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Issue #283
January 25, 1993
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
To post: Subscriptions, deletions, requests:
bass@uwplatt.edu bass-request@uwplatt.edu
(Bitnet: bass@uwplatt.bitnet) (Bitnet: bass-request@uwplatt.bitnet)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Today's topics:
Recording and mixing bass
Reading...
Pedulla for sale
Wooten & Bailey To Record Album
Anyone want a SWR Goliath?
Primus Tab / Comp.-Lim. Guru
Ron Carter plays Bach?
Under-rated Bassists
RE: The Bottom Line #282
Fender Bass amps under $300
TBL Logo Stuff - Bass Lessons
Warwick Thumb Bass
RE: Joni & Jaco
GIF file download
Zen and the Art of the Bass
RE: OVER Rated Players; Paul╣s Recording Problems; Neck
Thru╣s vs Bolt-Ons
RE: More On Warmoth Necks
OVERrated Bass Player Meets Bach
Under-rated bass players
Information about acoustic bass guitars
Standing in the Shadows of Motown
RE: underrated players ... thanx
TBL comments
Ungrounded amplifiers
----------------------------------------------------------
Administrative notes:
Those of you who found your "undigestifying" software not
working with the _Bottom Line_ not too long ago should give
it another try. Something mysteriously fixed itself so that
the formatting comes out correct. Don't ask me how...
Geez, you guys have been *monsters* on the keyboards lately.
Just -look- at all those "Today's topics." The nice thing is,
though, that I don't find myself skimming over too much; the
signal-to-noise ratio remains respectably high on this list,
which is something few groups seem to be able to attain. Give
yourselves pats on the backs (how many more plurals...).
Plus, it makes my job much easier. :) Kevin
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sun, 24 Jan 93 00:38:45 EST
From: nathan@hilbert.biology.YALE.EDU
Subject: Recording and mixing bass
> From: Paul Desjarlais <paul_desjarlais@pharlap.com>
>
> This leads me to some questions on recording; I'd love to see
> more discussion of bass recording techniques in TBL, if
> anyone has some tips, because getting a good bass sound in a
> mix on tape still manages to elude me and my band.
I just finished co-engineering and co-producing an album
for a local "alternative rock" group ("Swansons")
composed of drums, bass, guitar and vocals. We recorded in the
home studio of a local musician equipped with two Alesis ADAT
digital recorders (16 total tracks), and mixed down to DAT.
There were two Yamaha 12x4 recording boards that were quiet
enough, but nothing to write home about.
Basic instrumental tracks were recorded with drums, bass,
and guitar playing together for good "feel" to the musicians
(and the drummer - just kidding ;-)). The stock Mexican
Fender P-bass was run direct into an Alesis 3630
compressor, then into a Chandler Tube Driver set for a clean
setting with just a touch of tube bite, and then into the
board. The Tube Driver added a lot of high end to the sound of
the bass. The compressor was set to reduce about 6-9 dB during
the loudest peaks of the low E string, a ratio of about 4:1.
For mixdown, a BBE 402 was instrumental (no pun intended) in
adding punch and definition to the bass tracks (as well as
the acoustic kick drum and snare). A BBE seems to add low end
EQ, and high end phase tricks.
One final note that might be easy to overlook in the search
for a technical solution: the music we recorded was
composed and arranged so that there was space for the bass to
punch through in plenty of places. They avoided all the
instruments battling it out all the time for room in the mix
by writing guitar parts that were sometimes pounding,
sometimes ethereal, sometimes completely silent. There
are some great drum+bass-only groves that last for several
measures where the bass could be really punched up in the mix.
Good luck!
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sun, 24 Jan 93 02:46:05 -0800
From: jimlynch@netcom.com
Subject: Reading...
Why?
If you're interested in learning functional harmony (a _must_ for most players;
all others will benefit greatly), you must read. Not necessarily sightread,
but at least be able to get the notes out fast enough so's you can follow
what is being said about it.
If you read, you have access to more than 400 years of music. Believe me,
*NOTHING* is new. It's all been done one way or another and you have access to
it.
If you don't read, you're stuck with copying albums or composing on tape. And
for composing, what do you have to go on? _Only_ what you have heard. Only
what the music industry wants every 13-year old to hear, because anything
else is not marketable.
