By Thomas Semioli

“When I met Chuck [Rainey] I felt there really was no need for me to be bringing my bass guitar to the studio anymore…” Walter Becker (Steely Dan Reelin’ In the Years by Brian Sweet)

Just three records into their incomparable career, Donald Fagan and Walter Becker opted for studio cats even though Becker, who was also a stellar guitarist, was an exemplary bass player!     

A guitar student of Randy California, a master composer/lyricist, an accomplished producer (Rickie Lee Jones, Donald Fagan) among others, Becker deftly incorporated his deep knowledge (and passion) for rhythm and blues and jazz into his bass passages.  A consummate song player, Becker’s pocket and rhythmic variations were subtle yet powerful. No filler, no wasted notes and his tone was a perfect meld of bottom and edge.

On the original Steely Dan vinyl slabs and the latter-day digital remasters, Becker (unfortunately) is down in the mix. Given Steely’s penchant to highlight the songs, biting libretto, and the soloists, that is somewhat understandable.

Chuck Rainey cut the most bass tracks from ’75 until Dan’s initial demise in 1980.

When Dan reconvened in the mid-90s, Tom Barney was their primary bassist in the studio, and held the anchored the ensemble on their extensive touring schedule which commences to this day after Walter’s passing in 2017.

Becker returned to the instrument on occasion for various Steely cuts and for his fine solo efforts 11 Tracks of Whack (1994) and Circus Money (2008). On their final effort Everything Must Go (2003) the bass chair came full circle as Walter rendered all the tracks on his Sadowsky. On that particular platter, Becker can be heard front and center.

Any major dude will tell you that Walter was a top shelf player – I highly advise readers to don the headphones for those early Steely sides and dig Becker’s bass artistry.

Dig Walter’s double stops on “King of the World” https://youtu.be/Us0EsdiLBJY

Dig Walter’s grace notes and fills on “Your Gold Teeth” https://youtu.be/qxk-yVT6pfE

Dig Walter’s upright phrasing on “Razor Boy” https://youtu.be/Y3Krg8Nc69Y

Dig Walter working his soul chops on:

“My Old School” https://youtu.be/rFnwczuvb74

“Changing of the Guard” https://youtu.be/roLIYw8Ov_I

“Pearl of the Quarter” https://youtu.be/roLIYw8Ov_I

What about a kiss for your … “Cousin Dupree” https://youtu.be/80b4Y_d8W8o

“Things I Miss The Most” https://youtu.be/80b4Y_d8W8o

 

By Joe Gagliardo

Gordon Patriarca was born into a family that loved music – dad was a jazz / blues buff and mom played piano and show tunes.

 

Then along came the transistor radio! Gordon and his brother were inseparable from these new portable devices as the Top 40 sounds of WLS and WCFL in Chicago became the soundtrack of their childhood.

 

When Gordon was in 8th grade, a friend from Ireland with older brothers introduced him to Rory Gallagher and Taste, Jethro Tull, John Mayall, Cream, Led Zeppelin, and much of the great British blues rock of the era. By the time he entered high school, Gordon was in love with the music, however had yet to pick up a bass.  That was about to change soon…

 

His younger brother was excelling with guitar lessons, and Gordon – fired up by Jack Bruce’s incendiary musicianship – decided that playing bass would be “cool.”  A neighbor kid owned a Montgomery Ward’s bass and amp that he loaned to Gordon, and he and his brother would spend hours playing 12-bar blues progressions.

 

Eventually Gordon got bass, a cherry red Epiphone Newport, and joined a band with his brother while taking lessons from a pro – Paul Zibits.  Gordon’s high school graduation gift was ’76 Fender Jazz bass.

 

Circa 1979-80, Gordon honed his craft with Trouts, which was in the Elvis Costello / Squeeze / Joe Jackson bag: melodic and hooky.

 

At this point, Bruce Thomas (Elvis Costello & The Attractions) became a huge influence. Regulars on the local circuit, Trouts lasted for three years.

 

Following Trouts, Gordon took on a rockabilly gig with Stevie Starlite’s band, followed by a blues-rock-fusion gig with Don Griffin and the Griff Band. Gordon then spent five years with The Remainders, a band that started out as a Cajun / Zydeco / New Orleans style band which morphed into an Americana / roots-rock/ pop band which released a cassette and CD.

 

After his tenure in The Remainders, Gordon was back on the local club circuit, and busy in the studio appearing on over forty releases.  His many studio credits include albums with Yardsale and Word Bongo, Joe Pug, Kelley McCrae and Sage Francis, also recording sessions at Abbey Road Studio with Icos. Gordon also anchored European tours and recorded with Jan James.

 

Over a forty-year span, Gordon has played thousands of gigs, including shows with Survivor, Spirit, Matt “Guitar” Murphy, Screamin’ Jay Hawkins, Sugar Blue, and Robbie Fulks, among others.

 

Gordon’s go-to bass for twenty years was an Ampeg AEB-1 Scroll bass that he purchased for $90.00 in 1984, and consequently modified.

