How important is bass to you?

Earlier this week I saw a band playing live. The band had a bass player, but it didn't have a midrange or treble player. From this I conclude bass is important to the band's music.

With the human voice musicians are readily classified as tenors, sopranos, bass, altos, etc., but in popular music combos only the bass player gets a specific mention for the range of their instrument. The conclusion is unavoidable -- the bass is the most important element in popular music (other than the vocal).

Can you imagine the great Larry Graham singing "I'm gonna add some upper midrange to make it easy to move your feet"? Maybe in you're alternate reality, but not in mine!