By Joe Gagliardo

Her career as a hard rockin’ Chicago bassist began as a residual effect of a disciplinary technique in which one is forbidden to leave their place of residence or bedroom, except for required activities!

When a teenage Patti Prendergast was “grounded” for reasons unknown to KYBP– she began to play a banjo that belonged to her father’s friend – and the rest is rock and roll history!

Inspired by such iconic 1970s bassists including Jaco Pastorius, Geddy Lee  John Entwistle , Pete Way (UFO), Tom Petersson (Cheap Trick), and Bruce Thomas (Elvis Costello & The Attractions), Patti moved to a candy apple red Fender Mustang so she could play along with a guitar-slinging friend.

During the DIY (do-it-yourself) era, Patti found herself playing the Chicago club circuit in a few different bands.  In the early ‘80’s, Patti joined Bitch, an all-female band. Bitch was a club favorite, releasing an eponymous LP and touring the US extensively. That band ultimately became Tough Love, and Patti remained with them until the mid-80’s.

After taking a break from the music business to raise a family, Patti hit the stage again with the Demolition Dolls, HAG, and Burning Bridges. Nowadays Patti is holding down the bottom with Kevin Lee & the Kings. A bundle of energy, she wields her salmon – tangerine maple-neck MusicMan bass with authority, working the pocket and rendering melodic lines.

Patti also plays a ’67 Fender Precision bass….as pictured below!

The Kings have recently released a CD entitled Sticks & Stones, and are currently working on an EP.

Check out Patti’s playing on these videos/tracks, and catch Kevin Lee & the Kings, when you can!

“On Top of the World”  https://youtu.be/_jPTeMZL0Rc

“End of the Line” https://youtu.be/7GfeSvYygkc

“Sticks & Stones”  https://youtu.be/hUYpX0KrBho

By Joe Gagliardo

Jim’s story is a familiar one – albeit with a twist!

Like many of his generation, Jim was drawn to music and the instrument by The Beatles and Paul McCartney, the Rolling Stones with Bill Wyman, Cream’s Jack Bruce, and John Entwistle with The Who.

Yet whereas Paul was a lefty who played a left-handed instrument; Jim is a lefty who learned to pay bass right-handed!

In the mid-70s Jim was playing with an Erie based band named Pistol Whip, spreading their unique brand of glam rock throughout Pennsylvania, Ohio and the east coast.  By 1977 the band had made its way to Chicago and had shifted from punk to obscure garage cover songs.  They played a series of shows in Chicago and the Midwest, including opening slots for The Runaways at Danny Seraphine’s rock club B’Ginnings.

Upon returning to Erie, Pistol Whip underwent personnel changes, as well as a name change to The Swingers. Hitting Chicago again in late-’78, The Swingers released a punk version of “Leaving on a Jet Plane” that garnered significant air play in Chicago, thereby creating a buzz for the band.

In 1979, Chicago became Jim’s permanent home.  When The Swingers ended their run, Jim was introduced to Gary Yerkins and John Siegle and played with Garrison, a pop/new wave band that released an LP, Big Dat, in 1981.

Following his stint Garrison, Jim played with B.B. Spin, which had moved away from their punky roots to establishing itself as a popular rhythm and blues dance band.

B.B. Spin released an LP in 1983, Try To Beat The Heat, which included Jim and Jay O’Rourke – a future member of The Insiders.  Both Garrison and B.B. Spin were bands that established large followings, and toured extensively with Iggy Pop, The Stranglers, and John Cale.

In the mid-80s, members of Garrison and B.B. Spin joined forces and formed The Insiders, who were signed to the Epic/CBS label, and their first release, Ghost on the Beach peaked at #167 on the Billboard 200.

The title track “Ghost” reached #8 on Billboard’s Hot Mainstream Rock Tracks chart and was the first MTV Hip Clip of the Week. The band was a mainstay on the Chicago scene for eight years, and released three more albums, Fate in Action, Not For Sale, and Live at Fitzgerald’s.

Since The Insiders, Jim has played in popular club bands; Vendooza, Razorhouse and Fun House.  The latter is, as you would expect, is a high-energy ensemble that deftly blasts out Iggy Pop songs, and is a hot ticket in Chicago!

Over the years, depending on the music, Jim has used many basses, including a Fender Mustang, Gibson EB3, Fender Precision Bass, Fender Jazz Basses, a Lakland 5 String Deluxe, a Lakland Decade with a 35 in. neck strung BEAD, and a late-60’s Hofner Club Bass, among others.

