Lifelong influence. Man, so sad. This has been a rough year for music. What a legacy. Rest in peace.
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RIP Rocco Prestia
- Thread starter ColonelZulu
- Start date
They say Maradona has the hand of God, but I say Francis "Rocco" Prestia at least had the right hand of God, and the way his left could mute, it was blessed too.
Very sad. He was one of the best to ever do it. He was the foundation of the the "Tower" Of Power. Rocco Prestia's picture should be next to the word hip in the dictionary. Thank you so much for raising us Sir.
RIP
RIP
Every time my right hand touches a bass I am informed and inspired by Rocco , be it consciously or not. As long as a finger touches a bass string Francis Rocco Prestia will live on.
I would be remiss to not mention my left hand as well, Rocco's muting technique was equally a part of his genius.
Sad. The Man was a Legend. Maybe he is going to join the All-Star Band in heaven. Playing along with James Jamerson, Duck Dunn and all the other heavyweights...
A producer once suggested that Rocco play a slap line on a piece like some of the cool new artists were doing. Rocco replied, nope.
The true man of space and time. No need to slap a bass to be the funkiest man alive. RIP Rocco.
So very sad to hear this. Every time I saw TOP, I was in awe of the power of Rocco's grooves. His bass lines were as much a trademark of their sound as the horns were. I always came away inspired.
In my many years listening, considering, witnessing, and thinking about bass, I've seen so much from the viewpoint of a mere mortal watching giants at work some time. Stanley Clarke. Anthony Jackson. Jaco. So many, playing eye-opening music or even re-inventing it.
And yet there are plenty of guys quietly doing the job in renowned bands that impressed me so much as well. Walter Becker and the studio greats on all the SteelyDan catalog, among so many others.
And yet I'd be hard-pressed to imagine anyone more locked in and fearlessly playing charts timed out to the second and killing it the way FRP did. A huge beacon to anyone who thinks playing in a welded-tight band blowing on serious charts and playing for keeps is the way to do it, to become a part of a wonderful collective that's even stronger than the considerably talented separate parts. What a player.
And yet there are plenty of guys quietly doing the job in renowned bands that impressed me so much as well. Walter Becker and the studio greats on all the SteelyDan catalog, among so many others.
And yet I'd be hard-pressed to imagine anyone more locked in and fearlessly playing charts timed out to the second and killing it the way FRP did. A huge beacon to anyone who thinks playing in a welded-tight band blowing on serious charts and playing for keeps is the way to do it, to become a part of a wonderful collective that's even stronger than the considerably talented separate parts. What a player.
