Veteran funk-rock bassist T.M. Stevens – who played on sessions with everyone from James Brown to Tina Turner and Billy Joel – has passed away at 72, according to reports from those close to him.
Performance artist/musician Carrie Beehan – who wrote on social media that Stevens had been hospitalized with blood clots in his lungs late last month – announced the news on her Facebook page. The New Zealander previously performed with Stevens under the name Trysette and has been one of several musician friends who appears to have continued to support him after his dementia diagnosis in 2017.
“July 27, 1951 – March 10, 2024, Thomas Michael Stevens (T.M Stevens) – I am deeply saddened to announce the passing of our beloved T.M. this evening at 10 p.m.,” Beehan wrote on Facebook today (March 11).
“He died peacefully in his sleep. I cannot respond immediately to questions right now. Please follow future posts for announcements on this page or the TC Tolliver page. To his fans and followers, updates will be given as best we can - thank you for respecting our privacy during this time of mourning.”
Born in New York City in the early ’50s, Stevens credited hearing James Brown for the first time as his moment of awakening as a bassist and funk fan.
“The first record that really attacked me when I was growing up was Sex Machine by James Brown,” he told Bass Player magazine in 2009.
“The bass player on that record was Bootsy Collins. Most people have no idea what funk is, but to me it's a way of life. It’s about the groove of the music, and not how fast you can play. As Bootsy would say, funk u baby bubba!”
His burgeoning passion led to him attending Brown’s shows at the Harlem Apollo and, after one such show, he ran out to Brown’s limo, knocked on the window and told him he would play with him one day. The soul and funk legend’s response? “‘Don’t do it! Stay at school!’”
Nonetheless, in 1985, Stevens found himself in the studio with Brown, recording Living in America – a song that rode to success on the back of the Rocky IV soundtrack.
A year later, he joined the Pretenders in time to record the hit album Get Close, featuring on the tracks Don’t Get Me Wrong and My Baby, in the process.
By the mid- to late-’80s, he was firmly in demand, enjoying a purple patch that saw his calendar booked-up with sessions for everyone from Joe Cocker to Cyndi Lauper and Tina Turner. In 1993, he then performed alongside Steve Vai (and Devin Townsend) in Vai’s Sex & Religion band. The '90s also saw the beginning of Stevens' solo career, during the course of which he released a half-dozen albums.
Stevens' most recent prominent gig came with another funk legend, Bootsy Collins, with whom he toured in 2011.
Collins was one of the many musicians to pay tribute to Stevens on social media, writing, “We lost another important piece of the low end theory, Mr. T.M. Stevens.
“Join me in recognizing one of the [great] ones! We toured together in 2011. U will be missed my funk brother.”
Living Colour guitarist Vernon Reid also saluted Stevens on X (formerly Twitter), writing simply, “T.M. Stevens. That. Is. All.”
