What Police albums or songs recorded with Jazz Bass

chiplexic · #1 12-16-2009, 03:36 PM

I know most of what Sting recorded with the Police is either split or his single coil Precision basses. But I've read before some recording was done with a Jazz. And I don't mean his solo stuff. Does anyone know what songs they might be ?

boomtisk · #2 12-16-2009, 03:55 PM

It's common knowledge that "Roxanne" was indeed recorded with an early 60s jazz and it's said that Sting used the jazz for the entire first album, even though he liked to pose with that fretless P in their videos and used it live. Listen to the bass master track of "Roxanne" available on Youtube, the tone sounds indeed very jazz-ish and doesn't have any qualities of a fretless to it. I don't think Sting ever used his "signature" single coil P during his Police days.

This may be a bit of speculation but it seems like Sting was kinda insecure in his early days and was constantly looking to prove his skills as a musician which is why he kept insisting on using fretless basses live even though the band often complained that his intonation was off. Seeing as he eventually started using fretted basses exclusively live it seems like he finally accepted that playing fretless and singing at the same time isn't all that easy after all.

Mojo-Man · #3 12-17-2009, 11:31 AM

I believe up tell the mid-90's.
Sting main recording bass was a natural early 60's Jazz Bass.
The he got into his 1954 P-bass.
Which has been his main bass since.

CapnSev · #4 12-17-2009, 11:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Mojo-Man

I believe up tell the mid-90's.
Sting main recording bass was a natural early 60's Jazz Bass.
The he got into his 1954 P-bass.
Which has been his main bass since.

Not necessarily.

He played an Ibanez Musician fretless on many of the Regatta album tracks, and used a white Spector NS2 in the 80s a lot.

PhR · #5 12-17-2009, 03:07 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by CapnSev

Not necessarily.

He played an Ibanez Musician fretless on many of the Regatta album tracks, and used a white Spector NS2 in the 80s a lot.

Yep. He also used a '60s sunburst Precision on "Ghost In The Machine".

JTE · #6 12-17-2009, 03:13 PM

He got the fretless at Manny's in New York City while on their first US tour. He used it for the video of "Roxanne", but he didn't own it when he recorded the album. I'm not sure of the time-line, but he never mentioned the '54 (SC) P bass until well into his solo career.

With the Police he also used Ibanez basses (my favorite Ibanez memory is the calendar they made which had a picture of him. He was playing the Musician, but the way the shot was framed there wasn't an Ibanez logo anywhere in the shot. But, because he was using one of those woven Fender straps, it had the Fender logo in the picture about four times!).

He also used a Steinberger for a while with the Police. As for recordings, unless the man himself tells us there's no way to really say what bass was used on which recording.

John

andreaska · #7 12-20-2009, 05:03 AM

He used his '62 jazz on all police albums except on ghost in the machine. There was the main bass the sunburst precision which was loan from Andy Summers. Maybe he used the Ibanez fretless on Regatta. Definitely he used a precision fretless on Zenyatta, Ghost and Synchronicity. The last one also with the Steinberger. The Spector was never used for recording. He got it while touring the first Synchronicity concerts. The '62 Jazz was also used live before the Spector apeared, see here: http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/74...remium-Archive
The single coil '56/'57 Precision became his main bass after 1996 while recording Mercury Falling.

Andreas

Lazylion · #8 12-20-2009, 08:42 PM

^^ I went to the link and got this:
"We're sorry. Item 74316297 is no longer available."

andreaska · #9 12-21-2009, 01:51 AM

? But you see the picture?

oldprussians · #10 12-21-2009, 04:07 AM

His Early Precisions, (Blonde and Sunburst), although should be Single Coils are actually Stacked Hmbuckers! I read it Bass player I think........

air_leech · #11 12-21-2009, 04:51 AM

early Police live footage shows Sting with the natural 60s jazz.
as far as I remember it can also be seen on the "All this time" video clip from his 90's solo album named "Soul Cages".

ERIC31 · #12 12-22-2009, 04:49 PM

I love his fretless playing from the early days! 78-80. It's inspired me to get a fretless and see if I can find my voice on it. I love that fretless P-Bass he used to play!

Hoover · #13 12-23-2009, 10:31 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by andreaska

He used his '62 jazz on all police albums except on ghost in the machine. There was the main bass the sunburst precision which was loan from Andy Summers. Maybe he used the Ibanez fretless on Regatta. Definitely he used a precision fretless on Zenyatta, Ghost and Synchronicity. The last one also with the Steinberger. The Spector was never used for recording. He got it while touring the first Synchronicity concerts.

A big article in Musican magazine by (I think) Bill Milikowski which documented the recording of Ghost In The Machine (or maybe it was Synchronicity? whichever one they recorded down in the Caribbean) claimed that the bass tracks on that album were all layered composites, consisting of various combinations of any two of the following:
- fretless Fender Precision
- fretted Steinberger L-2
- no-name electric upright