Weekly Top 10: New Transcription, Bass of the Week, New Bass Gear, Top Videos and Tips on Playing
The end of another week means it is time for another top 10 list of the best in bass.
Here is the list of No Treble reader favorites for the week of June 6-12, 2015. Thanks as always for reading, commenting, watching and sharing.
1. Bela Fleck and The Flecktones: Stomping Grounds (1996)
On December 26, 1996, Bela Fleck and The Flecktones appeared on The Conan O’Brien Show to promote their album, Live Art. They played “Stomping Grounds”, which is a terrific showcase for Victor Wooten and the rest of the band…
Jason Everett, aka Mister E, sent us this clip of his song “The Return,” which features the bassist playing on his fretless seven string. “‘The Return’ is a recent composition and is the fourth and final movement of my epic composition ‘Moksha: The Elimination of All Duality,’” Everett shares…
3. Bass Transcription: Miki Santamaria’s “Thinking Out Loud” Solo Bass Arrangement
This month’s transcription was suggested to me by No Treble founder Corey Brown, serving to remind me of Miki Santamaria’s fantastic solo arrangements of pop songs for bass guitar. This song, originally by Ed Sheeran, translates nicely onto the bass due to the relatively open key of D major…
4. Tower of Power: Soul With Capital S (Java Jazz Festival – 2006)
Here’s a great clip of Tower of Power performing “Soul With Capital S” – with some trademark funky bass by the one and only Rocco Prestia. And how about that honkin’ bari sax?
5. Bass of the Week: Martin Keith Guitars Elfin Hollowbody
Martin Keith took on the singlecut body design with his Elfin model, and this week we take a look at its hollowbody version. The five-string bass is built entirely like an acoustic instrument with functionality for electric players…
6. Fernando Molinari: Destrambelhado
Fernando Molinari sent us this smoking playalong clip of the song “Destrambelhado” from his first CD. The bassist mixes fingerstyle, slap, and strumming to drive the fusion track…
7. Playing without a Chordal Instrument
This week’s “Ask Damian Erskine” question was a great one. A reader asked Damian how to approach playing in a band setting without a chordal instrument, and how that changes the role of the bassist. Check out what Damian has to say…
8. Reader Spotlight: Deoindra Harrell
Meet Deoindra Harrell, a young bassist who caught our attention with her love for bass. It is a love that runs so deep she said, “I honestly feel like I could care less what bass I’m playing, just as long as I have a bass guitar in my hands.” To us, that’s what it is all about…
9. Ibanez Introduces Gary Willis Fretted Signature Bass
Ibanez has added a new fretted model to the Gary Willis Signature series. The GWB35FDBKF is the first fretted Willis signature model and will be available as a limited edition instrument. The five-string bass is built with a three-piece maple neck topped with an ebony fretboard with off-set white dot inlays…
10. NS Design Introduces WAV4 Radius Bass
NS Design has expanded their bass guitar offering even further with the introduction of the WAV4 Radius, a bass that follows the design of their Radius series with a more accessible price point. It carries many of the same features of its predecessors, including a diradial body, a headless design with self-clamping tuning system and more…
