In my opinion, Rev Jones is the greatest Bass Player Alive! I have watched him play huge festival shows w bands like Fuel, Texas Hippie Coalition, Steelheart, Leslie West & Mountain as well as playing small clubs. No matter how big, or how small, Rev absolutely slays the stage. Once Oklahoma opened back up from the Covid-19 Pandemic Shutdown, i reached out to Rev Jones to talk with him about his 2nd solo record, "Life In The Key of Z". We also discuss playing with Leslie West, Forte & his very first band, Legioned Marcher.
Rev Jones BIO -
BIO: “If I had my way, I’d probably put a bass solo on every song,” Rev Jones says of In The Key Of Z, “but that’s not what this album is about. I want people to hear it and be surprised.” For Jones – the bassist/vocalist famed for his two-handed tapping style and over-the-neck fingering technique whom BassPlayer.com says “has infused some of the biggest names in hard rock with his incredible energy and musicality” – In The Key Of Z on Dark Star Records delivers an always surprising salvo of the crushing riffs, smart songwriting, twisted sense of humor and face-melting, ass-kicking sonic boom that is Rev Jones. In addition to producing In The Key Of Z – the follow-up to his 2018 solo debut Bakwash – at his home studio in Oklahoma and writing or co-writing all 12 tracks, Jones also played bass, guitar, double bass, keyboards, mandolin, ukulele and tambourine. The songs themselves represent Rev’s distinctive takes on thrash and metal, as well as a few unexpected yet way-cool forays into country and folk. “Most performers are trying to be too serious or cautious,” says the skull-tatted wildman, who’s recorded and toured with Steelheart, Leslie West & Mountain, Michael Schenker Group, Fuel, Paul Gilbert, George Lynch and his own Rev Jones Band among many others. “But I’ve never allowed myself to be pigeonholed as a performer. My favorite album of all time is still Night at the Opera by Queen. Great music should always sound fearless.”And whether it’s the smart-ass ferocity of “Lollygaggin’” (based on a favorite line of dialogue from Blazing Saddles) or the monster-riff veracity of the title track, every cut on In The Key Of Z – mixed by Shawn Berman, known for his work with Guns N’ Roses, Danzig and George Thorogood & The Destroyers – rocks with the creative confidence of a 30+ year musician still finding joy in plugging in, turning up and blasting off in any direction he pleases. “It’s all rock as far as I’m concerned,” Rev says. “Even where the songs have a folk or country feel, the guitars are heavy. The bass, mandolin and ukulele feel heavy, too. The goal was for it all to sound to like me.” When it came to individual guitar solos, Rev reached out to famous friends that include Uros Raskovski (Steelheart), Ira Black (Metal Church, Lizzy Borden), Jack Frost (Savatage), Russ Parish (Steel Panther), Bill Leverty (Firehouse), Jim Suhler (Monkey Beat), Robby Lochner (Fight, Jack Russell’s Great White), Rowan Robertson (Dio, Bang Tango), Paige Harwell (Reckless) and Scott McClellan (Tony Martin), as well Michael T. Ross (Lita Ford, Hardline) on keyboards and Jeff Martin (Dokken, Racer X) on drums. “I matched the players with the songs on paper,” Jones says, “then picked up the phone and started making calls.” For Rev Jones and his fans, the album stands as an in-your-face ode to artistic integrity, musical intensity and a natural instinct for what makes rock both dangerous and fun. “For me, this project is one big realization,” Rev says of In The Key Of Z. “You can write these cool riffs. You can embrace different styles ofmusic. You can invite your friends to be a part of it. And if you stay true to yourself and play what’s good, people will respond.”
REV has recorded with:
Steelheart, Michael Schenker Group, Leslie West, Black Symphony, Paul Gilbert, Jeff Martin, James Kottak, George Lynch, Kottak, Steve Moore (drummer at wrong gig), Forte, Jack Frost, Rev Jones Band, China Blue, Siva Addiction, Blasted To Static, Scott Mcclellan, Legioned Marcher. He has also recorded sessions with award winning producers Jim Gaines, David Prater, and Mike Goldberg.
REV has toured with:
Steelheart, Mountain, Fuel, Michael Schenker Group, Leslie West, Texas Hippie Coalition, Black Symphony, Kottak, Rev Jones Band, Forte, Superfreak, Gundriver, Blasted To Static, Otis Watkins, Gammacide, Ryan Hall, Dressed To Kiss, Metalshop-Okc, Recovered.
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