How much is Carol Kaye worth?
| Net Worth: | $10 Million |
|---|---|
| Profession: | Professional Musician |
| Date of Birth: | March 24, 1935 |
| Country: | United States of America |
| Height: | 1.71 m |
About Carol Kaye
Due in large part to society’s rigid conception of what femininity was and the fact that few female musicians entered the ranks of what were always regarded as sessionmen. From the very beginning, a number of female musicians helped to elevate the status of women in rock, but many of them did it while sitting behind the microphone (or the songwriter’s pen).
Contrary to Ray Charles, who famously remarked, “I’m not good because I’m blind,” Carol Kaye was not highly known because she was a woman. She not only ranked among the top session musicians of any gender, but she also helped revolutionize the instrument. Along with James Jamerson of Motown and a man by the name of McCartney, she was one of a limited number of bottom-end musicians who used what was still recognized as an electric bass violin to underpin rock, front funk, and redefine jazz. She became one of the most documented musicians in history as precisely as studio records can demonstrate. Her gender was and remains mostly irrelevant.
Since so many bass players at the time began playing the guitar, she followed suit. The fact that both of her parents were professional guitarists did not escape her. She was deemed adept enough to take over as her tutor’s helper three months after beginning classes. By the time the Kaye family left their native Washington state for Los Angeles before she had even finished her adolescent years, she had made enough progress. In fact, Little Richard’s producer Robert “Bumps” Blackwell discovered her in a matter of years on a local stage. Sam Cooke, a rising gospel performer who was making the switch to secular music, soon hired her to play guitar. She became well-known as a session musician very soon. The Crystals song “Then He Kissed Me,” features her guitar lines.
But Carol’s greatest contribution to music began in 1962, when she picked up a Fender Electric Bass and launched the second phase of her career in response to a bassist’s cancellation of a Capitol Records session. Before the late 1970s, when the consequences of arthritis began to manifest, Kaye had done 10,000 sessions. She recorded 10,000 songs, including sides by Sonny & Cher, the Beach Boys, and the Monkees while working as one of the fabled “Wrecking Crew” of L.A. session musicians (she dislikes the term “Wrecking Crew” since she thinks it is restrictive and cliquish). She also made soundtrack contributions to numerous movies and TV shows. The fact is that Kaye played a significant role in McCartney’s legendary bass accomplishments; her bass parts on the Beach Boys’ Pet Sounds record, which Paul wrongly thought were the band’s original bass parts, had a significant impact on his bass lines from 1965 onward. Carol Kaye’s estimated net worth in 2022 will be $10 million.
