Rik's Music
I used to rock, and sometimes I still do
I've been a musican all of my life. At one time or another I've played the piano, clarinet, saxophone, bassoon and guitar. My true love is the bass guitar, though. All the other instruments were merely flings. With the bass guitar, I've found my true calling. I've played the bass since 1985. Right now, the only playing I do in public is at my church: Foothills Foursquare Church, in Wenatchee, Washington. I've played bass with the worship team since about 1995.
From 2003 to 2004 I was in a band called Ponophobic. I was the bass player as well as the lead vocalist on most songs. My guitarist was Mark Cooper, who had previously played lead guitar and sang in a country band called Hand Picked. Mark handled the lead vocals on several of our songs. Our drummer was Jamey Roberts. Jamey was a big jazz fan, and had a knack for keeping a steady, unwavering tempo.
We recorded a demo CD, for what it's worth. A friend, Greg, recorded us at no charge, for practice. The instruments were laid down during a late-night session at my church, and Mark and I overdubbed the vocals a few days later at Greg's house. Personally, I'm happy with everything except my own vocal performance on this recording. I hate to offer excuses, but I was just getting over a bad cold when we did this, and it shows. I wanted to wait to do the vocals, but everybody else was in a hurry. So there you go.
Here are the songs we recorded, in MP3 format:
Lead vocals by me:
The Middle (originally performed by Jimmy Eat World) (2.5 MB MP3 file)
Beds Are Burning (originally performed by Midnight Oil) (3.8 MB MP3 file)
Walking On The Sun (originally performed by Smashmouth) (2.8 MB MP3 file)
Lead vocals by Mark:
Summer of '69 (originally performed by Bryan Adams) (2.8 MB MP3 file)
Composer
I've also done a bit of composing over the years. Mostly I've written lyrics and composed a guitar accompaniment for them. Once in a while I compose something instrumental. Here's something I've been working on for a few years. The working title is "Discburner". These aren't real instruments you hear - the whole thing is computer generated. (I can't play lead guitar like that!) I'm happy with how it sounds, but I think it will sound better someday when I can perform it with a live band. It's not finished yet, but this is what I have so far:
Discburner (2:52, 3.2 MB MP3 file)
"Discburner" is just a working title, because I haven't really decided what to call it yet. Maybe I'll have an idea when I finally finish this thing. I've been pecking at it for several years now, and it's still not done. It's just a simple guitar/bass/drums thing, with a tiny bit of synth to fill in the spaces.
Make It Stop! (3:06, 3.5 MB MP3 file)
"Make It Stop!" started out as a funky riff I was playing on my bass. I thought it sounded cool, so I plugged it into my music software and added a drum beat. Then I added a synth riff. Of course, I had to follow that with a guitar solo. And then an organ, and a marimba, and a timbale, and a cowbell. Gotta have more cowbell! Anyway, I just didn't know when to stop, so I called it "Make It Stop!". I still need to do some mixing on it, but it's mostly done. It's a tidy 100 bars long, and lasts for 3:06. Enjoy!
One of these days, when I've got a way to record my actual vocals and instruments, I'll put up some MP3s of myself singing original songs.
G.A.S. (Gear Acquisition Syndrome)
I have five bass guitars. Is that too many? I haven't decided yet!
This is my latest acquisition, and my current #1 bass: a Fender Classic Series 1960s Jazz Bass. Sort of a 42nd birthday present to myself. Alder body, maple neck, vintage Jazz Bass pickups, vintage tuners and bridge. Click on each image to view a larger version in a new window.
This one shows the color better:
And here is my Rogue 6-string bass, my 40th birthday present to myself:
It has taken some time to get used to six strings. Those extra strings really make the bass feel different! Unfortunately, this bass wasn't available in red and so I settled for "natural". It's looks really nice up close. It also sounds better than any other bass I've ever played (except for my new Jazz Bass), despite the fact that it only cost $250.00.
The body is made of basswood, with a thin veneer of bubinga on the top. It has a 35"-scale maple neck with a rosewood fingerboard. It also has active electronics and an active/passive switch. One thing that has impressed me is that the D, G, and C strings have a meaty sound to them (perhaps due to the longer-than-normal scale of the neck). On many other basses I've played, the lower strings have a nice, full sound, but the higher strings sound thin. Not so with this bass!
Here's my #3 bass guitar: a Tobias Toby Pro 5-string:
I love my Tobias. It was my primary bass for several years. The Bartolini soapbar pickups and the active electronics make it sound sweet. I can get a huge variety of tones out of it. The string-spacing is a bit narrower than that of a "standard" bass, but I like it. It has neck-through construction, and I've equipped it with Schaller strap locks.
This is my Squier Affinity P-Bass:
This is a cheapie. It only cost $200. Squier is Fender's "low cost" brand, and Affinity is the low end of the Squier line. I had been craving the sound of a P-Bass for quite a while, and one day I walked into the local music store and spotted this hanging on the rack. The first thing I noticed was that it's red. Yes, I love red (surprise surprise). So I played it a little bit, and checked it over. I was surprised by the tone and the construction and the playability - all very good. So I paid my money and brought it home and I've been very satisfied with it. It's still only my backup instrument, but it's been a great deal for the money.
My #5 bass is a Steinberger Spirit XT-2:
Nice instrument, but for me it's awkwardly balanced. It has a really different sound, too -- very bright and punchy. Unfortunately, the sound doesn't really fit any of the music I usually play. I may try to sell it.
Here's a shot of all five of my basses together:
Ya gotta have amplification. My amplifier is a Carvin RL6815 combo:
This thing really sounds good. It comes with one 15" woofer, two 8" midrange speakers, and a compression horn tweeter. All that is driven by 600 watts of biamped power! It shakes the walls, but it's still very articulate in all ranges.
My latest gear acquisition is the Behringer Bass V-Amp:
This little "box" can emulate 32 different amplifiers and 23 different speaker cabinets, and then add in a variety of special effects. I'm still experimenting with it.
Last Update
This page last updated October 26, 2008 ::
visitors since 1997 ::
Copyright © 1997 - 2008 Rik Osborne