Category Archives: Music

Ye Olde Gigge Liste

Posted on March 21, 2013 by Bruce

I was rummaging through some boxes in the loft when I came across some old gig lists for the first six months of my time as an Attraction.  Back in the day, before the office provided us with printed schedules, I used to write it all out meticulously … as you can see. The rehearsal on July 3 was the first time the four of us got together and played as a unit at the same time in the same place.  … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , , , , , , | 93 Comments

The Greatest Movie Never Made

Posted on November 9, 2012 by Bruce

The Attractions Story! … featuring Nicholas Lyndhurst  as the Drummer, Gabriel Byrne as the Keyboard Player, and Frank Carson as the Singer.   I would demand to be played by Kiefer Sutherland — but most likely Donald would get the call.               Mike Miller asks who would play “the Manager”.  Step forward Harry H Corbett of Steptoe fame.  The Manager himself seems OK with the casting , but Harry H doesn’t look too sure. Perhaps we should … Continue reading →

Posted in Music, Uncategorized | Tagged | 105 Comments

Hall of Fame #2

Posted on July 11, 2012 by Bruce

Having seen the post about Duck Dunn below, my buddy Jeff Owens at Fender sent me a YouTube clip of Ryane Askew’s cover of 5ive Gears in Reverse — a bass part of mine wholly modeled on Duck Dunn’s playing. So I thought it might be appropriate to have a couple more clips of bass covers on the site.  (Although no-one seems to have picked up on the fact that the repeated melodic figure at the end of this track … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , | 43 Comments

Donald ‘Duck’ Dunn: 1941-2012

Posted on May 15, 2012 by Bruce

Perhaps the greatest rock and soul bass player of them all passed away in his sleep today, aged 70. Duck Dunn is rightly regarded as one a handful of truly great bass guitar originals for his work as a Stax house musician playing for the likes of Otis Redding, Sam and Dave, and Albert King … and as a member of Booker T’s ‘Memphis Group’.  He later played with Eric Clapton, Bob Dylan and Neil Young … and appeared as himself in … Continue reading →

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , , , , | 18 Comments

I Never Knew That!

Posted on April 28, 2012 by Bruce

The following is a new interview I did recently for Jon Liebman’s For Bass Players Only magazine. JL: Tell me about your musical upbringing. BT: There was a piano in the house and it came as a great surprise to me when I started hitting the notes that a tune didn’t come out at all, just a racket.  After all, I was only doing what I’d seen everyone else do when playing the piano.  But my mother had a good ear … Continue reading →

Posted in Music, Writing | Tagged , , , , , | 28 Comments

Seeing is Believing

Posted on February 26, 2012 by Bruce

Do you see the triangle that’s not actually there?  You see it because your mind fills it in to create something familiar.  In fact, it’s harder to un-see the triangle. But at other times we can fail to see something that really is there, even something truly remarkable — as the following story reveals …

Posted in Music, Writing | Tagged , , , | 2 Comments

Bruce’s Hall of Fame

Posted on January 17, 2012 by Bruce

  When I posted the clips for my new Profile Signature Model Bass on YouTube, I found quite a few bass players who’ve taken the time to cover some of my parts … because they like them.  Here’s a selection of some of the best … Nice playing, one and all …        

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , | 49 Comments

The ‘Salmon Pink’ Myth

Posted on December 8, 2011 by Bruce

Few things in the vintage guitar market are as confusing as the custom guitar colour often referred to as Salmon Pink.  To understand why, you have to go back to Fender’s paints of the 1950s and 60s and realize they were also the automobile paints of the time.

Posted in Music | Tagged , , , , , , | 15 Comments