Mike Hatton. Bass like you didn't know you needed.
The fate of bass players? To be shamefully ignored while the front man gets all the attention. Boy, is that a mistake... Bass maestro Mike Hatton, like many musicians, plays in more than one band - he can be found delivering smooth Jazz grooves, or a solid bedrock for powerhouse blues, or even harking back to 60s power rock. One of those bands - Steve Ajao's Blues Giants - has been going for well over 30 years, giving enormous pleasure to Midlands audiences and beyond. And all three members are very much eligible to take place in the Lives in Music series of podcasts. Two of them are in this series; I'm still chasing Washboard Pete. Mike fits right into this series because he is one hell of a dedicated craftsman, as you will hear on the podcast. He puts together considered and delicate works for solo bass. And he's being doing this for generations. Along with Mike's own music, a few of the many types of music and musicians that Mike references in this chat are gathered together in this post - see the Music Links section below. The Album We talked in early autumn of 2019, when Mike was putting the finishing touches to his new album. Bassic Salvation is out now. It's just him on all the basses, plus drums, it's full of splendid music, and it reeks of craft and serious thought. You can hear excerpts in the podcast. like many musicians, plays in more than one band - he can be found delivering smooth Jazz grooves, or a solid bedrock for powerhouse blues. On top of this he crafts very considered and delicate works for solo bass. And he's being doing this for generations. Mike plays on several excerpts from his new album, Bassic Salvation on this podcast, and he's also on the theme music you hear in Series 1 of Lives in Music: Boksburg Jive Toon, in his band Big Q Fish. The Lives in Music series celebrates people who have spent a lifetime in music. They may be famous; they may be people who have spent their lives working in the background for the love of it. They all have stories. Subscribe! Subscribe to the Podcast through your podcast host to automatically download each episode to your chosen device. These will then land with you first, before everyone else hears about it. If you would prefer email updates each time a podcast episode (or blog post) is published, you can subscribe to the mailing list. Head here and scroll down to the signup form.