 

These days he has a penchant for Squire Precision and Tele basses which he “hot rods” by, among other things, changing the pick ups and bridges.  He also uses a custom SG Bass, and a Fender Jazz bass with DiMarzio pickups and flat wound strings. His bass rig is a Yamaha PB-1 Pre amp, run through a Peavey IPR Power Amp, into either an Eden 2×12, Sunn 1×18, Mesa 1×15, or some combination thereof.

 

Gordon’s playing philosophy is to focus on the groove with melodic flourishes, as well as to be intimately familiar with the style of music he is playing, and how to play it, whether it is rock, pop, country, blues, or reggae.

 

In addition to Jack Bruce and Bruce Thomas, his early bass influences include James Jamerson, Phil Lynott, Tony Stevens (Savoy Brown and Foghat), and Greg Ridley (Humble Pie).  Later on Gordon drew inspiration from Jaco Pastorius, Colin Moulding, and Rocco Prestia.

 

In addition to being the Musical Director for The School of Rock, he is involved in multiple projects: Simply Elton, Simply Billy(Joel), Too Bad Company, Heroes (Bowie), Yacht Rock with the Yacht Rockettes, Rick Lindy and Dave Specter.

 

 

Gordon Patriarca Sound & Vision …

 

Gordo’s Gigs Playlist: https://youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNPW-Nl7KKAP3QkN3zt07Gh5etV39Hv5g

Music I have appeared on as a bassist from 1980 to the present. Some solo bass weirdness included here too. Tracks include recordings as a band member and as a studio musician. Some live stuff too.

 

The Remainders “Two For The Blues” https://youtu.be/b-_GxL2a_Lc

 

Word Bongo “Witnesses” https://youtu.be/Csj9ftRiAp8

 

Yardsale “How Good It Feels” https://youtu.be/-R1Ysrormpg

 

Icos “Only You and I” https://youtu.be/QNGI7aa1vpA

 

 

By Joe Gagliardo

He anchored one of the most accomplished, versatile, and influential ensembles in the history of rock and roll. Do you believe in magic?

Steve Boone was raised in household brimming with the sounds of music – most notably the classical works of Liszt and Chopin, along with Broadway musicals such as Annie Get Your Gun, and South Pacific.

Mesmerized by Buddy Holly’s singing style, and his unique rhythmic disposition, Steve decided to be a musician upon hearing Lubbock Texas legend’s seminal classic “Peggy Sue” on the radio.

Steve was also influenced by his guitarist brother Skip, six years his senior. Skip made it as far as recording a few demos at RCA with Chet Atkins and cutting an LP with the band Auto Salvage.  Consequently, Skip had significant impact on Steve’s music career.

At sixteen while recovering from a serious auto accident, Steve began to play an acoustic guitar which his mom purchased for him – a Gibson LGO. Skip taught him a few chords, and Steve began playing along with the songs he was hearing on the faint, late night signal of WKBW radio in Buffalo, New York.

When Steve was a high school senior – Skip was working in a popular Westhampton, New York band – The Kingsmen. One of front men was drummer / singer Joe Butler – who also would play a major role in Steve’s career.

At Skip’s invitation, sometime in October 1962, Steve joined The Kingsmen on acoustic guitar for a few impromptu numbers and was invited become a full-fledged group member – which prompted Boone to get his hands on a 1957 Les Paul Goldtop.

Within weeks after joining, The Kingsmen’s bassist announced he was returning to Louisiana – and he suggested Steve as his replacement.  After a few quick lessons from the outgoing bass player, Boone quickly realized that he enjoyed creating and rendering bass passages.

Steve also learned that the bass and the kick-drum are essentially “married” to each other and he developed a dynamic rhythmic rapport with Joe Butler.

Steve and Joe gigged together as a tight unit for two-years until the summer of ’64, when Boone decided to leave the band for an extended tour of Europe. Steve was in search of the Merseybeat / British Invasion sound which was garnering worldwide popularity by way of The Beatles, Dave Clark Five, and Gerry and The Pacemakers. He also planned to attend college following his sojourn overseas.

By the end of 1964 Skip and Joe Butler had moved to Greenwich Village and their band, The Sellouts, had a regular gig at one of Trudy Heller’s clubs.

During one of Steve’s visits to New York, Skip suggested that his kid brother bring along his bass.  Despite his reluctance as he was planning to head off to school soon in January 1965, Steve did as his brother asked.  When Steve arrived at Skip’s apartment, he was greeted by Joe Butler who asked if he was interested in putting his bass guitar to use with a few guys who were serious musicians. Steve made his way to
the Village Music Hall where he met John Sebastian and Zal Yanovsky.

John and Zal, who had briefly played with Cass Elliot in the Mugwumps, were seeking to assemble their own group – and all they needed was a rhythm section!

