the road dog/session cat/solo artist

Derek Frank has shared the stage with such icons as Shania Twain, Gwen Stefani, and Shakira (among many others) as a sideman bassist. In the downtime on these gigs, he discovered a private music world inspired by the cultural debris of his 1970s childhood. 

 

Years ago, the bassist-composer began to write the kind of music he used to hear on 1970s TV and movies. Today, Derek is leaning into the solo artist side of his career with his third solo album, Origin Story, released March 25, 2024 on all streaming platforms with a 2-disc vinyl version plus bonus live tracks available in May. Origin Story boasts Derek’s strongest instrumental jazz-funk compositions to date. 

 

“I used to love the music in Dirty Harry movies, and in the Wonder Woman and The Incredible Hulk television series,” the LA-based artist says. “When I finally found my voice as a solo artist, I decided to make that kind of music along with jazz and funk as the main influences.” 

 

Derek and his handpicked five-piece band blend funk, blues, soul, jazz, southern rock, and seventies soundtrack music into a genre all their own. Derek’s compositions feature tight arrangements, slinky grooves, telepathic band interplay, and restrained virtuosity where chops are implied but not flaunted.

 

His solo work has garnered critical acclaim from such taste-making outlets as Bass Magazine, American Songwriter Magazine, Bass Player Magazine, Music Connection Magazine, “Everyone Loves Guitar Podcast,” and “The Bass Shed Podcast”. He’s earned favorable comparisons to Lettuce, Vulfpeck, Cory Wong, Snarky Puppy, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Karl Denson (who guests on Origin Story), and John Scofield. Previously, Derek has released Let The Games Begin (2009), and the aptly-titled Eleven Years Later (2020).

 

Derek has fond memories of growing up in Pittsburgh, watching 1970s TV and movies, and 1980s MTV. He discovered his love for the bass when he first picked one up off the wall of a music store while he was waiting for a guitar lesson. Derek later formally studied bass, and eventually moved to Los Angeles to be a professional musician. 

 

Since then, Derek has emerged one of the most in demand touring and studio bassists in Los Angeles. He has worked with a “who’s-who” of  A-list artists, including the aforementioned Gwen Stefani, Shania Twain, Shakira, Kelly Clarkson, Air Supply, Aly & AJ, Victoria Justice, Dancing With the Stars, Daniel Powter, Palaye Royale, Mindi Abair, The Boneshakers, Brian Auger's Oblivion Express, and countless others.

 

As the title implies, Origin Story is an instrumental homage to his roots in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. “I often reminisce about my childhood, thinking of the David Byrne lyric: ‘How did I get here?,’”  Derek says. “The songs on this album loosely sketch experiences of my early years, before I discovered my calling and current profession as a bass player.”

 

In what’s become a tradition with Derek’s solo records, he opens the 8-song album up with the funky, 1970s cop chase song, “Demon On Wheels,” replete with wah wah bass. The name is pinched from the late 1960s cartoon Speed Racer, and the monster jam features Las Vegas’s Fat City Horns. The percolating 16th notes on “The Yinzer” tastefully touch on Jaco Pastorius, but the overall compositional structure nods to the work of Karl Denson (The Greyboy Allstars, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe, the Rolling Stones) who makes a cameo on the track. The slippery fusion funk of “Paperboy Blues” recalls Head Hunters-era Herbie Hancock, and features abstract Jimmy Herring-like jazz guitar melodies. 

 

Derek’s handpicked quintet features guitarist Joshua Ray Gooch (Derek’s longtime bandmate with Shania Twain), keyboardist Carey Frank (Social Distortion, Tedeschi Trucks Band), drummer Randy Cooke (Smashmouth, Brit Floyd), and percussionist Demian Arriaga (Miley Cyrus, The Jonas Brothers). Also joining the party is keyboardist Matt Rohde (Jane’s Addiction, The Chicks), guitarist Anthony King (Buffy Sainte-Marie), The Fat City Horns, and guitarist Brent Mason, widely-regarded as one to the top 10 session guitarists of all time. Origin Story, and Derek’s previous album, were both produced by multiple Grammy award-winning producer Jim Scott (Tedeschi Trucks Band, Tom Petty, Wilco, Sting) at his vibey, all-analog PLYRZ Recording Studio.

 

Up next, catch Derek and his band performing in sweaty nightclubs, at jam band festivals, and wherever live groove music is showcased. You can also see Derek rolling through town with major artists at a theater or arena near you—he’ll continue pulling double duty. “I feel grateful to have my day job,” he says. “But now I am also focusing on using my bass playing in service of my own music.” 

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- Lorne Behrman