Simon
23-08-2008, 11:56 AM
I just found this on my hard drive. I had Leo transcript it to English many years ago (thanks Leo!) - for some reason I forgot I had it.
Super title : Z as Zender !
Stuart Zender is the revelation of the last years. Two albums with Jamiroquai are enough to give him a place in the big bassists... With his 4 strings Warwick bass, he’s considered as one of the new icon of the Motown bass movement.
- You’re already considered by many people as a very good bass player of the new generation but you’re very young !
SZ. : I’m 20. I started playing bass about 1 year before joining Jamiroquai, 4 years ago. I had some music notions as I played percussion in a Marching band in the States. I’m english but spent some time there. Bass got familiar to me listening to Weather Report albums and Jaco Pastorius. It was a big exploring period for me, I used to take my bass immediately coming back from school and I think I also used to forget to do my homeworks.
- How did u meet the other members of Jamiroquai ?
SZ. : I met Jason thanks to the ex drummer, Nick. He didn’t like their bassist at that time and wanted to get rid of him straigh away. I think I lived the most horrible day in my life when they invited me to see them playing at Nick’s place. Everyone was there, with Toby on keyboards and Nick told immediately to their bassist : “I don’t want you anymore on bass mate” and as he wanted to put me on the bass, “he is the one I want to play with !” Jay and Toby tried to make him thinking, telling him it would have been better to try me before telling that kind of things but Nick said : “There’s a bass there, come on, play Stu !” I didn’t know where to hide me. He put me a lot of pressure and everybody expected me to play very well. I played some stuff on Too Young To die theme. They were so entusiasm that we did a demo for some discography company. They told me I was in for a gig in Paris 3 days later. In front of so many people and a quadriphonic system, I was 17 and was quacking as a leaf.
- You did leave school...
SZ. : I wasn’t going anymore to school. I left it to join the Archaos circus with which I toured for 6 months as a light engineer. We were performing the “Metal Clown” show which brought us in Scandinavy.
- How do you concept your bass lines, still very good constructed ?
SZ. : I don’t have any special trick, nothing is written, I don’t even know how to read music. I play instictively and that’s probably what make me feel so at ease. If I had some theory notions, I probably would play very differently. But I started to study a lot now because writing is the fastest way to comunicate with musicians and sometimes I’ve got some ideas in my bed (ndr. typed in a non homosexual way...) and I can’t put them on paper and it’s still very frustrating. I just repeat to myself : let’s hope you will remember them on tomorrow morning !
- do u usually work in several people on the songs ?
SZ. : Yes, we often do the tracks together. For “The return of the space cowboy” most of the songs have been done in studio but 3 have been done on the road during the tour. All the music was ready before the lirycs and there is no rule when we compose, also if very often the start is on a drum/bass groove.
- On the last album, there’s a great Bass line, I speak about the intro of Just another story...
SZ. : This is the typical example of something which came into my mind instantanely. Toby’s phrasing let me some free space that I had to fill. Infact, it’s because of that space that the bass groove can be. I just had to go in the holes (ndr. also this is typed in a non homosexual way). The sound go through my Boss ME 6 B on the first theme together with the keyboard. For those who could be interested in, I play the second theme starting on the 24th fret as it’s in a G tonality. The bass I use is a Warwick Streamer with EMG pickups. I’ve got two other Warwick, 6 and 8 strings and a Fender J bass.
- Everything is recorded live on the album ?
SZ. : Only a few things are re-recorded on that album, some percussion stuff. Bass, drums, keyboard and voice are recorded together. We don’t like the stereotyped music in a general way, the samples and sequences are not our cup of tea, we definitely prefer to do natural music, played by true musicians, it makes it more human.
Scan 1 (http://www.stuartzender.net/pressarchive/french_guitar_and_bass_mag01.jpg)
Scan 2 (http://www.stuartzender.net/pressarchive/french_guitar_and_bass_mag02.jpg)
Super title : Z as Zender !
Stuart Zender is the revelation of the last years. Two albums with Jamiroquai are enough to give him a place in the big bassists... With his 4 strings Warwick bass, he’s considered as one of the new icon of the Motown bass movement.
- You’re already considered by many people as a very good bass player of the new generation but you’re very young !
SZ. : I’m 20. I started playing bass about 1 year before joining Jamiroquai, 4 years ago. I had some music notions as I played percussion in a Marching band in the States. I’m english but spent some time there. Bass got familiar to me listening to Weather Report albums and Jaco Pastorius. It was a big exploring period for me, I used to take my bass immediately coming back from school and I think I also used to forget to do my homeworks.
- How did u meet the other members of Jamiroquai ?
SZ. : I met Jason thanks to the ex drummer, Nick. He didn’t like their bassist at that time and wanted to get rid of him straigh away. I think I lived the most horrible day in my life when they invited me to see them playing at Nick’s place. Everyone was there, with Toby on keyboards and Nick told immediately to their bassist : “I don’t want you anymore on bass mate” and as he wanted to put me on the bass, “he is the one I want to play with !” Jay and Toby tried to make him thinking, telling him it would have been better to try me before telling that kind of things but Nick said : “There’s a bass there, come on, play Stu !” I didn’t know where to hide me. He put me a lot of pressure and everybody expected me to play very well. I played some stuff on Too Young To die theme. They were so entusiasm that we did a demo for some discography company. They told me I was in for a gig in Paris 3 days later. In front of so many people and a quadriphonic system, I was 17 and was quacking as a leaf.
- You did leave school...
SZ. : I wasn’t going anymore to school. I left it to join the Archaos circus with which I toured for 6 months as a light engineer. We were performing the “Metal Clown” show which brought us in Scandinavy.
- How do you concept your bass lines, still very good constructed ?
SZ. : I don’t have any special trick, nothing is written, I don’t even know how to read music. I play instictively and that’s probably what make me feel so at ease. If I had some theory notions, I probably would play very differently. But I started to study a lot now because writing is the fastest way to comunicate with musicians and sometimes I’ve got some ideas in my bed (ndr. typed in a non homosexual way...) and I can’t put them on paper and it’s still very frustrating. I just repeat to myself : let’s hope you will remember them on tomorrow morning !
- do u usually work in several people on the songs ?
SZ. : Yes, we often do the tracks together. For “The return of the space cowboy” most of the songs have been done in studio but 3 have been done on the road during the tour. All the music was ready before the lirycs and there is no rule when we compose, also if very often the start is on a drum/bass groove.
- On the last album, there’s a great Bass line, I speak about the intro of Just another story...
SZ. : This is the typical example of something which came into my mind instantanely. Toby’s phrasing let me some free space that I had to fill. Infact, it’s because of that space that the bass groove can be. I just had to go in the holes (ndr. also this is typed in a non homosexual way). The sound go through my Boss ME 6 B on the first theme together with the keyboard. For those who could be interested in, I play the second theme starting on the 24th fret as it’s in a G tonality. The bass I use is a Warwick Streamer with EMG pickups. I’ve got two other Warwick, 6 and 8 strings and a Fender J bass.
- Everything is recorded live on the album ?
SZ. : Only a few things are re-recorded on that album, some percussion stuff. Bass, drums, keyboard and voice are recorded together. We don’t like the stereotyped music in a general way, the samples and sequences are not our cup of tea, we definitely prefer to do natural music, played by true musicians, it makes it more human.
Scan 1 (http://www.stuartzender.net/pressarchive/french_guitar_and_bass_mag01.jpg)
Scan 2 (http://www.stuartzender.net/pressarchive/french_guitar_and_bass_mag02.jpg)