Avainsana: basso

Free’s Andy Fraser – a man of tone and taste

Tämän jutun alkuperäinen suomenkielinen versio löytyy TÄÄLTÄ.

****

In 1970 it looked very much like the band Free would become the ”next big thing”. The band was talked about in the music press as the ”new Rolling Stones” and the ”next Led Zeppelin”.

Free (left to right): Paul Kossoff (guitar) and Simon Kirke (drums) – standing; Paul Rodgers (vocals, keyboards) and Andy Fraser (bass guitar, piano) – sitting; *** CC BY-SA 4.0; Wikipedia; Simon Kirke ***

Free’s third LP ”Fire and Water”, and especially their single ”All Right Now, were smash hits, and the band played the Isle of Wight Festival to great success. Their musical mix was very enticing:

Singer Paul Rodgers had (and still has) a magnificently soulful voice that’s just made for Blues Rock. Drummer Simon Kirke followed a strict ”less is more” approach, which was very rare among his peers in the late Sixties and early Seventies. Paul ”Koss” Kossoff’s ability to wring every last drop of raw emotion from his guitar quickly turned him into a bona fide Gibson Les Paul-hero. Despite his tender age of only 18 years, bassist Andy Fraser was the man behind the majority of Free’s songs; his tasteful playing and fat tone glued the band’s arrangements together.

*** CC0; Wikipedia; Nationaal Archief NL ***

Sadly, Free’s story came to a premature end. Their follow-up records didn’t measure up to the success of ”All Right Now”, and the band started looking increasingly rudderless and without a clear musical outlook. Adding to this, Paul Kossoff descended further and further into alcohol and drug dependency, making the situation ever harder to bear for his bandmates. After a few starts and stops Free finally broke up in 1973.

Rodgers and Kirke started the band Bad Company, which found greater success and had a much longer run. Kossoff, too, started his own band, called Back Street Crawler. Sadly, Koss Kossoff died from a lung embolism at only 26 years old in 1976 during a flight from Los Angeles to New York City.

Andy Fraser tried to continue his success in a number of different line-ups, but finally moved to the USA in 1976, and started concentrating on songwriting. Robert Palmer’s hit single ”Every Kinda People” is a fine example of Fraser’s post-Free output. Fraser died in 2015 from a heart attack; he was only 62.

Andy Fraser’s ”less is more”-approach to bass playing

In a way, it seems that many people have forgotten to include Andy Fraser in the list of all-time great bassists, despite the fact that most of his basslines were vitally important to Free’s songs and arrangements.

Despite his youth, Fraser never overplayed. He could be very fast and flashy, when required – listen to the bass solo in the song ”Mr. Big”, for example – but most of the time he deliberately held back to make Paul Rodgers’ voice and Koss Kossoff’s guitar playing shine. Andy Fraser thought more like an arranger than like a bassist, always looking for the best way to serve the song.

One of the best examples of Fraser’s approach is the main riff/vamp on the song ”Mr. Big”. The sparse drum pattern is interlocked with Fraser’s bassline and Kossoff’s guitar stabs. Although this song is relatively slow (82 BPM) the musical backing approaches you like a relentless mechanical beast.

****

****

In Free’s all-time classic ”All Right Now” Andy Fraser doesn’t even play in the verses, joining the band only for the choruses and (the end of) the guitar solo.

When the ”Fire and Water” LP was released, Island Records chose ”All Right Now” as the obvious single. Island felt, though, that the song was too long in its album form, and they also wanted a deeper, more radio-friendly bassline. This is why the single version edits out the first part of the original guitar solo, and also why the bass parts in the choruses differ from the LP version. Andy Fraser recorded a new bass part, one octave down from the original recording, and the record company was satisfied.

Here are both versions of the first chorus:

****

****

****

Andy Fraser plays an interesting vamp over the latter part of the guitar solo, which is included in both the album and single versions. The vamp starts off with a low motif over an A-major chord, before jumping way up high over the G- and D-chords. He actually plays the high notes together with the open A-string on his bass, but I’ve simplified this for the notation.

****

Andy Fraser achieved his fat mid-range-centred sound by playing a short-scale Gibson EB-3 bass, that sports a huge humbucker next to the fretboard and a mini-humbucker by the bridge. Some call this model the ”SG Bass”. I’ve used my inexpensive Epiphone EB-0 for the audio clips.

