Basses
Mike Huckabee served as the 44th Governor of Arkansas from 1996-2007. He was a candidate for the 2008 presidential primaries and currently hosts a program on Fox News. He is also a musician and strong supporter of music education. He has made music advocacy a main topic in many of his roles over...
Stu Hamm attended the Berklee College of Music in Boston, where he credits a good deal of his understanding for creating his own style as a bassist. During that time Stu met several musicians who were key to his early career including Steve Vai and Joe Satriani. His impact on the bass has been...
Phil Jones grew up in the UK in the 1960s and, like many of his schoolmates, he wanted to be a Beatle! He played guitar and his first guitar was one he made, and later a bass. He created his own sound reinforcement company to assist local bands and soon discovered he loved PAs and building...
Verdine White has become a close friend to the NAMM family thanks to his dedication to music education and music advocacy programs around the world. He has supported the efforts to keep music in public schools and has performed countless events to raise money for such causes. As the bassist for...
Cliff Acred began playing music in junior high school and later majored in music in college. He played in the 3rd Army Band out of Atlanta while in the service and once out returned home to Memphis. Cliff was hired to play bass in the house bands for Sun Records and later for Stax Records. At...
Norbert Putnam is a studio musician’s studio musician. With a career that includes playing on most of the early Muscle Shoals recordings as well as hundreds of tracks with Elvis Presley, Norbert also played with and produced such artists as Jimmy Buffett, Dan Fogelberg and Joan Baez. At the heart...
Craig Bosco is a musician and manager of Music Village, a retail store in San Jose, California. Craig's passion for music began at an early age and over the years he has become a professional bass player, all the while enjoying the thrill of working with fellow musicians and gear heads such as...
Earl Matzkin was arrested by the East German Army in 1985 for trying to pass the Berlin Wall that divided the country without the needed visas in order to visit the Petrof Piano Company. Earl had high hopes for exporting the piano to the United States, but was unaware of what was required to enter...
Jay Leonhart's long and often celebrated career as a bassist has included recording and performances with Frank Sinatra, Carly Simon, Sting, and Gary Burton, among others. His first album as a leader, "Salamander Pie" with pianist Mike Renzi, became an instant classic for its clever titles and...
Kate Riessland was born in England in the years following World War II and soon found she had an interest in learning all she could about the German culture. While in Germany, in 1969, she answered an ad for a job with the Götz Company. The company was looking for someone with perfect English and...