Anthony Jackson – Contrabass Guitar I SO what that bass…. They say that Anthony Jackson invented the Contrabass Guitar via a conversation with luthier Carl Thompson. I don’t think that is strictly true but there is plenty of evidence that AJ has been at the forefront of the development of the instrument over the last…

Francisco Centeno, Hansford Rowe and Neil Jason My older brother is a massive Mike Oldfield fan and, consequently, I made it my business NOT to like him (not heavy enough for me when was a kid). Nevertheless, I have grown to love a few of his albums as much for the production as the material.…

Ruben Rodriguez – Bass Ruben Rodriguez was born in New York City and grew up in East Harlem and Puerto Rico. He has been recognized as one of the best and hardest working Latin music bass players in the United States. Mr. Rodriguez, who’s father played classical guitar, taught himself the bass in Junior High…

Geddy Lee – Bass I bought this album the day it came out. On vinyl. I have to say, I was starting to lose interest in Rush at the time. Since the previous album, Signals, I was increasingly suspicious of their move towards a more commercial ‘Police/White Reggae (it was a thing)’ sound and shorter…

Will Lee – Bass The most astonishing CV in bass history. Ask yourself this question: can he read music? I rest my case. Amongst the gazillion albums he has recorded was a delightful session led by vibraphonist Gary Burton called ‘Reunion’. The reunion he was referring to was in light of the fact that guitarist…

Jeff Berlin – Bass I have a list of Jeff Berlin tunes I hope to get to and this was one of them. There are some that I will not be attempting as they are too dense in terms of chordal stuff etc but this one ‘felt’ ok so I had a crack at it.…

Anthony Jackson – Bass Another request from Talkbass – stonking line. I am guessing it was a written part as there are other aspects of the arrangement that mirror the bass part (keybarods, opening vocal etc). There is, however, a monster bass fill in there that would challenge even today’s super-musicians (Feraud, Linder etc). Remember,…

Anthony Jackson – Bass I know nothing about the artist this time. The suggestion came from a member on Talkbass. Whilst I obviously know about AJ and Steve Gadd, my only knowledge of violinist Michael Urbaniak was through his involvement with the Miles Davis ‘Tutu’ sessions and a couple of other ‘one-offs’ I have come…

John Giblin – Bass One of those ubiquitous guys from the 1980s who appeared on every album, tour and tv show; Chris De Burgh, Jon Anderson, Kate Bush, John Martyn, Brand X, |Simple Minds, Fish, his fretless sound was one of his defining characteristics and is probably what he is known for most. John passed…

John Lodge – Bass A special request, this is one of those songs that we have all heard a million times, probably like on some level or other, even if we are not fans of The Moody Blues etc. I enjoyed going through this with a fine tooth comb as there are some interesting elements…