Sebastian grew up in a musical family; a guitarist and composer, he learned harmonica from his dad who was a virtuoso on the instrument. John explained to Steve that was writing songs that blended the traditional sounds of rhythm and blues records with folk style guitar.

The duo asked Steve to jam – and he pulled out his ice-box white Fender Precision bass. They jelled instantly. Having similar influences, the music came together – even in the absence of a drummer!

The night following their introductory jam, Steve went to the Night Owl Cafe to hear John play with some of his friends—Tim Hardin, Fred Neil, Buzzy Linhart, and Felix Pappalardi.  By the end of their set, Steve was convinced that he wanted to be part of this scene.  As he walked back to his brother’s apartment – all the reasons he had for returning to school and pursuing a proper career were disappearing under the dark sky above.

Steve, John and Zal had decided to move forward, and Steve would “delay” college and dedicate the next six months to getting the band off the ground.

During rehearsals the following week, John received a call from Bob Dylan, asking if he could play bass on a few songs he was recording.  As Sebastian didn’t own a bass (nor did he drive) Steve loaded his bass (and John) into his car and headed off to Columbia Studios.  As John’s parts weren’t working out, he suggested that Steve play bass. Boone’s work with Bob can be heard on Bringing It All Back Home.

The Lovin’ Spoonful – a name derived from a Mississippi John Hurt song – made their live debut in February 1965 at the Night Owl Café.

Enter Joe Butler once again, who replaced the original Spoonful drummer. Another change took place – at the suggestion of renown producer / bassist Felix Pappalardi: Steve traded his beloved P bass for a Guild Starfire II with custom electronics.  With the line-up set, the band worked to tighten up its sound and bonded as friends.

The band cut a demo of “Do You Believe in Magic”- a classic song sans a chorus, and featuring Autoharp – which was rooted in rock – yet thoroughly indebted to the folk scene from which John and Zal were a product of.  The demo was so good that Kama Sutra label pressed it and it became a smash hit!

From 1965-1968, the Spoonful enjoyed a terrific artistic and commercial run—seven Top 10 singles, three charting albums, including a Top 10 album.  “Summer in the City” reached #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in August1966 and remained there for three weeks.

Unlike many pop bands of their era, the Lovin’ Spoonful wrote and played on all their hits. In 2000 they were finally inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.

In addition to his bass playing, Steve also had success as a composer, co-writing “You Didn’t Have To Be So Nice,” “Summer In The City,” and “Night Owl Blues.” Steve also wrote “Butchie’s Tune” which appeared in the film Blow Up as well as in the acclaimed TV series Mad Men. The bassist also penned “Full Measure” and “Forever,” which appeared on the final Spoonful album Everything Playing.

Boone utilized the Guild Starfire II on most of the Spoonful records save for Hums of the Lovin’ Spoonful and Everything Playing wherein Steve played a ‘61 dual concentric Fender Jazz bass – which was later stolen.

In 1973, after spending time living on a boat docked in St. Thomas, Steve moved Baltimore, where a female drummer he met while on the Islands was cutting a demo.

The recording studio featured a board equipped with parametric equalization on all the faders which was built by George Massenburg – which consequently opened the door to digital recording.  The studio had fallen into disrepair when the owner left the country and Steve took it over, renaming the venue Blue Seas Recording Studios.

Among the notable albums and artists who recorded there included Little Feat (Feats Don’t Fail Me Now) Robert Palmer (Pressure Drop),  along with tracks by Bonnie Raitt, Emmylou Harris, Verdine White, Sonny Terry, Joe Butler, John Sebastian and Ricky Scaggs, among others.

The Hunt Valley, Maryland studio was ultimately moved to a barge that was docked at Baltimore’s inner harbor.  The studio abruptly came to an end in 1977 when the barge sank.  At the time Steve was playing four nights a week with his band, Blanche, Ltd.

In 1981, Steve was playing music regularly in Baltimore with the Scott Cunningham Blues Band, doing occasional duets with John Sebastian, and sometimes, with Joe Butler, as a trio.

Steve moved to Florida in the late 1980s, taking a break from music until he was inspired by a Ft. Lauderdale pub band called The Irish Times – Steve co-produced their LP Live at Maguires Hill 16.

In 1990 promoters were itching for a Lovin’ Spoonful tour. Steve and Joe Butler decided to put a band together after John Sebastian and Zal declined a reunion of the four original members.

That band, with some personnel changes, has toured worldwide since 1991. Joe Butler has moved out front to sing, and the drums have been handled for the last twenty-five years, by Chicago born drummer Mike Arturi.

These days Steve no longer utilizes the Guild Starfire II though he did bring it out for the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame induction ceremonies.  Steve’s go-to bass for the past thirteen years the Ibanez BTB.  He loves the feel of the instrument and its resonance, though he advocates that tone comes from the player – from pressure on the fretboard to sustane, and of course, and deep notes tying in with the bass drum.

