Jonas Hellborg (born 7 June 1958) is a

Swedish Swedish or ' may refer to: Anything from or related to Sweden, a country in Northern Europe. Or, specifically: * Swedish language, a North Germanic language spoken primarily in Sweden and Finland ** Swedish alphabet, the official alphabet used by ...

bass guitarist. He has collaborated with

John McLaughlin John or Jon McLaughlin may refer to: Arts and entertainment * John McLaughlin (musician) (born 1942), English jazz fusion guitarist, member of Mahavishnu Orchestra * Jon McLaughlin (musician) (born 1982), American singer-songwriter * John McLaug ...

Ustad Sultan Khan Ustad Sultan Khan (15 April 1940 – 27 November 2011) was an Indian ''sarangi'' player and classical vocalist belonging to ''Sikar Gharana''. He was one of the founding members of the Indian fusion group Tabla Beat Science, with Zakir Huss ...

, Fazal Qureshi,

Bill Laswell William Otis Laswell (born February 12, 1955) is an American bass guitarist, record producer, and record label owner. He has been involved in thousands of recordings with many collaborators from all over the world. His music draws from funk, w ...

Shawn Lane Shawn Lane (March 21, 1963 – September 26, 2003) was an American musician who released two studio albums and collaborated with a variety of musicians including Ringo Starr, Kris Kristofferson, Johnny Cash, Willie Nelson, Waylon Jennings, Reg ...

Jens Johansson Jens Ola Johansson (born 2 November 1963 in Stockholm) is a Swedish keyboardist and pianist who currently plays in the Finnish power metal band Stratovarius and Ritchie Blackmore's rock project Rainbow. He is notable for his high-speed neoclas ...

, Anders Johansson,

Ginger Baker Peter Edward "Ginger" Baker (19 August 1939 – 6 October 2019) was an English drummer. His work in the 1960s and 1970s earned him the reputation of "rock's first superstar drummer", for a style that melded jazz and Music of Africa, Africa ...

Michael Shrieve Michael Shrieve (born July 6, 1949) is an American drummer, percussionist, and composer. He is best known as the drummer of the rock band Santana, playing on the band's first seven albums from 1969 to 1974. At age 20, Shrieve was the second youn ...

, V. Selvaganesh,

Jeff Sipe Jeff Sipe (born January 31, 1959), also known as Apt. Q258, is an American drummer. He is a rock and jazz fusion drummer but is proficient in other styles. He is a founding member of Aquarium Rescue Unit with Bruce Hampton. He was a member of Le ...

, Mattias IA Eklundh,

Public Image Ltd Public Image Ltd (abbreviated and stylized as PiL) are an English post-punk band (and incorporated limited company) formed by singer John Lydon (previously known as the singer of Sex Pistols), guitarist Keith Levene, bassist Jah Wobble, and dr ...

, and

Buckethead Brian Patrick Carroll (born May 13, 1969), known professionally as Buckethead, is an American guitarist, songwriter, and multi-instrumentalist. He has received critical acclaim for his innovative electric guitar playing. His music spans severa ...

Recording career

Hellborg began his music career in 1976 in Sweden touring with local rock acts. He was spotted by percussionist

Reebop Kwaku Baah Anthony "Rebop" Kwaku Baah (13 February 1944 – 12 January 1983) was a Ghanaian percussionist who worked with the 1970s rock groups Traffic and Can. Biography Baah was born on 13 February 1944, in Konongo, Gold Coast. In 1969, Baah performe ...

in a small club in Stockholm 1979 and he moved to London for a year to work with Reebop on different projects. He played the Montreux Jazz festival in Switzerland in 1981 and met

Michael Brecker Michael Leonard Brecker (March 29, 1949 – January 13, 2007) was an American jazz saxophonist and composer. He was awarded 15 Grammy Awards as both performer and composer. He was awarded an Honorary Doctorate from Berklee College of M ...

who introduced him to John McLaughlin,

Billy Cobham William Emanuel Cobham Jr. (born May 16, 1944) is a Panamanian Americans, Panamanian–American jazz drummer who came to prominence in the late 1960s and early 1970s with trumpeter Miles Davis and then with the Mahavishnu Orchestra. He was indu ...

and other fusion stars. He was asked to join McLaughlin's reformed

Mahavishnu Orchestra The Mahavishnu Orchestra were a jazz fusion band formed in New York City in 1971, led by English guitarist John McLaughlin. The group underwent several line-up changes throughout its history across its two periods of activity, from 1971 to 1976 a ...

in 1983. He stayed with McLaughlin until 1988, touring and recording with Mahavishnu Orchestra. He also did several duet tours with McLaughlin during this time. In 1986 and 1987 he toured with a project featuring

on drums and

Bernie Worrell George Bernard Worrell, Jr. (April 19, 1944 – June 24, 2016) was an American keyboardist and record producer best known as a founding member of Parliament-Funkadelic and for his work with Talking Heads. He is a member of the Rock and Roll ...

on keyboards, which appears on Hellborg's 1988 album "Bass". They continued to perform together in 1989. In 1988 Hellborg moved to New York and started his own band which first included keyboardist Aydin Esen and drummer

Kenwood Dennard Kenwood Marshall Dennard (born March 1, 1956, New York City) is an American jazz drummer. Dennard learned piano as a child and took up drumming at nine years of age. He attended the Manhattan School of Music from 1972 to 1973 and Berklee College o ...

