Bass legend Christian McBride (Chick Corea, Quest Love) sits down for a chat about musical styles-jazz and others-with fellow Epifani artist KJ (‪@TheOddysy‬). KJ starts out by asking if "Jazz Icon" is a heavy mantle to carry. Is it hard to walk in the footsteps of Miles, Coltrane, and McCoy Tyner? Christian's answer comes from a seasoned and enviable world view.
The answer, in case you're wondering, is sort of a yes/no thing. Is it a heavy mantle? Yes. Does he actually carry it around with him? Absolutely not. "Thinking of that lineage would freak me out," says the only under-50 bassist to appear in Ken Burn's classic documentary, Jazz.
But Christian makes it clear that he's carrying the tradition forward. "You don't know where you're going until you know where you've been," he opines, musing on the careers of iconoclasts like Coltrane and Jimi Hendrix. "The greatest innovators embrace history."
Like the great Christian McBride himself, KJ (whose full name is Kevin Jacoby) came up in the Philadelphia jazz scene. KJ studied music at University of the Arts and took the style on as a career until his path led him to NYC and the myriad styles that highlight the famed city's signature sound.
At one point KJ asks if Christian, perhaps known best the world over for his contribution to the art of jazz, if he feels typecast. "I used to," says the master, "but I finally got over it. Rarely do people see you the way you see yourself." With that aphorism in mind, Christian stands firm on the value of learning different styles when the moment calls for it. "It shouldn't be strange for me to play in a rock band," he says, "just strange not to try."
McBride says he views himself as a professional, first. If he gets called for a country gig he'll shed the parts until he can play the style with conviction, grace, and gravitas. Maybe that's why he's one of the world's most in-demand bassists.
Christian and KJ both use a selection of Epifani Piccolo and UL 901 bass amps, and DIST2 dual-impedance bass speaker cabinets.
KJ, who sings and plays bass in his band with DJ Johnny Juice (Public Enemy, Beastie Boys), The Oddysy, plays Fodera basses with La Bella strings. KJ is also the singer and bassist of Unholy Crows, the brainchild of Stewart Copeland and Bootsy Collins collaborator Brian Hardgroove.
Audio/Visual and editing by 23b Productions. Filmed on location at the La Bella showroom / The Guitar Shop NYC in Brooklyn. Special thanks to Nick Epifani and Shawn Whitely.