This is an ambitious effort. This will be a fascinating conversation. Our goal at Groove is to build the largest oral history of bass players. Join our host, Mitch Joel, on this adventure.
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There are bass players who are able to cross musical genres, but few do it as well as Tim Lefebvre. His playing consistently demonstrates an uncanny ability to adapt to a wide range of different styles. It may well be the exact reason why David Bowie chose Tim to play on his final studio album, Blackstar, which was released two...
Miroslav Vitous. A legendary musician. A true innovator of the bass. Those are facts. Vitous attended the Prague Conservatory (where he played with Jan Hammer long before either of them were stars), which led him to Berklee College of Music. In the mid sixties Miroslav moved to New York, and found himself in the middle of one of the most...
In 1996, bass player Rhonda Smith did something that few musicians can ever lay claim to. She joined Prince’s astounding backing band, The New Power Generation. The years, miles, and practice that brought her to this moment cannot be underestimated. Getting on Prince’s radar is tough enough. Getting a place in this ferocious musical tsunami of funk is a whole...
There’s crazy stories and then there’s really crazy stories. The timeline of Arthur Barrow’s success falls into the “really crazy story” category (without question). Barrow – a young musician trying to find his way – decides to teach himself the electric bass in 1974 while attending the University of North Texas in Denton, Texas. He was studying composition and organ,...
Tony Levin is a bass specialist. Pure, simple, and rhythmic. Bass players know how hard it is to find one’s voice. Levin has not only found his voice but a very distinct sound, playing style, and groove, whether he’s playing electric, upright, or the Chapman Stick. It would be easy to lump him into the progressive rock genre (consider his...
Take one second, head over to Google Images and do a search for Jack Casady. A life in images. That’s not Photoshop. That’s him. A lifetime of electric bass history and evolution all rolled up into this individual who played for Jefferson Airplane, Hot Tuna and more. He’s – rightfully – in the Rock n’ Roll Hall of Fame and...
Who is Divinity Roxx? Musician? Bassist? Rapper? Singer? Producer? Performer? Composer? Musical director? Much more. Divinity Roxx is a true artist. The electric bass is her tool to get her message out. She mixes and crosses genres (from rock to rap to funk to jazz). She was both the bassist and Musical Director for Beyonce from 2006 – 2011. She’s...
Jeff Berlin had a moment that he describes as “the dark night of the soul” at the age of sixty. Now, he’s 63 and he’s reflecting. He’s reflecting on his career as one of the most influential electric bass players who has ever lived, and he’s being critical of just how critical he has been about the state of the...
Imagine playing the bass when your last name is Pastorius. Many of us might think that this is a blessing. There is no question that Jaco Pastorius is one of (if not THE) founding fathers of the modern electric bass. His son, Felix Pastorius, has no desire to carry-on the legacy, other than to find his own path with the...
Is there a better way to celebrate the one year anniversary of Groove – The No Treble Podcast than to dive into the amazingly, unconventional and beautiful playing of Stuart Hamm? Back in the late eighties, I made the mistake of thinking that Hamm was a full-on rocker, due to his work with Steve Vai, Joe Satriani and Frank Gambale....
When I was growing up – and was a young and impressionable musician – every bass player wanted to be Jaco Pastorius (that’s not true, the rockers wanted to be Billy Sheehan). These virtuosos seemed unreachable. There was no Internet. There was no Twitter. No Skype. All we knew about these icons was what we heard on vinyl, cassettes and...
The Music Lesson is a book that will forever change you. Not because it was written by one of the world’s greatest bass players but because the message is core to living a life worth celebrating. Music is all over Victor Wooten. He was bathed in it from the womb (that’s not a clever play on words, just ask him)....