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Know Where you Are by Tim Risser
The widespread use of GPS, MapQuest and our precious smartphones has enabled clueless, wayward travelers such as myself to become Ferdinand Magellan (minus the getting killed part!). I feel that technology has allowed us to travel without hitches, roadblocks and especially- large flappy, ridiculously oversized maps! And of course, the analogy here is that most of our musical journey is more than just a straight shot as well. The geography is infinite! A musician’s path starts at the moment you hold that beautiful 4 string in your hands (or 5 or 6 string- damn you’re ambitious!!). Ahead of you is an expanse wider than the North American Midwest and those early wide eyed emigrants seeking routes to California and sweet, sweet gold! Among the trails are passable routes and shortcuts, but beware of Donner Pass (unless you enjoy freezing and dining on your love ones!), because there is technically no perfect route to get to your destination; and you will stumble! Let me explain the best way to not get eaten (I mean frustrated).
I learned from a great teacher at a local college; because that was part of the deal when my parents plunked down $299 for my Squier Jazz Bass. I was 16 and eager to learn. The majority of your own beginnings ring similar but there is a fork in the road almost immediately! While my teacher stressed rhythm and sight reading, I was convinced she should teach me “Distant Early Warning” by Rush. Hey, I had the “authorized” tablature book from Hal Leonard! Keep in mind; I was in possession of my new bass for about a month at this point! Youthful ambition will crush logic every time. So after a few more months of lessons and a solid foundation (?), I decided it was time to pack up the wagon and head out west. I could read tablature, so I was well prepared- right?? Can you imagine Magellan getting out in a row boat, somewhere in the Atlantic Ocean, because he was tired of that slow ass clipper ship? And I can also see the Old Plains settlers staring each other down at the campfire; all wily and cut-throat- wondering who was really leading and who’d get there first? If only there was enough gold?!
Tablature has obviously made the budding musicians life very accessible and allowed many bass players to cruise along at a manic pace. That’s all well and good, I’m not going anywhere without my MapQuest app either (I even use it for walking when I’m in a major city- looking like a righteous tourist!). Tab allows riffs to flow easy when you begin but there are a few things that escape us when we utilize this application. First off, pick up your bass (yes, right now!) and play the third fret on the second string. Are you lost yet?? Sure you are! What about my directions even sound musical? I am basically applying a coarse # system and blowing off any musicality that might be present; even as an afterthought. And it’s also cool if you know you’ve landed on C natural on you’re A string. That’s what I’m looking for!
My point being is that a rudimentary (I mean-very basic) knowledge is a helpful starting point, no matter where you’re headed. Don’t just rely on “Are we there yet?”, but think of it more as road sign or route that gets you in the right direction (you know, the one that says: California 1,000 miles!). Ultimately it will guide you from destination to destination. And when you become lost along the way, refer back to your Map (Quest) and get back on track. “Grace Under Pressure” is just a bunch of zeros, fives, sevens and octaves (whoa, slow down there fella!) and me pleading with my P-bass to magically sound like a Steinberger with Geddy’s adept timing! Know where you are dammit!
And for the record, I am no teacher or music theorist- I just noticed that all the shortcuts I had used hindered me, instead of enabling me. Over the years, you can become very complacent! It doesn’t have to be this way, so you adjust along your route.
Music is for everyone; and even though that sounds like a cop out from someone whose personalized his bass technique to suit his musical journey, it’s really no different than the hapless explorers or expeditions that shaped our advanced world we live in. I look silly walking around New York City because I have no clue where I am and don’t even ask a New Yorker for directions! Give me a P-bass though and I feel good, like I’m home. I know exactly where I am.
Bass Videos
Interview With Bassist Erick “Jesus” Coomes
Bassist Erick “Jesus” Coomes…
It is always great to meet a super busy bassist who simply exudes a love for music and his instrument. Erick “Jesus” Coomes fits this description exactly. Hailing from Southern California, “Jesus” co-founded and plays bass for Lettuce and has found his groove playing with numerous other musicians.
