Great Discoveries
Many thanks for the
feature on Johnny
Guitar Watson, one
of my all-time favorites,
and criminally
under-appreciated.
Once discovered,
you start hearing his
influence all over the
place. Many players
quote him regularly
and few listeners (or
other players) ever
realize it. About time
someone gave some
credit to a true original
and innovator.
—Leonard Griffie
Medford, Oregon
Dear PG:
Thank you for introducing me to the music of Oz Noy—you
have changed my life in a fundamental way. That is all.
—Brian Van Kley
Oswego, New York
Righteous Rig Rundowns
It was nice to watch a video
[Red Hot Chili Peppers’ Josh
Klinghoffer Rig Rundown, June
2012] with a tech that not only
knew what was there, but why it
was there. It can't be the easiest
job in the world, but he just
seemed to know exactly what
he was talking about. And it
was nice to see someone English
representing. Bright Onion
have done a couple of things
for me, and I can't credit them
highly enough!
—Paul, via premierguitar.com
It's nice to hear a Northern English
accent on a Rig Rundown
video! [RHCP tech] Ian Sheppard
clearly has a grasp on one
of the most complex pedal and
amp systems described to date,
and it's great to see just how he
solves the many problems that
the Red Hot Chili Peppers’ set
list creates!
—SteveLaffertyGuitar, via YouTube
I don't know anything about
Wilco or their music, but [Nels
Cline Rig Rundown, January
2012] was one of the best Rig
Rundowns ever. Very entertaining,
enlightening, educational,
cool! Nels seems like a real
character and is someone you'd
like to hang with. Thanks
for posting.
—gman8thst1, via YouTube
Aces of Bass
Hi Shawn,
Great article [“Four 4-Stringers
Who Shake My World,” Tuning
Up July 2012]—loved to
see Muzz and Darryl in there.
They are surely two of my
favorite bass players. Since you
asked, here are a few of
my favorites:
• Tony Pettit (Fields of the
Nephilim/Rubicon/NFD
… the ’80s Fields of the
Nephilim stuff is gold)
• Blacky (Voivod, the first
four albums)
• Paul Raven and Youth
(Killing Joke)
• Craig Adams (Sisters of
Mercy/the Mission)
• Frank Bello (Anthrax)
• Dan Lilker (Brutal Truth/
Nuclear Assault/Broken
Bones/SOD and a few
hundred more)
Pleasure to read, keep it up
and best,
—Martin Choquette, via email
Eighth-Note Ethics
Hi Guys,
Victor Broden's article, "Tools
of the Trade for Bassists: Eight-
Notes," in the June edition was
absolutely spot-on! I have never
heard the role of a bass player in
a band delineated so eloquently.
While I am mostly a guitarist/
singer/songwriter, I have been
a bass player, and these days I
function as both guitarist and
bassist in the studio. Victor's
description of the beauty of
the eighth-note ethic was only
surpassed by his examination
of the significant differences in
various feels that a good bass
player can elicit with just a few
subtle approaches in technique
and attack.
It's been my experience that
many would-be bass players
who want to exhibit all their
hot chops are, in reality, nothing
more than frustrated guitar
players. While not specifically
stating it, Victor got his point
across in a big way, demonstrating
that the mindset of a good
bass player is a whole different
dynamic than that of a guitarist.
I have taken his explanations
and nuances to heart and
immediately incorporated them
into my recordings, and the
results have been immediately
phenomenal. Thanks, Victor,
for explaining a concept that is
at once so simple, but so elusive
for so many. In closing, Cliff
Williams of AC/DC gets my
vote for president of the eighthnote
states, with a nod to Mark
Evans as well. I was just digging
the heck out of "Shot Down
in Flames" and "Live Wire"
driving home from rehearsal a
couple nights ago.
—John E. Mausen
San Jose, California
Speaking of 4-String
Speaking of 4-Strings
I use Premier Guitar as my
main source for information,
however, I find a too little
amount of information is present
concerning basses. Is there a
possibility to give the 4-stringers
some more attention?
Kind Regards,
—Job van der Werf
Netherlands
PG Associate Editor Rich
Osweiler responds: Thank you
for the email. We certainly rely
on comments from our readers to
help shape our content, and as a
bassist myself, I appreciate your
wanting as much 4-string coverage
as possible. Hopefully, you've
noticed the increased coverage of
all things bass over the past year.
We have at least three bass reviews
per month, two bass-related columns
per month, and more basscentric
artist and builder profiles
than ever before, so bassists should
feel at home with PG as much
as our guitar-playing friends.
Thanks again—and stay tuned!