The Bastard Instrument

Reviews / Votes

"The Bastard Instrument is a major work that provides a needed corrective to popular music scholarship on this most essential-but too often overlooked-instrument. Wright's work recovers so many stories of electric bassists who have rarely, if ever, been granted recognition in existing histories of popular music. This is not a 'great man' version of electric bass history, but one that also utilizes 'bottom up' storytelling, enabled by Wright's tireless research strategies." -- Steve Waksman, author of Instruments of Desire: The Electric Guitar and the Shaping of Musical Experience "The Bastard Instrument provides an exceptionally well-researched chronicle of the way that the history of rock (and popular music more generally) is inseparable from the history of the practices, techniques, and tools deployed by a particular, understudied group of musicians. Wright moves effortlessly over the manuscript's span from the worlds of jazz and country music to those of funk and psychedelic rock, presenting the results of his research in clear, accessible prose." -- Travis A. Jackson, author of Blowin' the Blues Away: Performance and Meaning on the New York Jazz Scene "This book is in-depth, informative, and surprising." -- Ed Friedland, bassist and former writer for Bass Player magazine "Solid detective work chronicling the early days of the electric bass, written by someone who knows what he is talking about. A must read for all bass players!" -- Stuart Hamm, bassist "The Bastard Instrument is a fascinating history of the bass guitar and how its sound became indispensable to popular music in all forms. Especially relevant to me is its inclusion of women players and the important role we played in the instrument's history." -- Kathy Valentine, musician and bassist for the Go-Go's "I have been a bassist for the past 65 years, and this book gave me new insight into the joy of my life. Informative and thought provoking, it is a must for those wishing to broaden their knowledge of bass history." -- Leland Sklar, bassist for James Taylor and Phil Collins "In bass player and music scholar Wright's. . . ingenious twist on contemporary pop musicology, he deftly explains the influence of a new propulsive low end and the technological advances that made it possible." -- Library Journal "[A]n enthusiastic portrait of the instrument that gave Motown, rock 'n' roll, and funk their distinctive sounds." -- Publishers Weekly "The Bastard Instrument presents an extraordinary amount of fine details about the instrument itself, the development of the amplification to handle its output, the pioneers that dared play it, the rapidly evolving music that flourished because of its presence and so much more... All in all, [it] is a must-read for all of us who play electric bass and understand its essential place in music." -- Bass Musician Magazine "Wright tackles his subject from the ground up, detailing the background that led to the invention of the Fender Precision in 1951, freeing us from having to lug a massive double bass around. He then examines how the electric bass flourished in the 60s and 70s music landscape and how it transformed funk, disco and soul, with contributions from celeb bassists from the era... [Y]ou'll be spoilt for choice if it's classic rock, pop, jazz and Motown/Stax you're after, all detailed in a style that is academic but highly enjoyable. ????" -- Record Collector Magazine "While the dawn of plugged-in bass is often forgotten next to its flashy guitar brethren, The Bastard Instrument reminds us there was more to the solidbody revolution than Strats, Teles, and Les Pauls." -- Vintage Guitar Magazine In short: this is how the world functions, according to the bass players. Or pure bass history. Approached from their point of view, a number of new perspectives may enlighten music collectors and critics alike. * Dr. A. Ebert, popcultureshelf.com * If you are a serious bassist and don't own a copy of this book, you are at a huge disadvantage in understanding the true history of the instrument, to the detriment of your own playing. * Rob Garner, Buddy Magazine * Wright excels in his ability to balance scholarship with thorough explanations of electronic innovations, expertly intertwining the technical aspects of the instrument with analyses of seminal songs across pop, country, and rock genres. The prose is lively and approachable, setting an appealing and intelligent tone. . . Highly recommended. * D. McClure, Choice * "The author succeeds in doing several things at once. Firstly, he traces the innovative leap in the development of instruments and amplifiers, in which patenting and scaled mass production (by Leo Fender and his company) also play a role. To do this, he provides not only written sources but also a series of historical catalog images, patent applications, etc. Secondly, the role of well-known musicians as advertising figures for the electric bass is highlighted, as he sketches, thirdly, the amateur and uncommercial use of the instrument in numerous garage bands." * Fernand Hoerner, Lied und popula?re Kultur * "Wright draws on his own experience as a bassist to analyze significant historical happenings in the world of the electric bass, chapter by chapter, with interludes to provide further insights. Personal interviews, insightful illustrations, exhaustive research, and thoughtful analysis make this book an exceptional contribution to a young and burgeoning field." * Dave Schroeder, Popular Music * "The general comprehensiveness and attention to detail make Wright's text valuable as a history of popular music as well as of the electric bass. In summary, The Bastard Instrument is an important resource for connoisseurs and practitioners of popular music alike, especially for bass players." * Pandel Collaros, Notes * "The Bastard Instrument constitutes a relevant contribution to the historiography of the electric bass... Wright demonstrates methodological sensitivity through his engagement with industrial sources, technical documentation, phonographic recordings, and oral testimonies, constructing a genealogy of the instrument that transcends technological fetishism and situates the bass in precise sociocultural contexts." [translated from Spanish] * Fernando Tavares, Contrapulso * "I am very grateful for the tremendous job of research and analysis [Wright] has done. His book is an absolutely vital piece of bass history - of musical history - and I hope that everyone interested in the history of the electric bass reads it (including the footnotes) and uses its valuable insights to further their appreciation of our instrument." * Jim Roberts, Bass Magazine *