Bassists - Page 126

Bassist and singer Sky Saxon passed away on Thursday in Austin, Texas. He was 63 and had been in the ICU with an undisclosed illness since Monday. Saxon had a long music history: he founded Seeds in 1965 releasing four albums with hit singles “Can’t Seem to Make Mine” and “Pushing Too Hard.” Saxon also played with the Ya Ho...

Bassist Nate Mendel has returned to play with Sunny Day Real Estate, after playing with the Foo Fighters. The reunion will be followed by a tour scheduled for this fall. Sunny Day Real Estate has split and re-formed two times already (once in 1998, reuniting without Mendel, and then again in 2001). Mendel’s comments on the reunion: “I wasn’t around...

Lita Ford, the 80’s hard-rock queen and lead guitarist for The Runaways, has recruited P.J. Farley from Trixter/Ra as her new touring bassist. Since her return in 2008 from a 15 year break, Ford has been planning to release a new album, Wicked Wonderland, on her JLRG Entertainment label later this year, as well as playing a 75-date tour. Be...

Former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic has withdrawn his candidacy for county clerk in the state of Washington. Novoselic had started the campaign a month ago as a protest. He was protesting the state’s system of allowing candidates to choose their own party affiliations. He was running under the “Grange Party” banner (a non-existent political party). From his blog page, Novoselic...

Soft Machine bassist Hugh Hopper has passed away at the age of 64. Hugh was diagnosed with leukemia in 2008 and had been receiving treatment. Hopper was an innovative bassist with a distinctive fuzz-bass sound. He’s credited as one of the leaders in the prog-rock/jazz fusion movement that included Yes, King Crimson, Pink Floyd and others. Fans can sign the...

Former Nirvana bassist and current Fair Vote chairman Krist Novoselic filed to run for the office of Wahkiakum County Clerk (in Washington state) this week. He’s labeled himself on the ballot as part of the fictitious “Grange Party”. While Novoselic acknowledged this is a publicity stunt and that he has no interest in becoming the county clerk. He said he’s...

All About Jazz has posted a feature piece on bassist Reed Mathis. Mathis is the bassist for Tea Leaf Green, who recently wrapped up the Got No Friends Tour. He’s someone bassists should keep an eye for his unique playing style. You can check out some of Mathis’s music with the Jacob Fred Jazz Odyssey and get a free download...

Days before hitting the road on tour with the Adrian Belew Trio, bassist Julie Slick was able to take the time to give us some insight into how she handles playing with a powerhouse like Belew. A graduate from the Paul Green School of Rock (yes, it existed before the movie), Julie is pretty busy these days with performing and...

Our MySpace friend and bassist Jackie Clark is showing his bass and mixing skills once again, in Indaba Music’s latest remix contest for The “Shifty” Soundtrack. As Jackie explains: “What you’re hearing is my attempt to play all the parts with Logic 8 (piano, acoustic guitar and percussion) along with my favorite orchestra sample software (Vienna Symphonic Library) and my...

Jaco Pastorius, the “World’s Greatest Bass Player,” is being honored by another grass-roots effort to continue the preservation of his memory, influence and music, in the form of a Jaco Pastorius commemorative stamp. The online petition can be found here for showing your support and approval. Be sure to check out the grass-roots Oakland Park MySpace page. Other great jazz...

Michael Manring is set to door a few shows with acoustic guitarist Tony Kaltenberg in Oregon and Washington from May 29th through the 31st (details below). In June, Michael is making a return trip to the east coast to do a show with the Feinsmith Quartet, the chamber ensemble with cellist Jennifer Culp, guitarist Gyan Riley, pianist Christopher Taylor and...

Wayman Tisdale passed away at St. John Medical Center in Tulsa, Oklahoma on May 15th, 2009, after a two-year battle with bone cancer. He was 44.