Latest articles by Joel McIver
Charvel Pro-Mod San Dimas PJ IV and JJ V review
Hot-rodded, Fender-inspired, with a touch of retro flair, these high-performance basses have a timeless appeal
Bass Player's new issue pays tribute to Dusty Hill
Bass Player's new issue pays tribute to Dusty Hill
Putter Smith: "At 15 I got real serious about it, and at 16 I realized that my life’s work was to be a jazz bass player"
The veteran jazz bassist and occasional James Bond adversary on playing with Thelonious Monk, bass heroes and favorite recordings
Gretsch G5442BDC Electromatic Bass review
Comfortably vintage and sonically authentic, this red retro bass delivers the goods
Prince's bass players over the years: in their own words
Prince, a masterful bassist in his own right, employed a series of phenomenal bass players. Let's met the team...
Was it James Jamerson or Carol Kaye? The new issue of Bass Player sheds light on the decades-old controversy
The new issue of Bass Player is out now, and brings you a stack of interviews, a ton of reviews and the world's best lessons
Alex Webster: “Cannibal Corpse is always a ‘song first’ kind of thing... a big, heavy rhythm machine“
The bass genius behind the ferocious death-metal killing machine on technique, songwriting and recovering from injury
Carlos Santana’s long-time bassist Benny Rietveld reflects on a career at the front line of expression
Rietveld on playing with Miles Davis and Carlos Santana, the pivotal points in his prolific bass-playing career and the gear choices he swears by
The story of Paul McCartney and Wings
It’s been 50 years since Macca walked away from the biggest band ever formed. Here's how his post-Beatles career took flight
Sam Kiszka: “The P-Bass has been proven to be the best bass, perhaps of all time. Leo Fender was one of the greatest revolutionaries of our time“
As retro rockers Greta Van Fleet return with The Battle at Garden’s Gate, bassist Kiszka discusses his bass journey, GVF's influences and his essential gear
Tony Choy: "I’m a groove-oriented bass player – I love to stay in the pocket. I love the groove. We call it a kick drum with notes"
The super-talented bassist, producer, arranger, manager and now educator isn’t taking the pandemic lying down. We meet the busiest man in bass...
Bootsy Collins: “It’s not about being the greatest bassist in the world – you want to do great, but learn some kind of discipline as well“
With The Power of the One, the master takes a cast of stars for an album that lives and breathes funk
Foo Fighters' Nate Mendel: “After all these years, I've realized that notes are so much fatter with fingerstyle“
The Foo Fighters bassist checks in to talk Medicine At Midnight, chasing overdriven tones and his newfound appreciation of fingerstyle bass
Yamaha Peter Hook BBPH review
Hooky’s new, strictly limited-edition Yamaha BB is a stunning model based on his touring BB734A and legendary BB1200S
Trevor Dunn: “It’s in my personality to sit back and groove with the drummer – I took to bass immediately“
With his groundbreaking work with Mr. Bungle, John Zorn and Tomahawk, Dunn is a bassist like no other
Thundercat: “Not every instrument carries the weight to be able to morph and change in the way that bass does“
Want to learn the secrets of the universe? Then you’d better join us as we sit down with Stephen ‘Thundercat’ Bruner
Epiphone Jack Casady Bass review
From the Tunas – sorry, tuners – to the bridge, Casady’s semi-hollow bass design endures into the 2020s
Ron Carter: “Miles Davis was great. He never told me what not to play. We’d never talk about changes or tempo“
The jazz legend reflects on a life spent in pursuit of double bass excellence and explains why the best is yet to come
Sire V2 Marcus Miller U5 Short-Scale review
Miller's signature shortie is a high-performance passive bass at a very reasonable price
Squier Mini Precision Bass and Jackson JSX1 Minion Concert Bass review
Small but perfectly formed, these affordable bass guitars bring a touch of fun-sized charm to the table
Norbert Putnam: ”Elvis was conducting us with his body language... that’s the reason those records have such a great feel”
Producer, author, and bassist Norbert Putnam looks back at the legendary Nashville Cats recordings with Elvis Presley
Rhonda Smith: “The years I spent with Prince were absolutely incredible. It changed the trajectory of my life“
The Jeff Beck bassist checks in to talk gear, technique and her memories of working with The Purple One
Jason Momoa: ”I always knew I wanted to play bass. I wish I'd done this when I was young – but I’m making up for lost time”
Aquaman himself answers his bass heroes' questions and explains why low-end thunder is music to his ears
Glenn Hughes: “People talk about my vocals, but I’ve never, ever felt this good about playing bass“
The ‘Voice Of Rock’ and Deep Purple icon speaks candidly about his bass playing over the decades, why he should have never left Trapeze, and how the Dead Daisies reignited his four-string fire
