music matters

Bass solos are common in jazz, but not as much in popular music. Though some of these selections are jazz-leaning, I would not call them jazz. Bass solos are often considered gimmicky and unnecessary. I’ve chosen a few selections that I hope disprove this belief. Let me know if you agree, or if you have other songs that should be called out as having killer bass solos.

Check them out

Songs
Afirika With Angelique Kidjo by Christian McBride
solo by Christian McBride, Start time 3:07, End time 3:41
A powerhouse acoustic bassist, Christian playfully alters the melody while keeping time.

Papillon by Meshell Ndegeocello
solo by Matthew Garrison, Start time 4:47, End time 6:35
With two bass lines, the soloist is allowed to step away from traditional bass solo trappings to create an airy sound that almost floats on top of the song. It also features Matthew’s trademark pizzicato technique.

Nobody Knows the Trouble I’ve Seen by Charlie Haden & Hank Jones
solo by Charlie Haden, Start time 0:00, End time 1:50
A melodic soloist always exhibiting perfect tone, Charlie takes the lead and introduces the melody and song structure.

The XIth Commandment by Chuck Mangione
solo by Charles Meeks, Start time 1:15, End time 2:40
This solo begins with a simple restatement of the melody, but then branches out into syncopated variations that play off of the percussion while keeping a pleasant, warm tone.

Portrait Of Tracy by Jaco Pastorius
solo by Jaco Pastorius, entire song
This solo shows that the bass can provide complex sounds similar to a guitar, including harmonics. Simply amazing.

  Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2010

First ever post is devoted to the October 27 Meshell Ndegeocello concert at the Triple Door in Seattle.  I am a long-time fan, and this was her first full-length Seattle concert in 10 years.  Soon I will write a review of her recent release, Devil’s Halo, but for now, a bit about the show.

It was simply fantastic! Not sure if it was Meshell, the band, the sound equipment, the venue, or all of the above, but it was a better show than the last 2 times I’ve seen her (San Fran ’06 and Whistler ‘08).  The band was tight, the songs flowed easily and were representative of her entire catalogue (except Peace Beyond Passion and Spirit Music), and the crowd was receptive to both old and new material.  She does not often delve into older material, so it was a treat to hear her interpretations of older songs.  The show began promptly at 7:30 PM and ended just after 9 PM.  Meshell was confident, relaxed, and appeared to really enjoy the night.

Here is the set list.  Recordings are listed in italics.

Crying in Your Beer
Devil’s Halo
Bold way to open the show.  Nice and meditative.  Meshell played guitar on this and many others throughout the evening.

Lola
Devil’s Halo
Classic Meshell, emphasizing the expletives in the live setting.

Blood on the Curb
Devil’s Halo

Die Young
Devil’s Halo
First song to use a light show.  Cool star-theme in the background added to the outer-world vibe.  A little slower tempo than on the recording.

Dirty Mind
Dirty Mind (Prince)
Awesome Prince cover with Chris Bruce wailing on guitar.

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The World Has Made Me the Man of My Dreams
Frantic, loud, and awesome.

Fool of Me
Bitter
Crowd went wild for her Bitter songs.  Her voice was in great shape.

Love Song #1
Comfort Woman
Good, but perhaps the song with the least energy of the night.  Pretty close to recording.

Solomon
The World Has Made Me the Man of My Dreams
Spoken word intro by Meshell, including the modified line “For my sons…” (Her second child was born very recently)

Faithful
Bitter

White Girl
Devil’s Halo
Sounded more atmospheric and open than the recording. Very cool.

Dead Ni*** Blvd (Pt. 1)
Cookie: the Anthropological Mixtape
With the extended keyboard solo beginning, it was hard to guess which song was coming.  It was totally reworked and was perhaps the highlight of the show.  Tons of energy with Meshell just totally in complete control of the song and crowd.  Not sure even how to describe it.  Electrified space-funk spoken word poetry.

Fellowship
Comfort Woman

The Sloganeer: Paradise
The World Has Made Me the Man of My Dreams

Outside Your Door
Plantation Lullabies
Just Meshell on bass/vocals and Chris Bruce on guitar.  Really nice change of pace from the full-band energy.

Mass Transit
Devil’s Halo

Love You Down
Devil’s Halo
Encore.  Crowd was happy for an encore, but wanted more.  Sadly, the house lights came on, so we knew it was over.

The only thing that would have made it 100% perfect would have been a 2nd or 3rd encore featuring a Peace Beyond Passion song or another one from Cookie.  Overall, a very satisfying show.

Meshell’s music available at Amazon

  Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2010