, and later the Johansson Brothers, Jens on keyboards and Anders on drums. He started a recording studio together with producer/bassist

called Greenpoint Studios. They recorded a multitude of records there until early 1993, including The Word together with Tony Williams, ''

Octave of the Holy Innocents ''Octave of the Holy Innocents'' is an album by bassist Jonas Hellborg on which he is joined by guitarist Buckethead and drummer Michael Shrieve. It was recorded at Greenpoint Studio in Brooklyn, New York, and was released by the Swedish label Day ...

'' with

Mike Shrieve Michael Shrieve (born July 6, 1949) is an American drummer, percussionist, and composer. He is best known as the drummer of the rock band Santana, playing on the band's first seven albums from 1969 to 1974. At age 20, Shrieve was the second you ...

and

, Material's Hallucination Engine, and E with the Johansson Brothers. In 1993 he sold his part in the studio to Laswell and resettled in Paris, France. The following year he teamed up with guitarist

, a cooperation that would last nine years. The first record was ''

Abstract Logic ''Abstract Logic'' is the first collaborative live album by bassist Jonas Hellborg and guitarist Shawn Lane, released in 1995 through Day Eight Music; a remastered and remixed edition, containing a revised track listing and two extra tracks, was ...

'' with Ginger Baker's son

Kofi Kofi is an Akan masculine given name among the Akan people (such as the Ashanti and Fante) in Ghana that is given to a boy born on Friday. Traditionally in Ghana, a child would receive their Akan day name during their Outdooring, eight days aft ...

on drums; this was followed by

's ''Two Doors''. By the third record they were joined by drummer

and embarked on a long stretch that produced four records and a lot of touring between 1995 and 1997. In 1998 Hellborg met percussionist V. Selvaganesh at a

Zakir Hussain Zakir Hussain ( ur, , link=no) is the name of: * Zakir Husain (politician), an Indian politician and former president of India * Zakir Hussain (actor), Bollywood actor * Zakir Hussain (field hockey) (1934–2019), Pakistani field hockey player * ...

concert in Paris. The two formed a long lasting musical partnership that has been ongoing since then. To start with, Selvaganesh joined Hellborg in duets and in different "classical" settings Hellborg was working on at the time. Later a group was formed, first in trio with Lane, then a quintet including Selvaganesh's 2 brothers V. Umashankar and V. Umamahesh. Two CDs and a DVD were produced with this group. After Shawn Lane's death in 2003, Hellborg has continued to explore amalgamations of Indian and Western music, working with Indian masters as

Debashish Bhattacharya Debashish Bhattacharya ( bn, দেবাশীষ ভট্টাচার্য, hi, देवाशीष भट्टाचार्य, Devāśiṣ Bhaṭṭācārya, born 12 January 1963) is an Indian classical musician, singer, composer ...

Niladri Kumar Pandit Niladri Kumar is an Indian sitar player and music composer. Early life He was born to sitar player Kartick Kumar, a disciple of Ravi Shankar. He started learning sitar under his father at the age of four. Kumar gave his first public per ...

Vikku Vinayakram Thetakudi Harihara Vinayakram (born 11 August 1942), also known as Vikku Vinayakram, is an Indian percussionist. He is also known as the God of ''ghatam''. He plays Carnatic music with the ''ghatam'', an earthen pot, and is credited with popula ...

Tanmoy Bose Tanmoy Bose ( bn, তন্ময় বোস; born 23 August 1963), whose name is often preceded by the title Pandit (Master), is an India percussionist and tabla player, musical producer, film actor and composer. He has collaborated with Pa ...

and

U. Shrinivas Uppalapu Srinivas (28 February 1969 – 19 September 2014) was an Indian mandolin player in Carnatic classical music and composer. Because he was a child prodigy, he was sometimes called the Mozart of classical Indian music. He was awarded the ...

. He has also started a new metal-fusion project with guitarist Mattias IA Eklundh called Art Metal. Hellborg founded his own record label Day Eight Music (D.E.M.) in 1979 releasing his first solo bass record ''The Bassic Thing'' – an early showcase of his pioneering chordal, and for the time very advanced, slapping approaches. It was the first LP ever to feature solely bass guitar. With the move to the US, a new entity was formed, called Bardo Music, that took over the responsibilities of Hellborg's output, now counting around 40 releases.

