Biography and News
Jeff has composed, recorded and performed on Bass, alongside numerous artists as well as being a solo performer over the last few decades. He has toured professionally with the progressive metal band 'Dreemwich', the rock/funk band 'Peacemaker' and the incredible acoustic instrumental trio 'Soundescape'. He has done many live guest performances as well, playing with Will Ackerman, David Cullen, Ryan Stewart and Monique Lanier to name a few. Jeff has also done many live solo performances and clinics showcasing his innovations on his basses.
When recording or playing alongside fellow musicians, Jeff knows how to let the music be the focal point and support the song itself. As a hired bassist, he guarantees the studio tracks he lays down and his costs stay well below industry standards to help keep writers costs down. He is fluent in any style of music.
Over the last decade, he has been pursuing innovative ways to gets new sounds on the Instrument he loves so much. The release of ‘Falling Awake’ in 2007 was his first solo endeavor. A few of the musical greats he has had the pleasure of recording with include, Michael Manring, Tony Franklin, Yves Carbonne, Jeff Schmidt, Brady Muckelroy and Jonni Lightfoot. This release was largely focused around his piccolo acoustic Taylor bass guitar and highlights an all ‘Bass only’ album that shows the tonal diversity and musicality the Bass guitar has, as well as a small fraction of the amazing Bass player worlds talent.
In ‘Four Pranas’ the primary thought was to compose music that allows each listener to detach and focus on the spiritual core, with attention specifically to decreasing the respiration rate and utilization of the arc of tension and resolution. This one-hour composition is divided into four Pranas which represent the exact length of each season. There are well over 100 tracks played with the Ebow on his Worp Art Bassline Bass, but all tracks are performed on this single Bass guitar. Several medical professions are currently studying this release as a potential benefit to various patient populations, as well as being utilized in massage, yoga and other spiritual applications.
Jeff’s third solo release entitled ‘Rain from a Cloudless Sky’ is now available for download, hard copy and streaming. This release is more reminiscent of Falling Awake and features multiple tracks with Michael Manring, as well as Scott Shipps, Allison Ottley and Erik Dodd. This CD is back to finger style and two handed piccolo bass foundations and melodic accompaniments on Jeff’s Fretless Bassline Basses and Michael Manring’s Zon fretless basses. An acoustic guitar highlight by Scott Shipps and vocal performances by Allison Ottley and Erik Dodd. Two songs feature Jeff’s extended range fretless 5 string that has 1 bass string, 2 tenor strings and 2 piccolo strings for broader sonic range. Both of these feature the amazing Michael Manring.
I play music because it allows me to capture an audio portrait of a moment in time. My music and arrangements or contributions to others peoples music are largely based on the emotions going on in my life (good or bad). I believe this to be true for all musicians playing and performing music. I think had any music artist been given parts to write, days, months or even years later, that the palette of phrasings and chordal colors would not be the same.
I specifically play the Bass guitar because it allows me to be part of the rhythm section and part of the melodic content. Additionally, when I play in altered tunings and different gauge strings, the bass allows me to write in ways I cannot conceive on any other instrument. The Fretless bass in particular, allows for all of those cool in between notes you can't capture as well on a fretted instrument, which is ideal for adding tension or vocal like phrasings and melodies to complement whatever is going on in any style of music.
I have been performing solo bass and supportive bass in many genres for 3 days and a bunch of years that no one really cares about. So, support my music, and hire me to be your bass monkey. I'm a bassist and we all know that solo bass only appeals to other broke ass bassists. Feel my bottom, save yourself money, I will get the tracks right and I guarantee it, or I'll do it again for......................... NO EXTRA CHARGE