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John Paul Jones: “What Is And What Should Never Be” Isolated Bass Track
If you’re looking for vintage tone and a melodic groove, look no further. Zach McFatridge shared this clip of John Paul Jones’s isolated bass from the Led Zeppelin classic “What Is And What Should Never Be” from their second album. With some bleed from the drums, it’s easy to hear Jones and drummer John Bonham locked in tight.
Tribal Tech Returns with the Release of “X”
It has been over a decade since Tribal Tech released a new album, but thankfully, the quartet is making their return with the release of , out today. Anchored by bassist Gary Willis, Tribal Tech returns with their line up of guitarist Scott Henderson, keyboardist Scott Kinsey and drummer Kirk Covington, X marks the tenth album by the group originally...
Ampeg Expands Portaflex Series With New Cabinets
Ampeg has unveiled a new pair of bass cabinets in their Portaflex series called the PF-115LF and the PF-410LF. While the series previously had a 1×15? cabinet, the 4×10? is a first for the series. Both of the new cabinets are built with a 15mm poplar ply enclosure, covered in black diamond tolex with a vintage B-15 grill cloth. The...
In the Studio: Part 3 – Aural Communication
Today, we continue where we left off in this “In the Studio” column series. Be sure to check out part one and two of this series. Mixes In my experience, (unless you are all in the same room and not using headphones) it is extremely beneficial for each musician in the studio have their own personal mix going into their...
Marcus Miller: “Nocturnal Mist” and “Revelation” Rehearsal
Marcus Miller is currently on tour in Europe, and we’ve heard he’s been playing tunes from his upcoming album, Renaissance. Marcus just posted some really cool videos of the band rehearsing during this tour, including the very songs we’d heard about. Here’s the bassist and his band rehearsing “Nocturnal Mist” and “Revelation”. The band includes Alex Han on sax, Kris...
Top 10: New Bass Gear from Fender, Warwick and Sandberg, Plus the Top Bass Videos and Lessons of the Week
Just as we’re finally nearing the end of the 2012 NAMM news comes news from the 2012 Musikmesse show. Top gear stories from last week include Rotosound’s new bass string cleaner, Godin’s Shifter Classic 4 bass, Fender’s updated American Standard Series Jazz and Precision and Sandberg’s Electra Vs 4 bass and Warwick’s two new Robert Trujillo Signature basses. Also, our...
Paul McCartney Announces “RAM” Reissue
Paul McCartney has just announced that RAM, the 1971 album recorded with his wife Linda, will be re-released across a variety of formats with new content. “Ladies and gentlemen, this is an album from a long, long time ago, when the world was different,” McCartney said. “This is an album that is part of my history – it goes back...
Digitech Unveils iStomp Configurable Stompbox
Digitech has released the iStomp, a configurable stompbox pedal that can be changed to different effects. Different effects ranging from reverb to distortion can be downloaded from the new Digitech Stomp Shop and can then be loaded into the iStomp via an iPod Touch, iPhone, or iPad and a proprietary cable. All effects processing takes place in the actual stompbox,...
Keisuke Baba: 14 Year Old Bassist Covers RHCP’s “Tell Me Baby”
We’ve featured some incredible young bassists here before… and here’s another who just hit our radar. Keisuke Baba is a bassist from Japan who recorded this play-along when he was just 14 years old. But the real story is that Keisuke had only been playing for about 8 or 9 months at this point. Keisuke said “Sorry, there are a...
Ron Carter on The Role of the Bassist, Performing and Miles Davis
Bass legend Ron Carter‘s list of credits and musical accomplishments are among the most impressive – if not the most impressive – among bassists in music history. His appearances on more than 2,500 albums make him one of the most-recorded bassists in jazz history, joining the ranks of Milt Hinton, Ray Brown and Leroy Vinnegar. Carter is nearing his 75th...
Fender Upgrades American Standard Series for 2012
Fender has raised the bar for 2012 by upgrading their American Standard series of instruments, including the Precision and Jazz basses. The main change is the inclusion of Fender Custom Shop pickups for each model, while other slight adjustments and a new finish also help to update the line. First up, the American Standard Precision basses now feature Fender Custom...
Nathan Navarro: Chemical (Dubstep Bass Guitar 2)
Nathan Navarro has been turning heads since he started incorporating electric bass into more electronic styles, most notably Dubstep. He sent us his second dubstep bass guitar video of his original song “Chemical.” Nathan uses a lot of “wobble” technique, though things take a heavier turn at about 1:37 that sounds more reminiscent of Meshuggah.