Basses
Syndenn Sweet was the first woman hired as a luthier at Bookmans Entertainment Exchange in Tucson, Arizona. This distinction is one she makes with pride, especially considering her father was a luthier as well. After earning her business degree, serving on the board of the Tucson Folk Festival, and...
Matthew Green grew up in a very musical family. His father plays French Horn and was greatly influential on Matthew's own musical pursuits. At first he played the cello in school then later switched to bass. He studied classical music for some time and found wonderful and inspiring music teachers...
Bill Crow had a long and successful career as a jazz bassist for such Bebop pioneers as Stan Getz and Gerry Mulligan. In later years he joined the board for the New York chapter of the Musicians Union, which led to his second career as a writer. He was asked to write a regular column for the union’...
Dr. George Shaw has had a big impact on the lives and careers of thousands of young musicians. As a music educator and sought after musician, George always looked for opportunities to engage and inspire students. While teaching at Long Beach City College, George asked many of his jazz friends to...
Roger Hart has developed many friends throughout his career in the music products industry. Those friends will likely tell you the two things Roger enjoys talking about the most are musical gear and fishing! He played guitar in local bands starting in high school and gained prominence touring with...
Jimmy Haslip is a true musician’s musician with a career filled with hundreds of recording dates and live sound events that date back to his teen years. Perhaps best known as an original member of the Yellowjackets, Jimmy grew up in Long Island, NY and was exposed to nearly every style of music and...
Jay McDowell, known as Smilin' Jay, is the Multimedia Archivist for the Musicians Hall of Fame in Nashville, Tennessee. His father worked with Guild Guitars and was friends with Duane Eddy, who is like an uncle to Jay. As a result, Jay was able to attend the NAMM Show as a kid. As a musician, Jay...
Chuck Jacobs played bass in Kenny Rogers’ band for more than 40 years and enjoyed every minute of it. His roots in music go back to the Dixieland group his family formed while he was too young to play. He heard the music and was inspired to begin playing instruments as a child. At the age of 10 he...
Jeff Berlin has always been surrounded by music and considers it the most important element of his life besides his family. The first instrument he picked up was the violin at age five, which he pursued for ten years before switching to the bass guitar. Jeff had the opportunity to see some...
Tony Newton was nicknamed “Baby Funk Brother” by the original studio musicians at Motown Records where he began working in 1964. His first session with the Funk Brothers was the song “Baby Love” by the Supremes, which was released on the album Where Did Our Love Go. Tony’s long career in music took...