Buzz
Pat Metheny Releases Music from DVD with His Unity Group
Jazz guitar great Pat Metheny’s Unity Group has released The Unity Sessions, the CD version of a filmed performance by the group recently released on DVD. The two-CD set features 13 songs and the bass work of past Thelonius Monk competition winner Ben Williams, who also has a solo career. “Ben has a fearless and open-minded approach to what music...
Reader Spotlight: Tom Sinnett
Meet Tom Sinnett, a bassist living in London, doing the music (and the coffee) thing. Tom is a man of many styles, as you’ll see below. He’s our No Treble reader in the spotlight this week, and here’s his story… Bio: I’m a bassist/composer/teacher, originally from Wales but now based in London. I started out at 14 playing rock and...
Grateful Dead Set Gives Classic 1978 Show an Official Release
A show from one of the The Grateful Dead’s earliest stands at Colorado’s Red Rocks Amphitheatre has finally received an official release as a three-CD set after circulating among fans for decades. As always, Phil Lesh holds down the low end on the set, simply called Red Rocks Amphitheatre, Morrison, Colorado, 7/8/78. The show’s audio is pulled from the Betty...
Steven Blasini: Sound Chaser Play-Along
Steven Blasini, aka BlasiniBass, sent me this video of him playing through to the Yes tune, “Sound Chaser”. Not only did he nail it, he played it on a Epiphone Viola strung with flat wound strings! “The following is for HARD CORE YES fans only,” he shared “I had been avoiding it all this time because it’s so damn complex...
In Memoriam: Jane Little
Double bassist Jane Little, who was the longest tenured orchestra member in the world, passed away on May 14th doing what she loved: playing bass. In a bittersweet twist of fate, the 87-year-old collapsed during an encore performance with the Atlanta Symphony during the song, “There’s No Business Like Show Business.” Little served in the orchestra for over seven decades....
Bass of the Week: Fede Caceres Luthier El Cabure
This week we’re taking a look at a bass called El Cabure by Argentinian luthier Fede Caceres. The curvaceous four-stringer features some interesting wood choices, especially with its flamed eucalyptus top. Its body is made of cancharana, which is a wood native to South America, while the neck is a laminate of cancharana and flamed maple. The ebony fingerboard is...
Keeping Time in Jazz
I love a good bass solo as much, or probably more, than the next person. In the band, however, our most important job is to “keeping time.” Below are a few things we can do in the practice room to help improve our “time” before we get to the gig. Pick a tune you know well, i.e. by memory, and...
Felipe Gomez: Last Man Standing
We featured bassist Felipe Gomez a couple of weeks ago in our Reader Spotlight. Since then, Felipe reached out and shared this video with us, featuring some bass with slide. “I did this video soundtrack for my upcoming documentary, about playing my bass on the Arctic,” he shared. This is some amazing bass to go along with his amazing story.
Onetime Zappa Bassist Releases Memoir
Bassist Arthur Barrow, known for his time with Frank Zappa in the late 1970s and early 1980s, as well as his multi-instrumentalist turns with Billy Idol, Nina Hagen, Berlin and more, has penned a book, Of Course I Said Yes!: The Amazing Adventures of a Life in Music. Barrow, who played on Zappa’s Joe’s Garage Act I, Joe’s Garage Acts...
Weekly Top 10: New Bass Gear, How to Reharmonize A Song, Top Bass Videos, Talking Technique and More
Time to celebrate another week of top stories, lessons and videos from the world of bass. Here are the the top 10 No Treble reader favorites for the week of May 7-13, 2016. Thanks for reading, watching, commenting and sharing. 1. Fodera Unveils Imperial Mini-MG Bass Fodera and Matthew Garrison have teamed up once again to introduce the Imperial Mini-MG....
Fender Introduces Pro In-Ear Monitors
Fender has introduced their first line of Pro In-Ear Monitors. The new in-ears are designed and hand-assembled in Nashville, Tennessee and come in five models: the DXA1, the FXA2, the FXA5, the FXA6 and the FXA7. “All models except the DXA1 boast 3D-printed digital hybrid technology housings, custom designed drivers and select models in the series feature a patented Hybrid-Dynamic...
Eduardo Machado and Gabriel Grossi: Three Views of a Secret
Eduardo Machado sent this video to us, and it knocked me out. Here’s the duo of Eduardo on bass and Gabriel Grossi on harmonica doing their own unique version of the Jaco Pastorius tune, “Three Views of a Secret” – one of the greatest compositions of all time in my book.