_Problems_
Most of the time there are two kinds of players: readers and listeners. The
problem with readers who _started out_ reading is that that's the only way
they can play. They (generally) have no ear training, theory or improvisational
backround; they just read and play.
By-ear players (who have been playing for decades with people without any
formal theory backround) have a hell of a time learning to read because their
_great_ ear gets _in the way_. They hear some other line that's stronger
or they hear a sharp dissonance and they think it's wrong immediately.
(they may be right, but that fact doesn't help with the reading.)
If I thought there were readers only, I would encourage them to go to jam
sessions, get up with the house band and _listen_ carefully to what's going
on in the music while playing, but I don't think there are read-only players,
(that read this column), so I won't say that.
The combination of the two is a rare and beautiful player who should definitely
be writing (either by tape or on paper.)
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: 24 Jan 1993 13:09:58 -0500 (EST)
From: Mike Hutchinson <HUTCHINS@ITHACA.BITNET>
Subject: Pedulla for sale
FOR SALE:
MV Pedulla Series II fretted 4-string bass
LEFT-HANDED
Bartolini PJ combo with TBIBT active EQ and preamp
Gloss black finish, black hardware
Hardshell case
Used about six months, great condition
Invoice price (new): $1820
If interested please email hutchins@ithaca.bitnet or call me
at (607) 256-8303 ... after 5pm EST is best, otherwise leave a message.
-- Mike Hutchinson
Ithaca, NY, USA
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sun, 24 Jan 93 13:15:56 MST
From: Erik Habbinga <habbinga@csn.org>
Subject: Wooten & Bailey To Record Album
The following is quoted from an ADA Trends brochure I found a a music store
over the weekend:
Bassists Steve Bailey and Victor L. Wooten, brought together by ADA in
1992, will be recording a CD together. The two bass masters [isn't that
a tv show???] made their live debut at last year's ADA NAMM booth, drawing
much media and industry attention. The album will be distributed by CPP
Belwin and will be packaged with an instructional book containing complete
transcriptions. The duo are hoping to begin recording in LA while they're
both in town for winter NAMM '93.
Victor keeps a full calendar touring with Bela Fleck as one of the
Flecktones in support of the band's third Warner Bros. release "UFO TOFU."
Like their previous efforts, the album is a top ten fixture on Billboard's
Jazz charts. His playing continues to win him acclaim, including a second
place standing in Guitar Player's recent reader's poll.
Steve Bailey pursues a breakneck schedule of touring, session work,
and teaching at B.I.T. He recently went out with Kitaro & Jon Anderson
as part of an orchestral group including Doane Perry of Jethro Tull
and Mickey Hart of the Grateful Dead.
Steve's unique 6-string fretless playing style combined with Victor's
innovative slapping, poppiung, and tapping create a mesmerizingly
complete musical sound that cannot be missed!
I will not attempt to draw the accompanying picture with ASCII characters!!
[ Send it to Paul Desjarlais to fill his time. :) :) Bass Mgr. ]
Erik
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Sun, 24 Jan 1993 17:50:45 -0500 (EST)
From: Len Moskowitz <moskowit@Panix.Com>
Subject: Anyone want a SWR Goliath?
Thought all us TBL'ers would be interested in this:
My local Sam Ash (Paramus, NJ) is selling a used SWR Goliath
cabinet in very good condition for $399. Their phone number is
201-843-0119; ask for Bill Karcher. Bill is the assistant
manager there and a nice guy. I've no connection with him
other than being a long term satisfied customer.
(The Goliath has 4 - 10" speakers and a bullet tweeter.)
Len Moskowitz
moskowit@panix.com
[ Hey Len, ask the dealer in a few days how many people have flooded
the phone line. I'm curious. Bass Mgr. ]
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: 25 Jan 1993 09:05:03 +0100
From: Peter Vermeeren <ELMEMG@urc.tue.nl>
Subject: Primus Tab / Comp.-Lim. Guru
Hi !
Matt's right (BL#279) ! Mike Watt (fIREHOSE/Dos/ex-Minutemen) also
belongs on the list of unknown heroes. Don't wanna be the wise guy
or so however, but he plays on an ooooooooooold Tele bass with EMG's
and on nothing else as it seems (and I think that's a right choice 'cos
I L I K E his sound and playing). More on this lumberjack in the
summer '90 issue of Bass Player.
