Now we ve long been aware of the utility of slowing down music recordings in order to deconstruct sw

The British Rock-Band cruises in august vacation The Police was my first encounter with a singing-bassist-led band, with their thoroughly red, lo-fi video for Roxanne contrasting strongly with the more modern videos preceding it when I first saw it in 1992. Another Rock-trio, cruises in august vacation Nirvana, were swamping the music channels with their stripped-down cruises in august vacation sound at the time, and it was interesting to compare Nirvana cruises in august vacation s sound to that of the other trio with a BASSIST who SANG lead, and, wait a minute, didn t I recognize that singer from somewhere else?. Sting plays bass-guitar? Oh, my naive music listening beginnings.
Although I m not a rabid fan of Sting, The Police represented an important bridge between musicians music and popular music. And there is really nothing to disrespect about his songwriting, cruises in august vacation performance. Most of us, fans and non-fans alike, can agree upon that.
Sting s autobiography, Broken Music , is the first singing-bassist autobiography which I ve encountered in which concrete tips for playing bass and singing are presented. True, like anything cruises in august vacation Sting has been involved with, the book is fraught with what seem to be fits of exaggeration towards the end of the book. The further one reads, the more haphazard the language becomes. The time-line contracts towards the time in which the Police were active. But the story of his beginnings and the gradual climb to the top is a good read. Here are some of the anecdotes and milestones in his bass-playing and singing career:
Explains that viewing a jazz band led by Chick Corea called cruises in august vacation Return to Forever inspired the first band in which he seriously played bass and sang lead, called Last Exit . Declares cruises in august vacation that playing at a level a quarter of that which was played by Stanley Clarke while singing at the same time would ensure that he would remain a contender in the music scene.
Playing as a trio with Last Exit would prepare me for my subsequent role in the Police. By playing as a trio I would learn the value of space and clarity between musical frequencies, which larger bands can t help but fill. Being limited to just three instruments helps this learning process, where each as more work to do and more responsibility.
Now we ve long been aware of the utility of slowing down music recordings in order to deconstruct swift, complicated arrangements. Still, speeding up playback in order to bring bass-lines to the forefront is a technique which Sting s autobiography seems to introduce to the world. And it was inspiring to read that Sting connected his bass amplifier to a car battery in order to play outdoors. Quite a few lightbulbs went off in my head then. Sting is an articulate writer, be it of lyrics cruises in august vacation or of prose, and his autobiography is a great read for aspiring singing bassists of any genre.