World Bass Violin Ensemble

Bassically Yours is the record of the World Bass Violin Ensemble, a group of seven double bassists and a percussionist directed by bassist and composer Brian Smith, released by Black Saint in 1984. Smith wrote and arranged everything except one standard, and the record treats the bass as a full choir: the instruments carry melody, harmony and bass line among themselves, with only percussion beside them and no horn or piano to lean on.

The music was recorded on December 30, 1982 and January 2, 1983 at Platinum Studios in Brooklyn by Barry Simpson, then mixed by David Baker at Vanguard Studios in Manhattan in September 1983; Smith produced, Kunle Mwanga supervised the recording and wrote the liner notes, and Giovanni Bonandrini was executive producer for the label. The bassists are Smith, Rufus Reid, Fred Hopkins, Bob Cunningham and three others, with Thurman Barker on percussion. Each of Smith's five pieces carries a dedication. Dr. Norma, for Norma Nager, opens at over eleven minutes, and Oppeizm is dedicated to Oscar Pettiford, the bebop bassist. Mwanga Rag is a three-minute tribute to the recording supervisor. The one outside piece is Moody's Mood For Love, the Eddie Jefferson song built on a James Moody solo, here arranged for massed basses.

This is the Black Saint CD 120063-2, which Discogs lists as a 1993 reissue of the album first released on LP in 1984, mastered by Gennaro Carone at PolyGram in Tribiano, with the six tracks of the original.