Archive for 2009 - Page 76

We’ve covered Spaceman and his unusual bass creations before. Here’s one from the archives: the Spaceman “Dominator” Aluminum 6-String Fretless Bass The Dominator is a full-length, 6-string aluminum bass guitar with an active EMG pickup, mounted above the strings.

Tower of Power, anchored by the legendary Rocco Prestia on bass released their newest album today. Great American Soulbook takes the band in a slightly new direction, with a collection of classic soul tunes with a Tower of Power twist. The album was produced by Emilio Castillo, the band’s founder and leader since 1968, and George Duke and features guest...

Bruford Levin Upper Extremities (B.L.U.E.), a group including bassist Tony Levin, Bill Bruford on drums, David Torn on guitar and Chris Botti on trumpet, formed after recording Torn’s 1987 Cloud About Mercury release. B.L.U.E.’s 1999 release, Bruford Levin Upper Extremities, out of print for some time, is being re-released today. Here’s about the only video you’ll find of the group,...

Ibanez Electronics demoed their new Promethean Pro bass amp line at Winter NAMM 2009 with the help of bassist Rufus Philpot. The new amps will once again be on display for their unveiling at Summer NAMM in Nashville, this July. The P5110 Promethean Combo includes a 10″ woofer and detachable 250 watt head and lists for $933.32. The P500H 250-watt...

Bassist, producer and music educator Adam Nitti has just released his fourth album, Liminal, a collection of jazz, funk, R&B, rock and blues tunes written, arranged and produced by Nitti. Nitti’s supporting cast includes Marco Sfogli and Tom Quayle on guitar, Alex Argento on keys, and Marco Minnemann on drums. Other musicians making appearances include Jeff Coffin on tenor sax,...

Stevie Wonder’s live board recording from a 1974 performance in London has found its way online, featuring the smoking bass lines of Reggie McBride. We’ll let the music do the talking: check out Aquarium Drunkard’s post. Big tip of the hat to Brian Fox at Bass Player.

Bassist James Ross sends us this video of him hanging out with Victor Wooten doing some improv to The Beatles’ “Yesterday” during rehearsal at The Pageant in St. Louis. Nice.

We’ve been hearing rumors about a new tour by Stanley Clarke, Marcus Miller and Victor Wooten, collectively known as S.M.V. Looks like it is the real deal, as the 17th Annual Capital Jazz Festival in Columbia, MD has announced the group will be performing during the upcoming 3 day festival, June 5-7. Here’s a great video featuring the three in...

Musicians Institute in Los Angeles awarded Stanley Clarke an honorary Doctor of Music degree during MI’s commencement ceremony on March 21st. Beth Marlis, VP of Education for MI, shares “Stanley Clarke embodies the true value of education and the duty of an artist to mentor and give back to the next generation. He has selflessly and generously created opportunities for...

Kustom has just announced their newest series of bass heads, combos and cabinets. Deep End is a hybrid tube amp, featuring a 12AX7 preamp with a Tube Gain control. Combos are available in 50-, 100- and 200-watt models. A 300-watt head and four speaker cabinet configuration is also available. “Kustom originally made its mark with bass amps back in the...

For over twenty years, Victor Little has been a go-to session and touring bassist Patti Austin, Billy Preston, Angela Bofill, Charlie Musselwhite, Mickey Hart, and Booker T. Jones. Now Little is about to release his first ever solo CD, Inner Portrait. The CD features an impressive supporting cast, including drummers Dennis Chambers and Thomas Pridgen, and keyboardist Ruslan Sirota. “I’m...

AXL Guitars just announced their new bass, the AXL Marquee Capricorn, will be available this summer. The new bass features an offset Alder body with a 34″ scale maple neck with rosewood fretboard, and two single-coil Alnico pickups (designed by EMG). Finishes include classic black, Olympic white, Lake Placid blue, electric red, sunburst and natural. The Marquee Capricorn (model AJ-800)...