Buzz
Adam Clayton Talks About New U2 Songs
In an interview posted on U2.com, Adam Clayton spoke about U2’s plans for new songs. The band just returned to the stage in Turin, Italy after Bono recovered from his back injury. During their downtime, Clayton said they’ve been laying down tracks of new material. “We’ve been doing some rehearsing but mainly we’ve been doing recording,” the bassist said. “That...
Felice Del Gaudio: Dido Dado
Here’s Italian bassist, Felice Del Gaudio, playing his tune Dido Dado which features some tasty fretless bass playing.
The Bass Line Encyclopedia
Alfred Music has just released the Bass Line Encyclopedia by Tim Ferguson. The book is a reference for bass players to expand their knowledge of genres and styles, therefore increasing their versatility. It features over 100 bass lines in tons of styles, including Chicago blues, Texas blues, heavy metal, punk, funk, bebop, jazz, reggae, samba, bluegrass, and more. The lines...
Jean Baudin Releases “The Mechanics of Tapping” Method Book
Jean Baudin, the bassist famous for his “Super Mario theme song” performance on 11-string extended bass and other videos, has released a method book on bass tapping technique. The Mechanics of Tapping is a 58 page ebook aimed at beginning and intermediate bassists. The book covers Baudin’s approach to tapping with tab for both the left and right hand and...
Slap Bass 101: Part 2 – Building on the Basics
Last time, we covered the basics in my introduction to slap bass lesson. This week, we’re going to build on the concepts of the introduction, covering basic thumb slapping, ghosted notes, muting and offbeat bass lines. Next: Part 3 – left hand slap and hammer-ons.
Esperanza Spalding: Little Fly
Esperanza Spalding has a released a video performance of “Little Fly”, from her upcoming album , to be released on August 17th. “Little Fly” is the first track on the album. Be sure to check out our review of Chamber Music Society.
Gorillaz Announce North American Tour, with Paul Simonon
The Gorilaz have announced an extensive North American fall tour in support of their March 2010 release, Plastic Beach. This is the third album from the animated group, which was created by Blur frontman Damon Albarn and Tank Girl animator Jamie Hewlett. The tour will mark a rite of passage for the group, as it will be the first time...
Gear Watch: Peterson StroboClip Tuner
Peterson is now shipping their latest addition to their Virtual Strobe series, the StroboClip. Designed with acoustic instruments in mind, the StroboClip is the world’s first clip-on strobe tuner and features a large strobe display housed in a brushed aluminum shell. The StroboClip also offers up a load of other features including Sweetened Tuning presets for varied instruments and Sustain...
Ask Damian Erskine: Confidence
Q: I’m a newbie and a beginner bassist from Bangladesh. I’m playing (or you can say I’m practicing) with a progressive/metal core rock band. I’m happy with the band, as they are all my friends. But the band leader says I’m not ready to perform on a gig, and that I’m the weakest one, although my bandmates disagree. I’m pretty...
Jaco Pastorius: Solo, Washington DC (1978)
Here’s another video gem featuring Jaco Pastorius. This solo was performed during a Weather Report concert in 1978 in Washington, DC and includes a cool version of Jaco’s famous “Slang” solo and Hendrix’s Band of Gypsy references.
RIP Calvin “Fuzz” Jones
Chicago blues bassist Calvin “Fuzz” Jones passed away August 9th at the age of 84 due to complications from lung cancer. Fuzz was one of the key players to develop the Chicago blues sound with Willie “Big Eyes” Smith as they spent nearly two decades in Muddy Waters’ band, not to mention working with other blues legends like Howlin’ Wolf,...
Reader Spotlight: Michael Kelly
Meet Michael Kelly, our bass player in the spotlight for August 10, 2010. Bio: Michael has been writing, recording, teaching and performing in New York City since 1984, writing and recording professionally with The Ronnie Gent Band, The Grip Weeds and Wide Right. Currently the bassist, vocalist and contributing composer for The Grip Weeds, the band enjoys worldwide distribution and...