Bass Solos '96 (excerpts)
(A Virtual Roundtable Interview of 12 Bassists)
By Peter Murray
Published April, 1996

[BB's note--The 12 bassists were as follows: Rich Appleman (Chairman, Berklee Bass Dept.), Steve Bailey, myself, Jeff Berlin, Jim Creegan (Barenaked Ladies), Mark Egan, Pat Kilbride (Five After Four), John Patitucci, Neil Swainson (various Canadian jazz projects), Tim Vesely (The Rheostatics), Gary Willis, and Victor Wooten. How I got lumped in with this group I will never, ever know--especially in 1996.]

Overall Introduction

In this issue we feature twelve prominent bassists who have all achieved great success in their field. One remarkable common thread that runs through all of them is their intense love of the process of musical creation. In the interviews, this sometimes came out as nothing less than sheer exhilaration. Jim Creegan of Barenaked Ladies spoke of a "place where there is no competition"; this is the heavenly place musicians get to when they've developed their ability and confidence to the point where they can simply project their inner creative impulses through their music, without considering or caring how anyone else might have done it. Putting themselves in the business of being themselves, they handily create and corner their own market. However, that's no guarantee of commercial success--it's merely a guarantee of artistic satisfaction. Of the bass players I interviewed, a quarter are presently without a recording contract. Another, Mark Egan, has started his own label.

Some of these twelve are pioneers of new techniques and sounds, while others expertly apply their own twist to more commonly-mined territory. All of them are consummate artists and goldmines of experience.

Listen in as we pick the brains of these great bassists as they discuss the art of shaping, packaging, and delivering low frequencies to the world.

First, let's meet the players:

[BB--here's what they said about me]

Bryan Beller fast-tracked through a programme at Berklee and swiftly scored the gig as bassist for Z (led by Dweezil and Ahmet Zappa) and Mike Keneally's Beer For Dolphins. Bryan will also appear on Dweezil's 74-minute seamless guitar CD, playing beneath Eddie Van Halen, Steve Morse, Jimmy Page and others. [BB--Maybe Dweezil will release this CD in, say, 20 years?] During the writing of this feature, Bryan and Mike left Z to focus on BFD, with a new live album due out any month now on Immune Records.

[And now, the two quotes they used from me]

On Rush:

What I was really doing in high school was just "wasting away", to put it politely--just screwing around with Pink Floyd and Led Zeppelin tunes on the piano. I was doing that more than I was playing bass. I learned to play some Rush songs, Zeppelin songs, and all the typical, disgusting, mid-'80s, pre-requisite stuff for being known as someone who could play. It was like, you've gotta play these certain Rush songs, then you were good! Terrifyingly disgusting. [BB--blasphemy in a Canadian magazine!]

On sightreading:

I could sightread fairly well when I was at Berklee. It was never one of my stronger things. Anything I've learned on the Zappa [gig] I've never learned off the chart, that's for sure. I don't know how well I could sightread one of those Zappa charts, to be honest with you. If you couldn't sightread in Frank's band, you'd better have the ear of all time, and that's what [Mike] Keneally had. Keneally wasn't a sightreader, but he knew the whole catalogue, and his ears were insane. Pretty much everyone else in that band was a monster reader. Now for Z, Dweezil [Zappa] can't write down his music in notation. Everything we do in Z is by ear. I like to think I have a quick ear. I can read music, but if I can't sightread like a pro, my ear better be together, or I'm not going to get much work!"

By Peter Murray, copyright 1996 Norris-Whitney Communications, Inc. Reprinted from the April, 1996 issue of CANADIAN MUSICIAN For subscription information, please call (877) RING-NWC or visit www.canadianmusician.com.