In 2014, Steve published a memoire entitled Hotter Than A Match Head Life on the Run with The Lovin’
Spoonful. The book not only spans the life and career of Steve Boone, it affords a life-lesson in rebounding after facing adversity multiple times, and also details how the Spoonful emerged in the era when folk music was not widely known, yet they achieved great success by combining that roots music with rock.

In February 2020, The Wild Honey Orchestra hosted an epic four-hour celebration of the music of The Lovin’ Spoonful as a fundraiser for the Autism Think Tank at The Alex Theatre in Glendale, California.

Steve, John Sebastian and Joe Butler participated in this event.  The Orchestra included Elliot Easton (Cars),
Dennis Diken (The Smithereens), Dave Alvin (The Blasters), Susan Cowsill, Carnie Wilson (Wilson Phillips), Carla Olson (The Textones), Mickey Dolenz, Claudia Lennear, Peter Case, Marshall Crenshaw, Marti Jones, Don Dixon, and Bill Lloyd, along with many other guest performers.

Nowadays you can catch Steve and the Spoonful on tour, and listen to Steve’s weekly radio show which airs Mondays at 6 PM EDT, on www.flaglerbeachradio.com.

Watch, listen to Steve Boone:

“Do You Believe In Magic” and “You Didn’t Have to Be So Nice” from the Big TNT Show 1965 https://bit.ly/3d48EaL

“Only Pretty, What A Pity” https://bit.ly/2VSa9mu

“Summer In The City”  https://bit.ly/3bWlIi1

“Night Owl Blues”  https://youtu.be/11-YxOGJ6Bs

“Butchie’s Tune” https://youtu.be/BRTkqGSKTts

American Bandstand -Interview The Lovin’ Spoonful https://bit.ly/2WgEuua

“Revelation: Revolution ‘69” https://youtu.be/PlGVriLQyn8

Steve’s Hotter Than A Match Head Life on the Run with The Lovin’ Spoonful can be found at www.SteveBoone.net

CODA:  A View of Steve Boone from “The Drum Throne”

Mike Arturi has forged a backbeat with Steve Boone for twenty-five years.

An accomplished drummer on the Chicago club circuit who has toured with such popular bands as Big Twist and the Mellow Fellows, Jade 50’s, Rick Saucedo, and radio personality Big John Howell, among others, Mike has been working 300 dates a year for close to twenty years! Aturi is an ardent student of the instrument, inspired and tutored by Petula Clark’s road drummer Shelly Elias, who was a legendary Chicago based percussionist, composer and educator.

In assessing his experience playing with Steve Boone, Mike describes Steve as a singularly unique bass player.  “He anchors the songs, and his passing tones are beautiful—extremely melodic.  He inspires me, and I play totally different because of him.” 

Notes Mike, “as long as I have Steve in my monitor, with my snare and kick, that’s all I need.”

And according to Steve, Mike became a foundation upon which he could build his bass playing. “Mike is a drummer I could comfortably lock in with as a rhythm section… [we] have developed the best chemistry I have had with any drummer.”

Honorable Mention:  When Mike in not drumming with the Spoonful, he is the Founder and Executive Director of the Universal Music Center (UMC), a non-profit music school located in Red Wing, Minnesota.

UMC is dedicated to enriching lives through music and live performance education, and is staffed with University trained educators who are also professional working musicians with national and international touring credentials.

UMC is proud of the fact that to-date, eleven students have gone on to become professional working musicians.  Mike also devotes an extensive amount of time to working with underprivileged and at-risk students.  In recognition of his contributions, Mike has been honored as a National Artist for the John F. Kennedy Center Turnaround Arts Program, and is a Teaching Artist for the St. Paul MN COMPASS Arts
Program.

By Joe Gagliardo

Around 1970 I heard a revved-up version of Sam & Dave’s “You Got Me Hummin.’  There were two additional noticeable differences—the powerful and soulful voice of a female vocalist, and a driving bass solo.  This was long before the internet, so I immediately went out and bought the LP and found out the voice belonged to Lydia Pense, and the driving bass came from Rod Ellicott.  The band was a powerful horn band out of San Francisco called Cold Blood.  I immediately became a fan of Rod’s bass playing and Cold Blood.

Woody Lingle, a recent Know Your Bass Player subject, also identifies Rod as a significant influence on his playing. Digging into Rod’s playing I came up with a major surprise.  Rod recorded the first Cold Blood LP,
dripping with soul and funk, on a Hofner Beatle Bass run directly to the board, and he played it with a thumb-pick that he held like a flat pick. After the first album, he played with his fingers.  That transition was made easier because Rod had previously played an upright bass before switching to electric bass.

Rod recorded several albums with Cold Blood, and he also played on the Pointer Sisters’ first LP.  Rod and drummer Jim Gordon teamed up to lay down the bottom for the jazz ensemble Bobby and I on their self titled album. Rod also played with moog synthesizer pioneers, Beaver and Krause, on the Grandharva LP.  Since moving to Tulsa, Rod has continued to gig with different bands, playing rock, jazz, blues, R&B, Bluegrass, and
Country …essentially all genres of music.

