Hiro Yamamoto of alt-rockers Truly (and formerly of Soundgarden) told us about his love for a classic Wonder lick...
Hiro Yamamoto: Well, it’s hard to come up with just one riff and if you ask me later today, I’d probably come up with something completely different. But for now let’s stick with Stevie Wonder‘s "I Wish," on Songs in the Key of Life.
That’s a song I loved during the late '70s and a groove that I tried learning early on as a bass player (still trying actually). It takes me back to my teens and high school memories, flair jeans and listening to records at my friend Stuart’s house after school on his component hi-fi. What a cool walking line that just pumps and always seems to be going up at the same time that it’s coming around in a circle.
I hear so much positive energy and some mischief tempered by melancholy. Nate Watts on bass gets this cool tight low end full of warmth with a gritty honk. Plus the amazing fills and flourishes that seemingly fly in from nowhere. “Why did those days ever have to go?”
Truly performs at the Moroccan Lounge on Wednesday, March 11.
Photo by Alison Dyer
The post The Riff That Blew My Mind: Hiro Yamamoto Loves Stevie Wonder, Truly first appeared on Music Connection Magazine.