Double Bass Ed Friedland on tour with the Mavericks

[brianrost]

For those who haven't heard or might care (or both) Ed Friedland is now on tour as bassist for the Mavericks. Hooked up with him Saturday at the Rhythm and Roots festival in RI (USA) and was surprised to find out that it's a 100% DB gig! The band sounded killer...a seriously Latin infused country and roots rock blend...super tight and very exciting. It was all everybody was talking about the next day. If you dig this style of music, I recommend catching the tour when it arrives in your area.

Link Removed

Link Removed

 

[chuck3]

That's very interesting ... the Mavericks are indeed a great band.

 

[Roger Davis]

So, what's the BG doing on stage behind him? Just asking.

 

[bassfiddlesteve]

Thanks for the pics. Ed has been posting on Facebook how happy he is with his Chadwick Folding Bass and Greenboy speaker cabinet. I guess these have made travelling and playing at high volumes a lot easier.

- Steve

 

[Marial]

Yep, he is absolutely loving the Fearless from what I've been reading.

 

[elgecko]

That's awesome! I freaking love The Mavericks!

 

[brianrost]

So, what's the BG doing on stage behind him? Just asking.

Ed told me he pulled out a BG for a few songs on the first sound check of the tour but he hasn't bothered since because the DB works for everything anyway. That pic is from an earlier show, no BG in sight Saturday.

 

[Don Kasper]

That's an "interesting" left-hand approach he's got there...
Just seein' and sayin'.

 

[Roger Davis]

Ed told me he pulled out a BG for a few songs on the first sound check of the tour but he hasn't bothered since because the DB works for everything anyway. That pic is from an earlier show, no BG in sight Saturday.

I've just seen them finish their set on BBC live television. Not a BG in sight, Brian. Left hand technique very effective!

 

[jallenbass]

That's an "interesting" left-hand approach he's got there...
Just seein' and sayin'.

That's not Ed's default left hand position. Nothing wrong with doing that when you only need one note.

 

[Don Kasper]

That's not Ed's default left hand position. Nothing wrong with doing that when you only need one note.

"What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits"?
I'm glad that this approach works for Mr. Friedland.
I discourage/prohibit(!) this approach in my teaching and playing.
Thanks.

 

[Martin Beer]

I've watched a couple of his equipment review videos, and he has a more conventional left hand approach in those. It might just be a momentary thing in that photo, like he's muting at the end of an open string note or something similar.

 

[Robus]

Looks pretty cool. Anyone have a sound clip to post?

 

[MR PC]

That's not Ed's default left hand position. Nothing wrong with doing that when you only need one note.

Agree. That kind of hand position goes with the style of music sometimes. Maybe in the moment he was on the way to using the left hand as a mute during a slap passage.

 

[geoffbassist]

I was knocked out when I saw them on tour in the UK this week, Ed sounded superb and I got to hang with him and talk gear. He played some mean jazz backstage and really solid grooving lines with the band. Very inspiring stuff and the rig sounded enormous! As the Brian says it's upright all the way, although he is traveling with a cool solid body Kala U bass (or similar brand) as an emergency back up. The Genz head and Greenboy 2x12 he was using did the business and certainly had the volume. The Chadwick folding bass is also really cool and he assembled it in a couple of minutes. String wise he had a blast cult E&A with silver slap D&G...they seem to handle the breaking down of the bass really well.

 

[Jay Corwin]

Looks pretty cool. Anyone have a sound clip to post?

There are some live clips on youtube from the tour, but as is usually the case results vary with people recording stuff from the seats.

 

[chuck3]

I was knocked out when I saw them on tour in the UK this week, Ed sounded superb and I got to hang with him and talk gear. He played some mean jazz backstage and really solid grooving lines with the band. Very inspiring stuff and the rig sounded enormous! As the Brian says it's upright all the way, although he is traveling with a cool solid body Kala U bass (or similar brand) as an emergency back up. The Genz head and Greenboy 2x12 he was using did the business and certainly had the volume. The Chadwick folding bass is also really cool and he assembled it in a couple of minutes. String wise he had a blast cult E&A with silver slap D&G...they seem to handle the breaking down of the bass really well.

very cool, Geoff.

 

[Pat Harris]

"What Were Once Vices Are Now Habits"?
I'm glad that this approach works for Mr. Friedland.
I discourage/prohibit(!) this approach in my teaching and playing.
Thanks.

In fairness, have you ever played double bass right in front of a huge speaker cabinet with 900 watts of power going through it? From my own experience, that technique in the photo is an absolutely necessity to combat feedback. I wouldn't have a left hand like that to perform a concerto, but for grooving with a drummer at high volumes and making the music feel good, sometimes you need to break a rule or two. If the bass is in time and in tune, to me, that's what music is about.

 

[geoffbassist]

Here's the finished video with a full rundown of the gear Ed was using on the Mavericks UK tour.

 

[Feral Feline]

Thanks for posting the rundown vid GeoffBassist.

I'll have to check out some Mavericks now...