Musical equipment

Hellborg has been involved in instrument design from early in his career. His work includes a signature model for

Aria In music, an aria (Italian: ; plural: ''arie'' , or ''arias'' in common usage, diminutive form arietta , plural ariette, or in English simply air) is a self-contained piece for one voice, with or without instrumental or orchestral accompanime ...

, the first ever biamped bass amplifier (in cooperation with Italian company FBT), a double neck bass, fretted and fretless, for British company

Wal WAL or Wal may refer to: Places * Wał, Lublin Voivodeship, village in eastern Poland * Wał, Masovian Voivodeship, village in east-central Poland * Wales, constituent nation of the United Kingdom * Wallonia, Walloon Region of Belgium * Wallops F ...

in 1983, and, in 1984, an acoustic bass in collaboration with master luthier

Abraham Wechter Abraham Wechter is an American luthier who has been making custom guitars since the 1970s. He is known for building 6- and 12-string acoustic guitars and acoustic bass guitars. He was a student of luthier Richard Schneider, and for ten years he wor ...

. After working with a half dozen other companies with signature models and inventions he, together with the German manufacturer

Warwick Warwick ( ) is a market town, civil parish and the county town of Warwickshire in the Warwick District in England, adjacent to the River Avon. It is south of Coventry, and south-east of Birmingham. It is adjoined with Leamington Spa and Whi ...

, created a new bass and a high end line of bass amplification. Hellborg published two books in the early 80s with Music Sales of London, one on

slap bass Slapping and popping are ways to produce percussive sounds on a stringed instrument. It is primarily used on the double bass or bass guitar. Slapping on bass guitar involves using the edge of one's knuckle, where it is particularly bony, to ...

called ''Thumb Bassics'', and a chord book called ''Chord Bassics''.

Acting

As a teenager Hellborg appeared as an actor in the TV series ''

Hem till byn ''Hem till byn'' (English: ''Home to the village''), written by Bengt Bratt (born 1937), is Sweden's longest-running TV series and one of its most popular. It is a realistic drama about people in a rural Swedish village and their daily life and ...

'' (''Home to the Village''), a widely popular dramatic series inspired by everyday life in Sweden, in which Jonas's mother, actress Tove Waltenburg, played one of the main characters. He appeared in the first three seasons, in 1971, 1973 and 1976, as well as in one episode in season four (in 1990), where his character has become a famous bass player. According to

IMDb IMDb (an abbreviation of Internet Movie Database) is an online database of information related to films, television series, home videos, video games, and streaming content online – including cast, production crew and personal biographies, ...

, playing Anders Persson in ''Hem till Byn'' is his only acting credit.

Discography

;As band leader *''The Bassic Thing'' (solo bass) (1979), Day Eight Music *''Dreamland'' (1983), Day Eight Music *''Elegant Punk'' (solo bass) (1984), Day Eight Music *''Axis'' (1986), Day Eight Music *''Bass'' (1988), Day Eight Music *''Adfa'' (1989), Day Eight Music *''The Silent Life'' (acoustic solo bass) (1991), Day Eight Music *''Jonas Hellborg Group'' (1990), Day Eight Music *''Jonas Hellborg Group E'' (1991), Day Eight Music *''The Word'' (1991), Axiom *''

Ars Moriende Ars Moriende is an album by bass guitarist Jonas Hellborg, released in 1994 through Day Eight Music. Performed together with percussionist and overtone singer Glen Velez, the recording is a journey into a state of meditation on the subject of life ...

'' (1994), Day Eight Music (with

Glen Velez Glen Velez (born 1949) is a four-time Grammy winning American percussionist, vocalist, and composer, specializing in frame drums from around the world. He is largely responsible for the increasing popularity of frame drums in the United States an ...

) *''

'' (1995), Bardo *''

'' (1993), Day Eight Music (re-released 2003, Bardo) *''

Temporal Analogues of Paradise ''Temporal Analogues of Paradise'' is an album by bassist Jonas Hellborg, with guitarist Shawn Lane and drummer Jeff Sipe, released in 1996 through Day Eight Music; a remastered edition was reissued through Bardo Records in 2004. It was recorded ...

'' (1996), Bardo *''

Time Is the Enemy ''Time Is the Enemy'' is a live album by bassist Jonas Hellborg, released on 14 October 1997 through Bardo Records; a remastered edition was reissued on 30 March 2004. It features guitarist Shawn Lane and drummer Jeff Sipe (credited as Apt. Q-25 ...

'' (1997), Bardo *''

Aram of the Two Rivers Aram of the Two Rivers is an album by bass guitarist Jonas Hellborg that was released in 1999 by Bardo Records. It was recorded live in Syria in 1996 at two venues: the Al Azam Palace in Damascus and one of the oldest caravanserais in Aleppo. ...