Ken asks for Primus tab (BL#280). I remember there was some tab some
time ago but can't track down the BL issues right now. Hey, I do
admire your courage: playing for about four months and asking
for tab of 'Tommy the Cat' ! I saw this tab in a magazine a year
ago and at home, what I remembered of it seemed next to impossible
to me then. 'Those Damned...Tweekers' is easy however, you should
try this one. Would like to see the tab that is sent to you directly
in BL.
Let me finish by thanking the Almighty Compressor/Limiter Guru
(RE to BL#277). To my surprise, there appeared to be two of Them !
But luckily They BOTH told me very wise things so I didn't get
confused which One of Them to believe. I think I'm gonna try the
Boss CL-50, the DBX 163X and the Alesis 3630 (stereo this last one,
so also usable for the little bit of band recording that we do).
Hey, and if someone has funny or nasty stories about these boxes
(I remember the CL-50 to be mentioned several times some while ago),
type them down if you like !
Bye,
Peter
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 07:52 EDT
From: JWHITE@OPAL.TUFTS.EDU
Subject: Ron Carter plays Bach?
A couple weeks ago, a jazz-head friend of mine bought the Ron Carter disc. He
loaned it to me to see what I thought, since I'm a bass player (of sorts,
anyway). Well, to tell the truth, I couldn't listen to the entire disc. Now
Ron Carter has a great reputation and has played on a bunch of great tunes.
BUT I have to agree with pmb - the intonation is off for all the upper
register stuff. My friend loves both Ron Carter and Bach, but he was wondering
if he was hearing the songs wrong - they sounded off to him as well.
Unfortunately, I wouldn't recommend this disc - with all due respect to Mr.
Carter - $16 is a lot of dough for a CD that you can't listen to. (Geesh, and
I don't even _like_ critics!)
Joel
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: 25 Jan 93 09:21:27 U
From: Oz Barron <oz_barron@pharlap.com>
Subject: Under-rated Bassists
Ok, Bracing myself for derision:
Peter Cetera! Ok, he's become a wimpy pop signer, but check out the old
Chicago stuff (especially 1-5) and he plays very melodically. On many
occasions, the bass is the 4th horn in the horn section.
-oz
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 93 10:13:43 EST
From: djudy@djudy.East.Sun.COM
Subject: RE: The Bottom Line #282
Suggestion: when discussing personal experiences with equipment or
musicians can the sender include a short bio about him/herself?
Like maybe- I have played for X years playing styles include jazz,
funk?
It would really help me in determining the ear of the sender.
Dennis
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 93 08:37:56 PST
From: rrome@bssv02.hac.com
Subject: Fender Bass amps under $300
Greetings all
I am finally going to take the plunge and purchase a low-end amp for my
Fender Jazz (American Std). Having a 2 year old in the house and no
band interest, something less than a Hartke or GK will suit me fine.
Fender's Sidekick 30 and Bassman 60 pack enough punch for me but I can't
get past the fact that they're made in Taiwan and look it. Knobs and
plugs look like Tandy equipment at best. Compared them with a 60 Watt
Peavey (no flames) and the Peavey had no punch at all, even though
it looked like a competent Made-in-usa unit.
Any opinions on the Fenders? Haven't tried the RAD bass yet, but
I hear it has a smaller speaker and less watts than a sidekick.
Thanks, and email would be great as I am not yet re-subscribed to the
group.
Russ Romero (rrome@bssv02.hac.com)
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 93 11:19
From: TYOUNG.GATEWAY@cssm004.StPaul.NCR.COM
Subject: TBL Logo Stuff - Bass Lessons
I have placed the the TBL Logo out at the Kappa archive in corel draw
format (TBL-LOGO,CDR).
The reason being, there is a company call Image Graphics that will take
this image and
imprint on coffee mugs ( 7.50) , Mouse Pads (12.95), Beer Steins( 12.95),
T-shirts ( 12.95)
as well as jackets, aprons etc. etc. etc.. There is no charge for color,
so if the creator wants
to go wild I will gladly attempt another conversion.
The conversion is not quire as good as the original in the fine detail,
but it is satisfactory.