Rod’s weapons of choice: Rod started with a ’63 Fender Precision bass, traded it for the Hofner, switched to a Gibson EB-3L, then to a plexiglass Ampeg Dan Armstrong, and back to a Fender Precision bass.

He ran his basses through an Ampeg B15N, before moving to a Standel Combo Dual 15 rig which was replaced by an Acoustic 360 folded horn, which was replaced by a Sunn head driving two Peavey 1×15 cabinets.

Influences: Rod’s parents were musicians and he was exposed to sight reading on keys and violin.  When Rod wasn’t sticking with piano/violin lessons, his Dad told him “learn bass!  You will never be out of
work.”

He had his first pro gig on an upright at age 14, and lunged at the opportunity to buy Leo Fender’s perfect marriage of an upright bass and electric guitar.  Rod views bass as an ensemble instrument, to be felt,
as well as heard.  He is a melodic player, listens to all the parts in the song, and looks to play missing parts, some that aren’t necessarily for bass.

He has a long list of favorite bass players, including Paul McCartney, Jaco Pastorius, Peter Cetera, Verdine White, Jimmy Haslip (Yellowjackets), Victor Wooten, Willie Weeks, Esperanza Spalding, Mike King (Level 42) and Jack Casady.

These days you can catch Rod gigging in Tulsa, and you can check out his playing:

Cold Blood-Winterland-1973-Full Concert https://youtu.be/s_S4rDwVBl0  Rod’s solo on “Hummin’ at 18:10

Cold Blood “Down to the Bone” https://youtu.be/sDuqavv511I

Cold Blood “I Just Want to Make Love to You” https://youtu.be/Z3OcHzNw7lI

Cold Blood “Valdez in the Country” https://youtu.be/0TB7wvaJzfQ

Cold Blood “Come Into My Life Again” https://youtu.be/MoACT42JT_Y

Pointer Sisters “River Boulevard” https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=owZ3Wkn8ilA

By Joe Gagliardo

When an 11-year-old guitar playing kid asked his friends if he could join their band, he heard a familiar refrain: “we don’t need another guitar player…we need…a bass player!

Woody Lingle, “a Beatles guy,” tuned his guitar down and began to play bass until he got his hands on the same instrument as his idol Paul McCartney: a Hofner bass. From 1967-69 Woody gigged in South Carolina with soul band The Regals, among other ensembles.

Moving to Dayton, Ohio in ‘69 Woody became involved with his church. His Minister was on the cutting-edge of Christian Music and Woody took on the responsibility of assembling musicians to premiere this “new music.”

During this time, Woody fell in love with jazz and horn bands. In addition to Paul McCartney and James Jamerson, Woody was deeply influenced by Rod Ellicott – bassist in Cold Blood, a powerful San Francisco horn collective fronted by Lydia Pense. Rod was known for his driving bass lines and live solos.

Woody pursued a Musical Therapy Degree in South Carolina. He played in the school jazz band along with local jazz groups and big band shows – including his first two union gigs within two weeks: Liberace, and the “Lipazan Stallions Show.” With a deep desire to improve his musicianship Woody enrolled in the prestigious North Texas State University – known for their jazz school.

Woody returned to North Texas State to resume his studies and discovered that Gary Willis (co-founder of the jazz fusion band, Tribal Tech) and Gregg Bissonette (David Lee Roth, Santana) were his classmates.

Woody and Gregg played together in the internationally renowned One O’Clock Lab Band at NTSU.  They also gigged regularly with Top 40 bands and did studio work in the Dallas / Ft. Worth area.

In 1983, Woody migrated to Oklahoma City to join the band Maya, a Top 40 dance band.  While in Oklahoma City, continued his work as a studio musician, playing jazz gigs and Top 40 with Chris Hicks.

Through that work he became friendly with a producer who had played in Emmylou Harris’ renowned Hot Band.  That led him to Nashville where he lived from 1994-2011.  During that time, he played and/or recorded with Margaret Becker, Charlie Peacock, Ty Herndon, Steve Wariner, Ricky Van Shelton, among others, and composed music for popular TV shows.

In 2004, Woody received a call from Gary Puckett, and for the past sixteen years he has served as Gary’s bassist, musical director, and vocalist.

In 2011 he returned to South Carolina to take the position of Music Director for the Ebenezer Baptist Church in Cordova. There, he puts all his skills to use—writing, conducting, arranging and playing.

Since 2006, Woody’s go-to bass has been a Dean – which he endorses as a member of Gary Puckett and the Union Gap. Woody utilized a Modulus Graphite for many years. His arsenal also includes a Sire four string
Marcus Miller P7, a Dean 5 String Edge Pro, a Rob Allen semi-acoustic 5-string Fretless with black nylon strings, and his trusty Hofner, among others.

A diverse player equally at home with rock, jazz, country, pop, Latin, rhythm and blues -check out Woody with….

