JAUQO III-X
Inactive
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Bernard Edwards - The Bassist for Chic
- Thread starter markjazzbassist
- Start date
JAUQO III-X
Inactive
Nobody "nails" Bernard but Jerry Barnes does an excellent job! This entire band is on fire... Omar Hakim Kills!!
- Nov 27, 2003
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- Disclosures
- Rogue luthier employed at Knooren Handcrafted bass guitars
Do yourself a favor and look up a guy names Oscar Alston.
Rick James once credited Alston for being the reason for his success.
Alston in return has credited Rick James' reckless playing (James COULD play but never practiced and was super sloppy) as a way for him to be out there, not being a "Serious musician" who stood like a tree on stage.
Go to around 14;30 minutes to see and hear Rick James play bass, with Alston right behind him.
JAUQO III-X
Inactive
I've seen Rick James a few times in concert and when he was playing bass it was not sloppy.
Yup. Bernard Edwards, Verdine White, Bootsy Collins & Larry Graham are The Four Horsemen of Funk...
MM
Take verdine out and put Louis Johnson in
With the general Chic revival going on at the moment I was reintroduced to Everybody Dance.
Just trying to get close to the line has me adding new techniques
Just trying to get close to the line has me adding new techniques
I have said it before, but Bernard Edwards' bass lines can be studied regularly the same way that Charlie Parker's solos are by many Jazz musicians. Even great musicians will pick up new stuff from time to time by studying Bernard.
...did not dig this, at all.
Maybe 'cause I recently bought/watched Chic Live At Budokan, 1996?
Rick James was defiantly a player bass, keys, guitar.., like Prince he would hire out for another player as needed probably more so in the studio then Prince does I will agree. I don't know if could maintain his frontman duties and keep a steady groove on bass as oppose to throwing a few licks and dancing off as he did on bass and keys in concert.
It's funny this would turn about Rick James cause just yesterday i was watching the exact live video someone posted just above.
From what i gather from it, he could kinda play. In that show he does a few bits here and there, slaps and slides and stuff, but while the other bassist is always playing too. I think he probably could play decently but was more interested in being an entertainer. He's, all over the stage, playing a bunch of instruments, dancing, singing, etc. Like Prince. Though Prince of course has serious skill on pretty much anything.
Edit: I guess that's basically what the guy right above me said....
As for Bernard Edwards, i'm not into Chic but he was the main influence of one bassist i really like, John Taylor of Duran Duran.
From what i gather from it, he could kinda play. In that show he does a few bits here and there, slaps and slides and stuff, but while the other bassist is always playing too. I think he probably could play decently but was more interested in being an entertainer. He's, all over the stage, playing a bunch of instruments, dancing, singing, etc. Like Prince. Though Prince of course has serious skill on pretty much anything.
Edit: I guess that's basically what the guy right above me said....
As for Bernard Edwards, i'm not into Chic but he was the main influence of one bassist i really like, John Taylor of Duran Duran.
Rick James was a sideman and played bass in a band with Neil Young years before he got his break. The man probably had more skills than most of us posting here.
Enough going off topic. I am a Bernard Edwards fan for life!
