The Sonora, California-born, Fremont-raised Prestia actually started on a different rhythm instrument—guitar—at age ten. At 14, soon after auditioning for classmate (and current T.O.P. saxophonist/bandleader) Emilio Castillo’s band, he switched to bass. The group tripped on soul music, added horns, and were weeks away from recording its debut album when Garibaldi took over the drum chair. Rocco recalls that the connection between the two was instant and incendiary. “Dave was a really busy player, and I had more of a laid-back, Memphis approach; we met in the middle and refined our concept from there. He certainly opened me up rhythmically, and I quickly realized that more staccato percussive playing locked better with his drums.” Those longstanding sonic and subdivision “secrets” simply sizzle when applied to the Soul Book. We talked with Rocco just as he was finishing Bass My Way, a round of six new lessons available on his website [www.roccoprestia. com], to find out the musical particulars of his trip down memory lane.
What led T.O.P. to do a CD of cover material?We’d never recorded a cover tune, and very rarely do one in soundcheck, but we’d been talking about it for some time. Our management actually came up with the concept of doing an entire CD of covers, and everybody thought it was a good idea. Everyone in the band came up with a list of covers they like, and we threw them into a hat and eventually honed it down to the final 13. I agreed with most of tunes that were chosen, and I had some input on the rhythmic arrangement of “Backfield in Motion” [a bonus track included only on foreign versions of the CD].
How did you prepare for your bass role?Actually, we jumped into the project pretty quickly and didn’t have a lot of time to work through the tunes and come up with new arrangements. The four songs that George Duke produced are the biggest departures for the rhythm section; otherwise we stayed close to the original versions. Mostly, it was the horn parts that were newly written and expanded upon for every track. We recorded our usual way: rhythm section first—myself, Dave, [organist] Roger Smith, and either Bruce Conte or Mark Harper on guitar—to Larry Bragg’s scratch vocals. We’d listen to the original to cop the feel and then learn each tune as we went along, or there’d be a chord chart. And then I did some fixes afterward. Even staying close to the originals, it still sounds like Tower. We sort of lament that all the time—no matter what music we try to play, it’s gonna sound like us! [Laughs.]
“Star Time,” the four-song James Brown medley, is the most ambitious track.James had died not within a year of us recording, and we thought a medley would be an appropriate tribute. We narrowed it down to the four tunes Larry felt most comfortable singing. Time prevented us from having more elaborate transitions between tunes, but they flowed together pretty easily. I tried to stay close to the original parts on “Mother Popcorn” [originally with Charles Sherrell on bass] and “There It Is” [Fred Thomas]. For “It’s a New Day” [Sherrell], we got the parts down, but we felt it needed something; Dave suggested having me do my own thing, and that brought it together. And on “I Got the Feelin’” [Bernard Odum on bass], Bruce and I had some difficulty copping the part; we were both feeling it the same way, but it was on the other side of the beat! It drove Dave a little crazy, but he just went with us.
How influential was Brown for you?That’s home for me. That’s where I come from—the whole concept of playing a song from the inside out. You find your creative voice within the groove, without getting in the way or stepping on anybody else. I’m just so much more comfortable inside the groove; it feels natural to me. Most bass players I meet now love to step out and solo. I’ve always preferred to “solo” within the song. James Brown was my first school of playing, where you stick to your part as an integral piece of the greater groove. The other school I come from is James Jamerson’s concept of subtly developing your part verse by verse, building throughout the song. Which approach I take depends on the tune at hand; it’s not something I consciously think about. With Tower, for example, “It’s Not the Crime” [Urban Renewal, Warner Bros., 1974] and “Can’t Stand to See the Slaughter” [Ain’t Nothin’ Stoppin’ Us Now, Columbia, 1976] have pretty strict parts, while I can be looser on, say, “What Is Hip?” [Tower Of Power, Warner Bros., 1973] and “Knock Yourself Out” [East Bay Grease, Warner Bros., 1970].
Jamerson is the original bassist on “You Met Your Match,” “It Takes Two,” and “Your Precious Love.”Which brings up a good point: A lot of times we didn’t want to vary much from the original parts because they were just so good. Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell’s “Precious Love” has a firm bass line because it’s doubled by guitar, which makes it harder to play than you think. Bruce and I had a few laughs zeroing in on that one. I added some of my own bumps to Stevie Wonder’s “Match,” and I was also thinking of my buddy [current Stevie bassist] Nate Watts’s style.
Marvin Gaye and Kim Weston’s “It Takes Two” is a George Duke arrangement. He came up with the descending bass line and kicks in the verse, and I was given more freedom in the choruses. George was enjoyable to work with. There was no pressure, and he was open to other people’s input.
