The Bass Legend on Pat Metheny, Quincy Jones, Singing and Playing Simultaneously, and a Life Devoted to the Deepest Possible Connection Between a Musician and Their Instrument
Richard Bona is one of the most extraordinary musicians alive -- a Cameroonian bassist, vocalist, and composer whose technique is so complete and whose musical intelligence is so deep that he occupies a category essentially his own. He learned music in Cameroon by ear, moved to Europe as a young man, made his way to New York, and within a few years was playing with Pat Metheny, recording with Quincy Jones, and being spoken of in the same breath as Jaco Pastorius. The career that followed has been one of the most singular in jazz and world music -- defined not by genre but by an uncompromising commitment to musical truth.
In this conversation with Elmo, Richard talks about the journey from Cameroon to the world stage, his relationships with Pat Metheny and Quincy Jones, how he developed the ability to sing and play bass simultaneously at a level no one else approaches, his philosophy of music and of the bass specifically, and what he believes about what music is for. This is a rare, in-depth conversation with one of the genuine living legends of the instrument.
"The bass is not the bottom. The bass is the spine. Everything else moves because of it -- or it doesn't move at all."
His years working with Pat Metheny -- one of the most important and creatively demanding musical relationships of his career. What it was like to be in that musical world, what Metheny demanded of everyone around him, and what Richard learned about music, about standards, and about what it means to be truly prepared every time you step on a stage. The specific ways that relationship shaped him as a player and as an artist.
His connection with Quincy Jones -- what it meant to be recognized and embraced by one of the most respected figures in the history of popular music. What Quincy heard in Richard's playing, what those sessions and collaborations were like from the inside, and what Richard took from time spent in proximity to someone who has shaped more of the music of the 20th century than perhaps anyone else alive.
The extraordinary and essentially unique ability Richard has developed to sing fully -- not just hum, not just add texture, but actually sing -- while playing the bass at a virtuosic level. How he developed this skill, what it requires neurologically and musically, and why he believes it is not so much a trick as a natural expression of the way he hears music. His specific account of how singing and playing became one thing rather than two.
The journey from learning music in Cameroon entirely by ear, through early years in Europe, to arriving in New York and almost immediately being recognized as someone exceptional. What that journey required of him, what he had to learn along the way, and what he carried from his roots that no amount of formal training could have given him. The specific musical and personal formation that produced one of the most original musicians of his generation.
Richard's deep and fully developed philosophy of the bass as an instrument -- what it is, what it does, and what it means to play it at the level he does. His perspective on the instrument's role in music, on what Jaco Pastorius opened up and what remains yet to be explored, and on what he is still working toward after decades of playing that most musicians can only dream of. The ideas behind the technique.
Richard's answer to the question that underlies everything else -- why music matters, what it does for people, and what it means to dedicate a life to it. His perspective is rooted not in abstraction but in a specific cultural experience of music as something communal, healing, and essential. One of the most fully formed and deeply felt answers to that question you will hear from any musician.
The Pat Metheny stories: Richard's specific and candid account of what it was like to play in that world -- not the press release version but the real experience of what Metheny demands and what it costs and gives you to be the person who meets that demand. One of the most revealing accounts of a major musical relationship that Go With Elmo has produced.
On singing and playing: Richard's explanation of how he does what no one else does -- singing and playing bass simultaneously at a world-class level on both. Specific, practical, and genuinely illuminating about both the technical and the musical logic behind it. The kind of answer that makes you realize you were asking the wrong question.
The Cameroon origin story: his account of learning music entirely by ear in Cameroon and what that foundation gave him -- a way of hearing and relating to music that formal training alone cannot produce. His perspective on where his musical identity actually comes from is one of the most interesting and unusual accounts of musical formation you will find anywhere.
His philosophy of the bass: the fullest and most developed statement of what Richard believes about the instrument -- its role, its possibilities, and where he believes it has not yet gone. A bass player talking about the bass at a level of philosophical seriousness that is genuinely rare and genuinely worth hearing even if you've never picked up an instrument.
On Quincy Jones: a conversation about what it meant to be seen by Quincy at that level -- personal, grateful, and revealing about what Quincy represented to the musicians who got close to him and what his loss means for the culture of music. One of the most moving passages in recent Go With Elmo history.