"Flim" & JT

[indybass]

Check out on You Tube Flim & The BB's @ the World Theater.

[chuckc]

Very nice little solo and close up of JJ's fan head 5 string Alembic on At the Hop with the BBs. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ccav4qNrDvE

[JimmyJ]

Bill, exactly right on the quote.  
 
Joey, another good story, you picked a great year to attend NAMM!
 
Graeme, Bonnie and her band are a groove, huh?  I'm a Hutch fan too.  So, anybody can play as many basses as they want for whatever reason they want - I'm just saying from the audience perspective at a large venue it's hard to hear the subtle sound differences so why not just play the bass that's most fun to play?  But that's my spin, maybe it's a feel thing for some guys.  Your mileage may vary.
 
Jake, we are indeed lucky guys.  As an example, have a blast with that project.  It's always a treat to work in a great studio.
 
Steve Dokken, what are  you doing in here?  You didn't buy an Alembic did you?  Ha!  You're welcome to hang anyway (Steve's another fine bassist) but now these links to my younger self are getting a little embarrassing.  Those were my formative years, OK?  Oy.
 
You too Chuck, easy on the ancient history.  I do miss that bass though...  That's the one that was stolen in Poughkeepsie in 1987.  Where the heck could that bass be?
 
Jimmy J

[indybass]

Hey Jimmy,
Here are some Alembics I've had over the years. I sent Gordy some pictures of us rehearsing at your parents house in 1969.  
I've been doing some symphony dates with Cecil playing Hank's music again.
Steve Dokken

[chuckc]

Jimmy, why is it nearly impossible to date your work other than looking at the wardrobes and hair styles of the supporting cast? You look vitually the same in every clip I seem to find you on, though your playing seems as in the pocket as always regardless of the timeframe. Must be nice to remain ageless, unfortunately I'm not able to say the same about myself.

[richbass939]

Jimmy, the video clip is great (Chuck, thanks for posting it).  Great groove and tone.  I agree about it being hard to date your work except for looking at the things around you.  On that clip it is interesting to see the old PC and Mac between the keys and drums.  LOL  Not exactly a laptop.
Rich

[JimmyJ]

Hey Steve,
OK, none of those are my stolen bass so you're cool.  HA!  I was 13 in '69, maybe don't post THOSE pics here OK?  Way too much information.  Nice you're doing some Hank music.
 
Chuck and Rich, that's pretty funny.  I've gone a bit gray around the muzzle but from a distance, and with poor eyesight, it's the same low-maintenance head (no haircuts, no shaving...)  Same head, same bass, same bad posture.  Might just be some form of stubbornness...
 
Jimmy J

[crobbins]

This is one of my favorite JT/JJ videos.
 
http://music.aol.com/video/james-taylor-fire-and-rain-aol-sessions/james-taylor/1354213

[chuckc]

Great song, great rendition. Steve Gadd is, and has been, a truly tasteful drummer. Love his stuff.

[hankster]

This whole set of JT and JJ vids is excellent!
 
R.

[lbpesq]

Jimmy:
 
Will you be backing JT and Carole King on the upcoming tour?
 
Bill, tgo

[jacko]

It's going to be lee Sklar Bill. I'm hoping they'll come to the UK.  Did you see that James matched the $150,000 dollars he raised at an Haiti benefit out of his own pocket? Quite the gentleman.
 
Graeme

[chrisalembic]

Hey Jimmy, I have yet another question for you, I hope you dont mind.
Being a big admirer of Allan Holdsworth music, I was listening to the ?Metal Fatigue? album the other day, and what struck me about your playing were these amazing fills you always play, all over the fretboard. Like going from the highest register all the way down to the lowest notes and landing right on time. Especially on the ?In the Mystery? track, i stil cant believe what I am hearing ... So what I wanted to ask is,  whether you improvised all these crazy fills on the spot, or did you have a more concrete ?lay out? and are these lines and fills of a more ?compositional? nature? These lines blend so well with the whole music, fly all over the bass, and always right on time. Like Scott Lafaro, you are playing bass all over the bass and are interweaving with the music.

[mike13]

Jimmy,are you coming to OZ with JT and Carol?

[JimmyJ]

Bill,  
As Graeme said, Carole and James are touring with their original band; Sklar, Kunkel and Korchmar - plus a few extra cast members.  Between the two of them they have plenty of great material so it should be a very nice show.  I feel like I've been subbing for Leland for 20 years, he wrote the book on much of this music.  I'm happy everybody will get to hear him do what he does so well on these songs.  It will be great!
 
Chris,
Thanks for the kind comments.  I'm obviously a Holdsworth fan too - truly amazing and compelling music.  This kind of extended arpeggio thing you mention seems to appear often in my playing, I'm not sure why or where it came from. It only works if you can find an open string in the run to give your fretboard hand time to make the jump.  In The Mystery has a particularly busy bass part simply because it's a drum machine track (with no cymbals!) leaving more open space than usual.  Allan never tells any of the band members what to play (sometimes even what pitches to play) so this bass part is just what came out.  I do remember working on it for a while, composing the shape of it I guess, getting busier as the song progressed.  But which fills went where just kind of happened.  Much of the part only works because of the key (open A pedals, open B pedals, etc).  I don't know if that answers your question but I'm glad you like it.  It's an unusual track from Allan's already unusual body of work.
 
Jimmy J.