Features
Artist Spotlight with Biscuit: Interview with Bassist Jerry Scott
Meet Biscuit
In this month’s issue of Bass Musician Magazine, I’ve interviewed a man who has worked very hard to get where he is today, and has become a real force in the competitive world of top bass players. He has played with some of the most prominent Rock artist’s and bands in the world , and will continue to do so for many years to come. So let’s get down to business and introduce you all to this month’s Artists spotlight…Mr. Jerry Scott.
BISCUIT: Hi Jerry, thank you for taking the time to talk to me for the readers of Bass Musician Magazine, I’m sure they’ll enjoy this one very much my friend.
JERRY: Cool man, thanks.
BISCUIT: I wanted to take you way back if I may Jerry, and begin by asking where you were born and where you grew up in your early years.
JERRY: Well Biscuit, I was born in Bedford Indiana, the same small town that John Cougar Mel encamp grew up in. But for the most part, I spent my time growing up in Florida.
BISCUIT: So you spent your early school years in Florida eh… would you say that you were a model student or a bit of a rebel?
JERRY: Well, I always played in a band in those days too, so does that tell you anything at all.
BISCUIT: Yeah, I think I get the message. You have moved around the U.S. quite a lot over the years, so where are you based out of at the moment my friend?
JERRY: I am in Houston in Texas at the moment, just taking it easy here for a while with the family, and taking care of some business. But I’m thinking of possibly moving back out west to Vegas or Los Angeles.
BISCUIT: Do you think that there are more musical opportunities in a place like L.A.?
JERRY: Oh yeah, absolutely, definitely in the music world for sure, you know.
BISCUIT: Moving on to your musical side, I believe you have been performing professionally since the age of sixteen, is that correct, and when did you first begin playing the bass guitar?
JERRY: In my high school band I was playing guitar as well as singing, and our bass player quit as his grades were going so far down. That led my dad to take me to the pawn shop where he bought me my first bass when I was about fourteen years old. So I started playing the bass and continued to sing as well at the age of fourteen.
BISCUIT: So we have good old dad to thank for the bass playing Jerry we have today, eh my friend?
JERRY: Yeah…good old dad bought me that first bass, and I wish I knew where it was today. I just don’t know what happened to it at all, although I do remember that it was a Univox. That bass was missing the G string tuning key, so I super glued a drum key on the G string tuner instead, ha-ha.
BISCUIT: So what basses do you find yourself using these days Jerry? Am I right in saying that you have an endorsement with Spector, and are they your first choice of bass, and do you use any other basses besides Spector?
JERRY: A Spector Rex is what I use to record with, and I like to record with a five string to get all the real low end stuff down that I need. I also have a ’74 precision bass and my BC Rich too…that I love to play. That has been a great bass, which my brother bought for me when I was fourteen years old and I have had it ever since.
BISCUIT: I know that you are also endorsed by Dean Markley strings, so how did you get that deal, and what are the string gauges that you use?
JERRY: Well, when I joined the band Molly Hatchet back in 2000, I found out that they were one of the first bands back in the 70’s to have an endorsement deal with Dean Markley. So while I was in the band, I built up a pretty good relationship with them. I have been endorsed by Dean Markley ever since then and I love them, and those guys have treated me really great over the years. The gauges I use are usually 45’s you know, the mediums or medium lights. They are great strings, and a great company.
BISCUIT: I see also that you favor SWR rigs as your power output, so what is it that you like most about the SWR gear and what configuration to you tend to use on the road usually?
JERRY: I use two of the 750X heads in a rack and I kind of customized my rig and put it all on one large piece of ply wood with giant castors on it for ease of movement. I have two SWR 4X10 cabs and two 1×15 cabs as well, and it’s all kind of put together with nuts and bolts. It’s just one big monstrous SWR rig on wheels and it sounds really “Killer”.
BISCUIT: What kind of power does that monster kick out on stage then…I would imagine it’s pretty ground shaking?
