Jimbo Wallace is an upright and electric bass player, vocalist, and songwriter in the psychobilly and rockabilly genres. He has played bass in the Reverend Horton Heat band since 1989. He is the most-tattooed member of the band. [1]
He plays using the percussive rockabilly/psychobilly bass technique known as slap bass, in which the strings are pulled away from the fingerboard until they snap back, and the strings are rhythmically slapped against the fingerboard. The German rockabilly bassist Didi Beck cites Wallace as one of his influences. [2]
Concert reviews take note of the stunts that Wallace does with the bass, such as throwing it into the air [3] or playing it on its side while Heath stands on top of it and plays guitar. [4] He has a signature tiger-striped upright bass manufactured by King Double Basses. [5] He has been an endorser for Gallien-Krueger bass amplifiers. On stage, he uses a 4x10" cabinet and a 1x15" cabinet with a GK amp.
This discography is from AllMusic [6]
The double bass, also known as the upright bass, the acoustic bass, the bull fiddle, or simply the bass, is the largest and lowest-pitched chordophone in the modern symphony orchestra. Similar in structure to the cello, it has four or five strings.
Psychobilly is a rock music fusion genre that fuses elements of rockabilly and punk rock. It's been defined as "loud frantic rockabilly music", it has also been said that it "takes the traditional countrified rock style known as rockabilly, ramp[ing] up its speed to a sweaty pace, and combin[ing] it with punk rock and imagery lifted from horror films and late-night sci-fi schlock,... [creating a] gritty honky tonk punk rock."
Slapping and popping are ways to produce percussive sounds on a stringed instrument. They are primarily used on the double bass or bass guitar. Slapping on bass guitar involves using the edge of one's knuckle, where it is particularly bony, to quickly strike the string against the fretboard. On bass guitars, this is commonly done with the thumb, while on double bass, the edge of the hand or index finger may be used. Popping refers to pulling the string away from the fretboard and quickly releasing it so it snaps back against the fretboard. On bass guitar, the two techniques are commonly used together in alternation, though either may be used separately.
The Reverend Horton Heat is the stage name of American musician James C. Heath as well as the name of his Dallas, Texas-based psychobilly trio. Heath is a singer, songwriter and guitarist. A Prick magazine reviewer called Heath the "godfather of modern rockabilly and psychobilly".
Jazz bass is the use of the double bass or electric bass guitar to improvise accompaniment ("comping") basslines and solos in a jazz or jazz fusion style. Players began using the double bass in jazz in the 1890s to supply the low-pitched walking basslines that outlined the chord progressions of the songs. From the 1920s and 1930s Swing and big band era, through 1940s Bebop and 1950s Hard Bop, to the 1960s-era "free jazz" movement, the resonant, woody sound of the double bass anchored everything from small jazz combos to large jazz big bands.
Smoke 'Em If You Got 'Em is the first album by the Dallas, Texas based rockabilly/psychobilly-band the Reverend Horton Heat. It was released in 1990 on the label Sub Pop. An early version of the album had been recorded in the traditional manner. However, the band and the label decided that it did not fit with their vision, so it was re-recorded "live in the studio" direct to two-track, with the exception of "Love Whip."
The Full-Custom Gospel Sounds of the Reverend Horton Heat is the second album by The Reverend Horton Heat. It was released in April 1993 on Sub Pop.
Liquor in the Front is the third album by Reverend Horton Heat. It was jointly released by Sub Pop and Interscope Records in July 1994. Al Jourgensen of Ministry fame produced the album. The album continues the band's guitar-heavy rockabilly style flavored with punk rock, surf rock and country elements. The back cover album art displays the subtitle "Poker in the Rear".
"One Time For Me" is a CD single by The Reverend Horton Heat. It was released in Australia in 1994 on Sub Pop/Interscope.
It's Martini Time is the fourth album by The Reverend Horton Heat. It was released by Interscope Records in July 1996. It's Martini Time is the first Reverend Horton Heat album to feature Scott Churilla on drums, following Taz Bentley's departure from the band in 1994. It is also the first Reverend Horton Heat album to chart on the Billboard 200, reaching number 165.
Space Heater is the fifth album by Reverend Horton Heat, released by Interscope Records in March 1998. It charted on the Billboard 200, reaching number 187. "Pride of San Jacinto" appears in the videogame Hot Wheels Turbo Racing.
Spend a Night in the Box is the sixth album by The Reverend Horton Heat. It was released by Time Bomb Recordings in 2000.
Lucky 7 is the seventh studio album by the Reverend Horton Heat. It was released by Artemis Records in February 2002.
Revival is The Reverend Horton Heat's eighth studio album.
20th Century Masters – The Millennium Collection: The Best of The Reverend Horton Heat is a retrospective compilation album by The Reverend Horton Heat. It was released by Interscope Records in January 2006. The album consists of remastered versions of tracks that appeared on the band's three Interscope albums, Liquor in the Front (1994), It's Martini Time (1996), and Space Heater (1998).
Live and In Color is a direct-to-video film recorded by The Reverend Horton Heat at Deep Ellum live in Dallas, Texas, in November 2003.
Celts and Cobras is the second and final studio album from the Scottish neo-rockabilly group the Shakin' Pyramids, released in 1982 by Cuba Libre, a subsidiary of Virgin Records. "Just a Memory" and "Pharaoh's Chant" were released as singles from the album. It features a more diverse instrumental palette than the band's debut album, Skin 'Em Up (1981), but was seen as a departure from the group's original, immediate sound.
Laughin' & Cryin' with the Reverend Horton Heat is The Reverend Horton Heat's tenth studio album.
Rev is The Reverend Horton Heat's eleventh studio album, released with Victory Records on January 21, 2014. Peaking at number 111 on the Billboard 200 in the US, it is their highest charting record to date.