Marcus Miller personifies the cool bassist. He rubbed elbows with Miles Davis, and even his speaking voice is swarming with the trumpeter's jazz slang. Miller is far from conceited. Rather, he interacts in thoughtful, casual tones, typically provided at a speed that stimulates his back-of-the-pocket basslines.
Naturally, his musical voice is much louder. There are his apparent structures, with their textured jazz-hop grooves and moody, open consistencies stalking sing-song tunes. And after that there's his slapped and plucked '77 Jazz Bass, which quickly ended up being a sonic existence to competing Jaco's fretless.
In addition to his work as a sideman, Miller's solo profession has actually yielded numerous prestigious recordings, consisting of the 15-track Silver Rainwhich includes thunderous bass anthems, ballads, and a title track co-written with Eric Clapton (who likewise offered the lead vocal and a solo).
Miller's normal run for covers was likewise in location, with the works of no less than Duke Ellington, Jimi Hendrix, Stevie Wonder, Prince, Edgar Winter, and even Beethoven improved to stream from his fertile mind to his cool fingerboard.
“I've settled into the idea that covers are a crucial part of jazz history,” Miller informed Bass Player“It raised some eyebrows when individuals initially heard Coltrane's variation of My Favorite Things or Miles covering program tunes, and now they're amongst our most cherished jazz efficiencies.
“Doing a tune individuals currently understand informs them a lot about you and how you see the world, since they have a recommendation. I believe it's crucial to have a balance, however I like what covers expose about an artist.”
The following interview from the Bass Player archives occurred in April 2005. We talked with Marcus before a Japanese trip to discuss his playing design (consisting of the abundance of Marcus clones), and the cool result on Silver Rain
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What led you to cover Prince's Women and Boys
“I'm a huge fan; he's an amazing artist, and his bass playing is simply insane. I found out a lot about phrasing and mindset on the bass from his 1980 album Unclean MindIve constantly liked Women and Boys due to the fact that of the baritone sax line; I believed I might do it on bass clarinet to provide it an off-center ambiance.
“I likewise like to require myself into various secrets; this one remains in Bb, which is unusual for funk bass. Anyhow, I returned to the initial when and after that did it off the top of my head. I play the tune on my 1977 Jazz. I desired somebody with a great deal of character in their voice to sing the hook, and I was lucky to get Macy Gray.”
Kind- and arrangement-wise,
