Groove – Episode #12: Stuart Hamm

Is there a better way to celebrate the one year anniversary of Groove – The No Treble Podcast than to dive into the amazingly, unconventional and beautiful playing of Stuart Hamm? Back in the late eighties, I made the mistake of thinking that Hamm was a full-on rocker, due to his work with Steve Vai, Joe Satriani and Frank Gambale.

While his first solo album, Radio Free Albemuth, came out in 1988, I got sucked into the vortex of his magnificent playing and composition on 1989’s Kings Of Sleep. Rock, jazz, country, classical… you name it, and Stuart has a flair and approach that is uniquely his own.

A bassist since the seventies, Hamm has seen the evolution of the instrument, and how much the music and songs that emanate from the bass has evolved. In fact, he has been at the forefront of pushing the instrument forward. Live, in the studio or educating others, Hamm is just as enthused about the instrument as he ever has been. He recently released his latest composition, The Book of Lies, that includes a seven piece suite for bass soloing. Amazing. Enjoy the conversation…