Archive for April 2011 - Page 5

I was thinking about the late great Robert Wilson the other day and found this video of the Gap Band in 1999 at Sinbad’s Summer Jam. The audio could be a little better, but the Robert and the band are smokin’ through their hits, starting with “Burn Rubber on Me.” Make sure to check out the end of the set,...

Rancid bassist Matt Freeman now has his own Squier signature Precision Bass, modeled after his favorite personal bass. Freeman explains that “[it] is a ’77 P Bass that I picked up in 1987 for, like, $400 when I was in Operation Ivy. I went all over the world with that bass. And I still have it and I actually play...

This week, we’re taking a look back at the top 10 most popular bass videos from March, 2011, based on the number of views by No Treble readers. 1. The Pink Panther: Solo Bass Performance Pablo Motyczak, a bassist from Argentina who goes by the screen name “Motyx” blew us away with his take on Henry Mancini’s “Pink Panther” theme....

The Metal Den has just posted a Youtube clip including audio of Cliff Burton’s bass solo from a Metallica concert at the Coliseum Ballroom in Davenport, Iowa on May 30, 1986. The solo is part improv, with Burton adding the themes from the track, “(Anesthesia) Pulling Teeth.” Hailed as one of the greatest bassists of all time, Burton died in...

Jazz bassist Rufus Reid has teamed up once again with pianist Steve Allee and drummer Duduka Da Fonseca for Hues of a Different Blue, a 14-track album that also features the talents of saxophonists JD Allen and Bobby Watson, trumpeter Freddie Hendrix, and Brazilian guitarist Toninho Horta. The songs are a nice combination of Reid’s originals with standards mixed in,...

The amp makers at Vox have translated their mini guitar amp to the bass world with the introduction of the AC1 RhythmVOX Bass, a portable practice combo that weighs in at only 19.4 ounces. Similar to its predecessor, the new model includes 66 built-in rhythm/song patterns including 8-beat, blues, funk, reggae, irregular patterns, and more. The tempo and level for...

Meet Jared Carpenter, the sole proprietor of California-based custom shop JC Basses. We first discovered his work after watching Seth Horan, whose custom bass features fanned frets and an eye-catching red finish. After picking up bass, Carpenter quickly realized he couldn’t get what he wanted from a production instrument and boldly decided to make his own, even without much woodworking...

Steve Bailey shows off his 6-string fretless (and mad skills) in this live performance of “Moonridge/Potpourri”. Bailey is backed by drummer Gregg Bissonette in this clip, taken from Bailey’s and Victor Wooten’s Bass Extremes DVD.

by PocketLabworks (in collaboration with Gallien Krueger) is the world’s first bass-exclusive iOS bass practice tool. The app was created in an effort to level the playing field for bass players, since there are so many guitar-exclusive apps out there. Features PocketGK features a bass amp with two channels: clean and Boost. Boost offers the Gallien Krueger GIVE circuit tone....

Motley Crue/Sixx A.M. bassist Nikki Sixx has just released his second book, entitled This Is Gonna Hurt: Music, Photography and Life Through the Distorted Lens of Nikki Sixx. The 224-page book is a mixture of his photography and a journal that dives into his inner thoughts. “It’s definitely not an autobiography,” he told Billboard.com. “I don’t write with an editor...

Q: I have been playing bass for about 12 years now, and over the last 5 years, I have been practicing more and more. I’m definitely seeing progress in the areas of practive, but sometimes I feel there are holes in my playing. For example, I get very nervous when I´m in a situation where I need to play by...

Bassist Eric Czar recorded this beautiful, multi-tracked all-bass composition, using his 6-string fretless. The story behind the bass is interesting too… Eric took an old Ibanez SR-406 6-string bass he bought for $300 and ripped the frets out himself. His advice? “Don’t be fooled by the price tag!”