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From: donn@sdchema.UUCP
Newsgroups: net.music
Subject: Re: Favorite (or Best, if applicable) Bass Players (re-posted)
Message-ID: <950@sdchema.UUCP>
Date: Fri, 18-Nov-83 18:59:47 EST
Article-I.D.: sdchema.950
Posted: Fri Nov 18 18:59:47 1983
Date-Received: Sun, 20-Nov-83 19:35:54 EST
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Organization: UC San Diego Chemistry Dept. NIH Research Resource
Lines: 58

[This is part of a batch of articles from San Diego that the rest of
the net never saw, because our net connection was down -- sorry if you
have seen this before, or if the discussion seems dated.]

Lots of good bassists out there.  I'm a real fan of the German bassist
Eberhard Weber.  He has a touch with one particular peculiar instrument
-- a five-string electric bass that plays like a cello and sounds quite
unearthly.  He's fond of unusual chord changes and strange meters and
solos that really sing.  Some of his albums:

	THE COLOURS OF CHLOE.  ECM 1042.  With his group, Colours.  Has
	a long, beautiful piece called 'No Motion Picture' featuring an
	intermittent, driving synthesizer figure.

	YELLOW FIELDS.  ECM 1066.  With Colours.  This sounds more like
	regular jazz, but hints of the bizarre creep through.  I like
	the hypnotic, Oriental 'Sand-Glass'.

	THE FOLLOWING MORNING.  ECM-1-1084.  With pianist Rainer
	Brueninghaus and members of the Oslo Philharmonic.  Ethereal
	orchestral-sounding tunes; my favorite is 'T. on a White
	Horse', a kind of musical clockworks.  Lots of typically
	Weberian soloing.

	SILENT FEET.  ECM 1107.  With Colours.  A favorite.  Jazzy,
	swinging, mysterious: 'Eyes That Can See in the Dark'.

	FLUID RUSTLE.  ECM-1-1137.  With Gary Burton, Bill Frisell,
	Bonnie Herman, Norma Winstone.  Very subdued -- puts me to
	sleep if I'm not paying attention.  An experiment.

	LITTLE MOVEMENTS.  ECM-1-1186.  With Colours.  My favorite of
	the bunch.  'Bali' is alternately hot and cool, 'A Dark Spell'
	and 'Little Movements' are clever, intricate compositions and
	'"No Trees?" He Said' takes five.

	LATER THAT EVENING.  ECM-1-1231.  With Paul McCandless, Bill
	Frisell, Lyle Mays, Michael DiPasqua.  Lots of wild
	improvisation on this one.  Impressive talent.  I haven't
	completely decided about it but I do like the title piece.

Weber has done some really excellent work with Ralph Towner's group
Solstice, and has played with Gary Burton's group, with the Jan
Garbarek Group and with Pat Metheny (on WATERCOLORS -- see especially
'Sea Song').

I'd also recommend George Mraz's work with the John Abercrombie Quartet
(ARCADE; ABERCROMBIE QUARTET; M) and Richie Beirach (ELM).  There are
lots of other good contemporary jazz bassists, not least being Dave
Holland, Eddie Gomez and Jaco Pastorius (the early Metheny-Pastorius
album BRIGHT SIZE LIFE is practically unknown and particularly good).

Good rock bassists are harder to find, but try Percy Jones and John
Giblin with Brand X and Jeff Berlin (with Bruford before it broke up).
Jones in particular is technically very good and occasionally delicate
or sensitive, unlike most rock bassists...  and he doesn't sing!

Donn Seeley  UCSD Chemistry Dept. RRCF  ucbvax!sdcsvax!sdchema!donn