Join us as we hear of his musical journey, how he gets his sound, his ongoing projects, and his plans for the future.
Photo, Bob Forte
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Visit Online
www.lettucefunk.com
IG @jesuscsuperstar
FB@jesuscoomes
FB @lettucefunk
Bass Videos
Working-Class Zeros: Episode #2 – Financial Elements of Working Musicians
Working-Class Zeros: Episode #2 – Financial Elements of Working Musicians
“These stories from the front are with real-life, day-to-day musicians who deal with work life and gigging and how they make it work out. Each month, topics may include… the kind of gigs you get, the money, dealing with less-than-ideal rooms, as well as the gear you need to get the job done… and the list goes on from there.” – Steve the Bass Guy and Shawn Cav
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This Week’s Top 10 Basses on Instagram
Check out our top 10 favorite basses on Instagram this week…
Click to follow Bass Musician on Instagram @bassmusicianmag
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Bass CDs
New Album: Jake Leckie, Planter of Seeds
Bassist Jake Leckie and The Guide Trio Unveil New Album Planter of Seeds,
to be released on June 7, 2024
Planter of Seeds is bassist/composer Jake Leckie’s third release as a bandleader and explores what beauty can come tomorrow from the seeds we plant today.
What are we putting in the ground? What are we building? What is the village we want to bring our children up in? At the core of the ensemble is The Guide Trio, his working band with guitarist Nadav Peled and drummer Beth Goodfellow, who played on Leckie’s second album, The Guide, a rootsy funky acoustic analog folk-jazz recording released on Ropeadope records in 2022. For Planter of Seeds, the ensemble is augmented by Cathlene Pineda (piano), Randal Fisher (tenor saxophone), and Darius Christian (trombone), who infuse freedom and soul into the already tightly established ensemble.
Eight original compositions were pristinely recorded live off the floor of Studio 3 at East West Studios in Hollywood CA, and mastered by A.T. Michael MacDonald. The cover art is by internationally acclaimed visual artist Wayne White. Whereas his previous work has been compared to Charles Mingus, and Keith Jarrett’s American Quartet with Charlie Haden, Leckie’s new collection sits comfortably between the funky odd time signatures of the Dave Holland Quintet and the modern folk-jazz of the Brian Blade Fellowship Band with a respectful nod towards the late 1950s classic recordings of Ahmad Jamal and Miles Davis.
The title track, “Planter of Seeds,” is dedicated to a close family friend, who was originally from Trinidad, and whenever she visited family or friends at their homes, without anyone knowing, she would plant seeds she kept in her pocket in their gardens, so the next season beautiful flowers would pop up. It was a small altruistic anonymous act of kindness that brought just a little more beauty into the world. The rhythm is a tribute to Ahmad Jamal, who we also lost around the same time, and whose theme song Poinciana is about a tree from the Caribbean.
“Big Sur Jade” was written on a trip Leckie took with his wife to Big Sur, CA, and is a celebration of his family and community. This swinging 5/4 blues opens with an unaccompanied bass solo, and gives an opportunity for each of the musicians to share their improvisational voices. “Clear Skies” is a cathartic up-tempo release of collective creative energies in fiery improvisational freedom. “The Aquatic Uncle” features Randal Fisher’s saxophone and is named after an Italo Calvino short story which contemplates if one can embrace the new ways while being in tune with tradition. In ancient times, before a rudder, the Starboard side of the ship was where it was steered from with a steering oar. In this meditative quartet performance, the bass is like the steering oar of the ensemble: it can control the direction of the music, and when things begin to unravel or become unhinged, a simple pedal note keeps everything grounded.