Another of your main bass influences, Duck Dunn, was the bassist on “I Thank You,” “Mr. Pitiful,” and “634-5789.”What I love about Duck on the classic Memphis sides is he’s just solid as a rock. He and [drummer] Al Jackson are a pretty unbeatable combination. Duck’s tone is huge, and he had his own rhythmic feel—not the kind busier players had, but you know it’s him when you hear it. I stayed close to his parts on “I Thank You” and “Mr. Pitiful,” which we did in a different key for Sam Moore.
For the walking line on “634-5789” I added some pickups and triplets, and Mimi [T.O.P. bandleader Emilio Castillo] had the idea to modulate up two times. The Aretha tune we covered [“Since You’ve Been Gone (Baby, Baby, Sweet Baby)”] also has a Memphis vibe, but I’m told it was Tommy Cogbill on bass. I’ve heard the name, but I’m not as familiar with his playing.
What kind of impact did fellow Bay Area bassists Paul Jackson and Larry Graham have on you?Paul and I were pals; I used his bass on some early Tower records. But I looked at him as being on a higher level than I was. He’s just an unorthodox creative freak of nature! He had this incredible knack to be creative in so many different ways and still be able to stay in the pocket. I would say he mainly inspired my creativity. Larry was also up on another level compared to me, both as a musician and as a star with Sly Stone. His style was completely left of mine—you couldn’t have two more opposite players. But he too was completely inspiring for me.
Speaking of style changes, you play longer tones than usual on Billy Paul’s “Me & Mrs. Jones.”That’s really what was called for. It was a more interesting tune to play than I would have thought after listening to it all these years. Because of a few key accents and the way the [Anthony Jackson-played] bass occasionally comes in before the downbeat, or hangs over, you can’t just jam through it; you have to be faithful to the part, which works so well with all the other elements of the track.
The late-’60s Los Angeles rhythm team of bassist Melvin Dunlap and drummer James Gadson played on two tunes you covered: “Love Land” and “Who Is He (And What Is He to You?).”I’m not that familiar with Melvin, but I knew [the Watts 103rd Street Rhythm Band’s] “Love Land.” As a listener, I always thought it was more complicated than it turned out to be once I learned it. It’s a great bass line, and rhythmically, the whole tune is nicely put together; we did it a bit brighter.
I also knew [Bill Withers’s] “Who Is He.” George Duke produced our version; he had us play it a little faster and drop the pickup note to the four-note bass line at certain times. In the second half of the track we allude to [the Staple Singers’] “Respect Yourself,” which was an idea that George, Mimi, and Larry got.
Tavares’s “Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel” is the most recent song you cover.Mimi wanted to do it with a different feel than the original disco version [with Scott Edwards on bass], and Larry had the idea for a shuffle. Mimi told me that his concept for the bass line was based on [Barbara Acklin’s] “Love Makes a Woman” [Bernard Reed on bass]. George produced, and in the rideout he asked me to move to a walking-style line.
Has the process of addressing your own style for your recent instructional projects, coupled with looking at the styles of other bassists for the new CD, led to any breakthroughs in your playing?I feel like I’m constantly making little discoveries anyway. That said, sure; all of this focus on myself and other bassists has helped me understand what I do a little better, and how to get where I want to go easier. But there are still times when I hear ideas in my head that my hands can’t get to, or I don’t have the musical knowledge to accomplish. On the other hand, I’m a big believer that overthinking anything is going to hold you back. I’m most comfortable as a react-in-themoment player.
How is your health since your liver transplant?Getting a new liver and going through the whole recovery process has been a miracle, and I’m still overwhelmed by all the friends, bass players, and music fans who reached out to help me. Physically I’m doing well, but the anti-rejection medication causes its own set of issues. That’s the trade-off: You get to live, but you have other problems to deal with. Keeping up my energy on the road for 150-plus gigs is the main challenge, so I try to get enough rest and eat right. I can’t complain, though; I have a lot to be grateful for.
What musical goals remain for you?I’d like to put out another solo record and continue on the education side with my web lessons and clinic appearances. For me, Tower Of Power is the mothership, and while I’m not opposed to venturing out if people are looking for me to do what I do, Tower is where my passion remains—as it has been from day one. I feel like I was given a tremendous gift at such an early age, to have met Mimi and Doc [baritone saxophonist Stephen Kupka], to have had a once-ina- lifetime hookup with Dave, and to continue to make music with a great group of guys. I wouldn’t trade it for anything.
Cover Charge
LISTENING TO ROCCO PRESTIA RIP THROUGH THE Great American Soul Book is satisfying on multiple levels, not the least of which is his ingenious use of dead-notes, ghost-notes, muted notes, 16thnotes, and even long tones. For those new to “The Rock’s” trademark technique, here’s a quick overview: Rocco dampens his notes through a combination of the way he plucks with his alternating middle and index fingers (about midway between the neck and the bridge), and how he uses his left hand. To begin with, he plays in one position at a time, with his hand flat on the fingerboard—choosing to move his whole hand up or down when reaching for any note outside of that three-fret span. He frets the notes with his index and middle fingers (and occasionally his 3rd and 4th fingers), while dampening mainly with the 3rd and 4th fingers.
