She moved into playing on film soundtracks in the late 1960s, particularly for Quincy Jones and Lalo Schifrin, and began to release a series of tutoring books such as How To Play The Electric Bass. Kaye became less active towards the end of the 1970s, but has continued her career and attracted praise from other musicians.

During the peak of her years of session work, Kaye became part of a stable of Los Angeles–based musicians known as the Wrecking Crew. She appeared in the 2008 documentary The Wrecking Crew. In 2025, Kaye was selected for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the Musical Excellence Award category, but she rejected the honor.

Early life

Kaye was born in Everett, Washington, to professional musicians Clyde and Dot Smith. She began playing sessions in jazz clubs around Los Angeles. She quickly discovered she preferred playing bass, and found it was a key component of a backing track and allowed her to play more inventively than the relatively simple guitar parts she had been playing until then. She also played twelve-string on Frank Zappa's album Freak Out! She appeared on sessions by Frank Sinatra, Simon & Garfunkel, Stevie Wonder, Barbra Streisand, the Supremes, the Temptations, the Four Tops and the Monkees. She played electric bass on Nancy Sinatra's "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'", while Chuck Berghofer played double bass.

Through her work with Spector, Kaye caught the attention of the Beach Boys' Brian Wilson; Wilson used her on several sessions, including the albums Beach Boys Today, Summer Days (and Summer Nights!!), Pet Sounds and Smile. Kaye's bass lines have been described as "the driving force" behind "Good Vibrations", a number 1 hit and the band's best-selling single. Kaye had already performed on a number of soundtracks and had worked closely with Lalo Schifrin, playing on the theme to Mission: Impossible and the soundtrack for Bullitt.

In the early 1970s, she toured with Joe Pass and Hampton Hawes, and continued to do sessions.

Style and equipment

Kaye's main instrument during the 1960s was the Fender Precision Bass. She also used the Danelectro bass on occasion. During the 1970s, she sometimes used the Gibson Ripper Bass, and in the 21st century, she has used an Ibanez SRX700 bass.

Kaye's solo bass line in Spector's production of "River Deep, Mountain High", was a key part to the song's "Wall of Sound" production. The recording is now in the Grammy Hall of Fame. Quincy Jones said in his 2001 autobiography Q that "...women like... Fender bass player Carol Kaye... could do anything and leave men in the dust." Brian Wilson has said that Kaye's playing on the "Good Vibrations" sessions was a key part of the arrangement he wanted. "Carol played bass with a pick that clicked real good. It worked out really well. It gave it a hard sound." Dr. John has said that Kaye "is a sweetheart as well as a kick-ass bass player". In 2020, Rolling Stone magazine ranked Kaye number five in its list of the 50 greatest bassists of all time.

Kaye was selected for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in the musical excellence category, but refused the honor and said she would not attend the ceremony.

Personal life

Kaye was raised a Baptist. She converted to Judaism in the early 1960s, and had a Bat Mitzvah ceremony. She has been married three times and has two living children.

At age 13, Kaye took guitar lessons from Horace Hatchett (1909–1985), an esteemed instructor and graduate of the Eastman School of Music who eventually set her up with gigs playing bebop in L.A. nightclubs. At age 16, Kaye gave birth to their child.

Two years later, she married musician Al Kaye, and they had one son together. However, Al Kaye, 22 years her senior, had a drinking problem, and they would divorce soon after. They had one daughter together. Kaye divorced him, got a live-in nanny, and went back to work. Their marriage was brief, and Kaye recalled thinking she was no good with men. Instead, she planned to stay single for the rest of her life, relying only on music, which had never disappointed her.

Selected discography

Publications

References

Citations

Sources

  • Official Carol Kaye website, including pictures and online forums
  • Carol Kaye on Central FM, Spain (snippet), Kaye talks about her Motown experiences with Tony Keys on Central FM Radio in Spain
  • Carol Kaye Interview at NAMM Oral History Collection (February 2, 2002)
  • Carol Kaye about her famous guitar licks for Sam Cooke, Beach Boys and more – Top 2000 a gogo, 2009