Carmine Rojas

Carmine Rojas
Background information
Born (1953-02-14) February 14, 1953
Brooklyn, New York City, United States
Occupation(s) Bass player, musical director, composer, producer
Instruments Bass guitar, keyboards
Associated acts David Bowie, Rod Stewart, Joe Bonamassa, John Waite, Tina Turner, Stevie Wonder, Patti Labelle

Carmine Rojas (born February 14, 1953, Brooklyn, New York City, United States) is an American bass guitarist, musical director, composer, known for recording with David Bowie and Rod Stewart, his musical styles include rock, R&B/funk, and jazz. He has finished touring with Joe Bonamassa.[1]

Music career

Early years, as sideman

Rojas toured the world with David Bowie from 1983–1987, playing bass on several multi-platinum hits such as "Let’s Dance", "China Girl", "Modern Love" and "Blue Jean".[1] Live DVDs include Serious Moonlight and Glass Spider.

He recorded and toured with Julian Lennon as a musical director and bassist from 1985–1986.

He recorded and toured with Rod Stewart as a musical director and bass guitarist from 1988 through 2003. One of the multiple albums recorded during that time includes the MTV multi-platinum live CD and DVD, Unplugged...and Seated. He also co-wrote songs on the albums Vagabond Heart and A Spanner in the Works.

Carmine has also recorded, toured and played alongside Tina Turner, Keith Richards, Stevie Wonder, Ron Wood, Stevie Ray Vaughan, BB King, Mick Jagger, Eric Clapton, Joe Bonamassa, Eric Johnson, Peter Frampton, Al Green, Carly Simon, Ian Anderson, Paul Rogers, John Waite, Steve Winwood, Billy Joel, Herbie Hancock, Lee Ritenour, Julian Lennon[2] (Musical Director/Bassist), John Hiatt, Carole King, Beth Hart, Bobby Womack, Sam Moore, Billy Squire, Olivia Newton-John, Michael Hutchence, Bernard Fowler, Blondie Chaplin, Billy Gibbons, Leslie West, Joe Lynn Turner, Carlos Santana, Todd Rundgren, Patti LaBelle, Nona Hendryx, Michael Bolton, Ivan Neville, Allen Toussaint, Phil Ramone, Kevin Shirley, Trevor Horn, Charlie Sexton, Jewel, Brandy, Dave Mason, Mike Patton, Glenn Hughes, Nektar, Tetsuya Komuro, Hitomi, Ziroq, Modern Primitives, Simranking, Sass Jordan and many others www.allmusic.com

Ziroq
"Ziroq"
Excerpt of the track "Ziroqoco" off Ziroqoco, displaying the use of multiple world styles including flamenco and Middle Easter percussion
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in 1998, Rojas with Rock / Flamenco guitarist Marcos Nand sang lead vocals in both Spanish and English The both arranging & composing, formed the band Ziroq in Los Angeles. The band blends Spanish, rock, flamenco, and other eastern European influences. In 2001 the band released the full-length album Ziroqoco. David Beamish of DVDActive praised the "fiery, passionate performances."[3] A review by Mark Schwartz stated, "On their self-titled debut, Middle Eastern percussion, violin, and flamenco guitars take the fore, in counterpoint to Nand's smoky vocals."[4]

In support of the album the band performed throughout the west coast,[5] appearing at the Whole Earth Festival in April 2002.[6] The 2002 Putamayo World Music compilation Regueton, the Ziroqoco track "Que Peña," peaked at #11 on the Tropical/Salsa chart at Billboard.[7]

From Joe Bonamassa

A man of many, many talents, Carmine Rojas has excelled in the positions of musical director, producer, and composer since his career in music began decades ago. On top of those feats, the man is also one damn fine bassist. Effortlessly performing the genres of hard rock, funk, rhythm & blues, jazz, soul, pop, country, blues and blues rock, Rojas has shown that his musical depth knows no bounds. His talents were utilized by David Bowie from 1983-1987 both on tour and in the studio. He was featured on Bowie's top hits of that era, such as “China Girl”, “Modern Love”, and the chart-topping “Let's Dance”. A short stint touring with Julian Lennon preceded fifteen years spent working closely with Rod Stewart. Rojas’ numerous talents had also been utilized by the likes of Billy Gibbons, Herbie Hancock, Billy Joel, Carlos Santana, John Hiatt, Tina Turner, Stevie Ray Vaughan, Bobby Womack, and the legend among legends, the great B.B. King. Beginning with 2005's You and Me, Joe Bonamassa has welcomed Carmine Rojas as a musical brother both in the recording studio and on hundreds upon hundreds of stages world over. Now, nearly ten years since he joined the family, Rojas has brought his sharpened skills as a bassist to several of Joe's releases and too many tours to count. His skills were brought into the soulful partnership that took flight in 2011 with singer Beth Hart and has continued with the Grammy-nominated Seesaw and the upcoming explosive Live in Amsterdam.

Discography

With Joe Bonamassa

Further reading

References

  1. 1 2 "Joe Bonamassa - About Joe Bonamassa and Band". Jbonamassa.com. Retrieved 2014-07-30.
  2. ↑ Valotte (Inner sleeve). Julian Lennon. Charisma, Universal Music Group. 1984. JLLP 1.
  3. ↑ Beamish, David. "Siroq review". DVDActive. Retrieved 2014-05-25.
  4. ↑ Schwartz, Mark. "Ziroqoco Review". Barnes and Nobles: Official Reviews.
  5. ↑ Tarquin, Brian (July 10, 2008). "Shredding the Rumba - Marcos Flan". Premier Guitar. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  6. ↑ Roberts, Ian (August 14, 2002). "Rojas, Kentis and Jacoby feature on new DVD". Rod Stewart Fan Club. Retrieved 2014-05-25.
  7. ↑ "Rumba Flamenco". Allmusic. 2002. Retrieved 2014-05-25.

External links

www.allmusic.com

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