Check out Jim’s tight pocket playing, with melodic flourishes:

The Insiders “Ghost on the Beach” https://youtu.be/XAZ80hdBmBs

The Insiders “Gimme Some Lovin” from Iron Eagle II https://youtu.be/d59obhG4Mnk

The Insiders “13 Skirts” https://youtu.be/yHg0yaLhC9o

The Insiders “Scarlet Ribbons” https://youtu.be/PyAX_KDdoRQ

Fun House live https://youtu.be/PrpVRDNrg0I

You can dance, you can jive, having the time of your life, ooh, see that girl, watch that scene digging the dancing queen…

Though rockers of my generation (1970s) were mortified at their popularity, this Swedish pop supergroup were a bona-fide song / harmony driven hit-making machine worthy of their reverence.

Their bassist toiled in several rock bands in his native Linkoping before enrolling at Stockholm’s Royal College of Music. While there, a colleague suggested that apply for a road gig with The Hootenanny Singers – Benny Andersson and Bjorn Ulvaeus. That musical collective soon developed into ABBA, and the rest, as they say is history.

A melodic pocket player, the late Rutger Gunnarsson anchored all the ABBA slabs, he was their touring bassist on several treks, and also served as an arranger on their string of multi-platinum platters. 

In addition to working with Bjorn and Benny following ABBA’s demise, Rutger also collaborated with Gemini, Celine Dion, Adam Ant, Ulf Lundell and Josefin Nilsson, among others. 

Gunnarsson was also involved the ABBA musical Mama Mia! and anchored the repertory ABBA Orchestra in Concert. 

Rutger Sound & Vision…

“Dancing Queen” https://youtu.be/B139-IqKcqg

Rutger rockin’ on “Summer Night City” https://youtu.be/SWj2vy7VS8Q  

Plonking down quarter note roots on “Take A Chance” https://youtu.be/-crgQGdpZR0

Dig Tony Senatore’s rendition of “Waterloo” https://youtu.be/4fQBaDHsGU4

By Joe Gagliardo

In 1977 or thereabouts, Joe Cetner attended a Cheap Trick gig at the Brat Stop, a venue just over the Wisconsin border, and he was blown away by Tom Petersson’s bass playing.

The following night, he went to see Chicago legends, D’ Thumbs (Cliff Johnson’s band immediately before Off Broadway, which also included drummer Tommy Aldridge following his tenure in Black Oak Arkansas, and shortly before he would wax platinum albums and traverse arenas with Pat Travers, Whitesnake and Ozzy Osbourne).

Once again Joe was blown away by a bassist with a Cheap Trick connection: Jon Brandt, who would go on to replace Pete Comita – who took over the bass chair from Petersson. Brandt anchored the Rockford, Illinois Rock and Roll Hall of Famers from 1981-88.

Driven by those live club experiences, and influenced by Paul McCartney and John Entwistle, Joe made the decision to play the bass guitar!

Equipped with a 1972 Sunburst Gibson Thunderbird, Joe quickly became a regular on the Chicago club scene, including gigs anchoring Pin Ups, who were among the hot, local late 70’s club bands.

In the 80’s Joe played with Tommy Holland in a latter-day configuration of The B’zz.  As that band wound down, Joe became part of Tommy Holland’s next project, Holland, which was signed to Atlantic records, and also featured drummer Brad Rohrssen and guitarist Michael Angelo Batio.  Holland’s LP, entitled Little Monsters, produced by Tom Werman, rocks hard and fast!

At that time Joe switched to one of his 1963 Fender Jazz basses as his go-to instrument.

Check out Holland’s “Wake Up The Neighborhood,” a song that was featured in the 1985 movie, Girls Just Want to Have Fun   https://youtu.be/hkw0r3Hf2ZQ

… and “High Life” https://youtu.be/z0RuuAqL1Ng

In the early 90’s Joe and Kevin Lee were in California and formed Kevin Lee and the Lonesome City Kings.  Inked to the MCA imprint, the band released one LP, Restless, co-produced by Don Dixon.

 Check out these two tracks:

 “Standing in the Line of Fire” https://youtu.be/X6v3e_SuGXY

“One Little Promise” from the Kill the Power Show  https://youtu.be/z0RuuAqL1Ng.

Weary of Chicago winters, Joe packed up and moved to Florida in the mid-1990s.  In addition to playing music on the beach and for various charities, for the past twenty-five years Joe has been living his dream of being a boat captain: an endeavor which takes him back to his childhood – racing home from school to watch Where The Action Is—sun, sand, beaches, waves and music!

