Archive for September 2016 - Page 3

Fender has revamped their T-Bucket series for 2016, including the introduction of the 300E Bass. The medium-scale, acoustic-electric bass is fitted with a Fishman Isys III pickup system. It comes complete with an active preamp and built-in tuner as well as volume and tone controls. The T-Bucket 300E Bass is constructed with mahogany back and sides with a figured maple...

Evan Marien’s new album EP2?-?Live releases on November 1, and he’s shared a preview for what’s to come. Here’s Evan performing the tune “Meteor”, from the album. Can’t wait to hear more!

Etienne Mbappe handles both bass and lead vocals on his fourth solo effort, How Near How Far, released under the name, Etienne Mbappe & the Prophets. Mbappe (John McLaughlin’s 4th Dimension, Joe Zawinul, Robben Ford, Slif Keita, Ray Charles, Steps Ahead, Bill Evans) has focused more on instrumentation than vocals on this record. “The concept of the Prophets,” Mbappé said,...

After announcing it earlier this year, Cliff Williams has officially retired from AC/DC after a nearly 40 year run. The bassist joined the band in 1977, just two years after their debut album, and played on every subsequent release. “I’m just ready to get off the road,” Williams stated in a video interview. “[I need] family time now and just...

I want to continue the “G-Funk” exploration in this episode by taking a look at the 1995 cut “Safe & Sound” by DJ Quik. This song is a prime example of having a part from a record re-played as opposed to sampling it. This gives the producer so much more freedom in terms of what elements can be added or...

Stuart Clayton is really making lots of progress on his new edition of Giants of Bass. This time around, Clayton is focusing his attention on Stuart Hamm. “This track was written in the style of the instrumental jazz/rock tunes that Stuart recorded on his first three albums back in the late eighties and early nineties,” Clayton shared. “It features open...

Three Berklee College of Music bass professors have written a new book about playing jazz bass, simply called Berklee Jazz Bass: Acoustic & Electric. The writers – bass chair emeritus Rich Appleman and bass professors Whit Browne and Bruce Gertz – are longtime faculty members at the Boston college, and between them have mentored artists like Esperanza Spalding, Bryan Beller,...

Peter Hook and the Light are returning to North America this Fall to perform the works of Joy Division and New Order. The trek will have the bassist revisit his former bands by performing Joy Division and New Order’s compilation albums Substance live, sequentially and in their entireties. “Released in August 1987, New Order’s Substance was originally conceived as a...

Today we will be tackling Jaco Pastorius’s bass line on the title track from Weather Report’s 1980 album, Night Passage. This is one of the best Weather Report albums. To me, it always sounds fresh and modern, like a timeless record. The group also includes drummer Peter Erskine and percussionist Robert Thomas Jr, who sound very tight together. In this...

Zander Zon is back with another epic solo bass performance of a movie soundtrack. This time, he takes on music from Gladiator.

Led Zeppelin has re-released its 1997 BBC sessions collection as the The Complete BBC Sessions, featuring eight previously unreleased sessions from BBC radio. All the recordings of the band, featuring bassist John Paul Jones, were captured during BBC radio performances between 1969 and 1971. The previously unreleased recordings include three performances from a 1969 session once believed to be lost....

This year marks the twentieth anniversary of Jens Ritter Instruments, and the bass maker is celebrating with a commemorative book of his work. “I started my career as an instrument maker in 1996. Now in September 2016 I am celebrating my 20th anniversary with a coffee table book with pictures of my favorite instruments from the last 20 years,” Ritter...