Buzz
Kristian Persson Elements, with Johan Hansén-Larson: Boombap
You may remember Johan Hansén-Larson from his unbelievable note-for-note performance of Cannonball Adderly’s solo on “Minority”. The bassist sent us a video of one of his current projects with trombonist Kristian Persson. Besides laying down some really nasty grooves, Hansén-Larson gets some time to shine in a bass solo starting at the two minute mark.
U2: Bass Play-Along
Hal Leonard has introduced a new book in their Bass Play-Along series, with the release of U2: Bass Play-Along Volume 41. The 80 page book offers bass tab, plus the lyrics and melody for eight U2 tunes, and the bass lines by Adam Clayton. As with all the books in Hal Leonard’s Play-Along series, Volume 41 includes a companion CD,...
Bill Wyman Reportedly Reuniting with the Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are gearing up for a 50th anniversary celebration, and with it comes news of the band entering the studio for another album. A 50th anniversary event is rumored to be in the works for 2013, 50 years after Charlie Watts joined the group, which happened in January, 1963. Bill Wyman, the bassist who joined the group in...
Epiphone Introduces Limited Edition Jack Casady Signature Bass
Epiphone has announced a new, limited edition of the Jack Casady Signature Bass in a rare Silverburst finish. Limited to 500 instruments, the semi-hollowbody bass is built with set-neck construction with a mahogany neck and laminated maple top, back and sides for the body. Designed by Casady in collaboration with Epiphone, the bass sports a low-impedance JCB-1 humbucker. “I went...
Dizzy Gillespie Orchestra, Featuring Ray Brown: One Bass Hit
There are so many players I get inspired by, but whenever someone asks me who my favorite bass player is, I always say “Ray Brown”. His groove, technique, melodicism, and swagger always captivates me, so I was pumped to find this clip of him featured with Dizzy Gillespie’s Orchestra in 1947. At a mere 21 years of age, you can...
Coheed and Cambria Welcome Zach Cooper as New Bassist
Nearly nine months after parting ways with Michael Todd, Coheed and Cambria have announced Zach Cooper as their new full-time bassist. Cooper, who played with AM to AM, got a cold call to audition from the band’s manager. The group made the announcement with a YouTube video introducing him. Coheed and Cambria is currently in the studio working on the...
Ibanez Releases New Promethean P3115 Bass Combo Amp
Ibanez expanded their Promethean combo series this year with the P3115, a 300-watt combo amp with a 15? driver and an HF dome tweeter with a passive crossover. Unique to the P3115 is an on/off switch for the tweeter, allowing for more tonal variety by eliminating unnecessary high frequency overtones. It also features a Class-D power amplifier and internal limiter...
Treat Yourself to Some Inspiration
As artists, we are constantly on the search for one thing: inspiration. Inspiration fuels our art, influences our style, and pushes us to perfect our craft. It’s what keeps us learning bass line after bass line, way into the wee hours of the morning, and it persuades us to call one drummer over another. It also pushes us to look...
Sunder Panatella: “The Answer” Solo Bass Performance
Grant Stinnett sent in this great video of Sunder Panatella playing his ethereal and original solo bass composition, “The Answer.” “The inspiration [for] this song came from different emotions that I experienced and I had few questions that I’ve been searching the answers for,” Panatella explained. “I think I found ‘The Answer’ thru music.” For the song, Panatella used the...
Dream Theater Announces Summer Tour with the Crimson Projekct
Prog fans will have lots to look forward to this summer as Dream Theater is teaming up with Crimson Projekct for a hefty North American tour. The two bands will be kicking it off on June 15th in Rochester, New York before hitting Quebec, then criss-crossing the U.S. This marks the second North American leg of Dream Theater’s tour in...
Bass of the Week: Lane Poor Minima
While looking up videos of Jack Casady on YouTube, I stumbled upon a real head-turner of a bass: the Lane Poor Minima. Poor, who is renowned for his pickups, designed and manufactured the bass in the early ’90s. Besides the obvious headless and stepped-tuner body design, the Minima had a graphite fingerboard with special epoxy “frets”, which as Bob Gollihur...
Stories Behind the Songs: Jerry Jemmott
Chances are, if you’re listening to a Soul hit from back in the day, you’re listening to Jerry Jemmott. In his prolific career spanning over 40 years, the bassist’s work helped shape the Atlantic Records and Muscle Shoals sounds. He has left his stamp on some generation-defining hits alongside musicians such as Aretha Franklin, Herbie Hancock, King Curtis, B.B. King,...