How cool is that! I’ve been to that Apple store on Colorado Blvd. many, many times but I’ve never been fortunate enough to see Lee Sklar (my favorite bass player) there.
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I also waited along with John Lithgow( 3rd rock from the sun) at the Grove apple store. He’s another polite chatter.
There’s a small perk of living in socal you run into your favorite celebs all the time. Once Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman bought my date an I dinner a long time ago.
We made a reservation at this swanky bistro in Newport Beach, the restaurant was full apparently everyone want to be in the presence on the two superstars power couple. We ended up waiting for over 90 minutes, once Tom and Nicole left, the entire dining room left, a few reservations that were still there waiting got our dinner comp by the manager.
I like the way I see how it went down better, lol.
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Bassists: I’ve met Nikki Sixx a couple of times years ago, he was always very friendly. I met Rick James a few times before he passed, sorry to say he was an arrogant jerk every time. I run into Bjorn Englen about once a year through mutual friends, and he is always friendly and lots of fun to spend time with.
Guitarists: I’ve met Erik Turner a few times in the distant past, he was friendly but quiet. I also met Joey Allen with Erik, that was a hoot.
Singers: I used to serve drinks to Frankie Avalon at the country club, and he was old school cool. I met Mac Davis, he was rather humble but friendly.
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Penn Jillette (who is almost as tall as Josh - 6’ 6") Twice.
I was called up on stage the first time, then got a photo with him and Teller. The second time, I had them sign the photo of the three of us.
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Love this thread, thanks for sharing your stories everyone! Here’s one of mine, reposting from the 7 Reasons Les Claypool is Strangely Awesome (+Lesson Tips) thread -
Once upon a time this happened -
Yes, that is a very young and foppishly dressed me, on stage with Les Claypool and Jay Lane!
I played for a few years with Gabby La La, an artist who used to tour with Les, and he and Jay came out to join us for a couple songs at her album release show!
I am 100% certain he made no notice of me and wouldn’t remember it, but… I played bass while Les Claypool also played bass!
More bits of evidence in this video -
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Thank you! 
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In 1980, I was a producer and the director of photography for a nationally syndicated TV show, and I interviewed The Police.
I worked at KTBC-TV (which was the very first TV station in Austin, and owned by LBJ himself). Our sister FM station was KLBJ-FM (notice a pattern?).
One day, we got a call from KLBJ to let us know that The Police would be performing that night, and were we interested in producing a feature about them for our show. We politely explained that we produce a new feature no earlier than four weeks out from any given day. So, no, we couldn’t possibly produce something on such short notice.
But the KLBJ guy was almost frantic on the phone. “This is a great opportunity! You guys HAVE to jump on this!”
So, after some discussion with our Executive Producer, we said OK and agreed to meet at the Holiday Inn (Holiday Inn?!) at 12:30pm.
When we arrived with all our lighting and camera gear, we were directed to a certain room, where we were met by The Police’s road manager, a chipper dude who told us that, apparently, groupies had found out what hotel the band would be staying at and, well…the boys were running a little late.
Okay…
Turns out, the room was actually just a regular room at the Holiday Inn: bed, small round table and chairs in the corner, closet, bathroom. No great shakes, at all. In fact, there really was no clear space for me to set up my camera and tripod, so I set up in the short hallway next to the front door, between the closet and the bathroom. The associate producer and the road manager had to perch on the edge of the bed.
I got my camera fired up and ready, and we waited.
After a while, there was a knock on the door. Being closest to it, I opened it. Standing there was Stewart Copeland and Andy Summers, looking like they had just gotten up. Which they had.
But, wait a minute…no Sting?
I introduced myself, and the guys squeezed past my camera to sit at the small table in the corner. After a few minutes, the road manager nervously said, “Well, we might as well get started!” I shot a look at my associate producer that said “WTF?”, but we went ahead and started the interview with only Stewart and Andy.
The guys were affable, witty and charming, but a big something was missing from the equation here. What the hell happened to Sting?!
As the only musician on our show’s staff, I wrote all the questions for the interview. I did NOT want to ask the usual, stale crap that bands always get asked: What kind of instruments/strings/amps/mics/etc. do you use? You prefer blondes or brunettes? Blah, blah, blah. My intent was to talk music with these guys, and only music.
Stewart and Andy seemed genuinely happy to answer anything we threw at them. Then there was a very soft knock on the door. I said “Cut," and I squeezed my way to the door.
