Latest squeeze

[The Stratmangler]

Don't you need arms as long as Pete Seeger's to play those things ?

Not really.
The body is relatively small (well relatively small compared to a Dreadnought size guitar)

[IslandPink]

I hope you've been practising Dave - you could be the new 'Uncle Dave' !

[The Stratmangler]

Gots me a new squeeze, one a certain Mr Martin would lurve.
Bass Centre Detroit James Jamerson tribute.

[Morgan Jones]

So a squeeze is also a guitar?

When I was little, there was a single that included the line, "Mama's got a squeezebox; daddy doesn't sleep at night" and I cheerfully warbled it, thinking that "squeezebox" was slang for a concertina. No wonder daddy didn't sleep at night what with her playing scales and practising. I think now that perhaps something else was meant...

[Nick]

[The Stratmangler]

So a squeeze is also a guitar?

You generally have to give it a cuddle to play it....

[Dave the bass]

Gots me a new squeeze, one a certain Mr Martin would lurve.
Bass Centre Detroit James Jamerson tribute.

Awethumne!

Approved. Now to learn James Jamerson's bass parts, that's the tricky bit.

Inventing them in the 1st place perhaps even more so! (Unless you happen to be JJ.....but then he had a son named JJ jnr. Poo! I've typed myself into a 'spot').

<dissappears in a puff of logic>

[simon]

Any song suggestions to appreciate his virtuosity? Sounds like he played on a lot of Motown records but it would be interesting to listen to specific stuff.

[The Stratmangler]

Any song suggestions to appreciate his virtuosity? Sounds like he played on a lot of Motown records but it would be interesting to listen to specific stuff.

That's the rub, Simon, the musicians who actually played on the records didn't get credited for it.
Motown didn't start crediting musicians until 1971.
Jamerson played on most of the hits in the 60s and early 70s https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Jamerson

[simon]

Ah, fair enough Chris. I'd read the Wikipedia page which intrigued me as to which tracks.

[Dave the bass]

Any song suggestions to appreciate his virtuosity? Sounds like he played on a lot of Motown records but it would be interesting to listen to specific stuff.

I'd start here Simon, you've probably heard it a kajillion times before but it's a good example of how melodic his bass parts are.



Later he played almost all the bass parts on Marvin Gaye's 'What's going on' album.

Again, really lovely floating melodic bass guitar parts abound.



At 1.26 JJ makes a rare filmed appearance in this footage. He had a technique that was individual, he played with just one finger (dubbed the hook) but muted the strings with the other fingers and sometimes sponge under the bridge apparently.

His style and sound got dated though as music and sounds moved on so it was harder for him to get hired so I've read in books.

As Chris mentioned, there's a lot of confusion about which players actually played on which tracks.

[simon]

Brill, thanks Dave. A bit of Christmas listnin and watchin.

[The Stratmangler]

Thanks Dave for posting the vid with JJ playing - that use yer thumb on yer plucking hand to damp the strings technique looks interesting

[Dave the bass]

No probs, glad you both enjoyed it.

I like bass guitar history and it's evolution in modern music.

[simon]

I did watch that and tried to work out what he was doing differently than normal bass players - not being a musician it wasn't obvious to me, more research required