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Stanley Clarke - Where To Start?


spongebob
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My first Stanley album was time exposure and it blew me away. It's worth starting with the early albums, before moving on to the later stuff. You can still hear remnants of his earlier playing in the more current recordings.

There isn't really a bad place to start imo.

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The self titled album from '74 was massive for me. I bought it on cassette tape and had to replace it after a short time due to it becoming stretched. I'd gone over it inch by inch wondering how the hell did he make that noise or play that lick.

Awesome talent.

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Check out the Vertu Album it features [color=#333333][font=arial, sans-serif][size=3] Vertu (Lenny White, Stanley Clarke, Rachel Z, Richie Kotzen & Karen Briggs)[/size][/font][/color]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MtILUCsK0bQ

His last two albums Toys of Men and Stanley Clarke band have shown a return to his fusion roots and also more of his acoustic bass stuff on record.

That album has some heavy Jazz Rock Fusion.

I agree with others, any of the return to forever stuff is worth checking out. Some of the lighter more and more fun side of his musical personality can be found on East RIver Drive, Silk Fuse One, SMV and any of the clarke duke project albums. Also check out some of the Animal Logic stuff which is more pop with Stuart Copeland and Deborah Holland. That had finished by the time I discovered those tracks.
[url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Animal_Logic_(band"]http://en.wikipedia....mal_Logic_(band[/url])

If you want to check out some of his double bass work, you can't go wrong with the Griffith Park Collection Album Chick Corea, Stanley Clarke, Lenny White Joe Henderson & Freddie Hubbard.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mR1VMHUABZ8

I'm a big Stanley Clarke Fan myself which is what got me into the sound of Alembic.

Jazzyvee

Edited by icastle
Link fixed.
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[quote name='Chris2112' timestamp='1361056389' post='1980580']
His best record, I reckon, and the best place to start with Stan, is [i]The Toys Of Men. [/i]It is absolutely superb stuff, top drawer music. It shows everything that Stan does, from bombastic fusion epics, to cool mood pieces on upright and acoustic basses, to funky, driving slap tunes. The production is top class and the cast list is as good as it gets. Truly, the stars had aligned for Stanley there! It still blows me away to listen to now.


[/quote]

How could I forget this one?! Amazing album, it's got it all - even Esperanza Spaulding.

Edited by Cosmo Valdemar
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  • 5 months later...

Loving 'School Days' - just bought the 'brown' album and 'Journey To Love'....and the RTF LP 'Musicmagic'

Also been really into the Return To Forever 'Anthology' - great album which covers the essential stuff from 73-76.

Enjoying the journey - what a great era.

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[quote name='steve-soar' timestamp='1361046770' post='1980426']
Stiff have a soft spot for "Rocks Pebbles And Sand".
[/quote]
Same here, it's a lot rockier than most of his other stuff (which is a positive thing IMO :) ).
I very rarely listen to Stanley Clarke anymore as I find the lyrics to 99% of his stuff totally cringe inducing.

Favourite Stanley track ever is probably "Desert Song" from "Schooldays" - John Mclaughlins playing on that is just superb.

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[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1361041144' post='1980315']
That first self titled solo album aka the Brown Album is my favourite . It must rank as one of the all-time great fusion albums , and is a terriffic record not just on a muso/ bass playing level .
[/quote]

+1. One of my top ten albums of all time, and the only 'bass' album to get anywhere near.

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I must admit that I find the earlier albums sound a little dated now :(

The only ones I listen to these days are Time Exposure (just for Heaven Sent really), If This Bass Could Only Talk and East River Drive.

I am a real sucker for the Howard Hewitt vocal tracks he has on some albums :)

The newer Stanley Clarke Band album is worth a try out. I saw this band live and, whilst they were very good, I was deeply saddened to see Stan's Alembic sitting at he side of the stage unplaced for the entire gig because he was playing upright instead.

