John Hancotte's Bass Desires: My Brush With Greatness at Cafe 290: A Night on the Bandstand with Bumpin' The Mango

Sunday, July 13, 2014

My Brush With Greatness at Cafe 290: A Night on the Bandstand with Bumpin' The Mango

I hadn't been at Cafe 290 in a long stretch. Actually, I went there with my friend Stephen to check out Geoff Gill playing drums. So, I had met Paul Garrett, Tom Gibson, and Kevin Lyons through Adrian Ash. They performed with Brett Warren at Java Monkey a while back. They were also involved at one point or another in the Paul Simon tribute act Absynthe Makes The Art Garfunkel. Adrian brings us all a little bit closer! I had also known John Sandfort through a gig years and years ago at the Red Light Cafe (prior to the start of this blog) with eccentric guitar stylist Lloyd Warren. John has also subbed in Platinum and is in high demand, as all of these top shelf players are. So, Bumpin' The Mango is a 10-piece horn-driven band that nails some tough tunes, drawing from the songbooks of Tower of Power, early Chicago, BS&T, and Paul's inventive arrangements of pop tunes of yesterday and today. They also shine on several original tunes that are really good. Their singer Ian is a warm and engaging front man, blessed with a strong voice and great range. He knows how to work the crowd and makes the show very entertaining.

So, they don't have a steady bassist. I tell ya, the bass spot is quite challenging. Copping the Rocco Prestia 16th-note groove is the Achilles' heel of many players, myself included. Rocco can just do that seemingly effortlessly (is that dueling adverbs?). Well, I got the charts and worked on it. I had less than a week to prepare, and I had 2 gigs that needed a bit of time in between as well. Not enough time as it turned out. I had some great moments when I felt it clicking, and the time I spent with the charts paid off. It certainly wasn't a flawless night. It was incredible to feel the energy from this mighty group. The horns were tight and punchy. The monitor system was awesome, with a big subwoofer next to me providing lots of kick drum and a JBL Eon up high that sported the baritone sax that often doubled my parts.

I played my Precision, and for this show I stuck some foam under the bridge to mute the strings a bit. I had always wanted to try that, like the old school P-basses like Jamerson and Babbit employed. I still have round wounds though. I wanted it to give an easy simulation of how Rocco gets that semi-muted tone on his 16th-note pulse. His notes don't ring from one to the next. They die off quickly, which gives the groove a vital space in the flurry of pulses. To me, it gives the impression that the note has a bigger sound for less time, sort of like the sound has been squeezed by time. It's an interesting setup that doesn't work for everything, but when it does, it's a great sound. I thought it was a key element. I also brought my Tobias as one chart called for a fretless 5-string. I used it on some of the songs that needed a bit more sustain. I used it on Frank's original, and that turned out powerful and organic. I tried it on You're Still a Young Man, as the notes needed some sustained, but it was nixed after several attempts in soundcheck for various reasons. Too bad, I love the tune and that 12/8 bass motif that Paul notated so well.

It was great to hang with Paul Poovey, my bud from the old Wild Rice days. I also spoke with Gordon Vernick, my jazz instructor from GSU. He gave me his latest cd, which I am loving. Highly recommended adult jazz for the whole family. Great sounding band and incredible sonics too. So, that was my Monday night experience with Bumpin' The Mango. I followed in a long line of great bassists who have sat in with them. It was a lot of fun. Maybe I'll get a chance to reprise my role of driving that Mango bus again down the road.

These pics are kind of weak, but they captured some moments that I spent at Cafe 290. I don't think any others were taken that night. I never got a clear shot of Paul, as he was directly in front of me. Apologies to the leader. Peace.