Image graphic requires a 25.00 min order and can be reached at
(205)-222-4166.
The image can be sent via mode at (205)-222-6586 (24hrs) or mailed on a
floppy.
BTW: Hooray for the Bass lessons so generously included in the last
issue. Where else
but on the net can you find such great people ?.
Todd Young
Todd.Young@STPaul.NCR.com
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 93 13:00:41 EST
From: Al <UGG00111@vm.uoguelph.ca>
Subject: Warwick Thumb Bass
Hi, all, and to business.
A fellow I know is offering to sell me a Warwick Thumb bass (5 string) for
$1000 canadian (sorry I don't have the foggiest about exchange rates today).
Assuming I like it, is this a deal, a steal...has anyone had any problems
with 'em?
Al
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 10:04:04 -0800
From: spence@snake.esd.sgi.com
Subject: RE: Joni & Jaco
> I just to write cause I just listened to one of my all time favorite
> songs - Joni Mitchell's "Cotton Avenue" with Jaco playing. It is on
> her album called "Don Juan's Reckless Daughter." Give it a listen if
> you can and let me know what you think.
>
great song. my personal favorite is "jericho", from the same album.
the interaction of everyone playing on this song is wonderful. i love
the way joni's meandering melody line is accented by jaco. also, wayne
shorter's sparse but expressive lines add emphasis to the vocals.
can anyone recommend other joni albums with jaco?
spence
[ My favorite is still the live _Shadows and Light_, especially
"Dry Cleaner from Des Moines." Bass Mgr. ]
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 12:13:58 CST
From: grahams@uwwvax.uww.edu
Subject: GIF file download
I had no problem with the GIF file when I downloaded it. I am using a program
called VUIMAGE to see what it looks like. VUIMAGE is version 3.20. I down-
loaded on 1/5/93. Hope that helps.
Steven Graham
GRAHAMS@UWWVAX.UWW.EDU
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: 25 Jan 1993 14:01:06 -0500 (EST)
From: stu1016@discover.wright.edu
Subject: Zen and the Art of the Bass
I've been reading TBL lately and I'd like to add my $0.03 (Hey I'm an Alembic
Player, I'm used to things being more expensive. :^) ) to several threads.
RE: To Read, or not to read,
----------------------------
I feel that the area of my playing that is most lacking is that I cant read
I dont think its really a matter of "Why should I read?" it's a matter of
why SHOULDNT your read. Is there harm in learning? And if through learning
you become a better player in the process isn't that reason enough?
I am trying to learn how to read (Slowly!) and I feel that when I can
sight read I will be able to play ANYTHING. The hardest part of my learning
curve is not the technical part. Anyone with two hands, four strings, and ten
fingers can play everything that Jaco, Stu Hamm, Victor Wooten, or John Myung
can play. Period. Technique is just practice. I'm learning 'Portrait of Tracy'
from the TBL Tab and I'm getting better at it. (I can even hit that 2&6 stretch
sometimes now!!!) and I thought that I'd never be able to learn it. The
hardest part is not how you play, it's what you play and why you play it.
If I can pick up sheet music to say "Donna Lee" or 'Giant Steps' I can not
only see what notes are being played but where those notes sit in relation
to one another. Example,
-------------
-------------
----4--------
--6----------
does not tell me that I'm to play A# and its Major 3rd C#. It tells me
6th fret 4th string, 4th fret 3rd string. It doesnt tell me that the
4th fret 3rd string can be played at 9th fret 4th string. (Forgive me if
my numbers are wrong, I'm doing this from memory. My bass is 60 miles away.)
But sheet to that two note passage would tell me A#, and C#. period. Now I
know the why. If you play only root-fifth blues rock lines maybe you dont
need to read. But why constrain yourself to one style?
RE: Fretless.
-------------
The concept of fret lines on a fretless is one that's a little close to me.
I have owned a Fender Jazz Fretless with no fret lines for over a year now.
I feel that I'm a better fretless player today because of the fact that I
have no fret lines. I can't play by sight on it, I have to intonate by ear
which teaches better intonation anyway. I feel that Fret lines, though useful
hamper the development of the ear's ability to hear the intonation. (BTW,
there are side markers on the neck, If I'm lost I can find 'em that way.)
