Brian Bromberg – Bass

I first heard Brian Bromberg on his debut solo LP (yes, I am that old), ‘A New Day’ and it was his electric playing that took me to it (I am guessing that I read about him in Bass Player Magazine or something). It was a few years later that I got hold of the Dave Grusin album ‘Homage To Duke’ (1993) and thought ‘Wow! What a sound’ which turned out to be Bromberg on double bass. His playing on the Grusin album is more ‘conventional’ than his electric playing but, given the nature of the material, this is not surprising. Either was, it’s a great album and Bromberg sounds delicious throughout.

This is the complete bass part from the blues ‘Things Ain’t What They Used To Be’. There are two kinds of bass players; those who have played this tune and those who are going to. There are a couple of tasty licks in there but, mostly, it is meat and potatoes bass playing but absolutely sublime to listen to. Another highlight is Clark Terry’s ‘Mumbles’ routine. Genius.