By Tony Senatore

Tony’s study of the bass guitar began in 1977, under the tutelage of Al Faraldi, who, interestingly enough, was not a bassist. Faraldi was primarily a jazz guitarist that played classical guitar. The core of Mr. Faraldi’s teaching was his emphasis on reading, the Carol Kaye Bass Method, as well as Bach’s Six Suites for Violincello Solo and the Charlie Parker Omnibook.

After three years with Faraldi, and a brief stint with Jeremy Steig in 1979, Tony left New Jersey for the Berklee College of Music, where he spent a semester, but soon realized that he could forge a more personal style on his own.

Although Tony reunited with Faraldi from 1983 to 1984, he came to the realization that what he was looking for could only be found through real world experience. Thus, the streets and bars of New York became his college campus, and his professors were his heroes, ranging variously from Jaco Pastorius, Gary Willis, to Ray Brown and Ron Carter.

These days, Tony enjoys playing live with his band Billy Panic, whose 2015 release entitled ISH is a musical tour de force of all that Tony holds sacred: melody, harmony and the groove. He also is the house bassist at the weekly jam session with his band The Dogs at The Peddler Jam in Cresskill, New Jersey.

He enjoys the challenge of the endless array of styles he is confronted with each week, and he particularly enjoys mentoring and nurturing younger players. Tony also maintains a rigorous daily practice schedule on his upright and electric basses and has learned a lot from Rufus Philpot’s bass instruction videos.

Tony feels that Rufus is one of the best players and educators available anywhere.

In summary, unlike many of his contemporaries, Tony Curatola’s strength as a musician is realizing what he doesn’t know and having the humility to learn it.

Dig Tony with Billy Panic:

“Work Shoes” https://youtu.be/YSyAEtoPcu4

“Hudson River Walk”  https://youtu.be/dGVnZ1gEKkw

“Running with the Bulls” https://youtu.be/8ymhQzYhJ2s

Tony Curatola in his own words…

How do I judge me…” Let me count the ways.  

Two-five-one that’s right, for many years I not only studied jazz,  but I used it as a barometer to judge myself not only as a bassist but as a musician overall. 

Although I am relatively learned and fluid in the style and admittedly it has taught me much in terms of theory, composition and the like, in all honesty I have to admit two things. First and foremost, I don’t enjoy it, I never did and second I’m not much more than proficient at it. 

It wasn’t until recently when I had a conversation with pro bassist and confidant Tony Senatore who quite literally told me “its okay,” yes okay to openly admit that I don’t care to play jazz anymore.

It wasn’t the music of my time. I grew up in the seventies listening to Joni Mitchell, James Taylor and the all the super bands of the time (none of which played jazz). Since then I’ve come to happily emulate the music I grew up on and really enjoy playing. I no longer judge myself by two-five-one, but I do count to four at the start of most tunes.    

Nowadays I mostly play on a stage not a “bandstand…”

In four extraordinary interview segments with Alan Mair filmed at Terminal Studios in beautiful downtown Bermondsey, the bassist / composer / recording artist / producer / haberdasher discusses his career with The Beatstalkers, as a haberdasher, and bassist with The Only Ones, among other endeavors!

Special thanks to Amanda Thorpe, Sal Maida, and Edward Rogers for their editorial inspiration.

Alan Mair Know Your Bass Player on Film Season Tres https://bit.ly/2QAk64A

Alan Mair Part 1 

In the first of four extraordinary interview segments with Alan Mair filmed at Terminal Studios in beautiful downtown Bermondsey, the bassist / composer / recording artist / producer / haberdasher discusses his tenure in The Beatstalkers who were considered the “Scottish Beatles.” Among the band’s notable collaborators included a young singer songwriter David Jones, later known to the world as David Bowie – who composed and sang back-up for the group.

Alan Mair Part 2

In the second of four extraordinary interview segments with Alan Mair filmed at Terminal Studios in beautiful downtown Bermondsey, the bassist / composer / recording artist / producer / haberdasher discusses his transition from Beatstalker to boot-maker at Kensington Market, wherein he employed the former Farrokh Bulsara – later to be known to the world as Freddie Mercury.

Alan Mair Part 3 

In the third of four extraordinary interview segments with Alan Mair filmed at Terminal Studios in beautiful downtown Bermondsey, the bassist / composer / recording artist / producer / haberdasher discusses tenure in The Only Ones.

Alan Mair Part 4

“I want some of that!”

In the fourth and final interview segment with Alan Mair filmed at Terminal Studios in beautiful downtown Bermondsey, the bassist / composer / recording artist / producer / haberdasher recalls the unlikely reunions of both The Beatstalkers and The Only Ones.