'' (1999), Bardo *''

Zenhouse ''Zenhouse'' is the fourth collaborative live album by bassist Jonas Hellborg and guitarist Shawn Lane, released on 9 November 1999 through Bardo Records. For this line-up, they are joined for the third time by drummer Jeff Sipe. In contrast to th ...

'' (1999), Bardo *''

Good People in Times of Evil ''Good People in Times of Evil'' is the fifth collaborative live album by bassist Jonas Hellborg and guitarist Shawn Lane, released on 10 November 2000 through Bardo Records. For this line-up they are joined by percussionist V. Selvaganesh, and a ...

'' (2000), Bardo *''

Personae A persona (plural personae or personas), depending on the context, is the public image of one's personality, the social role that one adopts, or simply a fictional character. The word derives from Latin, where it originally referred to a theatri ...

'' (2002), Bardo *'' Icon: A Transcontinental Gathering'' (2003), Bardo *''Paris'' (2004) (DVD), Bardo *''Kali's Son'' (2006), Bardo *''

Art Metal Art rock is a subgenre of rock music that generally reflects a challenging or avant-garde approach to rock, or which makes use of modernist, experimental, or unconventional elements. Art rock aspires to elevate rock from entertainment to an art ...

'' (2007), Bardo *'' The Jazz Raj'' (2014), Bardo ;With The Mahavishnu Orchestra *''

Mahavishnu Mahavishnu (Sanskrit: महाविष्णु) is an aspect of Vishnu, the principal deity in Vaishnavism. In his capacity as Mahavishnu, the deity is known as the Supreme Purusha, the absolute protector and sustainer of the universe, th ...

'' (1984), Warner Bros. *''

Adventures in Radioland ''Adventures in Radioland'' is a 1987 album by the John McLaughlin-headed group Mahavishnu, released by the Relativity label which represents McLauglin's interest in electronic technology. It features McLaughlin using the New England Digital Sync ...

'' (1986), Relativity ;With Deadline *''Dissident'' (1991), Day Eight Music *''Down by Law'', Cell ;With

Michael Joseph Smith Michael Joseph Smith (born August 13, 1938) was an American composer and pianist born in Tiline, Kentucky. At the age of 6 years, he gave his first concert of original solo piano music in Nashville, Tennessee. After serving in the United States ...

*''Faces'', Day Eight Music *''All our steps'', Day Eight Music ;With

*''Two Doors'' (1995), CMP, with

*''THE LEAVING TIME'', NOVUS/BMG ;With

*''

Album An album is a collection of audio recordings issued on compact disc (CD), Phonograph record, vinyl, audio tape, or another medium such as Digital distribution#Music, digital distribution. Albums of recorded sound were developed in the early ...

'', Virgin ;With

Trilok Gurtu Trilok Gurtu (born 30 October 1951) is an Indian percussionist and composer whose work has blended the music of India with jazz fusion and world music. He has worked with Terje Rypdal, Gary Moore, John McLaughlin, Jan Garbarek, Joe Zawinul, M ...

*''Usfret'', CMP ;With Sultan Khan and

Fazal Qureshi Ustad Fazal Qureshi ( born 13 February 1961) is an Indian tabla player. Born to the tabla player Ustad Allah Rakha, under the guidance of his father/guru, with the inspiration drawn from his brother, Ustad Zakir Hussain, he has also become a t ...

*''Friends Across Boundaries'', Ninaad Music ;With

*''Unseen Rain'', Day Eight Music *''Middle Passage'', Axiom ;With Kollektiv *feat. Jonas Hellborg, ITM ;With

*''Fjäderlösa tvåfotingar'', Day Eight Music ;With Anders Johansson *''Shutka'', Day Eight Music *''Red Shift'', Heptagon ;With RAF (feat. Peter Brötzmann, Bill Laswell, Jamal Evans) *''Ode to a Tractor'' (1992), Day Eight Music ;With Reebop *''Melodies in a Jungle Man's Head'', Day Eight Music ;With Shining Path *''No Other World'' (1992) ;With Busch-Werk *''Busch-Werk & the Masters of Groove'' (DVD) (2009), Zauberhaus-Records (feat. Nippy Noya, and Famoudou Konaté) *''Trance'' (2011), Zauberhaus-Records (feat. Nippy Noya, Famoudou Konaté, and Baba Sissoko)

References

External links

Hellborg's personal site

Bardo Records website

Jonas Hellborg Cover Story in Bass Musician Magazine

Jonas Hellborg Cover Story in Bass Player Magazine

The 100 Greatest Bass Players of All Time
{{DEFAULTSORT:Hellborg, Jonas 1958 births Living people Swedish jazz musicians Mahavishnu Orchestra members Jazz fusion bass guitarists Swedish bass guitarists Art Metal (band) members Deadline (band) members