"Bottom. The stuff that I play, all this virtuoso type stuff, the whole time I'm totally conscious of the bottom. You'll never miss the bottom if you listen to what I'm doing."
This interview appeared in the little-known magazine Guitar for the Practicing Musician back in July of 1984. The interview was conducted by Chuck Jacobs, who at the time was Kenny Rogers' bass player.
You've been instrumental in changing the role of the electric bass by inventing new sounds and bringing the instrument to the forefront of the tune. How did you come to create these changes?
It just naturally happened. First of all, I consider myself basically a rhythm and blues bass player and a jazz player. Rhythm and blues, and jazz, were the gigs that I would play when I was a kid. For instance, you took my place in the C.C. Riders Band (Note from Chuck: "I had the ominous task of trying to fill Jaco's shoes in that band around 1971). Then there were cocktail piano gigs, maybe a quartet with a saxophone, where I would play upright and Fender bass. So I was always playing more or less what I'm doing now. With regards to being in the forefront, what got me playing bass like I do was that I never heard very much as far as people playing the bass as a solo instrument. I remember one of the first jazz records that I had when I was real young was this old Max Roach album. All there was, was bass, two horns and Max (on drums). I couldn't even tell what the bass was playing, 'cause the fidelity was real bad. Plus it was an old record. So I learned all the horn lines. All of a sudden I was playing "Yardbird Suite" and "Confirmation" when I was 15, 'cause that's what I figured out.
Was there a time when you first started out playing for others, that your style of playing wasn't accepted?
Oh, all the time... (laughs).
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Guitar For The Practicing Musician, 1984