Is Jeff Berlin Worth Listening To?

[4bpauly]

what do you think?

[20db pad]

Yes.

IBTL

[JimmyM]

Of course he is. Some of his early stuff with Bill Bruford was superb. His more recent stuff I have zero use for, but make no mistake...douchebag or not, the guy can play.

[4bpauly]

i didn't mean playing, I just mean when he speaks.

I know he can play.

[Dr. Cheese]

I think Jeff Berlin can be a blowhard, but he is a phenomenal player. Like JimmyM, I love his Buford era stuff. That bassplaying is on par with Stanley Clarke or Jaco at their prime, IMO. I also think that he gives great advice for players who want to be pros one day. He opinion about slapping, extended range, and fretless, is just him expressing his taste. His insights into music education are just good common sense, IMO.

I've followed very few of his insights on education, but music doesn't even begin to pay my bills either.

[JimmyM]

Jeff Berlin annoys me tremendously when he speaks, but I find myself riveted to whatever he says, even if I think it's butt-stupid.

[KPAX]

He's an in-you-face kind of guy. A lot of people can't handle that but I find his honesty and bluntness refreshing. He's not a p.c. kiss-up, go-along-to-get-along politician. Is he from New York or Jersey?

Originally Posted by 4bpauly

what do you think?

[derrenleepoole]

The UK Bass Guitar Magazine had a great cover story with him recently. What he said was very interesting and revealing, even if some of it I didn't really agree with. I'd always considered him to be a Jaco clone, but now I know better. It's because of that article that I realised that my playing needed to come round full circle - by this I mean, go back to my roots. It's taken me twenty years to realise that I'm a 4 string player, and all this searching for perfect tone with weird and wonderful 5 and 6 strings simply isn't me. I've got rid of all my basses now, and I'm getting a Squire VMJ 4 string to replace my last Cort V, and a basic no nonsense amplifier. Clean. Simple. Affordable. It's because of Jeff that I realised I'd been kidding myself about unrealistic, unattainable GAS for stuff I could/can never afford. It was making me unhappy and unfocused. I found he's attitude to playing and gear quite refreshing, and was the wake up call I needed. Go Jeff!!!!

[WalterBush]

Carrots.

[4bpauly]

what does "carrots" mean? i am relatively new on here.

i read the UK mag as well... good interview, i like how the reporter asked questions that weren't neccessarily easy to answer... and i found some of his answers revealing as well... it seems the first thing he says his ignorant and idiotic, but sometimes once he explains it, he seems like an intelligent guy.

[Dr. Cheese]

Originally Posted by derrenleepoole

The UK Bass Guitar Magazine had a great cover story with him recently. What he said was very interesting and revealing, even if some of it I didn't really agree with. I'd always considered him to be a Jaco clone, but now I know better. It's because of that article that I realised that my playing needed to come round full circle - by this I mean, go back to my roots. It's taken me twenty years to realise that I'm a 4 string player, and all this searching for perfect tone with weird and wonderful 5 and 6 strings simply isn't me. I've got rid of all my basses now, and I'm getting a Squire VMJ 4 string to replace my last Cort V, and a basic no nonsense amplifier. Clean. Simple. Affordable. It's because of Jeff that I realised I'd been kidding myself about unrealistic, unattainable GAS for stuff I could/can never afford. It was making me unhappy and unfocused. I found he's attitude to playing and gear quite refreshing, and was the wake up call I needed. Go Jeff!!!!

I read that article too, and I can see where you are coming from. I think JB is like most great players, he knows what works for him, and he sticks to it. It doesn't make any difference if it is a Fodera like Victor Wooten, or a Dean like Jeff Berlin. Great players develop a style and a rapport with a given instrument, and they mine it forever usually.

[j-raj]

I seen him at a variety of NAMM's and chatted with him and he is very knowledgeable and very good at his craft... granted he can be very opinionated which has turned a few cats off of him.

Just a side word, let's not let this discussion of Berlin get ugly, there are alot of TB'ers that could benefit from a conversation about him.

[JTE]

He's always been a great educator. He says things that in my estimation are true- there are no secrets, to be a professional musician as a bassist you need to know fundementals instead of tricks, you need to know music, time is paramount, and it takes organized, structured and focused work to get there.

He's also said some things that even he doesn't hold to. I asked him about his infamous "all fretless players sound like Jaco" line at a seminar. I specifically mentioned Jack Bruce, Freebo, and Percy Jones. Berlin said none of them sounded like Jaco, and amplified his original point (the part that got lost on TBL, and is not qouted) that people who have a solid concept of their musical voice won't sound like others. But if you don't have that solic concept you're likely to wind up chasing other people and never finding yourself. I disagree with him on his derision of the metronome, but his point is that too many people use them wrong so they do little good. I agree with that part- a 'nome clicking on all four beats doesn't help you learn time at all. It just saves your butt when you screw up. But using one to provide only the snare hits will tell you that your time sucks, and concentrated, focused practice with the 'nome doing that will help you learn to stay on track.

One of my favorite teachers. And like one of my other favorite teachers (Carol Kaye) he's pretty in-your face about stuff. He's said (Bass Player magazine interview about six years ago) that he's been a bit of a jerk, and his writing style doesn't come off the same way he is in person. Having been to a seminar, I do find him much easier to appreciate after HEARING him say things than I did after reading them.

Plus he plays just freakin' great- he did a Yes tour with like two day's notice. He was transcribing the lines on the plane over to England, did a day of rehearsals, and did the tour- and that's the kind of professional musician he is talking about when he teaches. And he's a huge fan of Rocco!

jte

[markkoelsch]

Like a lot of players, especially great players, he is very opinionated. He has the right to speak his mind.

As to his playing, all I can say is that if you have not heard him you need to. He is simply incredible. Whether you like him personally or stylistically, he is one of the greatest technicians in the world.

[bassteban]

I'll listen to his playing- that speaks the most for a musician, IMO. His opinions are often- *interesting*.

[SuperDuck]

When Jeff stops overdubbing himself onto other people's recordings (a desperate bass player's karaoke?) and gives the original artists credit for what they've done, I'll respect him just a tad more.

In my eyes, all of the educational mumbo-jumbo and chops don't make up for that kind of musical faux pas.

[JmJ]

Speak? No. Play? Yes.
Just kidding a little bit sort of.

[jady]

I saw him at NAMM and chatted with him for a bit. He was a very nice and pleasant guy.

He knows his craft inside and out. The methods he used obviously worked for him very well. I actually agree with a lot of his teaching.

[4bpauly]

Originally Posted by SuperDuck

When Jeff stops overdubbing himself onto other people's recordings (a desperate bass player's karaoke?) and gives the original artists credit for what they've done, I'll respect him just a tad more.

In my eyes, all of the educational mumbo-jumbo and chops don't make up for that kind of musical faux pas.

?? eleaborate please ??

[jerry]

One of my favorite players for blowing over changes! For me, he has been worth listening to for over thirty years.