Nathan East was in Thailand recently where he did an interview with Guitar Thai Online. They get into some interesting topics including:

What is the essence of bass playing?

“For me the essence is just trying to find the right notes for whatever song I’m playing. Nothing more, nothing less - just really zeroing in on the best notes for the song that I’m involved with. The role of the bass is to be the foundation from the bottom up, the concrete for the house. It’s not to be too flashy but to be very supportive of what’s going on over top of it.”

Advice for bass players:

"Listen to as many different types of music as possible. I used to play along with the radio and records. I put on Earth Wind and Fire or The Beatles or Motown records, and just play along with it. So you’re playing along with James Jamerson or Paul McCartney - or some of the best bass players ever. First it starts by kind of imitating those guys, then you can develop your own style.

I’m always listening to what the kick-drum is doing and what the drummer’s doing, very important, and then what kind of rhythms you have from the keyboards or the guitar."

James Jamerson:

"Every single note had some kind of meaning and purpose, or magic. It wasn’t just playing."

On teaching at ArtistWorks:

"I get lots of submissions from bass players sending me their style. But the thing I notice most, is they’ll start out playing and then… they don’t focus on every note - some notes are almost like throwaway. Every note has to be very important!"

Watch the video for more! 

Related Blogs:

• Nathan East talks Daft Punk, Solo Album, Bass Lessons & More
• Bass Lesson from Nathan East: Right Hand Tone Development
• Nathan East and Paul Gilbert: One Chord Challenge

Learn bass online with Nathan East at http://artistworks.com/nathan-east