Steve Bailey is an American bassist. He is the chair of the bass department at

Berklee College of Music Berklee College of Music is a private music college in Boston, Massachusetts. It is the largest independent college of contemporary music in the world. Known for the study of jazz and modern American music, it also offers college-level cours ...

Career

Bailey began playing bass guitar at age 12 and started playing

fretless bass A fretless bass is a bass guitar whose neck does not have any frets. While the instrument is played in all styles of music, it is most common in pop, rock, and jazz. It first saw widespread use during the 1970s, although some players used them befo ...

after he ran over his fretted Stuart Spector with his car. He started playing double bass after hearing

Stanley Clarke Stanley Clarke (born June 30, 1951) is an American bassist, film composer and founding member of Return to Forever, one of the first jazz fusion bands. Clarke gave the bass guitar a prominence it lacked in jazz-related music. He is the first jaz ...

playing with

Return to Forever Return to Forever was an American jazz fusion band that was founded by pianist Chick Corea in 1972. The band has had many members, with the only consistent bandmate of Corea's being bassist Stanley Clarke. Along with Weather Report, The Headhun ...

. He has been a faculty member at

Coastal Carolina University Coastal Carolina University (CCU or Coastal) is a public university in Conway, South Carolina. Founded in 1954 as Coastal Carolina Junior College, and later joining the University of South Carolina System as USC Coastal Carolina, it became an in ...

and the

University of North Carolina Wilmington The University of North Carolina Wilmington (UNCW or UNC Wilmington) is a public research university in Wilmington, North Carolina. It is part of the University of North Carolina System and enrolls 17,499 undergraduate and graduate students eac ...

. He was also a faculty member at Hollywood's BIT for 10 years. He is a co-founder of Victor Wooten's Bass/Nature Camp, which helps to teach bassists of all ranges. Thebassvault.com is also a joint project with Bailey and Wooten. He is an avid tennis player and surfer. Bailey has worked with

Ernestine Anderson Ernestine Anderson (November 11, 1928 – March 10, 2016) was an American jazz and blues singer. In a career spanning more than six decades, she recorded over 30 albums. She was nominated four times for a Grammy Award. She sang at Carnegie Hall, ...

, Bass Extremes, David Benoit,

Tab Benoit Tab Benoit (born November 17, 1967) is an American blues guitarist, musician, and singer. His playing combines a number of blues styles, primarily Delta blues. He plays a stock 1972 Fender Telecaster Thinline electric guitar and writes his own ...

Michel Camilo Michel Camilo (born April 4, 1954) is a Grammy-award winning pianist and composer from Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic. He specializes in jazz, Latin and classical piano work. Camilo lists some of his main influences as Chick Corea, Keith Ja ...

Larry Carlton Larry Eugene Carlton (born March 2, 1948) is an American guitarist who built his career as a studio musician in the 1970s and 1980s for acts such as Steely Dan and Joni Mitchell. He has participated in thousands of recording sessions, recorde ...

, Paquito D'Rivera, Chris Duarte,

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Dave Liebman David Liebman (born September 4, 1946) is an American saxophonist, flautist and jazz educator. He is known for his innovative lines and use of atonality. He was a frequent collaborator with pianist Richie Beirach. In June 2010, he received a N ...

Dizzy Gillespie John Birks "Dizzy" Gillespie (; October 21, 1917 – January 6, 1993) was an American jazz trumpeter, bandleader, composer, educator and singer. He was a trumpet virtuoso and improviser, building on the virtuosic style of Roy Eldridge but addi ...

Scott Henderson Scott Henderson (born August 26, 1954) is an American jazz fusion and blues guitarist best known for his work with the band Tribal Tech. Tribal Tech Henderson formed Tribal Tech with bass player Gary Willis in 1984. Under the direction of Hende ...

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, Kitaro,

T Lavitz Terry "T" Lavitz (April 16, 1956 – October 7, 2010) was an American keyboardist, composer and producer. He is best known for his work with the Dixie Dregs and Jazz Is Dead. Biography Born on April 16, 1956, Lavitz grew up in New Jersey. He s ...

, James Moody, Mark Murphy,

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, Ray Price,

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, Claudio Roditi,

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Mel Tormé Melvin Howard Tormé (September 13, 1925 – June 5, 1999), nicknamed "The Velvet Fog", was an American musician, singer, composer, arranger, drummer, actor, and author. He composed the music for "The Christmas Song" ("Chestnuts Roasting on an Op ...

