Elwood Francis on the origins of his 17-string bass – and why he regrets it becoming a ZZ Top staple
Elwood Francis reveals the origins of his preposterous 17-string bass – and why he’s disappointed it went viral
Latest
How Jimmy Fallon’s bassist bonded with Bruce Springsteen over their shared love of 6-string bass
The Roots bassist Owen Biddle reveals how his 6-string bass caught the ear of Bruce Springsteen and Steven Van Zandt during his time on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
Tony Levin’s lessons from Steve Vai, Robert Fripp and Peter Gabriel
Goes to 11 The BEAT man charts his career from upright to his first Fender, sessions with Lou Reed and Alice Cooper, and the instrument you might be surprised to know he plays…
Teenage bassist Aria Becker on the strange realities of life in an underage band
As bassist for Canadian alt-rock band Freeze the Fall, Aria Becker knows the challenges that come with age restrictions – and why the band is finally beginning to outgrow them
Bassists
How Jimmy Fallon’s bassist bonded with Bruce Springsteen over their shared love of 6-string bass
The Roots bassist Owen Biddle reveals how his 6-string bass caught the ear of Bruce Springsteen and Steven Van Zandt during his time on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon
Tony Levin’s lessons from Steve Vai, Robert Fripp and Peter Gabriel
Goes to 11 The BEAT man charts his career from upright to his first Fender, sessions with Lou Reed and Alice Cooper, and the instrument you might be surprised to know he plays…
Ben Kenney on touring with a brain tumor in Incubus – and why he will never hear stereo guitars again
Kenney discusses his health journey, leaving Incubus, and the silver linings through it all
Teenage bassist Aria Becker on the strange realities of life in an underage band
As bassist for Canadian alt-rock band Freeze the Fall, Aria Becker knows the challenges that come with age restrictions – and why the band is finally beginning to outgrow them
Bass Gear
Ned Steinberger’s headless revolution looked like a world first – until Les Paul dropped a bombshell: he’d already built one
Having already transformed bass design with Stuart Spector, Ned Steinberger turned his attention to eliminating the headstock altogether – only to discover that Les Paul had beaten him to it
The hottest bass gear of the month, including the smallest signature bass money can buy
September’s bass arrivals are led by two 6-string artist models, while Ashdown shifts its focus from bass amps to bass guitars
Fender recreates session legend Lee Sklar's iconic P-Bass – used on records by James Taylor, Phil Collins and Jackson Browne
Sklar's Precision is the definition of road- and studio-worn – now Fender has captured the distinctive modifications he made to create a wholly unique bass
“Don’t play, or even look at, this bass if you’ve got a hangover”: The biggest bass guitar launches this month
From genre-defining signature basses to an unconventional take on a Fender classic, here’s the lowdown on August’s biggest new bass gear releases
Reviews
“It’s clearly had a lot of thought put into making it as flexible and useful as possible”: Laney Digbeth DB-EAST review
Over a long, distinguished career, Nathan East has never had a signature amp. Until now…
Buying Guides
Best bass compressor pedals 2026: expert picks for the ultimate in low-end control
From studio-style levelers to stompboxes that squash, we put the market-leading compressor pedals for bass to the test
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Teenage bassist Aria Becker on the strange realities of life in an underage band
As bassist for Canadian alt-rock band Freeze the Fall, Aria Becker knows the challenges that come with age restrictions – and why the band is finally beginning to outgrow them
When a fan challenged Megadeth to outpace Metallica, the band responded by cranking up the tempos
David Ellefson recalls the sliding-doors moment that would transform Megadeth into one of thrash metal’s Big Four
Lee Sklar looks back on his early sessions with James Taylor and Jackson Browne – and the beginnings of a legendary studio career
The session bass icon has gone to work with artists as varied as Billy Cobham, Lyle Lovett, Phil Collins and Toto
Fender recreates session legend Lee Sklar's iconic P-Bass – used on records by James Taylor, Phil Collins and Jackson Browne
Sklar's Precision is the definition of road- and studio-worn – now Fender has captured the distinctive modifications he made to create a wholly unique bass
