I bought my first Stanley Clarke album, Journey to Love, in 1975, and I proceeded to buy everything he released until maybe 1990, but I never listened to Children of Forever because I had no interest in double bass. I finally uploaded it to my iTunes this week, and I love it. The playing has lots of classic Jazz grooves and very little of the super fast licks that sound like great practice room licks. Stanley Clarke became a bass guitar hero, but I cannot but think how great his acoustic playing would be if he made it a greater focus over the past 45 years.
This composition "Butterfly Dreams" by Stanley Clarke was my first hearing him on acoustic bass - before the Return To Forever band(s) - both versions. This tune was used as a late-nite jazz DJ's theme song in Buffalo, NY. Very "trippy" jazz from 1972. Thanks.
Stanley was really the first double bass shredder i had ever heard via Return to Forever albums like Romantic Warrior and No Mystery. They would always pop an acoustic tune or two on those albums where Stanley is doing some amazing things. Personally i don't wonder how his double bass playing would had been if he didn't play electric since to me he really hit an impressive pinnacle on both. Also, i always consider him a double bass player first and electric player second. His electric right hand technique always seemed to be adapted from double bass to me.
Sincere thanks for your candor and welcome to The Dark Side of TB. It's never too late, Doc! Let's start at the top. This piece was inescapable during the 70s for the best of reasons:
Oddly, my first time really noticing Stanley’s URB playing was on a song from his pop band, Animal Logic’s 2nd album. “What looks good on the outside.” Fabulous track,and his playing on the upright is superb.
Well he was double bassist first in fact. Maybe I should rephrase my statement since people like John Pattitucci, as well as Clarke are great in both basses. I wish Stanley Clarke had put more emphasis on acoustic during prime because too often his acoustic pieces don’t really develop before goes into shredder mode. This bothers me because I am sure shredding is something he barely has to think about. It is the fruit of lots scale, mode, and arpeggio drill. I feel his bass guitar pieces were more thought out. Oh well, I cannot say what is in the man’s heart. Hopefully, bass guitar got more attention because he was feeling it more.
I think Stanley is one of the few people who has managed to be distinctive on both instruments. I seen him a few years ago and his double bass broke mid solo because he was playing it so aggressively, he picked up the electric and continued like nothing else. There was a few Chick Corea piano and bass duets with Stanley that appeared to promote some online workshop of Chick but they were playing all those fusion tunes acoustic. Stanley was all over them like it was nothing and I felt the tunes actually sounded so much better acoustically rather than electric.
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