Bilbo

That Behind The Lines line was one that I used as a learning tool early on. Alphonso Johnson is, to me, THE underrated player. Sklar is top drawer, though, absolutely.

I had one of these and they are marvellous. I have some recordings with it on. Here is one. The basic percussion track is a Handsonic Loop. There is additional percussion on there that is also the Handsonic and there is some real percussion too. I have other that are interesting and will try and post them. https://soundcloud.com/robert-palmer-1/fire-works

Nova - Vimana. It is on YouTube but not available as anything but vinyl. Also Peter Sprague's Napali Coast.

Stage electric double basses have a good reputation for start instruments but my advice is always to go for a real double bass. The electric ones are ultimately unsatisfactory and tend to sound like Fretless electrics rather than a double bass. This means that as soon as you get an electric upright, you start gassing for an acoustic.

I remember this blowing me away when I first heard it. Anthony Jackson with French Toast. http://youtu.be/YMobWpeUZw0

The reading thing just takes you places you wouldn't otherwise go. Bach Cello Suites are lovely to get you thinking about the neck. Jazz solos are great for reading practice because they tend to avoid predictable patterns.

Paul Chambers discography dropped off heavily after he left Miles (see the discography in my book 'Mr. P.C. the life and music of Paul Chambers'). If you listen to the recordings he did do, however, there is no tailing off of his ability. He was still practising when he was in the hospital with the TB that killed him. His recordings are strong right until the end and there are no substantive stories of unreliability. I just think that, when he left Miles, he inadvertently cashed in his best bargaining chip. Also, the style of bass playing was changing and PC didn't move with the times so got left behind. Was he the best? I don't think so, if I am honest. He was important as he was the most widely heard. Being the best is no guarantee of anything.

My Dad was in a male voice choir but that happened long after I had started gigging and had left home. Maybe I influenced him?

I think it is an important point. The influence of a player is often determined not by their ability but by the levels of exposure they enjoy because of the gig they have. When Paul Chambers was doing the Miles gig (1955-1963), he was all over the Jazz scene recording hundreds of sessions with everybody. When he left the Miles band, the sessions dropped like a stone and Ron Carter, Pc's replacement in the Miles bass chair, was the first call guy. Was this about the players or the reflected glory of recording with a Miles sideman? I know what I think. The thing is, a lot of influential players are in no way the 'best' players, they just have the highest profile gigs. Sometimes this lines up but, often, they don't.

What interests me is why this was a surprise. I assume you didn't grow up in the same house as your father? If you had, it would not have been a surprise to find out that he was a great player, surely?

There's some great Flim on the Flim and the BBs cds too.

Pm, Kev.

My local library hasn't got Kind of Blue!!

Alexander Technique helps me when I get in trouble. Makes you look at how your body is doing things and helps you find more efficient ways that reduce strain.

My Wal was 30 years old yesterday. I think I will keep it.

Can anyone access a copy of this album? It is deleted and I cannot find it commercially. I am doing a trio gig covering Ornette Coleman tunes in a few weeks and need to hear listen to it properly. It is on Youtube but that is only of limited use to me as I have no internet in my practice space. Can anyone hel?

For me, time is about listening. If you cannot hear where the pulses, playing ahead or behind becomes a matter of chance rather than design. Playing triplets becomes fraught with difficulties etc.

Phew!

Agreed. When I was a young player, I used to transcribe Jeff Berlin parts and could play them. Joe Frazier. Bach, Marabi, Motherlode, Five G. Then there was Teen Town, Silly Putty etc etc. Could execute them all. It was then that I realised that execution of complex music was a million miles away from creating it. HAVING the ideas is much harder than playing them.

I think that jazz suffers somewhat from an identity crisis in as much as different people have massively different perspectives on what 'the point of it all' actually is. I am often appalled at what some people, a, think is Jazz and how, b, they assess content. I am not setting myself up as the guru who has the inside line on the definition of Jazz but a lot of people seem to get off on what I call the athletes and jugglers who do remarkable things with various techniques but which lack any musical substance. Double bass has generally avoided that tendency thankfully and most players actually play rather than do tricks but the audience expectations for supercharged athleticism remains a potential distraction.

Great thread. Inspirational in itself. For me, the 'secret', and it is not a secret at all, is to study things properly and not to dip in and out without properly dealing with the thing you have chosen to look at. I have two example. On double bass, I got a bow when I got a double bass and have never 'studied' it until fairly recently when I picked up the bow and the Neil Tarlton book. I spent a few days.weeks working on the bow for a few minutes a day (20?) and, before I knew it, I was actually playing the thing. Same with double thumbing. I am not a slap fan but, like many bass players, I feel the need to stay on top of new things. I tried double thumbing a few years ago and didn't make much of it and I only return to it for a few moments every now andthen but, the other day, I started playing something and it was there. My incremental input had borne fruit. I use reading as a means of generating practive pieces. BAch Cello Suites are a rich vein for practice and inspiration. Transcriptions of solos of any kind. Even other solo transcriptions to bass; they are often transcribed in a different key to bass but you can still practice them in the wrong key and learn (I read treble clef also so this is easier for me). Try looking for new players, new genres etc. Personally, and I mean this, there is nothing more inspirational that a straight quarter note walking bass line. If all else fails, I just walk a blues with NO accents, just straight quarter notes. Lush!!!

For me, it was Jon Anderson all the way.

Practice reading.

I have a seven string I tune BEADGBE. Think a guitar with a low B.

It's one of the things I love about Jazz. The age thing means zilch. I have played with 75 years olds (Peter King, Art Themen etc) who SO kicked my butt it's unreal.