In a nutshell, pianist/author Jonny King sums up the status of the acoustic bass in jazz--misunderstood and in the background. Consider a typical night at your favorite jazz club: Perhaps a piano trio is on the band stand. The pianist starts things off with the head (the basic melody), the bass and drum join in. Or maybe it's a sax-led quintet, with the leader taking the first solo, maybe followed by the pianist. Then? The bass player might start his or her solo...and there is a marked increase in chatter until the drummer takes over or the pianist or sax player returns to the head. If the band features a vocalist, the contrast in audience attention is even more pronounced--once the lyrics stop, the noise increases dramatically. From the most talented veteran to the student musician, bass players are the least appreciated in jazz, their solo efforts an apparent signal that there is a pause in the action, an intermission, the opportunity to start a conversation, order a drink, or otherwise take a breather from serious (or not-so-serious) listening. The bassist provides the acoustic wallpaper, a background diversion.

Buster Williams photo by Howard Gitelson
Yet overlooking this unwieldy instrument means missing the point. "The bass is literally the pulse of any jazz band... as crucial to the sound of jazz as any other single element," reminds Johnny King. That usually steady thump-thump directs time, establishes groove, and contributes harmony. Bassists typically "walk" (a steady one-note-per-beat), and by playing on top, in the middle, or behind the beat, they push or pull the tempo for the rest of the band. Further, they add to the musicality of the overall sound through variations in tone, in part a function of the instrument itself and in part a function of the musician's art and skill. Usually it is the bassist's role to maintain the structure and help establish the chord changes that support the melody and harmony.

All this effort must be summoned while maintaining control of a big, clumsy box that often towers well above the head of the musician, with strings so thick that ordinary mortals can barely press them down on the finger board to generate sound. But those marvelous 4 strings that run the length of the neck, across the bridge to the very bottom of the box offer infinite possibilities of tones and chords and other wondrous sounds, such as the sliding "glissandos" and polyphonic "double stops," the plucking "pizzicato" and bowing "arco"--the bass has a vocabulary all its own. Those strings can be plucked singly and in combination, fingers (singly or in combination) can stop a string gently or forcefully, creating single notes or chords, in lightening succession like a pianist's run or with slow deliberation like a steady bass drum. The strings can be bowed (singly or in combination) in a long drawn-out sigh or with quick bouncing lines like a violinist's attacking staccato. And in the hands of some inventive bassists, the bow or fingers or even the whole hand can be transformed into percussive tools to create dazzling, disturbing, even humorous sound effects.

Some bassists have risen above the wallpaper to the status of jazz legends--in particular, Oscar Pettiford, Charles Mingus, and Ray Brown. Ray Brown may have done as much as any one to bring the bass more front and center in public awareness, from his days with the legendary Oscar Peterson Trio to his backing of Ella Fitzgerald, to his penchant for promoting young talent (e.g., Benny Green, Geoff Keezer) during his last decade. Among the new generation, at least Christian McBride is a familiar name to most jazz audiences, while such active veterans as Dave Holland, Ron Carter, Charlie Haden, and Buster Williams continue to hold a degree of star status. Particularly Holland and Haden have been consistently on the radar screen as much or more for their bandleading and arranging as for their bass playing. But listen to their bass lines, not just the great chops of their pianists or drummers or horn players!

Although it might take a little time, you can always pick out the bass in the mix--just listen for that deeply resonating pulse. Is it a steady walking or are their hesitations in the beat? Is the bassist playing on top or behind the beat? How is the bass controlling or contributing to time and rhythm? Is the bassist improvising over the melody or is it the melody itself? Is the bassist using a single line or adding chords to the tune's framework? Is the bassist echoing the piano or responding to the drums? How does the bassist structure that solo, that introduction? How does the bassist's tone contribute to the overall feel?

If you attend jazz gigs regularly, you will undoubtedly have the opportunity to hear some of the most gifted musicians working today among the bass players in the bands of "stars." Watch for--and listen to--names like James Commack (with Ahmad Jamal), Larry Grenadier (Brad Mehldau), Johannes Wiedenmueller (Kenny Werner), Herman Burney (Rene Marie), James Genus (Dave Douglas), John Sullivan (Roy Haynes), Charnett Moffett (McCoy Tyner), Reid Anderson (The Bad Plus), Ugonna Okegwo (Joanne Brackeen), Taurus Mateen (Jason Moran), Jaribu Shahid (David Murray), Drew Gress (Fred Hersch). This is just an inadequate sampling--so many bassists, so many timekeepers!

