Episode # 6 - Hubert Eaves IV

Hubert Eaves IV is well known for his incredible playing on Erykah Badu's 1997 live album, entitled "Live." Bass players across the globe are blown away by his tight, crisp pocket playing, locked in perfectly with drummer Poogie Bell. What a lot of people don't know is that Hue had been laying it down for years before the Erykah Badu album. Hubert's father, Hubert Eaves III, was a renowned keyboardist and producer who was part of the band Mtume....you know, the guys who wrote that groove sampled by Notorious B.I.G. for "Juicy." His father was also half of the duo D-Train and wrote and produced for many artists including Jocelyn Brown and Whitney Houston. HEIV picked up both bass and drums at a young age and began to learn the ins and outs of performing and recording music. At the age of 21 he would play bass on Jocelyn Brown's hit single "Ego Maniac." You can hear how nasty his groove was even at age 21 on this track. Since then along with Erykah Badu, HEIV has played with Will Downing, Seal, The O'Jays, Freddie Jackson, Lisa Lisa and the Cult Jam and many others. HEIV is also a talented composer and producer and has four self titled singles out which feature some of most funky-ass grooves you'll ever hear entitled: "Radio," "Dot-Da-Dah," "Incubated Funk," and "Get Up." His collaboration with his wife, Alisa Ohri, on her album "Cuz I Feel" is also a must listen for all bassists. In this episode we talk about how Hue built up his incredibly funky groove, the advantages of being a bassist and drummer and how he originally turned down the Erykah Badu gig....twice!