Artist You Should Know : James Whiton

Photo Credit : Keith Langerman

“A virtuoso of the upright double bass, James Whiton slaps, bows, maneuvers and manipulates his instrument with orchestral precision and street-corner desperation.” --Silke Tudor, SF Weekly, SF, CA

Over the past 25 years, James Whiton has performed both as a soloist and as a member of symphonies, big bands, jazz combos and rock bands. He has been featured on over 100 recordings, including over a dozen self-produced releases, and has traveled throughout the US and Europe, playing in an incredible array of venues in front of audiences ranging in size from five to 10,000 .

James Whiton was the first bassist I had ever seen use a bow, when I saw EMT (Eric McFadden Trio) years ago, ala Jimmy Page of Led Zeppelin. There were others I am sure, but none that I could recall, and none that I had witnessed live at the very least.

Whiton spent nearly a decade with Eric McFadden/EMT,(Eric Burdon/George Clinton) recording 4 albums and playing hundreds of tour dates with the guitar virtuoso

In 2010, Tom Waits recruited James to play bass on his 2011 release Bad As Me, alongside superstar artists such as Keith Richards, Charlie Musselwhite, Augie Meyers (Little Richard, Bob Dylan), Marc Ribot, Dave Hidalgo (Los Lobos, Bob Dylan), Flea and Les Claypool. 

James is one of six bass players on the recording, but Waits chose to use James' bass tracks on 7 of the 16 songs. Bad As Me was an astounding success; named as the best reviewed album of 2011, it outsold every other recording in Waits' catalog and was nominated for a Grammy.

In 2017, James released a solo album, the critically acclaimed 'Perchance To Dream'  which is available on Spotify/Amazon/iTunes or via Whiton's website, which can be accessed below.

James Whiton "War Pigs" Live at Duel Brewing, Albuquerque, New Mexico

For more info go to James Whiton Bass Man

Facebook : James Whiton String Bassist

or, SF Weekly, SF, CA