HOLLYWOOD, Calif. (August 17, 2006) — Yamaha bassist
Nathan East, a member of the world's top smooth jazz ensemble Fourplay, has been busy touring the world this summer in support of Fourplay's landmark tenth album,
X, which was released on Aug. 8. East plays his Yamaha signature 5-string bass, model
BBNE2, on the road and in the studio.
"Nathan's career is one anyone in the music business would love to call their own. He's an amazing musician who has worked with everyone from Eric Clapton to Phil Collins. We are proud to have Nathan as one of our artists and his signature bass as one of our featured products," comments Mike Tempesta, artist relations manager for
Yamaha Guitars.
Fourplay will kick off their U.S. tour on Aug. 19 and 20, headlining the JVC Jazz Festivals in Concord, Calif. and in Los Angeles at the famed Hollywood Bowl. Joining East will be his fellow band members
Bob James on piano/keyboard, Larry Carlton on guitar, and Harvey Mason on drums.
East and Fourplay have been on a marathon tour this summer in Europe with dates that included the Montreux and North Sea Jazz Festivals and their first ever tour of Spain. They also traveled to Indonesia, Taiwan, South Korea, Hong Kong and Japan, where they were the only jazz artists featured at the Udo Music Festival alongside Santana, Jeff Beck, the Doobie Brothers and other rock legends.
Fourplay debuted with a splash in 1991, when their self-titled debut album sold more than one million copies and was number one on the
Billboard Contemporary Jazz charts for 33 weeks. The follow-up,
Between the Sheets, reached number one, earned gold status, and was nominated for a Grammy in 1993. Their gold third release,
Elixir, hit number one and held onto the top spot for a record 92 weeks. Fourplay's fourth album, 4, also entered the charts at number one. Their latest release,
X, features two songs contributed by each member and rounded out by a Steve Winwood composition, "My Love's Leavin," with the unmistakable vocals of
Michael McDonald.
East also has quite an impressive career on his own, in addition to his work with Fourplay. He has toured with the likes of Eric Clapton, Kenny Loggins and Barry White, just to name a few. East has also done countless sessions for artists including Lionel Richie ("Endless Love," "Lady") and Kenny Loggins ("Vox Humana," "Footloose").
East was voted Most Valuable Player in the bass category at the International Rock Awards and won Britain's prestigious Ivor Novello Award for co-writing the number one hit song "Easy Lover" with Phil Collins and Philip Bailey. East has an instructional VHS video,
Contemporary Electric Bass, and instructional DVD,
The Business of Bass, which takes the viewer into the studio and behind the scenes to learn and see first-hand what it takes to be a professional musician.
