Rhonda Smith Anchors Jeff Beck’s Live at the Hollywood Bowl
Fans of blues and rock will want to check out Jeff Beck’s latest DVD, Live at the Hollywood Bowl. Recorded in the summer of 2016, the live concert featured songs from the guitar god’s entire career, as far back as The Yardbirds right up to his latest release, Loud Hailer. It also features a plethora of special guest artists including...
In Memoriam: Jack Conrad
Jack Conrad, who played bass for The Doors and wrote songs for many artists, has passed away from a massive heart attack. He was 69 years old. Conrad’s diverse musical career started in the ’60s. He recorded for the Petula Clark album I Know A Place in 1965 and started writing songs. He collaborated with Paul Williams for his albums...
Massive FX Introduces the Hypnotik Fuzz Pedal
Massive FX Pedals has released the Hypnotik Fuzz, a hand-wired super heavy fuzz that is suited for both bass and guitar. The unit has knobs for Master Volume and Fuzz Level as well as a two-position switch that toggles between two modes. Classic Fuzz mode is described as a vintage tone with a thinner, “trebly” sound. The second mode is...
Weezer Mixes The Beach Boys and The Clash on New Album, “Pacific Daydream”
The new Weezer album was supposed to be a darker, moodier counterpoint to their last self-titled record referred to as The White Album. However, when the band got together a different mood presented itself. Pacific Daydream is their 11th album and shows a new tonal character for the group. “I’m going to say [it sounds] somewhere between The Beach Boys...
Steve Di Giorgio: Bass Playthrough of Gone In April’s “As Hope Welcomes Death”
Six-string fretless bass beast Steve Di Giorgio always brings the heat. Here’s his latest with a playthrough of “As Hope Welcomes Death” by Gone In April. Di Giorgio tears through the song, bringing serious tenacity to the low end. Be sure to check out the drum and bass breaks starting at 5:22.
King Crimson Releases “Official Bootleg: Live In Chicago, June 28th, 2017”
King Crimson’s latest formation is captured in a new official bootleg from this summer. Official Bootleg: Live In Chicago, June 28th, 2017 is a two-CD live release featuring the low-end stylings of Tony Levin, who describes the concert as “One of our best.” The rest of the band includes Mel Collins (Saxes & flute), Robert Fripp (Guitar & keyboards), Gavin...
Stryper Announces New Bassist Perry Richardson
After parting ways with longtime bassist Timothy Gaines earlier this year, Stryper has finally announced their newest member to be Perry Richardson. He is the third bassist in the band’s 34-year career. A founding member of Firehouse, Richardson has been friends with the band for years. “The first time I met the guys in Stryper was in 1985, when my...
Alberto Rigoni: Ghostbusters Theme Song
Alberto Rigoni went all out for Halloween this year with a bass arrangement of the theme song to Ghostbusters. Dressed as the Marshmallow Man, Rigoni lays down the iconic bass line as well as the chords and melody on his 5-string Cort. Happy Halloween!
Bootsy Collins Releases “World Wide Funk”
Funk master Bootsy Collins has returned with World Wide Funk, a star-studded album with guest artists ranging from Chuck D. to Dennis Chambers to Buckethead. It’s the former James Brown bassist’s first album in six years. Like any good funk album, World Wide Funk has some killer bass thanks to Collins himself as well as guests Victor Wooten, Stanley Clarke,...
Bass of the Week: Adamovic Private Collection King Solomon Bass
Adamovic has some of the most incredible basses, so it’s no wonder their Private Collection has some of the most incredible basses ever built. This week we’re checking out their King Solomon that started the series. “With the first private collection bass we wanted to use one of our favorite woods: Solomon padouk,” Adamovic explains. “We chose some beautiful beeswing...
Troy Hughes: Bass Cover of “La Caccia”
With Halloween coming up, we knew bassist Troy Hughes would have something good up his sleeve. An avid mask collector, he donned a special zombie mask to record this bass line and get in the spirit of the season. “It is a bass-cover of ‘La Caccia’ by Goblin, which features Fabio Pignatelli on bass,” Hughes explains. “The song was part...
The Who Releases “Maximum A’s and B’s”
Much of John Entwistle’s best bass work is showcased in a new collection from The Who. Maximum A’s and B’s compiles the band’s complete singles discography into a five-disc box set. The collection has 86 tracks from their time with four labels: Brunswick, Reaction, Track, and Polydor. It begins with songs they released as The High Numbers (“Zoot Suit” and...