Yes, the learning curve on an unlined bass is higher, but I think you end up
in a better place. (BTW my next bass is going to be a Carvin LB76F 6-string
fretless WITH NO LINES!! :^) )
-----------------------------------
Chris Thompson, Bassist In Residence.
stu1016@discover.wright.edu
-----------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 11:07:15 PST
From: Graham_McClelland.Sthq@xerox.com
Subject: RE: OVER Rated Players; Paul╣s Recording Problems; Neck Thru╣s vs
Bolt-Ons
Re: OVER Rated Players - I've gotta agree whole heartedly with Kevin here.
Judging someone as over rated could cause some dissension. It also serves no
purpose other than to allow someone to vent "sour grapes" over another's
success. Besides, the big picture is that bass players in general are all
UNDER rated by the general listening population. You know the stereotype -
"The bass player has fewer strings to deal with, so he must not be as good as
the guitar or keyboard player". Or, "How difficult could it be to play an
instrument with only four strings?". Other than among our peers, we're ALL
under rated, folks. Enough pontificating...
Re: Paul's recording problem - I've experienced the same problem with regards
to capturing the desired sound in the studio. My opinion is that alot
Engineers and Producers don't know how to go about getting a good bass sound
because they haven't spent alot of time on it. As long as they can "feel" and
hear it through the mix, they're happy. Case in point - how much time is spent
by the studio crew tweaking the drummer's kit before recording starts? Three
to four HOURS at LEAST in most cases. How much time is spent on bass? A
fraction of that. When you mention that your sound isn't what you want, they
say "Don`t worry, we`ll fix it when we mix it down." What happens next is that
you walk out after the session feeling that you played well, but no one is
gonna hear it.
My remedy? I try to get the band to agree to having my sound "punched up" on
the basic tracks because once the producer starts messing around and adding
tracks and compression, my track starts to blur. I still don`t get the tone I
want, but I don`t end up being a monotonous drone in the background. In band
situations I usually record direct with a little flange, varying amounts of
chorus and lots of EQ'ing.
Re: The neck-through-body topic John brought up in #282. If money is no
problem, than a neck-thru-body bass is for you. Tone and sustain in particular
is better than a bolt on config. The only problem is that should something
happen to the neck due to a freak accident, you may not be able to save the
bass. Again, if you can afford to run out and buy another bass - no problem.
I could be wrong, but I don't think any of us are in this unique position. I'm
a tinkerer without big bucks to drop on my musical endeavors, so I prefer bolt
ons.
I read alittle about the Peavey/Bromberg bass in the latest Bass Player.
Sounds extremely versatile. An interesting collaboration too.
`Til next time...
Graham
graham.sthq@xerox.com
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 93 11:08:17 PST
From: Alan.Henley@EBay.Sun.COM
Subject: RE: More On Warmoth Necks
Okay. Now I'm good and confused. Maybe someone can help straighten this
out.
From #282, Graham McClelland writes:
>If I'm not mistaken, Fender (and probably others) is using fairly light
>woods like ash in their production instruments. This would account for
>the problem with matching a heavier Warmoth neck to a stock Fender body.
And now from my own posting in the same issue:
>Secondly, I was looking specifically for a solid, heavy neck
>because the body of this bass is ash and quite heavy.
One of us is saying ash is light while the other is saying it's heavy. One
thing that is NOT in doubt, the body of my bass IS heavy. For the longest
time, I thought it was maple, but when I had some work done on it last year,
the tech said it was ash. (Of course, he could have been wrong.)
Second point. I was under the impression that Fender (and others) had taken
to making bodies out of Alder, which is a very light wood that gives a nice
natural slap tone.
Can any of you wood-wise folks out there clarify this?
Alan Henley
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 93 14:11:35 EST
From: bulm2533@mstr.hgc.edu
Subject: OVERrated Bass Player Meets Bach
In the last TBL
>From: PBAYMILLER@ocvaxa.cc.oberlin.edu
>Subject: Ron Carter plays Bach
made the astute observation questioning the
intonation of Mr. Carter on this album.
[flame on]
Not only is this an album to avoid, but this confirms my
belief that Mr. Carter falls into the OVERrated bassist category.
