Weekly Top Ten: The Best in Bass for the Week of December 30
We closed out the year with a lot of best-of lists, and many of those made this week’s best of list. Here our the most read stories, lessons and the most watched videos on No Treble for the week of December 30 – January 5. Thanks as always for reading, commenting and sharing! 1. Transcription: Periphery’s “Make Total Destroy” Periphery’s...
Adam Ben Ezra: Solo Bass Cover of Andy McKee’s “Drifting”
I can’t remember when I first discovered Adam Ben Ezra on Youtube, just that I was completely blown away. Browsing through videos today, I decided to go back and look at Adam’s older work. Then I stumbled upon Adam’s cover of the Andy McKee tune, “Drifting”. And once again: mind blown. In addition to incredible solo bass work, there’s some...
Marcus Miller Kicking Off New Radio Show
Tomorrow marks a new milestone for Marcus Miller. The bassist is hosting a new weekly radio show on SiriusXM’s Real Jazz, where he will feature acoustic and electric jazz as well as “anecdotes about the many stars with whom he’s worked intimately including Miles Davis, Herbie Hancock, David Sanborn and his long time writing partner, the late Luther Vandross.” “Miller...
Jaco Pastorius, Alex Acuña and Manolo Badrena: Bass & Percussion Jam
Another gem emerges with a recording of Jaco Pastorius and his early years in Weather Report. As the story goes, Alex Acuña and Manolo Badrena had just finished a killer version of “Rumba Mama” when Jaco jumped in on bass. This all took place at The Roxy in Los Angeles. There’s only one problem with this clip: it is way...
Victor Bailey, Lenny White & Larry Coryell: “Low Blow” Live (2006)
During the 2006 Jazz Triumph Festival, Victor Bailey took the stage with guitarist Larry Coryell and drummer Lenny White. The trio performed Victor’s tune “Low Blow”, from the bassist’s album of the same name. Victor not only plays some impressive bass lines, he sings along with them too. Monster!
Evan Marien and Dana Hawkins Announce “Collection” EP
No Treble readers, like us, have enjoyed the videos of bassist Evan Marien and drummer Dana Hawkins here. The duo has just announced they’re releasing a five track EP of their work, dubbed Collection. The album contains three tracks recorded at Shapeshifter Lab in Brooklyn last June, and two tracks recorded at The Bunker Studio in November 2011. Collection is...
Reader Spotlight: Darryl Anders
We first featured Darryl Anders and his band AgapeSoul back in July of last year. The bassist’s deep pocket groove made that first appearance here a big hit. Darryl has an impressive resume and a pretty sweet gear list too. So it was an easy choice to select him for this week’s reader spotlight feature… the first of 2013. Bio:...
2012 Readers’ Favorite Bassists – #1: Marcus Miller
This is the third straight year (out of three) that Marcus Miller has made our top ten reader favorites list. But this is the first time he’s been #1. This was a big year for Marcus with plenty of highs. None was likely higher than the release of Renaissance, an album we consider one of his all-time best, which says...
2012 Readers’ Favorite Bassists – #2: Esperanza Spalding
Esperanza Spalding is another bassist who routinely makes our annual reader favorites list, and for good reason. The exciting bassist/vocalist/composer keeps releasing amazing records, winning awards and honors, and showcasing her skills in various videos we feature here. Here are the top five most viewed Esperanza Spalding stories and videos over the course of 2012. Be sure to also check...
2012 Readers’ Favorite Bassists – #3: Victor Wooten
Another well deserving and permanent fixture on our annual reader favorite lists is Victor Wooten. The highlight for us was the release of his two new albums, Words and Tones and Sword and Stones – both in heavy rotation here at NT HQ. Another highlight for us was Rod Taylor’s three-part interview with Victor – each focused on a different...
2012 Readers’ Favorite Bassists – #4: Geddy Lee
Rush enjoyed a pretty monster year in 2012, which landed Geddy Lee as the #4 bassist on our annual reader favorite list. Thing started with the release of Clockwork Angels, the band’s 20th studio effort and one that found the band back on the charts. Most recently, the band was finally awarded an honor they should have seen a long...
2012 Readers’ Favorite Bassists – #5: Jaco Pastorius
There hasn’t been a single year that Jaco Pastorius hasn’t made the annual reader favorite list, speaking to the continued and long-term impact of the bass legend. In 2012, big news came out: a new Jaco documentary was in the works, financed by Robert Trujillo. 2012 also marked a sad event: the 25th anniversary of Jaco’s passing. We reflected on...