The two trio tunes on the album are proof that the establishment of his consistent working band The Guide Trio has been a fruitful collaboration. “Santa Teresa”, a bouncy samba-blues in ? time, embodies the winding streets and stairways of the bohemian neighborhood in Rio de Janeiro it is named for. The swampy drum feel on “String Song” pays homage to Levon Helm of The Band, a group where you can’t always tell who wrote the song or who the bandleader is, proving that the sum is greater than the individual parts. Early jazz reflected egalitarianism in collective improvisation, and this group dynamic is an expression of that kind of inclusivity and democracy.
“The Daughters of the Moon” rounds out the album, putting book ends on the naturalist themes. This composition is named after magical surrealist Italo Calvino’s short story about consumerism, in which a mythical modern society that values only buying shiny new things throws away the moon like it is a piece of garbage and the daughters of the moon save it and resurrect it. It’s an eco-feminist take on how women are going to save the world. Pineda’s piano outro is a hauntingly beautiful lunar voyage, blinding us with love. Leckie dedicates this song to his daughter: “My hope is that my daughter becomes a daughter of the moon, helping to make the world a more beautiful and verdant place to live.”
Bass CDs
Debut Album: Nate Sabat, Bass Fiddler
In a thrilling solo debut, bassist Nate Sabat combines instrumental virtuosity with a songwriter’s heart on Bass Fiddler…
The upright bass and the human voice. Two essential musical instruments, one with roots in 15th century Europe, the other as old as humanity itself.
On Bass Fiddler (Adhyâropa Records ÂR00057), the debut album from Brooklyn-based singer-songwriter and bass virtuoso Nate Sabat, the scope is narrowed down a bit. Drawing from the rich and thriving tradition of American folk music, Sabat delivers expertly crafted original songs and choice covers with the upright bass as his lone tool for accompaniment.
The concept was born a decade ago when Sabat began studying with the legendary old-time fiddler Bruce Molsky at Berklee College of Music. “One of Bruce’s specialties is singing and playing fiddle at the same time. The second I heard it I was hooked,” recalls Sabat. “I thought, how can I do this on the bass?” From there, he was off to the races, arranging original and traditional material with Molsky as his guide. “Fast forward to 2020, and I — like so many other musicians — was thinking of how to best spend my time. I sat down with the goal of writing some new songs and arranging some new covers, and an entire record came out.” When the time came to make the album, it was evident that Molsky would be the ideal producer. Sabat asked him if he’d be interested, and luckily he was. “What an inspiration to work with an artist like Nate,” says Molsky. “Right at the beginning, he came to this project with a strong, personal and unique vision. Plus he had the guts to try for a complete and compelling cycle of music with nothing but a bass and a voice. You’ll hear right away that it’s engaging, sometimes serious, sometimes fun, and beautifully thought out from top to bottom.”
While this record is, at its core, a folk music album, Sabat uses the term broadly. Some tracks lean more rock (‘In the Shade’), some more pop (‘White Marble’, ‘Rabid Thoughts’), some more jazz (‘Fade Away’), but the setting ties them all together. “There’s something inherently folksy about a musician singing songs with their instrument, no matter the influences behind the compositions themselves,” Sabat notes. To be sure, there are plenty of folk songs (‘Louise’ ‘Sometimes’, ‘Eli’) and fiddling (‘Year of the Ox’) to be had here — the folk music fan won’t go hungry. There’s a healthy dose of bluegrass too (‘Orphan Annie’, ‘Lonesome Night’), clean and simple, the way Mr. Bill Monroe intended.
All in all, this album shines a light on an instrument that often goes overlooked in the folk music world, enveloping the listener in its myriad sounds, textures, and colors. “There’s nothing I love more than playing the upright bass,” exclaims Sabat. “My hope is that listeners take the time to sit with this album front to back — I want them to take in the full scope of the work. I have a feeling they’ll hear something they haven’t heard before.”
Available online at natesabat.bandcamp.com/album/walking-away
Interview With Bassist Erick “Jesus” Coomes
Working-Class Zeros: Episode #2 – Financial Elements of Working Musicians
Tour Touch Base (Bass) with Ian Allison
New Gear: Spector Woodstock Custom Collection Volume II
