Mo Foster

The great Mo Foster, veteran of more sessions and shows than we’ve played wrong notes, updates us on what he’s up to

Mo’ bass, mo’ legendary session maestro. Ray Walker meets Mo

“You have to remember, I can’t recall what I did yesterday!” says a very cheerful Mo Foster as we settle down for a catch-up. This is far from the truth: Foster, no stranger to these pages, is perpetually cheerful, sharp as a tack and brimming with stories from his 50-plus years in the music business.

For Foster, 2019 will be all about his band, Mo Foster & Friends, which started in 2014 as a tribute to Gil Evans, George Gershwin and Jaco Pastorius. “I was able to get my hands on two of the original scores by Gil Evans from Gil’s son,” he says proudly. “I’ve been a fan of Gil’s music since the mid-60s when I first heard his masterful collaborations with Miles Davis: Miles Ahead, Porgy And Bess and Sketches Of Spain.” He continues: “This band has been a long time coming. In 1983 I got a call while I was touring the USA with Phil Collins, inviting me to tour with the Gil Evans British Orchestra. It consisted mainly of luminaries from the UK jazz scene, including John Surman, Henry Lowther, Stan Sulzman, Ray Russell, John Taylor and John Marshall.

“Gil’s world left such an impression on me that when I put together this new band, the sound I was aiming for was Evans in miniature: structured, with beautiful harmonies and melodies, and with room for great solos. I chose my dream team — Jim Watson, Chris Biscoe, Nic France, Ray Russell and Corrina Silvester — simply because they’re the best. I’ve been waiting my whole life to play with them.”

“I’m also doing lots of writing and producing,” he adds. “I’ve produced an album for a singer called Linda Hoyle, who was the singer of my first band in London. I’ve also been busy recording library music, or production music, as it’s known in the USA. It sits there until someone requests it; I’ve done one based on mandolin music and one on bass. If you’re lucky, one gets picked up and used. It’s my pension.”

Foster’s main bass is still a 1974 Fender Precision with a Badass bridge, Schecter hardware and an EMG bridge pickup. He also uses the Alembic Series 1 bass that was stolen and then returned to him after a 30-year absence, as we reported back in 2015.

As for amps, Mo is a Vanderkley cab owner since the last London Bass Guitar Show, but as he cheekily adds: “I’ll use whatever anyone else will carry!