Weekly Top 10: Change Your Practice Routine, New Gear, Preferred Bass Scale Books, Top Bass Videos and More
Looking back at last week, there’s at least one theme that stands out: practice. Dr. D’s column on his preferred scale books, Damian’s column on changing up your practice routine, and even a new book of transcriptions make the list.
Add to that a handful of great videos, some new gear and the bass of the week and you have the No Treble readers’ top 10 favorites.
Thanks for reading, watching, commenting and sharing.
1. Steve Di Giorgio: Bass Playthrough of Christos Nikolaou’s “Calling”
Steve DiGiorgio may be known for playing fretless in death metal bands, but he’s a very diverse musician. Check out this clip of the bassist tracking the song “Calling” by Mythodea in the studio. DiGiorgio lays down punchy, melodic bass lines with on a Rickenbacker to give the song some extra drive…
2. Beck, Bogert & Appice: Superstition, Live
In 1973, guitarist Jeff Beck, bassist Tim Bogert and drummer Carmine Appice released their studio album, Beck, Bogert & Appice. I’ve been spinning that vinyl a lot lately, which brought me to this video. In this 1973 performance, the group plays Stevie Wonder’s “Superstition”, with Bogert laying down some serious bass…
3. Preferred Scale Books for Bass Players
Recently, Dr. D has been getting a lot of people asking for recommendations for “good” scale books for the double bassist. This is an interesting subject, as there so many books out there! Furthermore, whether a scale book is “good” or not often depends not on their content, but rather how they are applied. Here are some of his favorites…
4. Joni Mitchell with Jaco Pastorius: Free Man in Paris
We rememnbered Jaco Pastorius on the 21st by listening to the wealth of great music he gave us. Among our favorites is his collaborations with Joni Mitchell. In this clip from Shadows and Light, Jaco, Michael Brecker, Don Alias, Pat Metheny and Lyle Mays kick Mitchell’s “Free Man in Paris” up several notches in this 1979 performance…
5. New Bass Transcriptions of Classic Tunes Available for Download
Bassist and bass transcriptionist Aidan Hampson has assembled quite a series of bass transcription books, many of which include some of the most notable, but sometimes un-transcribed, bass lines in popular music. The downloadable, PDF titles, released by Guitar Music Publishing, focus on a wide range of artists, including Stevie Wonder, ABBA, Foo Fighters, and more…
6. Rage Against The Machine: Bulls On Parade, Live
Rage Against the Machine came together in 2010 to perform a special free concert at London’s Finsbury Park, and it was a night to remember. Luckily, the band is releasing the entire performance in an upcoming DVD, aptly named Live at Finsbury Park. Here’s a killer version of “Bulls on Parade” taken from the event…
7. ZÜE Engineering Releases The 9V Backpack Power Adapter
When ZÜE Engineering used a 9-volt center negative plug to battery adapter to demonstrate their On TIMER pedal, they didn’t realize they had already created their next product. The 9V Backpack external power adapter plugs into your pedal’s power supply input and connects to a 9-volt battery…
8. Teye Guitars Unveils Super Coyote Bass Prototypes
After relaunching the brand earlier this year, Teye Guitars has unveiled the prototypes for a new bass model called the Super Coyote Bass. The instrument, which feature the company’s signature acid-etched aluminum artwork, was designed with AC/DC bassist Cliff Williams…
9. How to Change Up Your Practice Routine When You Don’t Feel Like Practicing
We all fall into ruts when it comes to keeping up a practice routine. In this week’s “Ask” column, Damian offers up a list of tips to try when that happens…
10. Bass of the Week: Ray Ross Bass No. 20
This week we’re featuring the work of Aaron “Ray” Ross, a Missouri-based builder who began making basses to supplement his own collection. “I make basses by hand in a VERY modest shop,” Ross explains. “This started when I wanted a fretless bass but could not afford one…”
