Top 10: Old School Fender Coronoda, Esperanza on a Fretless, Health & Fitness for the Working Bassist, Top Bass Videos and Latest Gear

Here are the most read, most popular stories and features on No Treble for the week of June 5 – 11, 2011.

Esperanza Spalding: I Know You Know / Smile Like That Live

1. Esperanza Spalding: I Know You Know / Smile Like That Live

Here’s a great clip of Esperanza Spalding sporting a Fender fretless and performing live in San Sebastian on July 23, 2009.

Health & Fitness for The Working Bassist – Part 2: Posture, Posture, Posture

2. Health & Fitness for The Working Bassist – Part 2: Posture, Posture, Posture

Our 6-part series of Health & Fitness for The Working Bassist continues what has proven to be a highly popular subject with No Treble’s community of bassists. We believe you will find this month’s focus on posture to be informative and useful — it is chock full of information and tips that can help you…

Anthony Jackson: Live Bass Solo (1980)

3. Anthony Jackson: Live Bass Solo (1980)

I sometimes forget how long Anthony Jackson has been performing and showcasing his unique approach to the bass. This is a great reminder. In July, 1980, Jackson took the stage with Sadao Watanabe at Budokan in Tokyo, Japan. This clip features an excellent solo by Jackson (around the 5:45 mark, if you’re in a hurry).

Gear, Tone and Reality

4. Gear, Tone and Reality

Q: I know a lot of guys who spend quite a bit of time and money on their gear. In your opinion, how much of a bassist’s sound is contained in the rig that they are using versus the hands and so on? A: I’m glad you asked! I just had this conversation the other…

Technique Series: Fast Fingers

5. Technique Series: Fast Fingers

Although there are musical situations when we want our left hand fingers to strike the fingerboard forcefully, we most often want to use the minimum amount of pressure, and no more. To do otherwise is generally inefficient, clumsy, noisy and speeds up muscle fatigue, among other things. When it comes to left hand technique, the…

Flea Confirms New Red Hot Chili Peppers Album Details

6. Flea Confirms New Red Hot Chili Peppers Album Details

After years of anticipation, we now have a confirmed release date for the new Red Hot Chili Peppers album after Flea broke the news via his Twitter account. “It gives me profound pleasure deep in the fiber of my being to announce the August 30 release date of the new red hot chili peppers’s record,”…

Iron Maiden: Phantom of the Opera

7. Iron Maiden: Phantom of the Opera

This has always been one of my personal favorite Iron Maiden songs. This particular clip, taken from their “Live at Rainbow” concert tape, has Steve Harris and the gang in their youthful prime rocking out London. Harris said the song is “one of the best pieces I’ve ever written, and certainly one of the most…

Mayones Releases S-Cut Caledonia 5 Classic

8. Mayones Releases S-Cut Caledonia 5 Classic

Mayones has unveiled the S-Cut Caledonius 5 Classic, a single-cut bass featuring neck-thru construction. The company explains that the single-cut design adds stability and sustain while the neck joint provides better access to the highest frets. More unique to the bass is the “Single Cut Handle,” where a portion of the upper horn is cut…

Old School: 1960′s Fender Coronado Bass II – Wildwood

9. Old School: 1960′s Fender Coronado Bass II – Wildwood

This week, John Roblin shares the story behind his ultra-rare 1960′s Fender Coronado Bass II – Wildwood. Fender’s Coronado line included guitars and basses with a double-cutaway, thin-line hollow-body, designed by Roger Rossmeisl, who originally designed instruments for Rickenbacker. The Coronado line came two years after Leo Fender sold Fender Musical Instruments to CBS, and…

Geezer Butler on Black Sabbath’s Paranoid Bass Riffs

10. Geezer Butler on Black Sabbath’s Paranoid Bass Riffs

Black Sabbath brought heaviness to a new level, inspiring millions of fans and building up a new genre. This clip from the Classic Albums: Paranoid DVD has Geezer Butler playing through parts of “Iron Man,” “Hand of Doom,” and “Electric Funeral” while explaining some of his playing. “A lot of the riffs are so strong…

Get daily bass updates.

Get the latest news, videos, lessons, and more in your inbox every morning.

Share your thoughts