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Tony Levin

B

bassduder

Jul 30, 2001
91
0
40
Canada, GF-W
getblind.cjb.net
#1
I was just wondering if anyone has any pics of Levin actually playing a bass, other than a Stick or Upright...Also does anyone have any info on his technique (e.g.: how many fingers does he use to pluck...does he slap or just use funk fingers to emulate the sound?, etc.)...Finally, what are some of his greatest grooves. I'm in the process of getting Peter Gabriel's Secret World album, which i'm told is dripping with groove.

PS - I didn't know where to put this message, so I thought that since the general topic is about Levin, then I ought to put it here...:D
 
#4
I've read and "thought" I seen Tony use a three finger technique, but when I think back to the video I seen of him...its probably just like why everyone thinks Steve Harris of Iron Maiden uses a four technique...they both use a open hand right hand technique, therefore they can't control the independant motion of their other fingers.

Am i right??:D
 
#6
He uses alternating index and middle fingers on his right hand(as everyone should). The whole "funk fingers" phenomena came from the recording of "Big Time" on the So album. Jerry Marotta is using two drumsticks to drum on the strings during the choruses while Tony fretted the left-hand notes. And in order to cop the sound live, he would attach (via velcro) sections of drumstick to his index and middle fingers, hence FunkFingers. "Shock the Monkey"
 
#8
Thanks Jontom for the finger technique answer and I have yet another question...anyone know if Tony plays bass with Liquid Tension or is it all Stick?...I'm just wondering because on songs like Paradigm Shift he plays some pretty fast sixteeneth-note rhytms, and I wonder can he really tap that fast??

Maybe I just don't know how a Stick really works??:confused:
 
#9
I have a live video of a couple Liquid Tension concerts and Tony plays a stick the whole time!
Tony is just a mindblower to watch!.....one of my alltime favorites!!!!
 
#12
I think I saw him using the ring finger on the fretless during the Waters of Eden tour, but I might be wrong.

From what I've seen lately, things that were originally slap (Sleepless - get the Three of a Perfect Pair video to see it slapped Yvon. Oh, and same for Thela Hun Ginjeet) he plays using the Funk Fingers now.

On his last tour (with all the PG Band guys) he played fretted and fretless MMs and Stick. Oh, and electric upright cello too :).

As for the fast 16th-note stuff on the Stick, it depends. If the notes are such that you can alternate between the two hands, then you can play *very* quickly that way. Repeating a single note quickly can be difficult, you have to learn a little "hop" technique where you alternate using two fingers on the same hand - and then it's still hard to do cleanly.
 
#13
I thought I seen him using a ring finger too, geshel, but I pretty sure it was just the way you (and me) seen it. Thanks for the info about the Stick, i'm not very familiar with the techniques, so yeah...ha.

And yes too bad jerry, I would love to see Tony and the Stick in action...I could get some flack for that, ha.

:p
 
#15
Originally posted by bassduder
...anyone know if Tony plays bass with Liquid Tension or is it all Stick?...
Click to expand...

On the first LTE album Tony uses a variety of fretted and fretless electric basses, his Grand (12 string) Chapman Stick, and his electric upright. For the second he chose to record the vast majority of songs with the Stick for both speed issues as well as contributing a more "uniform sound" to the project (If I recall correctly, only the middle section of "Biaxident" has "real" bass).

Jerry is correct, however, in stating that for the four show "micro tour" in January of '99, Tony used only a Stick onstage.
 
#16
Thanks for the pic, versatile_stile, if I recall correctly, did you get that pic from a Gabriel site...? Also scarred2112 thanks for the Stick info, I like Tony's lines on Acid Rain, good stuff.

What would you guys/gals think are Tony's greatest grooves? I'm in the process now of getting Gabriel's Secret World burned off, which should be groovy...

I really like the end of Don't Give Up off the So album, and Sleepless with Crimson is also good...there are many more, I just can't think of them ha
 
#20
Sadly, I don't get MTV...I live up north with MuchMusic...but from what i'm told, there both equally terrible? anyone.

Anyways, does anyone think that Tony could play the stuff he plays on Stick on "real" bass (such as his patent MusicMan)? just a thought ;)

Edit: with the exception of when he plays the melody on the higher resgister of the instrument.
 

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