News - Page 402

Bassist and educator David Overthrow has released Electric Bass Method Complete, a comprehensive method book published by Alfred Music Publishing in conjunction with the National Guitar Workshop. The method offers basic to advanced techniques, starting with the basics of the instrument, reading music and building bass lines to intermediate concepts such as using scales, slap and pop techniques, string muting,...

The final performance by mambo legend Israel “Cachao” Lopez has been released as a two disc set, entitled The Last Mambo. The concert, which celebrated the bassist’s 80 years in music, was held at the Ziff Opera House a the Adrienne Arsht Center in Miami Florida in 2007. The album has Cachao leading a 24-piece orchestra. The Cuban born Cachao...

Bootsy Collins has a released a new studio album, one he calls a “musical biography”, with strong ties to the bassist’s four decades in the music business. Tha Funk Capital Of The World features many cameo appearances including fellow P-Funkers George Clinton and Bernie Worrell, rappers Snoop Dogg, Chuck D, and Ice Cube, guitarists Buckethead and Catfish Collins (Bootsy’s late...

Hal Leonard has released Jazz Bass on Top: A Guide to Left-Hand Technique by Andy McKee, an instructional book for double bass aimed at improving fingerboard facility through 50 jazz songs. Presented in order of difficulty, the tunes range from “The Girl From Ipanema” to “Teen Town,” and teach walking bass lines as well as soloing techniques. McKee, who teaches...

The lineup for the 2011 Montreux Jazz Festival has been announced, and it will be a solid year for bass lovers. A few of the bassists set to perform include Grammy winner Esperanza Spalding, Larry Graham, Bootsy Collins, Christian McBride, Richard Bona and Marcus Miller, who will be performing as part of a tribute to Miles Davis. The fest is...

Hal Leonard’s latest book in their Music Pro Guides series is Rockin’ Your Stage Sound: A Musician’s Guide to Professional Live Audio, a step-by-step guide to improving your stage sound. The book, penned by professional live-sound engineer Rob Gainey, features over 170 stage tips, including 100 tops from players in nationally recognized acts. Topics including microphones and miking technique, monitor...

Harriet Tubman, the group formed in 1998 by bassist Melvin Gibbs, guitarist Brandon Ross and drummer J.T. Lewis has released their latest effort, entitled . The album, recorded live in 2000, is an interpretation of John Coltrane’s 1966 release of the same name. True to form, the group pushes the musical boundaries with this release, expanding to a “Double Trio”...

Bassist Bakithi Kumalo will be joining Paul Simon once again for a global tour in support of the new album So Beautiful or So What. The trek will take them from coast to coast in the U.S. before heading to Europe in June. Kumalo and Simon first worked together when the singer recruited a band for his classic album, Graceland....

Bassist Trip Wamsley shared on his Facebook page that Legoland Empire has released Guard the Point, a new 4-track EP on Bandcamp. Wamsley, whose playing on the album ranges from funky grooves to gnarly distorted riffs, describes the album as masterminded by former Wild Cherry bassist Allen Wentz. The group also includes Neil Alexander on keys and guitarist Rob Michael....

Duff McKagan‘s side project, Loaded, has just released their latest album, The Taking, the group’s third studio effort and the follow up to the 2009 release, Sick. The album was recorded in August, 2010 with veteran producer Terry Date (Pantera, Slipknot and others), and features newcomer Isaac Carpenter on drums. The former Guns ‘N Roses bassist/cofounder had a busy 2010,...

Bassist/composer Ben Allison has released his tenth album as a bandleader, entitled Action-Refraction. The disc features Allison’s takes on songs by his favorite artists, including PJ Harvey, Donny Hathaway, Thelonious Monk, Neil Young, Samuel Barber and Roger Nichols. This is a new approach for the composer as only one of the tracks, Broken, is an original. The idea for the...

Jazz bassist Rufus Reid has teamed up once again with pianist Steve Allee and drummer Duduka Da Fonseca for Hues of a Different Blue, a 14-track album that also features the talents of saxophonists JD Allen and Bobby Watson, trumpeter Freddie Hendrix, and Brazilian guitarist Toninho Horta. The songs are a nice combination of Reid’s originals with standards mixed in,...