I too received this album not too long ago as a gift
and with great anticipation loaded up the CD player;
sadly my ears were greeted with very sloppy treatments of
some Bach favorites. Mr. Carter's intonation is generally
abominable and his renditions were devoid of any reasonable
musical facsimile: phrasing was non existent, dynamics were
limited to a single mezzo-forte throughout and his
improvisations were humorously out-of-style .
After listening to this disc twice and reading the limited
liner notes ( and noting that this is a Japanese production),
I surmised that this must have been his fulfillment of
obligations to a record comany and that this performance is
not something he was out promoting. Well, lo and behold,
on National Public Radio two weeks ago, here comes a feature
with Ron Carter discussing this "project", how he researched
the Bach scores and worked with "world renown cellists" to
be certain that his style was in keeping with Bach's intentions.
How he was so sensitive to Bach's orchestrations, etc,etc.
I was appalled! The performance certainly does not bear any of
it out. Man it sounds like he is a high school student sight
reading it: wrong notes, mis-bowings, counting wrong, poor tone
from those hideous LaBella (?) black nylon wound strings.
I guess if you are going to BS your audience, be
sure to go ALL THE WAY with it. Some nerve in my opinion.
This album is a great disservice to acoustic bass playing,
and I continue to be very dissapointed with Mr. Carter,
especially in his shameless promotion of this project.
-Steve B
[flame off]
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 93 11:19:27 PST
From: weaver@sfc.sony.com
Subject: Under-rated bass players
How about Harry Shearer (known to many as Derek Smalls)...
;-}
Eric Weaver Sony AVTC 677 River Oaks Pkwy, MS 35 SJ CA 95134 408 944-4904
& Chief Engineer, KFJC 89.7 Foothill College, Los Altos Hills CA 94022
[ Ok, now call me silly, but I caught the Spinal Tap reunion on network
TV over Christmas, and actually found myself *liking* some of their
songwriting. If this was all supposed to be a huge joke from the beginning,
this doesn't say much for those bands they parody who they're actually
sounding better than. (Not putting -that- through Grammatix.)
Anyone besides me split their sides when Nigel threw horseshoes at
his guitar during the obligatory solo? Bass Mgr. ]
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 93 14:04:55 -0500
From: Brad Nixon <bnixon@stake.daytonoh.ncr.com>
Subject: Information about acoustic bass guitars
I'm interested in hearing from TBL'ers who have some experience with acoustic
bass guitars. I've been attracted by the Guild four-strings I've seen in
taped concerts, and I've read about the relatively new Martin model. I'd be
pleased to have email from any of you who have opinions about these and any
other acoustic bass guitars.
Oh yes, the first post thing:
I'm playing acoustic and electric blues after some younger days in various
loud rock trios. We're concentrating mostly on the traditional delta and
country material.
For acoustic, I'm playing a 1940's Kay string bass with a Fishman BP-100
pickup. Occasionally, we play a gig in which I'd to have the acoustic guitar
option, instead of packing a 6-foot instrument for a limited engagement.
Electrically, a choice of fretted or fretless T4001 Rickenbackers and an '89
Fender Jazz Plus fretless, all through a Crate B80XL miked into the PA.
I'll be glad to summarize info and post it.
Thanks for including the recent Slap/Tap lessons for those of us without
access to rec.music.makers.bass!
Brad
--
Brad Nixon, Manager, Media Relations brad.nixon@daytonOH.ncr.com
NCR Corporation 513 445 6413
1700 S. Patterson Blvd. Dayton, OH 45479 FAX 513 445 1893
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 93 15:09:24 EST
From: shinh@nmr-r.MGH.Harvard.Edu
Subject: Standing in the Shadows of Motown
Hi Everybody,
At the risk of bringing up an old topic: (forgive me if this has been
discussed.)
I just got the James Jamerson book this past weekend,
and I must say that I'm very impressed with JJ's bass lines.
Personally, I wasn't aware of his playing when I was younger;
I bought the book because my new bass teacher says that it's
invaluable in improving one's funk feel. I had no idea that
he was playing so melodically back in the 60's. Some of his
lines are really cooking! I specifically dig the line
the "I Heard it Through the Grapevine" by Gladys Knight
and the Pips. Will Lee does a great job of grooving on this
tune.