****

****

0

Sire Marcus Miller D5 & P5 Alder-4 – testi tulossa Rockway-blogiin

Here’s a short demo song – based on the Meters’ classic track ”Cissy Strut” – featuring two SIRE basses:
• Sire Marcus Miller D5 Alder-4
• Sire Marcus Miller P5 Alder-4
****
The bass parts were played through a Bluetone Bass 200 combo, and recorded with a Shure SM7B microphone plugged into a Cranborne Audio Camden EC2 preamp.
****
The guitar tracks were recorded with a Shure SM7B microphone plugged into a Cranborne Audio Camden EC2 preamp.
• Guitar, stereo left: Gibson Melody Maker SG through an EHX Nano Small Stone into a Bluetone Shadows Jr combo
• Guitar, stereo right: Fender (Japan) 50s Stratocaster into a Bluetone Black Prince Reverb combo
0

Höfner 500/1 (Beatle Bass) vs Rickenbacker 4003

Here’s a demo based on the Beatles’ classic song ”Taxman”, using my 1989 Höfner 500/1 and my 1987 Rickenbacker 4003. Both basses were strung with roundwounds and both pickups were on. The bass tracks were recorded with a Bluetone Bass 200 and a Shure SM7B microphone.
****
The guitar tracks were recorded using a Tech 21 Mop Top Liverpool effect pedal.
• rhythm guitar left (Fender Stratocaster): Channel B with Boost
• rhythm guitar right (Gibson Melody Maker SG): Channel A with Boost
• lead guitar (Epiphone Casino): Channel B with Boost
• reverb added during mixdown
0

Review: Tokai TJB-55 + TJB-55 FL

The electric bass guitar – and especially a sunburst 1970 Fender Jazz Bass – was my first musical love. My father Jaroslav was the drummer of a professional show band in Germany, and as a child I was lucky to make the occasional trip to rehearsals, recording studios and some afternoon gigs with him. I loved the music, the instruments and the microphones, but most of all I loved to look at the bass player’s (Pavel) Fender Jazz with its huge chrome covers.

I took the roundabout way to becoming a bassist myself, first playing the violin, then the guitar, then the double bass and the piano. In 1985 I bought my first bass guitar – a Japanese Jazz Bass-copy, and I never looked back. That bass is still my go-to instrument.

Over time Tokai Japan instruments have become legendary in their own right. Tokai managed to offer the type of vintage-inspired instruments that guitarists and bassists in the 1970s were craving for, but couldn’t find from US manufacturers. To this day Tokai stands for top quality at a musician-friendly price.

****

You could call the fretless Tokai TJB-55 FL (1.238,– €) Tokai’s unofficial Jaco Pastorius ”signature model” judging by its looks.

The fretted Tokai TJB-55 (999,– €) we received for this review is finished in a gorgeous metallic finish, called ocean turquoise metallic, which sits somewhere between green and silver.

The basic ingredients in both TJB-55 versions are high quality, traditional choices. True to their 1960s designation, both instruments feature alder bodies paired with maple necks.

The ribcage chamfer is very deep and soft.

In contrast to vintage basses both necks here sport a thin satin finish. This is a welcome nod to most modern bass players, who prefer matte finishes to the glossy necks from way back, which are often described as a bit sticky.

The machine heads on the TJB-55s are Gotohs which manage to retain a vintage look, while being smaller and lighter than original Klusons, Fenders or Schallers on vintage basses.

The regular Tokai TJB-55 sports 20 medium-sized frets in its beautiful rosewood fingerboard. The fretwork is top notch. 

The fretless TJB-55 FL features fret lines made from maple; a welcome addition, especially for the occasional fretless player.

On forums – where else – you repeatedly find claims that rosewood might be too soft a wood for a fretless bass and roundwound bass strings. I own a well-loved and much-played 1976 Fender Precision Fretless, which – despite some light grooves in the ‘board – still plays fine.

Gotoh’s well-made version of an early-Seventies Fender bridge fits the bill on both the TJB-55 and the TJB-55 FL.

The legendary status of Jazz Basses is founded on two things – their great ergonomic properties, and their juicy yet transparent single-coil pickups.

Both Tokais come with a pair of the company’s own, excellent JB-Vintage Mark III pickups that promise vintage-style tones. The bridge pickup is reverse wound/reverse polarity to the neck unit, so the combination of both pickups is humbucking.

The quality of the electronic parts and the neatness of the wiring is a sight for sore eyes. Tokai even goes as far as equipping the pickups with period-correct (early-Sixties) wires with waxed cloth insulation. 

A high-quality gig bag comes supplied with both models. Inside the side pocket of the TJB-55 FL’s bag you will find a three-ply white pickguard, should you prefer that look.

****

I don’t know how Tokai does it, but it has managed – once again – to imbue both basses with heaps of that proverbial “vintage mojo”, even though we’re looking at brand-new instruments here. The combination of top notch parts, along with the company’s proven track record, seems to make for a fantastic mix in both TJB-55s.

These two Tokais offer the best of all the great features of an early-Sixties Jazz Bass. The workmanship on both TJB-55s is second to none, the playability is very comfortable, and the sounds deliver big time. If you’re looking for some top-drawer “Jazz action”, you should definitely try one of these basses out.

****

0

Pidä blogia WordPress.comissa.

Ylös ↑