Fretless Bass Any Style

Q: Tell us about a project you worked on you are especially proud of and why. What was your role?

A: In 1996 I played on Keith Gregory's album "Fact Of Life" and was given license to add my creativity to it. I like what I did!

Q: What are you working on at the moment?

A: Just finished a new solo album - I release at least a full-length album of original music every year. I've done 10 albums between 2012 and 2019.

Q: Is there anyone on SoundBetter you know and would recommend to your clients?

A: Not yet, I'm new here.

Q: Analog or digital and why?

A: I can do either - I've got an old Fostex 8 track reel-to-reel machine, but my fee reflects the extra time needed.

Q: What's your 'promise' to your clients?

A: As long as I'm provided all the info I need, you will be satisfied with my work.

Q: What do you like most about your job?

A: Learning new songs!

Q: What questions do customers most commonly ask you? What's your answer?

A: Do you play hip-hop? Do you play metal? Do you play country? The answer is "yes", but those are not my strongest styles to play.

Q: What's the biggest misconception about what you do?

A: That I can satisfy a client without any artistic direction. Eventually I can, but if the client can be as descriptive as possible, it eliminates revisions, which can be costly and time consuming.

Q: What questions do you ask prospective clients?

A: What are you looking for in a fretless bass part? What famous player could you envision playing this song? How simple or complex should it be?

Q: What advice do you have for a customer looking to hire a provider like you?

A: Just provide me with a simple rough mix of the song with a countoff, describe how you want the bass part to be played (busy, simple, outside-the-box, funky, etc) and a chord outline would be helpful.

Q: If you were on a desert island and could take just 5 pieces of gear, what would they be?

A: One Alvarez acoustic piccolo bass and 4 extra sets of strings!

Q: What was your career path? How long have you been doing this?

A: US Army Band at Fort Gordon, Georgia as a percussionist until 1988, now I write & record music and repair wind instruments. I've been playing fretless bass since 1990.

Q: How would you describe your style?

A: Balanced, but I can lay back into a simple groove and also throw down a shredfest. Whatever the client needs!

Q: Which artist would you like to work with and why?

A: Jojo Mayer (drummer) because his drumming is not human. He plays electronic style beats on an acoustic drumset.

Q: Can you share one music production tip?

A: Sure, stay away from 0db when tracking. I like to keep it at around -6db.

Q: What type of music do you usually work on?

A: Rock, pop, folk, acoustic, jazz, fusion, prog rock.

Q: What's your strongest skill?

A: Creativity.

Q: What do you bring to a song?

A: An interesting and solid bass part that doesn't draw too much attention to itself.

Q: What's your typical work process?

A: Client sends me a rough mix and a chord chart, I play through the song several times and then record a take that I think suits the song and the client's needs.

Q: Tell us about your studio setup.

A: Yamaha AW1600 for tracking, Audacity for any editing required.

Q: What other musicians or music production professionals inspire you?

A: Jaco Pastorius, Andy Metcalfe, Pino Palladino, Mick Karn.

Q: Describe the most common type of work you do for your clients.

A: I record creative and solid fretless bass parts for clients' songs.