“The Bible According to Scofield” (Woody Lingle) https://youtu.be/7yguo05DpmA

“2 Five or Not Two 5” (Woody Lingle) https://youtu.be/4NabtcHg4-Y

“Grace” (Woody Lingle) https://youtu.be/IX1I8W2lWmQ

“Bowlegged” (GaryWillis, arranged by Woody Lingle) https://youtu.be/0i6QYgs_J7s

By Thomas Semioli

 

A Grammy nominated producer, recording artist, sideman, bandmember, musical director, multi-instrumentalist, educator, clinician, and bassist – among other distinctions: Roscoe Beck’s remarkable five-decade (and counting) career has spanned rock, fusion, jazz, folk, reggae, funk, Americana, blues and permutations thereof. 

 

Among Beck’s notable collaborations include Leonard Cohen, Eric Johnson, Robben Ford, the Vaughn Brothers, Jennifer Warnes (a Grammy nod for Famous Blue Raincoat), Passenger, Darden Smith, and The Dixie Chicks to cite a few. 

 

A fretted, fretless, and upright player, Roscoe served as Leonard Cohen’s musical director and bassist for several years until the Canadian bard’s passing. 

 

Fender has issued two signature Roscoe artist models – a four and five string with design cues taken from the Fender Jazz bass.  

 

Dig Roscoe plying grooves aplenty with Leonard from Field Commander Cohen: Tour of 1979 “Field Commander Cohen” https://youtu.be/EyLmYpSP4w4 

 

Dig Roscoe from his Walk On solo slab “Wasn’t It Fine” https://youtu.be/8FlYT66IF0E 

 

Dig Tony Senatore’s rendition of Roscoe’s “Talk To Your Daughter” with Robben Ford https://youtu.be/zeu4h5QnqYo 

 

Dig Roscoe with Passenger “Baked Benson” https://youtu.be/1nSChuNprKI

 

Dig Roscoe with Jennifer “Came So Far for Beauty” https://youtu.be/xlXNhoELB6g

 

Dig Roscoe with Oz Noy, Warren Haynes, Chris Layton, Reese Wynans https://youtu.be/imhsexYLwTE
  
  

By Joe Gagliardo

Karma? Serendipity? Fate?  

All of the above with reference to the career of bassist Keith Voegele!

The journey started on a holiday visit to Keith’s cousin’s house when he was age thirteen – which consequently became a turning point in his life.

Keith’s cousin played bass … and he let Keith play the instrument. Back home, Keith returned from school one day and his Dad surprised him—he had purchased his cousin’s Rickenbacker 4001 copy Electra bass guitar and Marlboro amp! Though Keith took a few lessons, his best teacher was his record collection, immersing himself in the grooves and styles of several players.

By fourteen he was in a band – Equinox – whose members were high school seniors, and he toiled the next eight years honing his craft in bars, clubs and beer bashes.

In the late 80s Keith spent five years with Axe Minister, a metal band based out of St. Louis. While working at St. Louis Music making Ampeg and Crate equipment, he joined Lex Luthor, a band that mixed originals with covers.  However, a contact made from the metal days, lead to him moving to Boston to play with Epic recording artists, Meliah Rage, a thrash metal band.  The drummer of that band was Sully Erna, who went on to become the lead singer of Godsmack.

In the mid-90’s, Keith was back in St. Louis anchoring with The Phonocaptors, playing hard-edged original music in the vein of the Velvet Underground, MC5 and The Stooges.

That band had a tune on a compilation CD entitled St. Louis’ Tribute to Chuck Berry. The Bottle Rockets also had a song on that CD. Some years later when the Bottle Rockets needed a bass player, the engineer of that release suggested Keith.

After moving to Springfield, Illinois, Keith joined the Bottle Rockets in 2005 – and has held down the bottom ever since. The band’s rootsy / Americana repertoire gives Keith the opportunity to render up-tempo rockers as well as country music.

As they often tour with and back up acclaimed singer, songwriter, recording artist Marshall Crenshaw – Keith enjoys the opportunity to replicate the melodic bass passages from Crenshaw’s hit records which were originally cut by such notable players including Tony Garnier, Chris Donato, Graham Maby, and Tony Levin.

Keith cites his influences as Paul McCartney, Geddy Lee, Steve Harris.  Chris Squire, and Jack Cassidy. Given his metal background and the fact that his bass heroes are players who often ply complicated passages, Keith focuses on being a consummate “song player” – and limits his playing of lines that are overtly “busy.”

Weapons of choice: Keith  owns an array of basses, including a 2003 butterscotch blonde Fender Precision bass with a maple neck, strung with flatwounds; a 2013 Lakland Darryl Jones jazz bass, strung with roundwounds; a Rickenbacker 4003; a Fender Justin Meldal Johnsen Mustang bass; and a Creston Lee Tele-styled bass.

While he utilizes the traditional Ampeg SVT 8×10, GK 800 RB, and other cabinets, his go-to amp is an Ampeg B-100R combo amp that he fell in love with while playing a gig at the Sportsman’s Tap.