McCoy Tyner played the Dakota in downtown Minneapolis last winter. There was no doubt he was the headliner, the big draw, and his playing certainly justified that status. But I'll never forget the 8-minute bass solo by Charnett Moffett. In those 8 minutes, he covered every conceivable--and some inconceivable--action on the bass, arco and pizzicato, gentle and percussive, subtle and over the top, a solo that commanded the audience's attention as surely as did any from Tyner.

Ready to pay attention when the bassist takes a turn? Here are some golden opportunities coming to audiences around the country in the next few months:

Minneapolis/St Paul: Dave Holland (Dave Holland Quintet), October 18-19 at the Dakota; Anthony Cox (Grismore Scea Band), October 15-16 at the Artists' Quarter; Dan Berglund (EST), November 10-11 at the Dakota; Gordy Johnson (Pete Whitman X-tet), October 28 and November 18 at the Artists' Quarter; Vincente Archer (Louis Hayes/Cannonball Adderley Tribute Band), November 8-9 at the Dakota

Chicago: Vincente Archer (Louis Hayes/Cannonball Adderley Tribute Band), November 2-7 at the Jazz Showcase; John Clayton (Benny Green/John Clayton/Jeff Hamilton), November 16-21 at the Jazz Showcase; Darryl Hall(Stefon Harris' Blackout), November 30-December 5 at the Jazz Showcase; Gary Peacock (Keith Jarrett Trio), December 3 at Orchestra Hall.

New York City: Dave Holland (Dave Holland Quintet), October 20-23 at Birdland; John Patitucci (Fred Hersch Duos), October 22 at Jazz Standard; Charlie Haden (with Gonzalo Rubalcaba), October 26-31 at the Village Vanguard; Ben Allison (Frank Kimbrough), October 26-27 at Jazz Standard; Ron Carter/Chris Lightcap (Ron Carter Nonet/Regina Carter Quintet), October 27-31 at the Blue Note; Derrick Hodge (Mulgrew Miller and Wingspan), October 28-31 at Jazz Standard; Christian McBride (master class), October 30 at the Blue Note; Reid Anderson (Bill McHenry Quartet), November 2-7 at the Village Vanguard.

Boston: Chris Lightcap (Regina Carter), October 14-15 at Scullers; Todd Coolman (James Moody Quartet), October 16-17 at the Regatta Bar; Johannes Weidenmueller (Kenny Werner Trio), October 22 at Ryles; Charlie Haden (with Gonzalo Rubalcaba), November 9-10 at the Regatta Bar.

Washington, DC: Charnett Moffett (McCoy Tyner Trio), November 2-7 at Blues Alley; Baron Browne (Steve Smith/Vital Information), December 7-8 at Blues Alley; Jay Anderson (Lynne Arriale Trio), December 10 at Kennedy Center.

Miami Beach: Kristin Korb (KK3), October 28 at the Van Dyke Café.

Los Angeles: Buster Williams (Buster Williams Quartet), October 12-17 at the Jazz Bakery; Matt Garrison (Pharoah Sanders Quartet), November 9-14 at the Jazz Bakery.

San Francisco: Beldon Bullock (Abdullah Ibrahim Trio), October 28-31 at Yoshi's; David Williams (Cedar Walton Trio), November 10-14 at Yoshi's; Buster Williams (Denny Zeitlin Trio), December 13 at Yoshi's.

Seattle: Avery Sharpe (Avery Sharpe Trio), October 26-27 at Jazz Alley; Martin Pizzarelli (John Pizzarelli's Bossa Nova Show), November 9-14 at Jazz Alley.

On the record: For the best in bass recordings, you would not go wrong to check out recordings of any of the above bassists, in roles as leader or supporting cast. Listen to anything you find from Jimmy Blanton, Oscar Pettiford, or Charles Mingus. Also highly recommended--recordings of the classic trios of Oscar Peterson (with Ray Brown or Niels-Henning Orstad Pedersen), Bill Evans (with Scott LaFaro or Eddie Gomez), Dave Brubeck (with Eugene Wright), and contemporary sides from Keith Jarrett (with Gary Peacock), Ahmad Jamal (with James Commack), Lynne Arriale (with Jay Anderson), Jason Moran (with Taurus Mateen), Kenny Werner (with Johannes Weidenmueller) or Fred Hersch (with Drew Gress). Bill Crow plays a mean walking bass with Marian McPartland's Trio on Hickory House Trio Reprise (Concord, 1999). And for fun-filled recordings of 3 generations of great bassists, you can't beat Ray Brown's Super Bass (Telarc, 1997) or disc 2 of his last release, Walk On (Telarc, 2003)-- featuring a trio of Brown, John Clayton, and Christian McBride in a three-bass hit!

So the next time you're enjoying a jazz performance, be sure to take the opportunity to enjoy all of it, from the bottom up. Skip the intermission and turn up the bass.

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