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Just discovered Chuck Rainey

#45
StyleOverShow said:
I read that recording Steely Dan they told him not to slap & he agreed but when they recorded he did, of course. Rainey said that everyone else was doing it and he wanted to work.

From people I know who knew him he was a good guy, friendly and willing to chat it up. I think he passed away in 2015-16
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He's not dead yet! I met him at Victor Wooten's bass camp in May, 2015. He had a stroke in the previous year (2013 or 2014) but he was alive and kicking. He was the only guy I met that had me star struck the whole week. He told me I reminded him of Bobby Vega - my looks, not my playing - but you could have knocked me over with a feather.
 
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#51
StyleOverShow said:
I read that recording Steely Dan they told him not to slap & he agreed but when they recorded he did, of course. Rainey said that everyone else was doing it and he wanted to work.
From people I know who knew him he was a good guy, friendly and
willing to chat it up. I think he passed away in 2015-16
Click to expand...

I had the pleasure of meeting him in March of this year so it's not possible he passed in 2016. Very cool guy
 
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#52
Chuck Rainey played an old Fender Precision bass, which is the subject of much discussion here on other threads. He claims it's a 57' which it very well may be, although it has a rosewood fretboard , so based on when he says he purchased it , it could be as late as a 60' or 61' , however that's neither here nor there. He had it strung with LaBella flatwounds (gauges .110, .085, .065, .045) ,and is quoted as saying he used that particular bass for 90% of the recordings he laid down throughout the 70s and the late sixties ; which makes sense because his tone is that trademark, deep, hollow, woody, Precision thump , with a perfect midrange "nose" that pairs well with everything, and lends an unmistakable rhythmic , percussive , and melodic sound to records, that you know as soon as you hear it.
 
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#54
JimK said:
Rainey had a monthly column in Guitar Player magazine...I'm talking mid-'70s. IIRC, he also had something similar in the early daze of Bass Player magazine. So, yes, he is a great educator.

Rainey & Jamerson were contemporaries. I'm not 100% sold that Rainey saw JJ as "idol".
IIRC, Rainey mentions Ray Brown & Keter Betts as early influences.

If you can track down the Sept. 1976 issue of Guitar Player (Merle Travis cover), there is a nice interview with Rainey.
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Yeah he told me that Larry Grahm was the best slapper he likes from Sly and the Family Stone and the one to watch to learn to slap. A very down to earth cool cat he even got me turned on to Blue Steels which he was endorsing at the time.
 
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#55
Pbassmanca said:
Chuck Rainey played an old Fender Precision bass, which is the subject of much discussion here on other threads. He claims it's a 57' which it very well maybe, although it has a rosewood fretboard , So based on when he says he purchased it , it could be as late as a 60' or 61' , however that's neither here nor there. He had it strung with LaBella flatwounds (gauges .110, .085, .065, .045) ,and is quoted as saying he used that particular bass for 90% of the recordings he laid down throughout the 70s and the late sixties ; which makes sense because his tone is that trademark, deep, hollow, woody, Precision thump , with a perfect midrange "nose" that pairs well with everything, and lends an unmistakable rhythmic , percussive , and melodic sound to records, that you know as soon as you hear it.
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Is that the one with the added DeArmond bridge pickup (which was allegedly too narrow for the wider string spacing near the bridge and consequently had uneven pickup volume)?
 
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#57
StyleOverShow said:
I read that recording Steely Dan they told him not to slap & he agreed but when they recorded he did, of course. Rainey said that everyone else was doing it and he wanted to work.

From people I know who knew him he was a good guy, friendly and willing to chat it up. I think he passed away in 2015-16
Click to expand...

ThuzzleFump said:
No, he's still with us.
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I'll be certain to remind him of that when I see him at Detroit Bassfest next month. <insert Mark Twain quote>

JPaulGeddy said:
I'm fortunate enough to be in a band that does 'Peg'. It is an absolute master-class in technique and timing. Don't just learn it on the surface, dig into it. Chuck is unquestionably one of the greatest.
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Ditto and agreed!!
 
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#59
JimK said:
Not to derail...because John Paul Jones & Rainey are my two "guys".
That said, you may not be familar-
Max Bennett
Gary King
Same mid-'70s time frame, I was checking these guys out along with Rainey.

Bennett-
1st 2 albums by Tom Scott & The L.A. Express

King-
New York Connection- Tom Scott
Good King Bad- George Benson
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It's interesing to note that Carol Kaye, Joe Osborn, Max Bennett and Chuck Rainey were the top of the studio bassist call list in LA for some time. Chuck has a great story about Tommy Tedesco from one of his first sessions there.

Gary King likewise was near the top of the NYC call list - he's on a bunch of CTI releases that Ron Carter isn't. ;)
 
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