December 14, 2018

Just found out Geddy has a book comin’ out in a few days !!! … Just in time for Xmas !!! … Ged knows how to max out the market !!! …

I read one of Neil’s books … Excellant writer … With many stories to tell …

Being a bass player … And learning much from Geddy … I look forward to getting away from this keyboard and flatscreen and actually reading the words formed in ink on newsprint that speak the mind of one of the best bass players the world has had the pleasure to position an ear toward …

Here is a snippet of questions from an interviewer discussing the new book with Geddy ;

You also write about the influence of Chris Squire , who achieved one of the most distinct bass sounds ever recorded. Can you pinpoint what makes his tone so unique ?…

In the beginnings of my formative years , I would say Jack Cassady , Jack Bruce , John Entwistle , John Paul Jones , Chris Squire … These guys had the most impact on me , and in particular Chris Squire.

MORBNOTE ; Chris is THE reason I picked up ANY instrument … Never mind the bass !!! … Geddy continues …

Because although all these guys , with maybe the exception of John Paul Jones , had a bit of twang in their sound , probably Entwistle and Squire are the ones who are most closely aligned … If you listen to ‘ My Generation ‘, there’s a hell of a lot of twang on that bass. I think Chris Squire sort of took that idea to the next level. He played with a pick , and I never realized that until I saw him live.

When I was listening to those records , I was amazed at the amount of twang and thwack. And I thought , “ Man, how does he get that out of his fingers ? ” Of course , when I saw him live , I went , “Ahh , pick ! ”… I’d been trying to do it with my fingers and thwack the shit out of my bass to get that sound. But the pick definitely helps that sound , and a lot of guys use a pick for that reason.

But I developed a way of replicating [ it ] or at least trying to.

MORBNOTE II ; Hey Ged … I think ya did just fine !!! …

This is how you get your own sound : You think you’re replicating your hero’s sound , but of course you can’t. Chris Squire’s sound comes from his fingers , his hands , from him. You can put the same bass , the same amplification in the same song with another player , and it’s not gonna sound like Chris Squire.

Only Chris Squire sounds like Chris Squire.

Only John Paul Jones sounds like John Paul Jones.

That’s the personality of the player. When I was producing records for a short time a number of years ago , guys would come in and say …

“ I would love to sound like this guy ”…

I would say … “ I’d love you to sound like that guy , but you’re not that guy … We’ll give you a similar sound to that guy , but you’re gonna sound you … You’re never gonna sound like him because you’re you , and you should celebrate the ‘ you-ness ’ of that.

” My sound partly came about from trying to imitate all these guys I mentioned. But failing to get it right is actually your benefit … When you fail to mimic them , you accidentally get your own thing out of it. I often say that style comes from being influenced by so many people that you can no longer recognize the influence and you’ve developed confidence in your own personality and that’s started to supersede the influences.

MORBNOTE III ; I’d have to add … Only Geddy Lee sounds like Geddy Lee …