i got the idea after seeing the Cliff vs. Jason thread, and figured they don't really play too similarly so i thought this might be a more balanced poll. both use(or used) their basses as second guitars, with an extremely distorted and punchy sound, and both are one of the most technical bass players in history. Joey has the Flight of the Bumblebee, which like i said in another thread, is INSANE on any instrument but i can't imagine a more difficult instrument to play the piece on than the bass guitar. Cliff has Anesthesia (Pulling Teeth) where he plays with a distinct, inimitable style. Joey has Black Arrows, and Cliff has Orion. Joey has that awesome bass riff in Heart of Steel, but Cliff has that awesome intro riff in For Whom the Bell Tolls.

overall it's almost a tie for me personally, they are both 2 of my top 5 bassists but i choose Joey, only because he is more technical than Cliff, even though he sometimes overdoes it.


btw if you ask me Joey gets too much shit from the Manowar hatorz and people appreciate him less for this, even though he is an exceptional bassist.

No doubt Cliff Burton he is better bassist and play better, he is legend, and there no doubt about it ,
For me I even didnt know who's Joey De Maio till saw Manowar, so I think this name is mystery even for manowar fans

Cliff Burton...I consider Joey a very good bassist too, but IMO Cliff was superior.

Cliff Burton man, he was just.... godly, unlike Rob Trujillo >.>

Written by thesabbathfan on 26.09.2008 at 02:12

Cliff Burton man, he was just.... godly, unlike Rob Trujillo >.>

Okay, agreed Cliff was great. But judging from your comment here it seems you never heard Rob Trujillo play... especially in Suicidal Tendencies & Infectious Grooves. Rob is brilliant in his own way on bass totally different style to Cliff. But I guess you are judging him solely on the way he crawls on stage.

Written by Marcel Hubregtse on 26.09.2008 at 12:08

Written by thesabbathfan on 26.09.2008 at 02:12

Cliff Burton man, he was just.... godly, unlike Rob Trujillo >.>

Okay, agreed Cliff was great. But judging from your comment here it seems you never heard Rob Trujillo play... especially in Suicidal Tendencies & Infectious Grooves. Rob is brilliant in his own way on bass totally different style to Cliff. But I guess you are judging him solely on the way he crawls on stage.

i think he has skill, but you just can't fill that void where Cliff used to be...


and that stage crawling too

Its impossible for me to vote for this, because I prefer listening to Manowar for basslines, but that is almost 100% because of the way Manowar albums are produced/mixed, they are far more bass heavy than Metallica albums, so it would be hard for me to say either way.

Written by Bad English on 25.09.2008 at 11:48

No doubt Cliff Burton he is better bassist and play better, he is legend, and there no doubt about it ,
For me I even didnt know who's Joey De Maio till saw Manowar, so I think this name is mystery even for manowar fans

Without doubt, joey de maio is a better bassist than cliff burton without question.

Written by LeChron James on 27.09.2008 at 09:58

Written by Bad English on 25.09.2008 at 11:48

No doubt Cliff Burton he is better bassist and play better, he is legend, and there no doubt about it ,
For me I even didnt know who's Joey De Maio till saw Manowar, so I think this name is mystery even for manowar fans

Without doubt, joey de maio is a better bassist than cliff burton without question.

yup, if it was only about how technical you are then Joey is one of the best, if not THE best in the world.

Written by Valentin B on 28.09.2008 at 08:06

Written by LeChron James on 27.09.2008 at 09:58

Written by Bad English on 25.09.2008 at 11:48

No doubt Cliff Burton he is better bassist and play better, he is legend, and there no doubt about it ,
For me I even didnt know who's Joey De Maio till saw Manowar, so I think this name is mystery even for manowar fans

Without doubt, joey de maio is a better bassist than cliff burton without question.

yup, if it was only about how technical you are then Joey is one of the best, if not THE best in the world.

hahaha my previous response is hella illiterate sounding. but yeah, Joey DeMaio and Les Claypool are a pair of the most technically gifted bassists to grace this earth.

Joey is the best!

his parts were more dominant and powerful!

Written by thesabbathfan on 27.09.2008 at 05:41

i think he has skill, but you just can't fill that void where Cliff used to be...

Of course not, nobody can fill at 100% somebody else's spot, but there's always room for new stuff

and voted for Cliff, I hate Manowar xD

I choose Cliff, cause I cant see Newsted or Steve DiGiorgio

Edit: did I forget to count Steve Harris

Cliiff with no doubt

Joey De Maio is INHUMAN. Cliff might be cool, and skilled, but no one plays on the level that Joey does. Check out his performance of "Flight of the Bumblebee" (they call it "Sting of the Bumblebee") from Kings of Metal

Cliff is just.. amazing. Amazing skill. Joey is good though.

DeMaio is overrated, IMO. I'll go with Cliff Burton, DeMaio is decent, but not that special.

Of course Cliff Burton R.I.P his the best

I am definitely one of the Manowar haters and it drives me crazy when seriously skilled musicians like DeMaio insist on wasting their talent making god-awful schmaltz when they could be contributing to something worthwhile instead. (I'm looking at you, Joey Jordison)

Skill-wise, I would have to give the edge to DeMaio between the two of them, but my vote goes to Cliff because he made music I enjoy while DeMaio has spent his entire career squandering his not inconsiderable talent making inexcusably bad music. It's not just about being technically skilled - the skill needs to be put to good use.

Cliff Burton. I just don't care for Manowar's music...I love early Metallica and I love Cliff. He was one of three bass players that influenced my own earlier style (the other two being Geezer Butler and Steve Harris).

I voted Cliff Burton,he was great musician and i don't like Manowar,so reason is obvious.

People are saying Joey DeMaio is one of the greatest technical bassists around? Someone even saying he could be the most technically gifted bassists. Give me a break. All these guys want a word with you:

Victor Wooten
Brian Bromberg
Bill Dickens
Gary Willis
Stuart Hamm
Billy Sheehan
Markus Setzer

Cliff all the way. DeMaio is good too.