By MARK MCGEE
For Scott Macleod music is all about that bass.The front of his business card states he is a bass player. He emphasizes he plays a bass…not a bass guitar.
In addition to playing a bass he hangs around his neck, he also plays a standup bass.
“I tell those learning to play the bass to learn every style – funk, country, jazz and rock,” MacLeod said. “They need to learn every style they possibly can learn.
“It is hard to find a bass player. It is even harder to find a good bass player. If you know all of those styles you will always be able to have a gig. I guarantee it. To put the cherry on top, I tell them when they are ready, and when they can, to play a standup bass.”
Next week he will have the chance to play both in front of audiences in Las Vegas at the International Hotel. He will be part of the band backing several Elvis performers during three concerts paying tribute to the many eras of Presley’s music.
The performances are scheduled for Aug. 23 and 24 at the Westgate Las Vegas International Theater as part of the Las Vegas Tribute Festival where Elvis spent five years in residency.
There are three distinct performances – “the beginning” starting with Presley’s music starting in 1956, “the comeback” which covers “The King’s” music starting in 1968 and “The King”, featuring his music from the 1970s to the end of his career.
“Elvis did a seven-year residency at the International,” Macleod said. “He did 635 sold out shows.
“I have been working on 7.000 songs. I’ve got them all ready to go. It is going to be a whirlwind bucket list event for me. I am going to walk out on that stage and say, `my goodness’.”
This will not be the first time Macleod has been part of a band performing Presley’s music. He played at Graceland in 2019 and 2020 during Elvis Week, the longtime home of Elvis in Memphis.
“I play in Elvis tribute bands,” Macleod said. “They are not impersonators trying to be him. They dress like him, but they are not trying to be him.
“I love playing Elvis stuff. I play with a guy here named Brooke Wright. He is so talented and so nice.”
Fender man
Like many musicians Macleod also has a day job. He works for Concert Musical Supply on the square in Murfreesboro where he is a salesman. He also is an authorized Fender guitar tech. He has been there for eight years.
“I am a salesman, but I do all of the Fender warranty repairs,” Macleod said. “I repair all kinds of guitars.
“This is my side job. I am very happy with that.”
Vinnie Vincent of Kiss has been one of his customers.
Long way to the Midstate
Macleod was born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and began his music career farther west in Canada in Vancouver, British Columbia.
“Vancouver is where my musical career really took off,” Macleod said.
He moved to Shelbyville in 2015 after forming a love connection with Gayl, who would become his wife. She moved here from the Dominican Republic. Macleod is proud to say he passed all his tests and is an American citizen.
“We were both single,” Macleod said. “We got along really well. She is the light of my life.
“We are both members of the World Outreach Church. I play bass there.”
Making connections
Musicians are a community all of their own. Macleod’s rise as a performer in the area and beyond is the result of many of the connections he has made.
Locally Macleod performs with Chase Clanton, a popular local musician.
“I didn’t know anybody when I came here,” Macleod said. “I went to Daddy Billy’s for a jam session in Tullahoma. That is where I met Bob Young and Chase Clanton.
“We talked and talked and one day Chase asked me if I wanted to be part of a band. He was 15. He was so good.”
They were known as Chase Clanton and the Vintage Vibes.
“We play everywhere from Prater’s Barbecue to every Friday at the car show,” Macleod said. “Now we are just the Chase Clanton Band and we play at places like The Humble Baron. What great place that is.
“The Chase Clanton family has been a big part of my life. They are just great people.”
He has also performed with The Platters and The Ink Spots as touring player for 15 years.
“We did a lot of theater shows,” Macleod said. “It was really great.”
Being versatile
Macleod was influenced by rock music, but he has a strong love for jazz. He later developed a feel for country music.
“When I played with The Platters and The Ink Spots the standup bass was pretty much all I did,” Macleod said. “I will play a standup during the early music Elvis played because he was backed at the beginning by a standup bass.
“I first got my standup bass back in the early 90s in Chicago. All of a sudden having that literally got me gigs. In a coffee shop where they have acoustic guitar sets with a piano people want you to play with them.”
Macleod started playing the bass in the seventh grade. He also played the flute as well.
“One of the first songs I played with a band was “Steamroller” by Elvis,” Macleod said. “In the ninth grade
“I would play all the time. I would be plucking on the bass and my mother would tell me to quit playing on the guitar and go outside and play.”
Luckily, he didn’t take her advice.