Ex. 1 shows Rocco’s typical two-bar phrase on “You Met Your Match.” The ghost-notes keep the groove pumping and reinforce Dave Garibaldi’s 16thnote subdivision between his kick, snare, and hihat. Ex. 2 approximates the chorus groove of “Love Land.” Although more of the pitches can be heard here, the notes are still muted and staccato, especially at the end of bar 2. Ex. 3 is adapted from “Mother Popcorn,” the second tune in the James Brown medley (first heard at 1:21). Listen for how Rocco subtly substitutes the altered phrase shown in the third ending every so often. By arriving at the low F sooner, his climb back up toward D is different from the climb in the first ending. Ex. 4 is in the style of Rocco’s chorus part on “Heaven Must Be Missing an Angel.” While the pitched notes match Garibaldi’s kick, the ghost-notes are classic Prestia triplets—and just the sort of device that makes the part his own.
Finally, Ex. 5 occurs during T.O.P.’s version of “Who Is He.” At 3:07 Rocco switches to eighthnotes, as the lead and background vocals allude to “Respect Yourself.” By 3:42, he settles into the groove shown in bars 1 and 2. At 4:04 he plays the ear-grabbing variation in bars 3 and 4. Another cool variation occurs at 4:31, shown in bars 5 and 6. Laughs Rocco, “At that point in the track, I was stretching and just trying to reach for anything that was in the context of the chord and the groove.”
Guess Who’s Groovin’?
IN LIGHT OF ROCCO HAVING TO INTERPRET OTHER BASS players’ parts for The Great American Soul Book, we thought it would be cool to play him nine offbeat tracks by other masters of 16th-note manipulation (without identifying them at first) and get his reaction. (Apolo gies and props to Downbeat's vulnerable "Blindfold test."
1. “HOME COOKIN’,” Jr. Walker, from Standing in the Shadows of Motown: Deluxe Edition, Hip-O/Motown, 2004. Special mix with rhythm section tracks only. James Jamerson, bass.“It reminds me of an Aretha or Motown vibe. The bass player sounds great, bumpin’ all around.” [After being told it’s Jamerson] “I was going to say James; he started that school of playing and was a big influence on me. The difference between Motown and the other great sections of the time was how prominently the bass is featured—and to think he plucked with just one finger! When I was asked to cover ‘Just a Little Misunderstanding’ for the original Standing in the Shadows of Motown book/CD [Hal Leonard], I was proud of how similar my style was to his.”
2. “GAMES PEOPLE PLAY,” Mel Torme, from A Time for Us, Capitol, 1969. Carol Kaye, bass.“That sounds like a pick player, playing a happening boogaloo feel, which fits the arrangement well. It’s a little loungey, vibe-wise, I certainly wouldn’t have chosen that vocalist; it’s probably someone famous who I would never think of. Usually a pick sound isn’t warm enough for me, but that sounded good.” [Told it’s Kaye] “Really? Man, she’s smokin’ there. I wasn’t aware of her back in the ’60s, because the music she was recording in L.A. wasn’t as big an influence on me, but as the years went by I became aware of her as a founding force on the instrument. Carol recognized me at a NAMM show a while back, and we’ve since met a few times. She’s a delight.”
3. “GIVE PEACE A CHANCE,” Louis Armstrong, What a Wonderful World, RCA, 1970. Chuck Rainey, bass.“That’s a little wacky, but it sure is funky. It definitely has a gospel vibe and a little Memphis, as well, but it’s too busy to be Duck Dunn.” [Told it’s Rainey and drummer Bernard Purdie] “That’s Chuck and Bernard? Wow. I wish the drums were up more in the mix. Chuck is one of the giants, right in that Jamerson mold. In terms of impact, his was huge on me because he was all over the map, recording-wise, from New York to L.A. One thing I borrowed from him, without knowing it was him at the time, was the use of fills—especially 3rds—in the upper register; Jamerson didn’t do that. I’ve gotten to meet Chuck, and he’s a very nice guy.”
4. “YOU’RE LOSIN’ ME,” B.B. King, Completely Well, MCA, 1969. Jerry Jemmott, bass.“That certainly sounds like Mr. B.B. King, and it could be one of a few folks on bass—maybe Gerald Jemmott.” [Told it’s Jemmott] “Boy, that’s killin’, and it has that same New York flavor as Chuck’s style or even Willie Weeks on the live Donny Hathaway album. Jerry looms large for me, because Tower opened all three shows of Aretha’s Live at the Fillmore West [Warner Bros., 1971, re-released in a Deluxe Rhino edition in 2007]. We were mesmerized; they were the pinnacle to us. The show had Aretha, Ray Charles, King Curtis, Jerry and Bernard, Billy Preston, the Memphis Horns—you name it! I’d never spoken to Jerry, but he contacted me a few months back. I was a little intimidated at first; I asked him whether I should call him Gerald or Jerry! We had a good, long chat. He was highly complimentary, and it was a very nice personal experience.”
