Eddie Gómez announces 10-day tour in Mexico
Legendary bassist Eddie Gómez will be going on a brief 10-day tour in Mexico from November 25th through December 5th. Gómez will be touring with his trio including Stefan Karlsson on piano and Rodrigo Villanueva on drums. Eddie’s impressive resumé includes performances with jazz giants such as Miles Davis, Dizzy Gillespie, Bill Evans, Gerry Mulligan, Benny Goodman, Buck Clayton, Marian...
Joe Martin: Not By Chance
New York City jazz bassist Joe Martin has released his second CD, Not By Chance, on Anzic records. Not By Chance features eight original compositions by Martin, and a Jaco Pastorius tribute, and includes Brad Mehldau on piano, saxophonist Chris Potter (also on bass clarinet) and Marcus Gilmore on drums. “Three of my favorite musicians. They not only possess powerful...
Esperanza Spalding performing Stevie Wonder’s “Overjoyed”
Bassist Esperanza Spalding performed at the White House for the Obama family in early 2009, celebrating the music of Stevie Wonder. This video clip includes her performance of “Overjoyed”. Spalding is currently on tour and will continue to be through December of 2009. A complete tour list is available from her web site.
“All You Need To Know About the Music Business” turns 7
Music lawyer Donald S. Passman has updated his “industry Bible” with an upcoming seventh edition of All You Need To Know About the Music Business, to be released November 17th 2009. If you’re a musician and are not familiar with this book it should be on your list. Passman gives extremely relevant and organized advice on how to navigate in...
Rufus Reid joins Roni Ben-Hur on “Fortuna”
Bassist Rufus Reid will be playing on guitarist Roni Ben-Hur’s upcoming release, Fortuna. Reid commented that “It is always a pleasure to make music with Roni Ben-Hur, anytime, anywhere!” Fortuna will be released on October 13th 2009, and is available for pre-order. You can check out some of Reid’s playing with this video of him performing “Come out and Play”:...
Alexis Cuadrado: World Premiere of “Noneto Iberico”
Bassist and composer Alexis Cuadrado will be debuting “Noneto Iberico” on Friday and Saturday October 2nd and 3rd in at The Jazz Gallery in New York. “Noneto Iberico” is a nine movement composition to be performed with nine musicians which was commissioned by the Chamber Music America-Doris Duke Foundation “New Works” grant program. It blends both Spanish flamenco music with...
Mark Griffiths and Ryder team up for new retro-guitars, and to help a good cause
Bassist Mark Griffiths, who currently plays in the legendary UK group The Shadows, has developed a series of retro-guitars to be sold by Sue Ryder Care Charity. The name of the new instrument line is The Ryder. The Ryder has ten different models available: four solid bodied electric guitars, one semi-acoustic, two acoustic, two classical guitars and an electric bass...
Gear Watch: Profile PT-2800
Profile has expanded their tuner/metronome line to include the new PT-2800, a mini clip-on tuner. The PT-2800 features a gigantic bright multi-colored LCD that should be visible from the headstock in any lighting condition. The best part is that it changes from red to green once you’re in tune. You can get your strings in shape at a glance! The...
Adam Clayton gets big props as U2 kicks off U.S. tour
U2 just kicked off their first stadium tour in the USA on September 13th since 1997 (the end of the Popmart Tour). Their other tours since have been confined to arenas, but now U2 has broken out with the biggest concert stage ever built. The band’s US debut was at Soldier Field in Chicago, as a continuation of their 360-degree...
Furtok and Stähle: Gran Duetto No 2 Finale
For you classical music fans out there we found this remarkable video of Boguslaw Furtok and Johannes Stähle performing Giovanni Bottesini’s “Gran Duetto No 2 Finale.” A little history lesson, Bottesini was an Italian Romantic composer (1821-1889), conductor, and a double bass virtuoso. Bottesini is credited as being one of the main virtuoso composers to bring the versatility and beauty...
Robert Trujillo comments on “Big Four” tour rumor
Metallica Bass player Robert Trujillo recently confirmed a hot-topic rumor that the band is trying to put together a tour between themselves, Megadeth, Slayer and Anthrax. Together these bands are known as the “Big Four” of Thrash Metal. Trujillo said: “I think it’s great. We’ve had a few different conversations on the subject. I’m friends with (Slayer’s) Kerry King and...
Gear Watch: Faber Paddlebass
There’s a new bass design out by Dutch luthier Arnoud Faber: The Faber PaddleBass. Faber designed the PaddleBass to fit his standards in functionality ergonomics and tone quality. Faber shares, “I wondered why most basses were so big and uneasy to play. So I started to draw a new body.The result was a very light bass with a multiplex body,...