There was Sting.
Looking extremely disheveled, sporting radical pillow hair, and scowling blearily.
I directed him to the table, where he slumped into a chair and promptly crossed his arms tightly across his chest. His body language was deafening. But his words were not. He said nothing.
We resumed the interview with my camera now framed on a three-shot, but I watched Sting closely. As he listened to the nature of the questions, about music, he slowly straightened up in his chair, uncrossed his arms, and leaned forward on his elbows. His hair was still fucked up, but his eyes started to sparkle.
The question that got him going was, “Why the West Indies beat?”. At that point, it was as if a switch had been thrown and Sting sprang to life as the leader and spokesman of the band. In fact, the other two guys never got to say another word.
Sting expounded on how The Police never set out to be a Reggae band, but the core heartbeat of West Indies music, with its African rhythms, spoke to him and inspired him. He said his jazz background and love of World music greatly influenced what he wrote as the band matured. The interview went on like that, with every question evoking a long and passionate response from Sting.
When we were done, Stewart and Andy took off their mics and filed through the crowded hallway, past me and my camera, cordially thanking me as they walked by. Sting brought up the rear. Even though he was entirely disheveled, he walked like a king in bare feet: back straight, head held high.
As he made his way past my camera, eyes forward, he stopped directly in front of me and pivoted on his heel to face me. After a beat, he slowly extended his hand to me. Surprised, I shook it, and he looked me in the eye and said, “Thank you.” He then pivoted back and walked out the door.
The road manager then told us the guys had been interviewed all over the world, but our interview had been the most intelligent one he’d seen.
He then asked if we would like to go to the sound check for the show that night.
HELL, YEAH!!!
Later, at the sound check, the road manager asked if we’d like to shoot the show from the stage.
OH, HELL, YEAH!!!
So he introduced me to “Larry.” Larry was an all-leather-clad giant mofo of a man. Imagine a guy the height of Josh Fosgreen, but weighing 275 lbs. of solid muscle. Larry was the band’s security.
“Larry will escort you backstage before the show so you can follow the band onto the stage. Then, you can shoot the show from the stage. Just do everything Larry says.”
Yes, sir.
The night came and I got to be ten feet away from Sting thoughout the show. The band was on fire. The crowd was whipped into a lather. Holy shit! This is the fucking Police!
About an hour into the show, my associate producer tugged frantically on my T-shirt from his crouch by our 1” video recorder. “What?!”, I yelled to be heard over the music. “We’re out of tape!”, he yelled. “Shut the fuck up!”, I yelled and went back to my camera. I wasn’t about to let a little thing like running out of tape get me off that stage.
Finally, the show’s set ended and the guys ran off the stage. I followed behind them, “shooting” the whole way to their dressing room door. Larry whipped in front of me and planted himself in front of the door. OK, message received.
The band came out for two encores before leaving the stage again. When they came out to do the third encore, they didn’t play. Instead, Sting stood in the spotlight, staring at the crowd, because he had something to say.
He told the story of how The Police had started, how they became big in the UK, and how they couldn’t get their music played in America. He said they had sent out records to all the big market radio stations and nobody would play their stuff. He went on to say, “Then a little radio station in Austin, Texas…KLBJ-FM, took a chance on us and was the first station in the country to play our music."
(Pause for raucous applause)
"So when we play Austin, it’s not just another gig…it’s a fucking homecoming!”
And The Police broke into Roxanne.
The place exploded.
I’ve seen tons of concerts in my time, but never from the vantage point I had that night, feeling the stage vibrate and inundate from the thunder those amazing artists created as easily as you and I breathe. Being able to watch and listen to Sting play and sing - as he danced and hopped all over the stage in the prime of his life - was transformative. Yeah.
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I met Jimmy Johnson – the bass player who can instantly gel with any drummer you throw at him. Best known for being the bass player for James Taylor, but I met him in the context of him playing with Allan Holdsworth, who introduced me to him. Jimmy is incredible and super nice and helpful!
At another time, but in the same context, I also met Jimmy Haslip.
I met Anton Davidyants, the Russian speed master par excellence, at a Tristan gig.
And of course, I met Frans Vollink (@joergkutter met him too), in quite a few Tristan- and Sebastiaan Cornelissen-related settings. He may not be famous (except outside bass circles), but he should be. Frans is… something else. He’s an eminently musical player, with plenty chops, but most notably an impeccable timing.
