Historian and the rest of the Jazz/Funk lovers

[Jangle]

Check this out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kGzQ...&feature=share

[Historian]

Freakin' Unbelievable!!

Check this out:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8kGzQ...&feature=share

Freakin’ unbelievable! And he’s just 11 years old!!! Jangle, this kid is almost unreal, boss!

This little boy plays a six-string bass and he solos as well, scatting at one point like George Benson. Did he spend the last eight years of his life doing nothing but studying and practicing the bass 24/7 ? I’m sure that bass “monsters” like Jaco Pastorious, Victor Wooten, Stanley Clarke, Marcus Miller, Louis Johnson and the other jazz/funk masters were nowhere as good when they were this age!

His funk playing is solid and steady, and he plays interesting intervals, phrases and runs during that solo. He even plays great harmonics (toward the end)!

Absolutely amazing!

We live in a world filled with outstanding kids. I still recall the amazing Asian (South Korean?) child guitarists that PeterR introduced us to several years ago!

[HL]

A true prodigy.....what else is there to say...

[Jangle]

I'm not the Jazz expert but I know I just loved that clip. He's amazing!!!!

[Historian]

A Question

A true prodigy.....what else is there to say...

So true, HL. This kid defies description, as whatever we say might still not be adequate! My main concern is that he does not become bored by, say, 20 years old and abandon the bass and turn to something else.

Here’s a question for you and Jangle (and any other poster who may care to join in): Who originated this slap bass technique? I’m referring, of course, to the funk technique where the thumb is used to slap the strings, giving a percussive effect.

Note also that there are many outstanding bass players who never slapped at all. Two famous examples from the 1970s are the great Jaco Pastorious and Earth, Wind and Fire’s Verdine White.

[HL]

I don't think he will get bored. It is clear the bass is in his genetic make-up !!

That slap bass thing took me a while to mellow with. Some bassist are better at the art than others.

But here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKyDlKiewL0

[Gamma]

While later in time don't forget mark king

[Jangle]

Larry Graham

[Historian]

You Got It (lol)!

I don't think he will get bored. It is clear the bass is in his genetic make-up !!

That slap bass thing took me a while to mellow with. Some bassist are better at the art than others.

But here:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QKyDlKiewL0

You got it, boss!

Yes, Larry Graham introduced slap bass to the music world! He made it popular during his playing with Sly and the Family Stones. In fact, that was one of the biggest revolutions in modern pop music history, and soon virtually everyone was slapping and plucking!

HL, thanks for posting this YouTube video! And Bootsy Collins was correct when he stated at the end of the video that “everybody kinda start trying to take the credit, but it was definitely Larry Graham.” So true!

Based on what I recall from reading about Larry Graham’s life (back when I was a teen soaking up music history), he started slapping and plucking when he played the bass as a teen with his mother, who was a keyboard player (either piano or organ, I cannot remember). Because there was no drummer in the group, Larry developed this technique which enabled him to fill the dual roles of bassist and percussionist.

Many people know Larry Graham through his monster hit, “One in a Million,” but his importance in the development of popular music and jazz is undeniable.

[HL]

I learned this just recently; thanks to the TV program UNSUNG...the episode that fearured Sly &The Family Stone.

[Historian]

Guilty Again

While later in time don't forget mark king

I keep forgetting Mark King, don’t I (lol)? Please accept my apology again, boss (I also apologized a few years ago when I made the same unfortunate omission).

[Historian]

Correct

Larry Graham

Yep, you are absolutely correct, Jangle!