Articles by Kevin Johnson - Page 811

Jazz bassist Phil Palombi was given the opportunity of a lifetime. For a week, he was able to borrow Scott LaFaro’s 1825 Prescott bass to record a tribute album to the groundbreaking player. Palombi, who is an expert on LaFaro, realized there has not been a tribute album to the late bassist and decided to make one with Don Friedman...

The Stanley Clarke Foundation has announced the finalists’ concert for the 2011 Stanley Clarke Scholarship, which takes place at the Musicians Institute concert hall in Hollywood California. The event, set for January 8, awards a $12,000 scholarship to the top two Los Angeles high school performers, as deemed by Clarke a panel of music industry judges. An onstage jam session...

Fuchs Audio has announced a new pedal is joining their Plush FX line. The Jersey Thunder is a gain boost and EQ pedal, designed for bass. The pedal features just two knobs: a gain control and a variable EQ control. A three-position switch provides a straight gain boost and two unique bass EQ curves, which are adjustable by the EQ...

Haste the Day bassist Mike Murphy recently announced that the band would be parting ways, after a 10-year run. “There are many reasons why Haste The Day is ending,” he explained. “However, we mainly feel as though we have created the best music we can and believe it is now time for us to move on to the next stage...

Nordstrand Pickups has released the NM4, a replacement pickup for the Fender Mustang Bass. The pickup is a direct replacement size for the original and utilizes Nordstrand’s angled pole piece technology. The company claims that this “tiny pickup” is designed to produce a fat full tone from a Mustang, which is a short scale bass. The package does not include...

Prince (yes, Prince) straps on a bass for some Larry Graham/Bootsy Collins inspired-playing for his tune “Get Wild.” This was filmed live at The White Room UK in 1994.

In a recent interview with the Quietus, Motorhead frontman Lemmy Kilmister revealed how he got his start on bass. Though he was originally a guitar player, a chance opportunity came up with the band Hawkwind after their bassist no-showed. ”I was mediocre at guitar,” Lemmy explained. “I couldn’t play lead to save my life, or yours. I went for a...

The Gregg Allman band is hitting the road for a Winter 2010/2011 tour that runs up and down the east coast, with bassist Jerry Jemmott. The group is making the trek in support of Allman’s upcoming album, Low Country Blues. The album, which actually features bassist Dennis Crouch, is a collection of cover songs by famous bluesmen, including Muddy Waters,...

Overton Amps will be making their debut at the 2011 NAMM Show, with the introduction of their new product line of bass amplifiers. Included in the line is company’s new Featherweight bass amp series, OB series bass cabinets and Tremor compact bass combos. Housed in red anodized, single rackspace head units, the Featherweight series features a studio quality compressor, semi-parametric...

Stu Hamm has just released a new solo album, entitled Just Outside of Normal. The album, which is his first studio album in ten years, is a somewhat eclectic mix of songs ranging from a rock to classical to swing. There’s even a polka! Hamm recruited an all-star cast of musicians to back him up including Joe Satriani, Robert Fripp,...

A new cookbook entitled Mosh Potatoes features 150 recipes from the kings of heavy metal, including Zakk Wylde, Guns & Roses, Lamb of God, Moth Eater, Shadows Fall, Anthrax, Testament, Overkill, Pantera and more. Penned by Steve “Buckshot” Seabury, the 272-page book also includes photos and anecdotes from the musicians. Our favorite bassist recipes include Lemmy’s Krakatoa Surprise, Rex Brown’s...

Eden Electronics has released the WTDI pedal, a beefed up direct box/preamp fit into a 4.75”x 2”x3.5” package. The pedal features true bypass and both 1/4” and XLR outputs that allow you to go into a PA as well as directly into the power amp section of a rig. The design also lets you use it as a 2nd, 3rd,...