There's a whole bunch of historical/biographical info
on Jamerson in the beginning of the book; I found it
intersting, but not particularly gripping. I guess it's
because I never was a big fan. It's funny, though. A lot
of the players that influnced me *heavily* are on the tapes
and say that Jamerson was a huge influence. I guess that
means that I have been indirectly influenced.
The book is full of transcriptions of bass lines and comes with
2 tapes which are mixed with the bass way out front.
The tapes are really helpful for a poor reader like me,
and it's cool to hear some of my favorite bassists talking
and playing.
Check it out!
-Shin
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Date: Mon, 25 Jan 93 15:36:15 EST
From: rm@centerline.com
Subject: RE: underrated players ... thanx
In #277, nosekw@odin.icd.ab.com recommended a number of '70's funk bands
as having underrated players. I was psyched to hear about these bands,
as I totally missed pop music during the '70's, so I went down to the
local record store (Skippy Whites for all you Boston area folks- it's
THE place for Black music, and particularly for old stuff) and looked
for some of the albums mentioned. I did manage to find both a Steve
Arrington and the Brick album mentioned. Although the bass playing on
both of these probably could have been done by Larry Graham, Louis
Johnson, or Bootsy in their sleep, there are definately some solid
groove things happening here. Thanks for the tip! Got any more?
Of course while I was there I managed to scarf up a couple of Brothers
Johnson albums as well as a pile of George Clinton/Bootsy thangs. Man,
those guys produced a pile of albums. I had never even heard of one of
these- "The Brides of Doctor Funkenstein."
rm
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Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 13:30:36 -0800
From: "Geoffrey L. Gould" <tsgeoff@well.sf.ca.us>
Subject: TBL comments
I can't keep up w/TBL on a daily basis, but I felt like making a
couple of comments inspired by some of the postings.
re: Zon neck joint (From: mikes@sol.metaware.com)
Since we (Modulus) molds Zon's necks, I felt I could respond to the
question of the Legacy neck joint. It is a 'glue-on', but with a very
seamless heel joint, thereby feeling like a thru-body.
re: After Market fretless necks (From: Alan.Henley@EBay.Sun.COM)
Modulus makes Fender replacement necks also, but since they're
>$600, they may not be very viable for most. We're currently using
a super-hard 'diamond coat'-style coating on the fingerboards (unless
we use a cocabola fingerboard)
re: Kai Eckhardt (From: karlo@tanaga.island.COM)
I have the current pleasure of working w/Kai, having just returned
from the NAMM show, where he was demoing in our booth; quite a
combination: Kai, a Modulus SPi-6, and a Glockenklang bass amp. On
Sunday afternoon, I found our booth quite unexpectedly the site of a
bass trio, with Kai, Victor Wooten, and Steve Bailey jamming away
for 1/2 an hour. It was quite beautiful. No wanking! On Monday,
Kai and Steve Miller played together very briefly, and in an entirely
different vein. Kai is quite remarkable, and flexible as well.
It (TBL) is quite a wild concept, I'm not quite sure I have the hang
of it yet, but it's great to see so many smart questions and comments
from the people who really hold the band together!
Geoff
----------------------------------------------------------
Date: Mon, 25 Jan 1993 21:03 EDT
From: JLEW@ACC.HAVERFORD.EDU
Subject: Ungrounded amplifiers
I have recently acquired the use of a Peavey TKO 100 combo. It is probably
late 70's or early 80's vintage and has no grounding pin in the power plug.
I haven't experienced anything bad so far, but two of my band mates have
gotten very slight shocks from touching an effects box which was sitting on
the amp, and from the pickup of my bass.
My question is, am I risking life and limb using this amp, and if so, is there
any relatively inexpensive way to ground it?
JL
----------------------------------------------------------
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_The Bottom Line_ is a digest dedicated to the art of playing
electric and acoustic bass. It is distributed on a basis that
coincides with the amount of material received, from the
University of Wisconsin - Platteville, USA;
Kevin Tipple, Erik Habbinga, editors
Copyright _The Bottom Line_, 1993
The contents of _The Bottom Line_ are solely the opinions
and comments of the individual authors, and do not necessarily
reflect the opinions of the authors' managements or the digest
management. The editors do not assume responsibility for
copyright infringement of submitted material.
***************************
End of The Bottom Line #283
***************************