5. “TALKING LOUD AND SAYING NOTHING,” James Brown, There It Is, Polydor, 1972. Bootsy Collins, bass.“It’s the one and only James Brown, and that could be Bootsy on bass.” [Told it’s Bootsy] “I never knew which songs Bootsy recorded with James, but that’s great; he’s killin’ it. When you’re talking groove, James Brown is the first name that comes to my mind. It’s not how much you play, it’s riding the pocket all the way home—James and his bands were the masters of that. And Bootsy sure went on to have a great career and make his own impact on funk music.”
6. “WHAT’S THIS WORLD COMIN’ TO,” Chicago, Chicago VI, Columbia, 1973. Peter Cetera, bass and vocals.“I have no idea; is that a guy and a girl singing, or two guys? It sounds more like a band than a studio section. Is it Chicago?” [Told it is Chicago, with Cetera singing the high vocal and playing bass] “That was great. We came up right about the same time as Chicago. I’ve heard plenty of hip and creative moves on their hits, but I never heard them that funky— although come to think of it, ‘Free’ was a bumpin’ track. Whether they were inspired by anything we did is something only they can answer. I’ve met Peter in passing, but I don’t really know him. His playing here is certainly soulful and slammin’. I have a lot of respect for their whole outfit.”
7. “IF YOU WANNA BOOGIE … FORGET IT,” The Brecker Brothers, Back to Back, Arista, 1976. Will Lee, bass and vocals.“It sounds like Larry Graham or something in a Larry vibe. Actually, the vocalist reminds me of [’60s Chess R&B star] Billy Stewart.” [Told it’s Will Lee] “That’s Will playing and singing? [Laughs.] He definitely has the Larry style down; then again, he’s one of those guys who can play any style authentically—and always with great energy and a great feel. Will has sat in with Tower a bunch of times, and he always burns it down. Plus, he’s a fun cat to watch.”
8. “4AM,” Herbie Hancock, Mr. Hands, Columbia, 1980. Jaco Pastorius, bass.“That’s definitely Jaco—his feel and tone. Could it be Weather Report?” [Told it is Jaco, with Hancock] “I didn’t fully appreciate Jaco until later, because I wasn’t listening to that kind of music at the time, but we met and hung out on several occasions. He was always very complimentary and acknowledged me as an influence. I can hear it in his playing, which is humbling considering what a giant he was. What made Jaco incredible to me was his vast knowledge of so many kinds of music, combined with his being extremely creative, which gave him a deep well to tap into. But when it came to laying it down, he obviously had the right kind of R&B background to groove as authentically and as well as he did.”
9. “FACE FIRST,” Tribal Tech, Face First, Bluemoon, 1993. Gary Willis, bass.“That sounds great, but I have no clue who it is. The bassist obviously comes from the Jaco school, and I can hear the Tower influence on the entire rhythm section. They’re grooving hard, and their collective hookup is really happening.” [Told it’s Willis] “I must have met him at some point. He’s really diggin’ in. I would say the main difference between myself and all of the bassists on these tracks is they don’t ghost or mute as much and in the same way as I do. And they’re more melodically active. Personally, I tend to listen to music with rhythm-section ears and not to individuals as much. I check out how a section is working together—if they’re leaving room for each other and playing within the context of the song.”
GEAR
Bass Signature Conklin Groove Tools GTRP-4 “I’m working with a pair of luthiers to develop a new bass.”
Strings Dean Markley Rocco Prestia NPS Roundcore Bass sets (.045–.105) Amps SWR Workingman 8004 T/O/P 750-watt head; two Eden prototype 4x10 cabinets “I’m working with a new company on the design of an amp and speaker cabinets.” Cables Monster cables
Recording The Great American Soul Book In L.A.: Conklin straight to Pro Tools, via Neve 1073 and dbx 376 mic preamps, with Universal Audio 1176 and dbx 160x compressors; in Las Vegas: Conklin straight to Pro Tools, via Requisite Audio instrument cable, REDDI tube direct box, Studio Electronics C2s compressor/ limiter
CAN BE HEARD ON
Tower Of Power, The Great American Soul Book, PRA/Tower Of Power Records; What Is Hip?: The Tower Of Power Anthology, Rhino. Francis Rocco Prestia, Everybody on the Bus, Lightyear.
For a complete discography, visit
www.roccoprestia. com.