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What's the problem with jeff berlin?

#45
I've met many talented people who are difficult to work with
I've met many not so talented people who are easy to work with

Given a choice I believe most people pick a person from the second camp... less drama
The holy grail is to have a talented person who is easy to work with

Jeff Berlin, as far as I can tell from interviews, strikes me as being in the first camp

You may argue that for music talent is all that matters, but I disagree. My favorite musicians instill their personality into their music.

flame away, that's my story and i'm stickin' to it :eyebrow:


Step said:
yes, I know there's a thread going on about norah jones' records with jeff berlin on it, but I wanted to make this a separate thread so I can be heard :smug:

why does everyone have a problem with jeff berlin? to me he seems like an uptight, but really good jazz bassist

did he do anything wrong in the past? are his opinions on stuff too extreme or something?

why all the hate?

:ninja:
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#48
fretlessman71 said:
Jeff's discussed his personality recently... and it turns out he thought people thought it was funny when he came off like a New Yawkeh Prick. Well, SURPRISE, Jeff! People just thought you were a prick. Which really isn't the case, and I know from firsthand experience. He's not the gentlest guy in the world when it comes to discussion on things he's passionate about and things you disagree with him on, but I suspect neither are a lot of TBers.

So Jeff, buddy? Please? Knock it off. Thanks, dude.

Jeff was another one of my instructors at MI; I'd hang out in his "Open Counseling" room whenever I had the chance (it was always packed). Once I asked him how to go about playing a bebop bass solo, and his response was "Well, do you know what a bebop bass solo sounds like?" I said sure, and he said, "Okay, so play one for me!" I felt like an idiot. When I said that I couldn't do it, he replied, "That's because you don't know what a bebop solo sounds like on bass." And that was the end of that discussion.

After being angry with the extremely rude way that he dealt with my question, it occurred to me that he was right - I DIDN'T know what one really sounded like, because I was too intimidated by the fact that they were going so fast for me to really pay close attention. So I went back to the apartment and got some of the records out, and slowed them down so I could hear what was going on better, and began to work on paying attention to the SOUND of a bebop bass solo (or any bebop solo, for that matter). Practice, practice...

A few months later I was back in his OC room, and out of the blue, he said to me, "Hey - did you ever figure out what a bebop solo sounds like?" I smiled, and said, "Yes, I did, Jeff - it sounds kinda like this:" And played a short solo over the first few bars of "Confirmation". Jeff smiled, and said, "YES! NOW you know what a bass solo sounds like!"

So, in his own I'm-better-than-you-punk fashion, he did manage to get me to learn something. I wasn't crazy about his methods, but I can't argue with the results. Is that fair?
Click to expand...

Wow! That was awesome!

He stung you but didn't discourage you.

You found the answer on your own.

He remembered you and wanted to know what you did with your question.

You showed that you found the answer.

He rejoiced for you.

Not bad.

:D

Joe.
 
#52
MikeBass said:
Well, one thing is VERY true regarding Jeff's words about teaching how to "groove".
You can't.

You don't "teach" a baby how to walk, they learn it from watching and reacting to their environment.

So if you live under a mushroom and pay little or no attention to how a note falls in relation to a beat and maybe how to push or lay back, naturally you would think that groove is a passing item on the list.
Again, you can't teach it IMO, but if you are never exposed to it, and think it's maybe a waste of time, except in a passing manner", obviously you think that "It is important to groove".
Passing manner.......important..........well, if it's important, why place it in a passing manner?

When is Jeff playing with Chick Corea again??? Oh wait, Tal Wilkenfeld is.........
Click to expand...

I disagree. Learning groove is simply a matter of experimenting with the beat, and bridging the gap between rhythm and melody. You can certainly teach someone what it means to purposefully play behind, on top of, or in front of the beat; to lock with a kickdrum; to pick notes that accentuate rather than fight with the song; and, to use the bass to transition parts. I am sure neither Larry Graham, Bootsie, nor Mr. Wooten himself grasped these concepts and ran with them upon first introduction to bass. It's the experience gained by practicing alsone and experimenting with a variety of players that helps solidify these ideas. They're not innate. (For the record, my bass teacher taught these concepts using a metronome while he played guitar; I disagree with Berlin, there is definitely a place for metronomes in a practice and educational environment).
 
#58
I'm watching the Berlin/Bailey debate now and I think it's disrespectful of Jeff to noodle while Steve is talking. I'm trying to listen and even though he's very quiet, I still hear noodling underneath what he's saying. It's very distracting.
 
#60
hes a great guy, and an AMAZING player. However, he was around and popular at the exact same time Jaco was, and he got overshadowed and didn't take well to it.

Since then he fell out of the lime light and has tried to get back in it, but his overly aggressive and opinionated nature have made him hard to access for some. He subscribes to a theory that leaves many, including myself, very angry, and that is that the following things are USELESS:

Practice books
Form Books
Scale books
two hand tapping
(I think I remember slap as well, I may be wrong)
Instruction on fretless bass (that was a big one)
and last, as well as his largest arguement :mad:
Metronomes.

and there was a 10 or 15 part debate that he and Steve Bailey had at bass player live last year or the year before, it was interesting.
 

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