Steve Swallow

“The bass is the foundation. And if the foundation isn't solid, the house falls down.”

“I abandoned the upright bass because the electric bass guitar spoke to me more directly. It had the voice I was hearing in my head.”

“I tend to hear melody in everything. I'm not a very harmonic-oriented player.”

“Composition, for me, is a process of discovery. You start with a small idea, and you follow it to see where it leads.”

“I try to make my bass lines sing, rather than just thump.”

“The goal is always to serve the song. Not your ego, not the audience's expectation, but the song itself.”

“Improvisation is composing in real time. It requires you to be completely present.”

“I think of myself as a composer who happens to play the bass.”

“Silence is just as important as the notes you play. It's the canvas.”

“Playing with Carla is like a conversation. We don't need to speak; the music says it all.”