Catch The Bottle Rockets when they come through town on their own, or with Marshall Crenshaw, and check out Keith’s playing…

… The Bottle Rockets on Audiotree Live (Full Session) https://youtu.be/2cm2XpmtJV8

By Roger Hitts

R.B. Korbet’s rich and varied musical career reads like a road map of the vintage New York underground world, cutting her teeth in the early 1980s in such legendary underground bands as Even Worse and Missing Foundation in a scene that gave rise to the likes of The Beastie Boys and Bad Brains, then moving on to stints in bands such as garage rock legends Pussy Galore and John S Hall’s avant-garde collective King Missile. 

 

And while R.B. has usually been seen behind a drum kit or a six-string, she now slings bass guitar in the much-loved The Carvels NYC, offering a pert, kinetic anchor to the band that offers a musical blender of garage, pop, punk and the girl group sound – and that’s only backed up by R.B.’s harmony vocals to lead singer Lynne Von Pang’s powerhouse belting.  R.B. plays like a wind-up toy whose coil is about to burst, but still provides low harbor exquisitely.   

“I’ve never considered myself a bass player until fairly recently,” Korbet tells Know Your Bass Player. “I have a weird playing style. I don’t play at the bottom of the neck near the lower bridge but right up front at the pickup. I think it helps give me that really punchy sound – it’s not intentional, it’s just where I feel comfortable for some reason.”

Musician Korbet’s career on the four-string took flight during her stint working with Jon Spencer in Pussy Galore: “Jon had very distinct ideas about the material and I rarely played a bar chord, let alone a lead.  So I began thinking about being more percussive, my attack, and have the few notes I did play have real meaning.”

 

Korbet abandoned music entirely for more than a decade while studying in England on the way to earning her doctorate degree in contemporary British history. Her rebirth as a bassist largely sprung from her recent collaborations with the East Village’s revered bard Hall.

Korbet played drums in an early incarnation of King Missile in the 1980s, but a series of reunion shows featuring Hall and Korbet gave her a whole new perspective while switching to the four-string.  “King Missile is always led by John’s words and the music would take shape around that,” she said. “It got me to think very differently about music and songwriting, and it forced me to listen more and consider the dynamics of the finished project as a whole.”

Korbet’s bass of choice in The Carvels NYC is a 1996 Korean-made Fender Squire jazz bass, saying, “I love it! The scale is perfect for me, and the neck is beautiful. It never goes out of tune and I change the strings about every two years!” And she keeps things simple, given her penchant for getting lost in the moment and leaping around the stage. “I’m constantly in danger of knocking things over, so I’ll go clean and boom-y before I stick a pedal on the stage for me to kill myself on.” For added sonic emphasis, Korbet employs a heavy triangular nylon pick to make her sound.

While The Carvels NYC have been recording and touring as one of the city’s biggest “on the rise” bands, Korbet reflects on her rock ‘n roll life.  “I’ve learned a lot about human nature, the good the bad and the ugly. I am greatly thankful for the other musicians I’ve worked with and the people I’ve met through the scene, even the shitty ones….

…because everything and everyone you encounter in life is a lesson.”

 

R.B Sound & Vision….

 

King Missile Live at the Bowery Electric “Betrayal Takes Two” https://youtu.be/AD3JIcRVeN4

 

The Carvels

 

“Sad Vacation” https://youtu.be/fZL1Ut0QDzQ

 

“Late Night Heart” https://youtu.be/134llF34hf0

 

Dig R.B. and her latest project Silk Cut with John S. Hall The Plague Sessions https://silkcut.bandcamp.com/releases

 

By Thomas Semioli

A master of the instrument in a pop context, a consummate song player, and among the most prolific players whose career emerged during the “new wave” rock era of the 1980s and continued until his untimely passing in 2020, Matthew Seligman anchored several influential slabs, singles, and ensembles throughout his remarkable career.

 

He was an official member of Bruce Wooley and The Camera Club, the Thompson Twins, The Soft Boys (replacing founding bassist Andy Metcalfe), and The Dolphin Brothers, among others.

 

Seligman’s array of session / sideman credits read akin to a who’s who of modern rock, including: David Bowie’s Live Aid band, the hit “Absolute Beginners” and the soundtrack to Labyrinth; Thomas Dolby (“She Blinded Me With Science”), Robyn Hitchcock, The Waterboys, Stereo MCs, Chris Bell, Sinead O’Connor, Tori Amos, Kimberley Rew, Alex Chilton, Morrissey, Chrissie Hynde, and Sam Brown to cite a select few.

 

A melodic / pocket fretted and fretless player Matthew’s main weapons of choice were the Fender Jazz and Ibanez bass.

