Saw an interesting poll on a Facebook group Bass Upfront, and basically the question was: if you could only play one kind (not label) of strings for the rest of your life, what would it be? The overwhelming majority of answers was - roundwound. Not unexpected, eh?
Well, yeah... I mean, that was my answer, too. That said, I do have flatwounds on one of my basses, and I like them, but the response was a no brainer. That, however, made me wonder why? After all, the flatwounds came first, being the standard on electric basses for more than a decade in the beginning. Innumerable popular smash hits were recorded on flatwound strung basses, often played with a pick (just ask Carol Kaye or James Jamerson). One would think that such a strong foundation would make everything else be secondary or peripheral, but the roundwounds really spread fast, once they appeared in 1962.
Now, the way I see it, such popularity may be rooted in a couple different reasons, probably working in synergy. First of all, they were endorsed by a hugely popular/influential player at the time - The Who's John Entwistle. Yet, on its own, it couldn't have been enough. After all, Paul McCartney wasn't playing them... Plus, Entwistle's playing style was unique, as was his gig, so it is not very probable that there was a huge percentage of bass players at the time fancied themselves as is next incarnation. There's gotta be something else to it.
Secondly, and probably more important was that one factor that in pre-MTV world of music "independent" of video was the main ingredient - the sound! Regardless of what or how Entwistle played, my guess is that legions of bass players back then thought their own playing, their own musical expression, would come through better with that roundwound sonic spice. Especially so with rock music, which was the staple of commercial entertainment business of the era from 1960's to 1990's.
Interestingly enough, as the trends come and go in cyclical manner, the old-school sound became popular again and increased the popularity of flatwounds (and various coated strings), but the roundwounds remain undisputed. One of the main reasons, I'd wager, that it is easier to get the emulation of flatwound sound from the roundwounds than the other way around. In a way, that makes the rounds kind of more universal, or at least suited to a wider scope of music styles, hence the enduring popularity.
Ultimately, though, you know what is the best part of that question at the beginning? That we do not have to make that choice :-)
