"Family Man" Barrett on bass gear w/Bob Marley+Peter Tosh

[JasO]

A few days ago, I had the pleasure of doing an interview with Aston “Family Man” Barrett, the bass player and arranger in Bob Marley and The Wailers, as well as for Peter Tosh and many other reggae greats. He’s back on tour with The Wailers, and was, he said, “in the mood” to talk when I caught up with him. Through a haze of smoke, Family Man spoke at length about his family, band mates, records and sessions with Marley and Tosh, and his bass gear.

“The drum,” he said, “is the heartbeat, and the bass, it is the backbone. So if the drummer is not right, the music is gonna have a bad heart. And if the bass is not right, the music is gonna have a bad back, so it would be crippled. So that’s what the new concept in music was when they have the big talk in Los Angeles, you know – that’s not only the musical capital of the United States, but the world. That was in ’73, ’74. And guess what was the big argument all about? The new concept in music in all this – the drum and the bass! Because America music, they used to hide it. You’d have violins and voices and ching-ching-ching and a horn section, and the drums was way back. So we says, no. Reggae music, it is the heartbeat of the people. It is the universal language what carry the message of roots, culture, and reality. So you have to feel that [imitates rhythm section] ping, puff, too-too-too-too, you know, dub section.”

Asked about the basses he’s used, Family Man said, “Well, first I got some to borrow – you know, like lease for a while. It was a Kent. Then I get a Hagmon to borrow – like a cheap bass, like, but it still plays. And I also sampled Gibson and Kent and Hofner. But Fender is the real bass for me. Fender Jazz. It sound deep. It reminded me of what bass is all about. I tune the Fender and my amp and let it peace, like the acoustic bass.” One of the secrets to his sound, he revealed, was in the modifications he did to his Fender amps: “I had a little Fender amp, one at the time. They used two 6L6 output tubes, but they blow so often, so I took out the 6L6 what make the Fender circuit and I use two KT66. So when I put in that tube, it doesn’t get red and burn out. And that make it punch more smoother.”

The best part of the interview, for me, was when he talks about spirituality, songwriting, how he would "construct" the music, and his old friends Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. If you're interested in seeing more, I’ve posted it here: http://jasobrecht.com/. Yeah, mon.

[Tone Slinger]

AWESOME ! Great stuff. A language I can understand. He speaks of MUSIC, not NOTES.

[basile865]

Man what an excellent interview. Thanks! I've always loved Bob Marley for so many reasons. His music was heavy and light at the same time.