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John Patitucci rips on his Yamaha TRBJP2 signature 6-string. “That’s the preamp in my red bass, and I’ve been playing that bass for 20 years,” he says. “Yamaha has always been very open to me making suggestions,” says Patitucci. “I’ve been frank about what I wanted and what I liked and what I didn’t like. They were very strong in their ability to implement. If I said, ‘Try this,’ all of a sudden — boom — I had two prototypes. Ken has been instrumental; he understands a lot about sound and has always been super-helpful.” Dapron says: “I’m a little older than John, and I grew up listening to a lot of the same cats that he loved. We became instant friends. It’s such a great relationship; I can’t remember a single stressful time, and we’ve been working together for more than 30 years.” Dapron is quick to point out that he’s not a luthier and that the actual work on Patitucci’s instruments has been done by series of builders in Yamaha’s custom shop. He cites Leo Knapp and John Gaudesi for their work on the TRB signature models, and he praises Pat Campolattano for his exceptional craftsmanship on John’s latest instruments, the semi-hollow 6-strings that he has been playing for the past four years. Patitucci says he had played different
semi-hollow basses over the years and had always admired the archtop instruments favored by jazz guitarists — “So I went, Wow, maybe that’s the direction to try.” Dapron reports that they designed three versions, two using the double-cut TRB body shape and one that was a true “jazz box,” with a single-cut body. “We had never done that, and we weren’t sure how it was going to come out,” he says. “With an instrument like that, you’re always worried about feedback. We were just experimenting, and it came out great.” Patitucci describes the single-cut bass as “unbelievable,” saying it has “the biggest, fattest sound of any bass I’ve ever had.” He featured it on his stunning 2015 solo album, Brooklyn. He’s also been playing the other semi-hollow prototypes recently, saying, “I’m learning about the smaller ones, which I dig, but I’m still in love with the big one.” Dapron says that Yamaha has no plans to market the semi-hollow basses, citing production difficulties and cost factors, but he’s confident that more low-end R&D innovations will be forthcoming from Patitucci. “John’s always exploring,” he says, “and I’ll be shocked if he doesn’t come up with more great ideas.” l
TELL ME A B O U T YO U R BASS If you have worked with a builder to create or customize a bass to suit your playing style, I want to hear from you. Send me your story — with photos, video, sound files, or other supporting material: jim@ bassmagazine. com.
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