My favourite live band was the Clarke Duke Project. Saw them a couple of times and Stan really came to life with George Duke funking things up. I had backstage passes for the second one and the bar area was tiny, I literally swooned when Clarke & Duke strolled in but was way too embarrassed to say hello, lol.

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Please don't take this as trolling because it really isn't but I just can't get my head round Stanley Clarke.
I'm pretty open minded about all types of music and like to think I take influences from all genres, I bought the 'brown album' about 15 years ago and it really bored me. On the strength of this thread I've just tried it again hoping I may have 'matured' into the sound but nope.
Granted he is fantastic at what he does but what he does just doesn't do it for me, I'd like to like him but I can't.
I'd like to be able to learn and take something from his playing to add to my influences but I just can't listen to him.
Just goes to show what a force of nature music can be to stir such different emotions in different people.
My loss really.
Enjoy SC for me.

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[quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1374490042' post='2149202']
Favourite Stanley track ever is probably "Desert Song" from "Schooldays" - John Mclaughlins playing on that is just superb.
[/quote]

Knowing that John McLaughlin has played on a track is quite sufficient for me to decide to avoid it altogether.

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[quote name='Maude' timestamp='1374916383' post='2154712']
Please don't take this as trolling because it really isn't but I just can't get my head round Stanley Clarke.
I'm pretty open minded about all types of music and like to think I take influences from all genres, I bought the 'brown album' about 15 years ago and it really bored me. On the strength of this thread I've just tried it again hoping I may have 'matured' into the sound but nope.
Granted he is fantastic at what he does but what he does just doesn't do it for me, I'd like to like him but I can't.
I'd like to be able to learn and take something from his playing to add to my influences but I just can't listen to him.
Just goes to show what a force of nature music can be to stir such different emotions in different people.
My loss really.
Enjoy SC for me.
[/quote]

Nothing wrong with this. You shouldn't [i]have[/i] to get your head round [i]everything[/i]. At least you didn't just say it was sh*t.

FWIW I bought Stanley's brown album and Jaco's first on the same day, many years ago. My dad talked me into getting the Stanley one; I was anticipating being blown away by Jaco and wasn't so bothered about the other bloke. I got home, put them on, and my life was changed. But not by Jaco's album, most of which I still don't like.....

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[quote name='molan' timestamp='1374688230' post='2151945']
I must admit that I find the earlier albums sound a little dated now :(

The only ones I listen to these days are Time Exposure (just for Heaven Sent really), If This Bass Could Only Talk and East River Drive.

The newer Stanley Clarke Band album is worth a try out. I saw this band live and, whilst they were very good, I was deeply saddened to see Stan's Alembic sitting at he side of the stage unplaced for the entire gig because he was playing upright instead.

[/quote]

To me it's East River Drive that sounds dated. Like bad film soundtrack stuff IMO. Can't listen to it anymore; didn't like it much when it came out. I'd file it with much of MM's output. ;)

I saw Stan with Hiromi at Ronnie Scott's and it was one of the best gigs I've ever seen. His upright playing was, IMO, fantastic. He did play a bit of Alembic too though.

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[quote name='4000' timestamp='1375048420' post='2156229']
To me it's East River Drive that sounds dated. Like bad film soundtrack stuff IMO. Can't listen to it anymore; didn't like it much when it came out. I'd file it with much of MM's output. ;)

I saw Stan with Hiromi at Ronnie Scott's and it was one of the best gigs I've ever seen. His upright playing was, IMO, fantastic. He did play a bit of Alembic too though.
[/quote]

That's the great thing about music - we all like different stuff :)

For me this is one of his greatest ever songs & there's sod all flashy bass playing on it:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HT7ZM6HLfig

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Interesting how SC's solo debut was 2 years before Jaco's, but it's the latter which is always raved about.

It's funny how much on internet forums you read about Jaco (whom I also love), but much less about Stanley.

I was only 13 when Jaco died, so was not actually listening or bassing at the time -I wonder if it had been SC that was not longer with us, and if Jaco was, would their roles in popularity be reversed?

FWIW, I think both solo debut's are groundbreaking.

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