Gary Willis – Bass

These are such strong bass parts. The first two Tribal tech albums were really important for me at the time they came out and it is wonderful to be able to revisit them with the new technology of MOISES and Transcribe! The detail is exquisite and there is so much to learn from focussing on a single bar of Willis percolations but reviewing the whole chart feels like a lifetimes work – there is SO much in here. There is also a lot to be learned by studying Willis’s right hand muting technique. Hadrien Feraud does something very similar and it has got me thinking about getting hold of a Ibanez GWB25 or Mayones Jabba 5 (both have what I call the ‘Willis ramp’).

The tune is ‘Outskirts’ from the 1987 Tribal Tech record ‘Dr. Hee’. Impossible to rad at tempo but slow it down and it is a goldmine! If I am honest, I am not entirely sure that I have the opening melody section absolutely accurate – the rhythm doesn’t seem to settle in my mind. I thin k the notes are ok, it’s just the phrasing that is defeating me.