Archive for July 2009 - Page 9

As we celebrate Independence Day today in the U.S., we decided to look around for videos of Jaco Pastorius performing his landmark arrangement of “America The Beautiful”, aka “Amerika”. Along the way, we discovered this gem by bassist Neftali López: Have a safe and happy Fourth!

Check out Tom Kennedy taking care of business on “The Chicken”, a song most people think was written by Jaco Pastorius. (It was written by Pee Wee Ellis, a member of James Brown’s band, though Jaco made it famous). Holy smokes!

Burgera has released what they claim is “the most powerful bass amplifier in the world.” The 3600 Watt (no, that’s not a typo) bi-amping stereo bass amp has been named The Nuke and boasts the following features: Extremely powerful 3,600-Watt true bi-amping stereo bass amplifier Ultra-flexible 2×1,800-Watt stereo or 3,600-Watt bridged mode Integrated Crossover with dedicated Frequency and Balance controls...

A dedicated fan took it upon himself to restore the headstone of bassist Stuart Sutcliffe. Sutcliffe was the bass player for the Beatles in the early 1960’s. Sutcliffe’s headstone had fallen into disrepair at Huyton cemetery in Liverpool, so Colin Unwin, a dedicated 61-year-old fan not only restored the stone, he also repainted all the lettering in gold.

Q: I am moving to LA soon and wanted to know if you had any advice for me in regards to making my mark in the local scene and trying to score some gigs? A: Great question. I’ll break it up into a few parts. As far as very tangible steps to take: Hit up every jam session you can...

All About Jazz has posted a tribute piece, “Relentless Groove,” about jazz bassist Jymie Merritt, a musician with a 50+ year career and still actively composing. This tribute gives a brief but thorough account of his extraordinary and influential history. From the article: “Over the past fifty years there have been many stalwarts who’ve directed the course of jazz, but...

A new CD has been released in commemoration of Taiwanese professor Chi Da-wei, also known as the “Father of Double Bass.” Professor Chi was once the head Double Bass player of the Beijing, Shanghai and Taipei Symphony Orchestras, president of countless societies in Taiwan, such as the Youth Music Society, and professor at the National Taipei University of Arts until...

After a day of teaching at Mile High Bass Camp, Damian Erskine and Ray Riendeau took a break to play together. In this segment, Damian solos over Pat Metheny’s “Bright Sized Life”. The only problem with this video is that it isn’t long enough. I wonder if Damian picked up something from the bassist on Bright Sized Life’s original recording,...

Godsticks’ Hartke-endorsed bassist Jason Marsh took some time to answer a few of our questions and give us some insight into his tone, practice and musical influences. Godsticks is a progressive-rock band from South Wales, UK, featuring Darran Charles (guitar, vocal, piano), Marsh (bass) and Steve Roberts (drums). We interviewed Jason and the band together to get a full take...

Les Claypool has updated his summer tour dates with O’Death, Capillary Action, a few festivals and other performances. July 1, 2009: Fargo, ND at The Venue @ The Hub with O’Death July 2, 2009: Omaha, NE at Anchor Inn with O’Death July 4, 2009: Rothbury, MI at Rothbury Festival July 5, 2009: Indianapolis, IN at The Vogue with O’Death July...

A bass guitar once owned by Kurt Cobain sold at auction recently for $43,750 to a private collector. According to the certificate of authenticity, the tragic Nirvana star’s Sears model bass guitar was used to record his early demos. It was one of many iconic items sold at Christie’s pop and rock memorabilia sale.