Gary Thain

Yes!!! I'm a huge fan - he's my all time favorite. His bass lines on Suicidal Man is just awesome... and Sweet Freedom... I could go on and on about his bass playing, and that tone and sound he got from the basses he used... Wow!! He had a style that was definitely one of a kind.
He also played with the Keef Hartley Band and got pretty funky on their last album, Seventy Second Brave.

He was the wizard of a thousand kings....
I too liked Thain – when I was a mere lad, but I really do think that, considering all the truly amazing bass players of the genre, your statement would be much more accurate if you eliminated the words "greatest", "ever" and "walked the face of the earth."

Saw him on the Magicians Birthday tour back in the day. He was difinitly part of a tight band for sure.