Influential Musicians - by Chris McCarvill

I’ve always been interested in where musicians get their ideas from. Sometimes I’ll hear something that can inspire me and make me feel. It sounds strange, but I tend to try and identify exactly what part of the song is affecting me so much. I’ve always felt the need to be able to re-create those moments. Eventually those moments have become my own musical vocabulary. Yes, I may twist them and play them backwards, or inside out, but my musical ideas stem from imitating those special musical moments.

I get asked a lot - who’s my favorite bass player, or who’s my favorite band? Well, it’s not easy to answer that when you really like one thing a musician does, and not everything else they do.

A lot of people like music from it’s association to a certain time or event in their lives. I have many of those too. However, the scope of this article was really to describe the who and why of musicians that have influenced me. I won’t even go into the influences I have outside music, because there’s plenty of those as well. Yes, I get musical ideas from things other than music.

So here’s a few bass players, bands and artists that have inspired me and a few reasons why. Click their names to check out their sites.

Chris Squire: A very unique and trendsetting musician. I realized I liked Chris from all the bass players trying to sound like him. I might be one of those bass players. I am a Yes fan, but not because they are a bunch of talented progressive musicians. I like to listen to the sum of Yes rather than single certain things out. Yes music lifts me somehow. All of it together appeals to my better nature. Hard to explain. When I listen to Yes, I feel connected to the stars, the earth...yeah dude, heavy...but it is what it is. I’m like a hippie that doesn’t do drugs. But back to the bass. Yes’ music has an awful lot of left-fieldness going on. Chris is no exception. He may play a straight, one note groove, or he may counter the melody, he may shred away in flurries of notes, yet still it all sounds like Yes. I like Chris for his ability to keep me interested. I really never know what he’s going to do.

Tony Levin: The bald mustachioed bass player for Peter Gabriel, King Crimson and countless others. I like Tony because I know it’s him. He’s distinctive to me for his looney vibrato and his massive funky feel. Again, I’m not a fan of everything he does, but he’s a joy to listen to.

Jeff Berlin: Jeff is one of those true virtuosos, who studies the instrument seriously, doesn’t take short cuts, doesn’t make excuses. His playing is like a laser, precise, accurate and articulate. If you think you’ve gotten pretty good at playing bass, try learning some of what Jeff does. He’s really made me realize how far four strings can be taken.

Billy Sheehan: This may be a bit obvious, but I really do like Billy. Again, the amount of musical knowledge this guy has is amazing. Known for his insane fireworks, Billy is also a world class bassist. I like listening to his mellower stuff. You can hear his grasp of music and timing. He’s not just a fireworks guy.

Trevor Horn: This guy’s a producer, and a musician. I am drawn to almost all of the things he’s worked on, from Yes to Frankie Goes to Hollywood to Tatu. I like Trevor’s signature tough as nails bass, his massive walls of keyboards, and his high tension melodies. He’s also keen to be controversial, which can be fun and thought provoking, especially since his medium tends to be pop. What a cool artist.

Trevor Jones (the Dark Crystal soundtrack): When Jim Henson wanted to make a sprawling, epic fantasy movie, he decided to rely more on images and music than dialog. He chose Trevor Jones to orchestrate the soundtrack to this entire fantasy world he’d created. Since I’m a huge Jim Henson fan, it’s natural that I should like this artist, but the music to this movie has stuck with me throughout the years. It’s almost inescapable. Only after I got the remastered soundtrack on CD did I really come to appreciate it’s brilliance. Recorded at the dawn of synthesizers, it has a full symphony orchestra and special effects. It sweeps and flies, and that’s just the main theme. Trevor dives into all kinds of archaic folk music from around the world. It’s a truly inspiring work for any musician.

Freddie Mercury: Freddie is simply an alien. He gave it all when he sang. I strive for that all the time. I’ve learned so much about vocal harmonies and ideas from Queen. I don’t think there will ever be another one of him. A truly inspired and gifted musician.

Goldfinger: (Stomping Ground) I love this one. When I crank it up on a summer day with the sunroof down I’ll get like 3 or 4 speeding tickets. It’s frantic hard rock/ska and this album is sure to increase your heart rate and make you smile at the same time. Just don’t get pulled over.

Ed Van Halen: I like this guy because he goes way out on a limb, gets into the danger zone, then rescues himself in such amazing ways. Not sure how you feel about him? I think the most dangerous guitar solo in the world is his on Michael Jackson’s “Beat It”. He sounds like a coiled cobra, ready to strike on that one. Wow!

Pete Townshend: The controversial head figure of the Who, Pete is poet and angry drunk, angelic musician with sort of a sadistic sense of humor, but always very smart. Pete’s music and lyrics are challenging, they come from nowhere, descend like a thunderstorm and then dissipate as quickly as they came. Plus, he gives himself to the moment when he plays guitar. He might be more than a faker, no matter what he says.