“It wasn’t like a normal bass gig where you have 30 songs: I had to learn 300!” Ida Nielsen talks touring with Prince, and how she tackled her Paisley Park audition By Joel McIver published 11 November 23 You put a video of yourself playing bass on YouTube. Then Prince calls…
“There was no intention to be clever. We didn’t know what we were doing!” Herbie Flowers on David Bowie’s Space Oddity By Bryan Beller published 9 November 23 Listen to Herbie Flowers give lift to David Bowie’s lyric about “floating in a tin can”
“You don’t just play the root notes – there’s always harmony there to make a bassline more interesting”: How Bruce Thomas transformed Elvis Costello’s (I Don’t Want To Go To) Chelsea By Brian Fox published 8 November 23 Bruce Thomas on the heyday of the Attractions and their most auspicious debut, (I Don’t Want To Go To) Chelsea
“Marvin Gaye was used to hearing James Jamerson, so he had me overdub a second bass part to fill out the original track”: An untold story from Motown’s Studio A. How Bob Babbitt's '65 P-Bass drove Marvin Gaye’s Inner City Blues By Chris Jisi published 7 November 23 By 1971, James Jamerson’s demons had started to affect his consistency, so Bob Babbitt was called for this Motown classic
“It’s hard to think who the greatest bass players are. You could say Flea, but he doesn’t need the plug!” Jack Bruce on the bass players that shaped his sound By Nick Wells published 6 November 23 Back in 2010, we asked Cream bassist Jack Bruce to nominate five albums that influenced his bass playing
“Steve Vai tried to school me on string bending, but you just don't do that on bass!” Pete Griffin reflects on his time with Steve Vai, and his latest solo EP By Nick Wells published 3 November 23 The seasoned sideman compares notes on Steve Vai, Yngwie Malmsteen, Nuno Bettencourt, Zakk Wylde and Dweezil Zappa
“The whole track is driven by the bassline!” How “Ready” Freddie Washington conceived the dance-funk classic that later became a massive hit as Will Smith's Men In Black By Chris Jisi published 1 November 23 The story of Patrice Rushen’s Forget Me Nots, the song that became more famous as the theme from the Will Smith and Tommy Lee film Men in Black and was sampled by George Michael
Best guitar cleaning kits and tools: keep your guitar looking and sounding sweet By Richard Blenkinsop last updated 31 October 23 Take a look at our expert pick of guitar cleaning and maintenance products to help keep your instrument in tip-top condition
Best budget bass amps: punchy low-end for a low price By Richard Blenkinsop last updated 30 October 23 Keep your low-end punchy and your bank balance healthy with our pick of the best budget bass amps from Fender, Orange, Ampeg and beyond!
“When Michael McDonald first played it for me, I had him slow down and just show me his left hand”: Tiran Porter on The Doobie Brothers’ Minute By Minute By Bill Leigh published 29 October 23 Tiran Porter played the “cowboy-movie-theme-meets shuffle-feel” on a B.C. Rich Mockingbird with twin DiMarzio P-style pickups
“It’s Roger’s bass riff. He came in with the verses and the lyrics for Money”: Listen to the isolated bassline on Pink Floyd’s 1973 masterpiece By Nick Wells published 28 October 23 The iconic bass riff helped make Dark Side of the Moon one of the biggest-selling albums of all time
“When I'm not playing online, I love to blend with the band. I'm not the one who wants to stand out. But online, that's what it's all about”: April Kae is on a quest to inspire new bass players – and it starts with making bass sound good on phone speakers By Jenna Scaramanga published 27 October 23 From social media to the stage, the new face of Fender basses is broadening horizons for who can play the instrument. She reveals her secret to getting good bass tone on a phone, how she deals with trolls, and what it's like to jam with “the greatest drummer of all time” in Fever 333
“Unlike Jimi Hendrix, we never deliberately tuned down”: Listen to Jack Bruce’s bassline on Cream’s Politician By Nick Wells published 25 October 23 Jack Bruce wrote with Pete Brown for Cream’s third album, 1968’s Wheels of Fire
“I dig playing that bassline, and I love the beats”: Tina Weymouth on the Tom Tom Club’s The Good The Bad And The Funky By Bill Leigh published 23 October 23 Tina Weymouth talks through the ins and outs of Tom Tom Club’s rhythmically intense fifth album… track by track
“I bought it from this bloke our drummer knew. I think it was the first fretless electric bass ever”: Bill Wyman on the origins of his famous “homemade” fretless bass By Nick Wells published 20 October 23 The former Rolling Stones bassist used a modified fretless on every album and many of the singles up to 1975
“Don’t pick up your bass and act like you’re in Guitar Center” Legendary studio bassist Randy Jackson shares his session secrets By E.E. Bradman published 20 October 23 Ready to go pro? There’s no one more qualified than American Idol judge and all-around music-biz insider Randy Jackson
Best bass amps for practice: top combos for working on your chops at home By Chris Schwarten last updated 19 October 23 Get the most out of your playing at home with one of these great bass practice amps
“It’s got nothing to do with the rest of the song!” Listen to the octave-heavy outro on Gettin’ Betta by Pat Travers Band By Nick Wells published 18 October 23 Bassist Peter ‘Mars' Cowling was at his inventive best on this blues-tinged rocker from 1979’s Live! Go For What You Know
“I love the sound of the Rickenbacker, but I didn’t sound like Chris Squire on it!” Geddy Lee on his Rick-O-Sound tone and ‘crossing the floor’ to Fender By Joel McIver published 17 October 23 The Ricky 4001 is both loved and hated by bass players: for the Rush legend it’s still a classic
“My Gibson is still the coolest looking bass guitar ever!” Frankie Poullain remains a committed Thunderbird player – just don’t ask him about beer-throwing fans By Nick Wells published 16 October 23 The Darkness bassist on reinventing what it means to be a rock star in 2023: "You can't behave in that stereotypical rock star way..."