Archive for April 2009

Zuzo Moussawer is a Brazilian bass player who has been tapping two-handedly for years. In October 2005 he entered the International Solo Bass Competition coming in second place after Jeff Schmidt. The panel of judges consisted of such prominent names as Victor Wooten, Steve Bailey, Anthony Jackson, Will Lee, and drummer Gregg Bissonette. He has quite a unique style of...

Charlie Haden, an original member of Ornette Coleman’s 1950’s quartet, will perform with his Liberation Music Orchestra at Coleman’s Meltdown festival this year. The festival is set to kick off on June 13th, in London, it will run until June 21st. Other artists include Bobby McFerrin, the Yoko Ono Plastic Band, and Baaba Maal. Details: www.southbankcentre.co.uk/meltdown.

This year marks the 30th of this critically acclaimed jazz festival. Many of the best Jazz musicians from around the world will travel to Detroit and help celebrate this historical event, those of which include the talents of Christian McBride, Stanley Clarke, and many, many others. Christian McBride will perform with his new quintet. Stanley Clarke, on the other hand,...

During the New Hampshire Bass Fest in 2007, Brent Rusinow decided to tackle the bass part for the Jaco Pastorius tune, “Havona”, as recorded on Weather Report’s Heavy Weather album. And he nailed it. We especially love how he just ran up to the chair, sat down and jumped right in, Jaco style.

The Allman Brothers celebrated their 40th anniversary in March by performing 15 sold out shows at the Beacon Theater in New York City. As part of the celebration, the band invited several musicians to join them, including bassists Stanley Clarke and Phil Lesh. All 15 performances were recorded and will soon be released as “Beacon Box”, dedicated to the band’s...

Starting in mid-April, Spinal Tap has been touring under name of “Unwigged and Unplugged”. The members of the band play all the favorite Spinal Tap tunes in a mellower fashion without all the makeup and wigs. And yes, bass fans, they’re playing “Big Bottom”. The tour will continue until May 31st, ending in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. This tour will end shortly...

Bassist Ralf Gauck is releasing his latest CD today, covering a number of Beatles songs arranged for solo bass guitar. The release will be sold through CD Baby. Ralf, voted “Best German Bass Player” at the German Rock and Pop Awards in 2007 and 2008, will be performing at the Abbey Road on the River festival in Louisville, Kentucky, held...

Moonalice, a band featuring bassist Jack Casady is on tour from now through September. In addition to Casady, Moonalice’s line up includes guitarist G.E Smith (Bob Dylan), keyboardist Pete Sears (Rod Stewart), and guitarist Barry Sless (Phil Lesh & Friends). Here’s the band’s schedule through May: 04/28/09: Sellersville Theater in Sellersville, PA 04/29/09: River Street Jazz Cafe in Plains, PA...

John Paul Jones, former bassist for Led Zeppelin has teamed up with Nickel Creek fiddler Sara Watkins to produce her debut solo album. Jones performed with Watkins and the other members of Nickel Creek briefly when they played for Mutual Admiration Society. When Jones saw Nickel Creek perform in Cambridge, England, he was astounded by Watkins’ performance. “Sara took over...

Freekbass is taking it on the road with his band. Here’s the schedule for May and June, 2009… May 2, 2009 at 8:00pm: Hi-Fi Concert Club in Cleveland, Ohio May 7, 2009 9:00pm: The Lantern in Blacksburg, Virginia May 8, 2009 9:00pm: The Wild Bean in Lewisburg, West Virginia May 9, 2009 9:00pm: Barley’s Tap Room in Knoxville, Tennessee May...

Bassist Bruno Rivoire, aka Kenobass, has just announced a new album, Kenobass Project. The release contains seven rock/metal/progressive compositions by Bruno, and includes Bruno on bass, Ayman Mokdad on guitars, Samuel Scheubel on keyboards, Fred Lenfant and Sylviane Rivoire on vocals, and Fabien Lacroix on vocals and guitar. In 2007, Bruno collaborated on Ayman’s debut album, and decided it was...

Todays’ featured video showcases the amazing skills of bassist Willie Dixon, performing in 1966. This clip, filmed by the Canadian television network CBC, was re-discovered 30 years later and released on a DVD entitled . Special thanks to The Blues Blogger, for the tip and the great story.