Alan Mair: Season Tres Behind-the-Scenes: Rockers ‘n’ Schmatas!

Beatstalkers / The Only Ones bassist Alan Mair, who employed Freddy Mercury as a salesman in his Kensington Market boot shop, discusses fashion with Mark, who has familial ties to the garment industry. Derek reminisces about The Who with Alan.

By Joe Gagliardo

When Andre Howard was growing up, he had an uncle who would regularly visit his home and play blues guitar and sing.

Andre’s dad had a house full of instruments too, and Andre would sometimes join in with his with his uncle, playing trumpet or drums.  Then one day his uncle arrived with a friend who brought along his bass guitar, and everything changed for Andre!  With minimal instruction that day, Andre learned to play a basic blues pattern, and he never looked back.

With his Teisco bass, Andre began soaking up the plentiful blues, soul and rhythm and blues music being played on Chicago radio.  While still in high school, Andrew was gigging five nights a week in the clubs.

Eventually Andre’s pursuit of music took him to Nashville, where he did studio work, and performed regularly with Victor Wooten’s talented Family at 3rd and Lindsley, one of the great authentic blues bars outside of Chicago.

Since returning to Chicago in 2000, Andre has been a mainstay at the top Chicago blues clubs, including the Kingston Mines, B.L.U.E.S., Blue Chicago, and Buddy Guy’s Legends, often playing 5 nights a week.

He has played with a virtual who’s who of blues royalty, including, Lonnie Brooks, Magic Slim and the Teardrops, Eddie “The Chief” Clearwater, Liz Mandeville, and Big Time Sarah.

These days, Andre’s basses of choice are a 7-string Ibanez, a 5- string Schack, or a 4 string Steinberger.

If you have been in a Chicago blues club in the last twenty years, there is a good chance that you have seen and heard Andre perform.

You can catch him supporting a blues legend, playing with Frank Bang and the Cook County Kings, or with his critically acclaimed Andre Howard Band.

Check out Andre’s soulful grooves with Frank Bang & The Cook County Kings, and it’s is readily apparent why he has become known as “Da Funky One!”

The Blues Don’t Care LP  https://youtu.be/t3KCYVa18s4

Live at “The Funky Biscuit”  https://youtu.be/qyHY8hnRhA0

By Tony Curatola

Eddie Jackson, cofounder of Queensryche, is arguably one of the most underrated bassists of our time!

Mr. Jackson is also commonly known among those in-the-know as “Edbass” and “One Take” both of which speak to his tremendous knowledge and facility on his instrument.

Born in Robstown, Texas in 1961 Eddie came up as a player in a golden era of the instrument which gave us John Paul Jones, Chris Squire, Jaco Pastorius, and John Entwistle – to cite a few who raised and set the bar extremely high for upcoming players.

Eddie Jackson’s sound is reminiscent of Chris Squire – who I’m sure we can all agree was one of the premier players as bassist and anchor for Yes – Mr. Squire’s work needs no introduction!

Eddie “One Take” Jackson clearly embodies the best of the best in progressive music and has always done so with impeccable modesty. His discography is as extensive as his talent. Any time spent listening to Eddie and his work (and his approach to the nuances and complexity of the music) is time well spent for bass enthusiasts as well as “Joe Listener.”  Perhaps “Silent Lucidity” says it all. Pun intended!

Eddie Jackson’s weapons of choice include Fernandes, Spector NS-2, Spector 5LX extended range, Tobias 5-string, and Hartke amplifiers, bass cabinets.

My choice tracks which I feel demonstrate Eddie Jackson’s diversity include…

“Jet City Woman”  https://youtu.be/EHapAsmvGEU

“Light Years” https://youtu.be/qqI4OfolPuo

“Hundred Mile Stare” https://youtu.be/N9gYGpFltOA

“The Killer” https://youtu.be/qYLxGa57YGs

In the second of four extraordinary interview segments with Alan Mair filmed at Terminal Studios in beautiful downtown Bermondsey, the bassist / composer / recording artist / producer / haberdasher discusses his transition from Beatstalker to boot-maker at Kensington Market, wherein he employed the former Farrokh Bulsara – later to be known to the world as Freddie Mercury.

Special thanks to Amanda Thorpe, Sal Maida, and Edward Rogers for their editorial inspiration.

Tom Semioli: Interviewer / Writer. Mark Preston: Producer / Director. Derek Hanlon, Oliver Harley Symonds: Cinematographers.
Mark Polott: Editor.