Interview with Owen Biddle (The Roots)
Owen Biddle joined seminal live HipHop legends The Roots back in 2007 after long-term bassist, Leonard ‘Hub’ Hubbard, retired.
Since then, he has become an intrinsic part of a group that, arguably, has grown beyond the limits of the live hiphop genre. One of the sure signs of this growth has been the recent collaborative cross-over album with John Legend and their appointment as the house band on the Jimmy Fallon chat show in America, providing live backing for visiting artists and all incidental music.
Owen has taken some time out of his busy schedule to answer a few of the questions I put to him.
- How did you come to be involved with music, and more specifically the Bass Guitar? Did you have a musical up-bringing?
My parents played a lot of music while I was growing up, and I became especially fond of the Beatles. I think McCartney really snuck in to my subconscious, as I didn’t really pick up a bass until I was 14. My cousin gave me his old G&L 4-string after his indie power pop group The Wishniaks broke up.
- Have you had any formal musical schooling?
I did have some formal schooling. I took lessons on guitar from the age of 12, then played a bunch of different instruments in high school. After high school I took several years of Jazz guitar lessons with a disciple of Dennis Sandole and Joe Sgro, named John DeCaro in South Philadelphia.
Later I went to Berklee in Boston for about two years. There, I studied privately with Jim Stinnett and Dave Buda.
- Roots appointment as the house band on Jimmy Fallons TV show… after two years how do you feel the group has settled into the show?
Late Night is the best thing that ever happened for the band, and it’s a privilege and an honor to work on the show. It really challenged my range getting to play with nearly every artist I could ask to work with, aside from getting to write and play cues everyday. It’s definitely a role you grow into, and was pretty challenging when we started.
- You play CallowHill basses, and from what I understand, they’re mostly shortscale? Could you tell us why that is and what drew you to this small boutique luthier in particular?
They aren’t mostly shortscale. The model that we designed together (the OBS) is. However (30”), now there have been a bunch of orders for this model; and I am an advocate for short scale. I prefer the envelope of the sound. I became a fan of CallowHill when I heard Philadelphia bassist Jim Stager playing one.
- What other gear gets you through your shows? Tell us about your amp setup, any pedals/effects, any other basses in your collection that aren’t CallowHill?
The main items I tour with are CallowHill, Mono Case, and Ampeg. I have a bunch of pedals in rotation, but for all the traveling we do, I like to keep it simple.
- What do you get upto when you’re not with The Roots, either playing for other acts, or away from music? Any other non-musical activities that you feel contribute to you growing as a player?
My main inspiration right now is the limited time I get to spend with Zach Danziger and Oli Rockberger. We put out an independent album called Mister Barrington, and have a couple more projects in the works.
I also recently took residence in the wilderness north of NYC in Woodstock NY. As often as possible, I enjoy quiet time in nature. This is the most critical part of my musical growth right now.
- What’s next for both you as a player and The Roots as a group? Any plans to visit the UK again either jointly or separately?
I’m sure the Roots will be back. Seems like we make it over pretty regularly. I’d also love to come over with Zach and Oli at some point.
- What might be one piece of advice, or mantra for the bass players reading this, both beginner and advanced.
I’ll tell you what I have to remind myself of, too often. Love what you do. Life is too short to spend on anything other than what fuels and inspires you
END
Please go and check out The Roots newest albums ‘How I Got Over’ and, with John Legend, ‘Wake Up’
Thanks loads to Owen for taking the time out, and hopefully we will see him over in the UK soon!
Si
