Latest articles by Nick Wells
William Billy ‘Bass’ Nelson, Funkadelic bassist who coined the band’s name, dies aged 75
Flea has led tributes to the Funkadelic bassist, who was one of the founding architects of funk’s most audacious musical revolution
Marcus Miller and Pino Palladino share the stage alongside Lauryn Hill at the 2026 Grammy Awards
The two bass legends took to the biggest stage in music for a tribute to D’Angelo and Roberta Flack
The best new things in bass from the biggest music instrument event of the year
From Aguilar to Ashdown and beyond, here’s a look at the new gear that had bassists abuzz at this year’s NAMM show
Eric Clapton was Cream’s biggest star, but Jack Bruce sang most of the band’s classic tracks
In later years, Bruce jokingly referred to Cream as Da Creams, in a nod to the band’s supergroup status
She put a video of herself playing bass on YouTube. Then Prince called
Having caught the attention of Prince and Bootsy Collins, Alissia is riding a new wave of recognition with her debut single featuring Nile Rodgers and EarthGang
Bootsy Collins was tripping on LSD when he took the James Brown bass chair to its most in-your-face level
Unable to deal with Brown’s disciplinary code, Bootsy was gone within a year
When Jimmy Haslip met Jaco Pastorius at Frank Zappa’s studio
The Yellowjackets co-founder and then-bassist tells the story of his first encounter with bass royalty
Justin Chancellor explains how bass fits into Tool’s challenging brand of prog
With their uncompromising blend of formidable time signatures and distorted guitar riffs, Tool are a band quite unlike any other
Flea has announced his debut solo album – but he’s not the only bassist playing on it
After decades of anticipation, Flea’s debut single pulls no punches, with two bassists linking seamlessly on the song’s darting bassline
When Michael Anthony met the self-proclaimed “greatest bass player in the world”, Jaco Pastorius
How the accidental meeting of two of the ’70s and ’80s greatest bass icons – neither recognised by the other – came about in a Tokyo hotel
How a hypnotic ‘Mani’ bassline propelled one of the Stone Roses’ finest moments
Mani famously played a paint-splattered Rickenbacker El Dorado bass through a Mesa/Boogie rig on this 1989 indie-pop classic
L.A. session bassist Pops Magellan walked away from stadium shows with megastars to shine the spotlight on her own material
Following career-defining gigs with Adam Lambert and Willow, Brazillian-born Pops Magellan is forging ahead with a short-scale bass and a Phase 90
When a young Bootsy Collins joined James Brown’s band, the Godfather of Funk bought him a Fender Jazz Bass. Now it’s up for auction
Following Bootsy’s departure from the JBs in 1972, the bass continued its life on stage with Fred Thomas, another of Brown’s longtime bassists
John Paul Jones’ best Led Zeppelin basslines
A choirmaster, organist and expert in many archaic music styles, John Paul Jones also happened to play bass guitar in the biggest heavy rock band there has ever been
Few bassists can match the technical ability of Mohini Dey, thanks to her work with Steve Vai, Willow Smith and just about everyone else
The very definition of ‘prodigy’, Mumbai-born bassist Mohini Dey has enjoyed a rapid ascent to worldwide renown. And she’s only just getting started
How Paz Lenchantin’s departure from the Pixies led to her first-ever solo album
She’s played in some of alternative music’s biggest bands. Now Lenchantin is back with a solo album fueled by a vintage P-Bass that Billy Corgan inspired her to buy
How Geddy Lee created one of the most outrageous bass tones of all time for a Rush fantasy classic
The Rush frontman played a Rickenbacker 4001 on nearly every track from 1975’s Fly By Night, but found a new bass sound for the role of By-Tor
The chance meeting between Pino Palladino and D’Angelo that helped create the sound of the vaunted Voodoo album
The A-list bassist sheds some light on the late R&B legend's beguiling behind-the-beat hip-hop grooves
Nashville session bassist Travis Dykes spent $136 building a bass from Temu parts. Now he’s playing it on some seriously big gigs
From legendary Nashville sessions to performing on the world's biggest stages, Travis Dykes charts the surprise success of the budget bass he built in a day
How Christian McBride reunited The Police duo for his latest solo outing
Sting and Andy Summers joined McBride for a jazz-tinged version of a Synchronicity-era Police classic
From gigging in strip clubs to recording with John Martyn and Kate Bush, Danny Thompson walked a singular path in bass playing
Beginning with his early days amid London’s jazz and blues boom in the ’50s, to his famed partnership with singer-songwriter John Martyn, the late Danny Thompson excelled at everything he touched
As Musical Director for Kendrick Lamar, Tony Russell could be the greatest bass player you've never heard of
He’s played with Usher, Jamie Foxx, P. Diddy, and Jay-Z – is Tony ‘Chicago’ Russell the best-kept secret in bass?
11 real-life Spinal Tap moments from bass playing royalty
Bass legends Victor Wooten, Thundercat, Duff McKagan and more share their own moments of outrage, downright stupidity and absolute genius