Other musicians not being bass players whom I’ve met (several times) would include the bloke whom Frank Zappa called “the most interesting guitar guy on the planet”, and about whom Yngwie Malmsteen said “he’s God, but he’s from another planet”. We had lengthy conversations about how children perceive music.
And of course, there is Sebastiaan Cornelissen, the insanely multi-talented drummer, multi-instrumentalist and composer par excellence, who is one of my best friends, and who is responsible for me picking up the bass again after a 37 year hiatus.
In this clip, he’s playing everything except the vibraphone.
Man… if you interact with musicians like these guys, you are bound to feel utterly inadequate.
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Peter Hook! Backstage at a New Order show. Also (same show) I technically met Leslie Langston (Throwing Muses) very briefly, but neither I nor (I am sure) she really remember it.
I’ve also seen Kiyoshi around town two or three times - pretty sure she recorded one of her albums at a place in my neighborhood - but I never wanted to bother her.
Mingled with/gave beer to/etc a ton of PNW Grunge bands. Can’t remember if Krist Novoselik was one I met. They were all pretty small at the time.
Interviewed the Tragically Hip once.
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Any idea what these guys are up to lately (Sebastiaan, Frans, On Impulse, Tristan, …)? I can’t seem to find much (or anything) an any touring schedule. I know Sebastiaan is working on a new record, but I wouldn’t mind catching (some of) them live again soon 
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I’ll be seeing Tristan in Hilversum next Saturday.
I also hear that Seb and Frans are considering to breathe new life into the dormant On Impulse thing.
Seb is working on an album together with Santiago Bosch. It’ll be unlike anything you’ve heard; I dubbed it “R2D2 jazz”. Just synths and drums. No bass.
One of the samples I heard doesn’t even have a time signature. And yet it swings like a… thing that swings!
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Yeah, I finally found some info on their tour. Maybe… just maybe I might make it to Hoorn in September (after I have to be in Brussels for a meeting that same week).
Enjoy!
I am really hoping for this!!!
(Probably better than C3PO jazz 
)
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Great story, @MikeC! I think you have a talent for writing, and if you don’t already, you might want to do something with that 
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Charles Mingus around 1977 at the Erickson Hall Kiva at Michigan State University. I was standing in the lobby waiting for auditorium doors to be opened and there was a big man standing in the hallway minding his own business. It was Charles Mingus! Nobody waiting in line knew it was him except me! I couldn’t believe it. They all came to hear Mingus and he was just standing right there without anyone paying attention to him! I got the nerve up and went over to him and introduced myself. I was only about one year into playing bass and had a lot of questions, but he and I had a wonderful fifteen minute conversation. He was cordial and very patient answering my questions. He told me something that has been my mantra since that day……”John, when you get it in your soul that you will never stop learning jazz, then you can call yourself a jazz musician.” How fricking cool is that!!!, that he paraphrased his “Better Get It In Your Soul” to give me advice!! When it was time to go in, I took my seat and he went up on stage. He looked my way and pointed at me and winked then started playing. I’m still amazed to this day that no one was paying attention to him in the lobby.
I also got to talk to Lester Bowie of the Art Ensemble of Chicago at the same venue. My seat was up by one of the railings near the stage and Lester came out wearing his iconic lab coat about five feet away from me to check out the crowd. He actually said hello and we had a very quick conversation. After about five minutes the lights dimmed and he looked at me, shook my hand, and said “Nice meeting you John, but time to go to work!” That was great! Unfortunately, I was not able to meet Malachi Favors.
Anyways, besides meeting, shaking hands, and talking to Catherine Bach, those are my lifetime claims to fame……
The one musician I’ve always wanted to meet is the bassist who actually inspired me to play bass because she was so hot I figured I’d play bass and meet hot women like her…maybe even her!!...Suzi Quatro……but, that dream of this Detroit boy has yet to be realized…………
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Mingus! Holy crap, that’s fantastic. What a jazz pioneer. Good on you, man.
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Best thing ever!!!
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perfect
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Ive had the good fortune of making friends with some great players. Lee Sklar is a dear friend, who actually came to watch a rehearsal of mine at Rock and Roll Fantasy Camp, where i also met Tony Franklin, who was a counselor, as well as Tommy Black, and Sean McNabb
These are just the bassists i got pictures of.
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