 

 

Matthew Seligman Sound & Vision…

 

Bruce Wooley: “Video Killed the Radio Star” (Original Version 1979) https://youtu.be/kNq0pajn2ME

 

Matthew with The Soft Boys:

 

“Underwater Moonlight” https://youtu.be/DsnVzwiH5XE

 

“Insanely Jealous” https://youtu.be/sZ3-R1ig9sk

 

David Bowie:

 

“Absolute Beginners”  https://youtu.be/iCJLOXqnT2I

 

Live Aid 1985 “Modern Love” https://youtu.be/jLMUZahN7NU

 

Mozzer:

 

“Ouija Board” https://youtu.be/T8V82TXOzm0

 

Thomas Dolby:

 

“She Blinded Me With Science” https://youtu.be/V83JR2IoI8k

 

Tori Amos:

 

“China” https://youtu.be/7pEfCe1-KTw

 

The Thompson Twins:

 

“In the Name of Love” https://youtu.be/Uh6C3WE9DdY

 

From Robyn Hitchcock ….

 

I’m writing this as Matthew Seligman slips out of this life and into wherever souls go next. Everybody goes, but none of us were expecting Matthew to leave us so abruptly, forever. It is strange and very sad to be talking of him in the past tense. I first met Matthew in 1976 in Cambridge, just before the beginning of the Soft Boys. He had nice dark hair and was very charming, with a slight break in his voice. 

 

A joyous and funky bass player, he made Underwater Moonlight an exuberant LP to record and listen to. His manic bass run at the end of “Insanely Jealous” and his stately propeller dive into the last chorus of the title track, as well as the insistent groove he brought to “Kingdom of Love” are some of the finest bass playing I have ever witnessed. 

 

Matthew truly believed in the Soft Boys and the record. It was early 1980 and the second Cold War was intensifying. I fondly remember stomping over to the pub after a session and him saying through the dismal spring wind, “We may all be about to be blown up, but at least we’ll have made a classic album.” 

 

The band didn’t survive too long into the bleak 1980s, but Matthew found a home as a bass player in many great musical shells. The Thompson Twins, David Bowie, Morrissey and Chrissie Hynde were all lucky beneficiaries of his intuitive and circular grooves. 

 

As well as bass playing, he specialized in one-liners. “Pop music is about over-stating the obvious” and “What you’ve proved to the music industry is that you can’t sell records” are two of my favorites. 

 

I’m profoundly grateful to have played music with him – you could really see his face light up like a full moon when he listened back to a take he enjoyed. Onstage he would lope and lurch and pace when the music moved him. Matthew is, was, and always will be one of the greats. My heart goes out to his partner,Mami; his children Daisy and Lily, and all who were close to him and his lunar intensity.

 

 

Robyn H, Nashville, April 17, 2020

 

 

By Joe Gagliardo

Like so many players of his generation, when a young, impressionable kid from the Chicago metropolitan area named Joe Cuttone tuned into the Ed Sullivan Show on a Sunday night and witnessed Paul and The Beatles…. you know how the story goes!

His first instrument was a Tescio. And after a seven-year run of playing the Chicago club circuit from five to six nights per week with Jerico, a popular band Cuttone formed while still in high school – fate intervened. Joe and bandmate Glen Rupp received a life-changing call from music promoter and manager Barry Fox.

Joe and Glen accepted an offer from Fox to immediately fly out to Los Angeles where The Hounds, who were also a fixture on the club scene, were getting ready to record their first LP for Columbia at the legendary Record Plant.  Joe and Glen hightailed it out to the City of Angels, and within a few weeks Unleashed was recorded.

A mix of hard rock, glam. and punk, the track “Another Drugland Weekend” was aired every Friday at 5:00 PM on iconic Chicago rock radio station, WXRT. Using his Guild B-301 bass guitar, The Hounds were led by John Hunter.

The Hounds “Another Drugland Weekend”  https://youtu.be/XmPEt-WTykM

Shortly thereafter, Joe and Glen were full-fledged members of The Hounds, and they recorded a second LP for Columbia at the Record Plant in Sausalito; Puttin’ On The Dog.  A mix of originals, and revved up covers, including “Under My Thumb” and “Who’ll Be The Next In Line” – on this record Joe used his  modified ’72 Fender Jazz bass – he swapped out the neck for an Alembic graphite neck, and added a badass bridge and 2 EMG pickups!

The Hounds “Under My Thumb”  https://youtu.be/QQzq9D36KYs

After The Hounds five-year run, Joe and Glen were part of the John Hunter Band, which released two LPs; Famous At Night which spawned the hit “Tragedy” which reached #39 on the Billboard Top 200 and More Than Meets The Eye.  

Check out Joe with John Hunter on American Bandstand https://youtu.be/MfmYmjjBaT0

Nowadays you can catch Joe with BannedJoe, a country and rock band, which features Cuttone on bass banjo. Being a versatile and aggressive player with a strong stage presence, you can catch him playing Who covers with Who’s Next; Led Zeppelin covers with Black Dog, and ACDC covers in another repertory ensemble.

Check out more of Joe’s playing:

Beatles Medley https://youtu.be/ad5Q0bTkJQg

BannedJoe https://youtu.be/znB4xMZtaKk