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PBS (Pledge Week) The Bassists

cassanova

cassanova

Sep 4, 2000
8,419
748
Florida
#1
Did any of you happen to watch any of the live acts that were on PBS durring pledge week. About two nights ago they had a magnificent line up: KC & The Sunshine Band, Heatwave, Wild Cherry, The Four Seasons, (one original and the rest were really young guys) and a bunch of other groups which I can't remember. (other than the song they did)

It was a pretty good night for music. It was all 70's disco. It was without a doubt a night of very good bass playing.

Does anyone here know who some of these players were? Including the house bassist.
 
#3
I caught only about 10 minutes.

Heatwave was one of my favourite '70s R&B/Soul bands...their performance on this PBS, IMO, was not up to par(the tune I saw was "Boogie Nights"). It looks like Heatwave-the band is now down to 3 'lead' singers'. Bad imitation 2000 of a band that was once a very, very good group back in the day.

On the other side was A Taste Of Honey. This was the 1st time the bassist & guitarist have hooked up in 20 years? Janice Johnson sang & played well...IMO, she was not 'fakin' it, either; she impov'd just enough, too.
The guitarist's(I'm drawing a blank on her name) rhythm chops sounded good; her soloing almost sounded a little Punk(very rough around the edges). ;)
 
#4
JimK said:
On the other side was A Taste Of Honey. This was the 1st time the bassist & guitarist have hooked up in 20 years? Janice Johnson sang & played well...IMO, she was not 'fakin' it, either; she impov'd just enough, too.
The guitarist's(I'm drawing a blank on her name) rhythm chops sounded good; her soloing almost sounded a little Punk(very rough around the edges).
Click to expand...


Was that the bassist that was playing a red flying V looking bass guitar?
 
#6
DWBass said:
I saw it. I think she was playing a Tune Bass. KC's segment was pretty good. I wish Adrian was playing but some other cat was there. The Trammps [Disco Inferno] segment was hot! I thought the Heatwave segment was horrible as well! :eek:
Click to expand...

Yeah, I thought KC's segment was pretty good too. I wish they'd done a different song though. Something like "Boogie Man" would've been much cooler than "Get Down Tonight"

I wish it was Adrian playing too. Who was the cat that was sitting in with KC?

Wild Cherry's performance was sub-par to me as well. Especially vocally.
 
#14
I agree! I admit I was a bit distracted by the cat singing! It's funny 'cause that's the only hit those guys had and they weren't even a disco/r&b band!!
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DWBass said:
What kind of band was Wild Cherry?
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I saw Wild Cherry open for AWB in 1976.
I think I recall hearing someone say Wild Cherry was not a "R&B band", per se; obviously, in the mid-'70s, everyone & their brother were becoming "R&B/Top-40/Disco" bands. I even remember a couple of local Country bands morphing into "R&B" bands...they had to in order to keep working.
...and they sounded like a Country band trying to play Funk, too.

Back to WC; judging by the concert I attended, they were a Top-40/R&B/Soul band with a Rock-style guitar. Again, that was a norm for the time(Pleasure, Mother's Finest, etc).
IIRC, Wild Cherry also had a 2nd 'minor' hit...I think I recall the word "honkies" being in it(sounded like a ripoff of their own "Play That Funky Music"). ;)
 
#15
fenwickbacker said:
It was a good special - Chic sounded good, Freak Out has a great groove. I don't know who was on bass for that one (didn't the original bass player die?). It wasn't Nile Rogers on guitar, but was that Hiram Bullock?
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Geez, Chic IS/WAS Nile & Bernard.
Bernard did pass...& it wasn't even Niles on guitar?!? Bogus! Bogus! Bogus!

Didn't Chic's drummer, Tony Thompson(also of Power Station) also pass away recently?
 
#17
Cool link, DW.
I see they were signed to Brown Bag Records? Terrry Knight's label? Terry Knight of Grand Funk Railroad?
(Knight was just recently murdered, too...I think last week).

FWIW-
I do like the rhythm guitar part in "Play That Funky Music"(the 9th chords)
...and there is something about that album cover!
 
#18
JimK said:
Cool link, DW.
I see they were signed to Brown Bag Records? Terrry Knight's label? Terry Knight of Grand Funk Railroad?
(Knight was just recently murdered, too...I think last week).

FWIW-
I do like the rhythm guitar part in "Play That Funky Music"(the 9th chords)
...and there is something about that album cover!
Click to expand...
Ahhhh......yes! THE Album cover!!
 

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