, and Jethro Tull. His latest Album, CAROLINA, is a collection of 17 duets (one track of bass and another person doing what they do) featuring 17 different guests including Willie Nelson, Ian Anderson, Ron Carter, Victor Wooten, Mike Stern, Becca Stevens, Dennis Chambers and much more. Bailey has "authored" 3 different signature bass models. Aria AVBSB 1992-2002 Fender SRB Jazz BASS 6 2008-2010 Warwick Signature Steve Bailey models, 4, 5, &6 string 2010-present

Discography

As leader

* ''Dichotomy'' (Victor, 1991) * ''Evolution'' (Victor, 1993) * ''Bass Extremes "Cookbook"'' with Victor Wooten (Tonecenter, 1995) * ''Bass Extremes Vol. 2'' with Victor Wooten (Tonecenter, 1998) * ''Bass Extremes Just Add Water'' with Victor Wooten (Tonecenter, 2001) * ''So Low...Solo'' (BATB, 2007) * ''Carolina'' (Treehouse, 2020)

As sideman

With David Benoit * ''Inner Motion'' (GRP, 1990) * ''Letter to Evan'' (GRP, 1992) * ''Shaken Not Stirred'' (GRP, 1994) With

* ''Nice & Warm'' (Justice, 1992) * ''What I Live For'' (Justice, 1994) With Paquito D'Rivera * ''Live at the Keystone Korner'' (Columbia, 1983) – live * ''Taste of Paquito'' (Columbia, 1994) – compilation With

Steve Reid Steve Reid (January 29, 1944 – April 13, 2010) was an American jazz drummer who played with Miles Davis, Ornette Coleman, James Brown, Fela Kuti, Kieran Hebden, and Sun Ra. He worked as a session drummer for Motown. Biography Born ...

* ''Bamboo Forest'' (Sugo, 1994) * ''Water Sign'' (Telarc, 1996) With

* ''Tourist in Paradise'' (GRP, 1989) * ''Welcome to St. James' Club'' (GRP, 1990) * ''Curves Ahead'' (GRP, 1991) * ''Weekend in Monaco'' (GRP, 1992) With Harry Sheppard * ''This-a-Way That-a-Way'' (Justice, 1991) * ''Points of View'' (Justice, 1992) With

Victor Wooten Victor Lemonte Wooten (born September 11, 1964) is an American bassist, songwriter, and record producer. He has been the bassist for Béla Fleck and the Flecktones since the group's formation in 1988 and a member of the band SMV with two other ...

* ''Yin-Yang'' (Compass, 1999) CD* ''Soul Circus'' (Vanguard, 2005) * ''Palmystery'' (Heads Up International, 2008) – recorded in 2004–07 * ''Words and Tones'' (Vix, 2012) * ''Sward and Stone'' (Vix, 2012) With others * Doug Cameron, ''Rendezvous'' (Higher Octave Music, 1996) * Jesse Dayton, ''Raisin' Cain'' (Justice, 1995) *

, ''Strong Medicine'' (Modern Art, 1989) * Russ Freeman, ''Holiday'' (GRP, 1995) *

Jeff Kashiwa Jeff Kashiwa (born 1963) is saxophonist with the jazz fusion band the Rippingtons and one of three with the Sax Pack, as well as having recorded several albums under his own name. Life and career Jeff Kashiwa was born in 1963 in Louisville, Kent ...

, ''Remember Catalina'' (Fahrenheit, 1995) * Kitaro, ''Dream'' (Geffen, 1992) * Masi, ''Downtown Dreamers'' (Metal Blade, 1988) *

Roberto Perera Roberto Perera (born 1952) is an Uruguayan jazz harpist, in the smooth jazz and fusion styles. Born in 1952 in Montevideo, the capital city of Uruguay, Perera was barely 12 years old when his mother enrolled him in a music conservatory where he se ...

, ''Erotica'' (Epic, 1990) – recorded in 1988 * Ray Price, ''Prisoncer of Love'' (Justice, 2000) *

, ''Lowdown & Up'' (Antone's, 1999) * David Rice, ''Released'' (Justice, 1994) * Shaver, ''Highway of Life'' ((Justice, 1996) * Starfighters, ''In-Flight Movie'' (Jive, 1982) * Jethro Tull, ''Roots to Branches'' (EMI, 1995) *

Robin Williamson Robin Duncan Harry Williamson (born 24 November 1943) is a Scottish multi-instrumentalist, singer, songwriter, and storyteller who was a founding member of The Incredible String Band. Career Williamson lived in the Fairmilehead area of Edinbur ...

, ''The Old Fangled Tone'' (Pig's Whisker Music, 1999)

Books

* ''Advanced Rock Bass'' (1991) * ''Five String Bass'' (1991) * ''Fretless Bass'' * ''Rock Bass'' (1991) * ''Six String Bass'' (1991) * ''Bass Extremes'' (1993) by Steve Bailey and Victor Wooten

Videos

* ''Fretless Bass'' REH (1992) * ''Bass Extremes: Live'' (1994) * ''The Day Bass Players Took Over the World, Victor Wooten, Oteil Burbridge'' (2006) * ''Warwick: Fuss on the Buss 1, featuring Larry Graham, Bootsy, TM Stevens, etc.'' (2009) * ''Warwick: Fuss on the Buss II, featuring Bootsy, Robert Trujillo, Lee Sklar, Verdine White, etc.'' (2011) * ''Warwick: Fuss on the Buss III, featuring Ralph Armstrong, Larry Graham, Jonas Hellborg, Ryan Martini, TM Stevens, etc.'' (2012)

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Bailey, Steve Living people 1960 births 20th-century American bass guitarists People from Myrtle Beach, South Carolina The Rippingtons members