Cincinnati-based Freekbass is bringing the funk back to Lexington

As futuristic as his music often sounds, Chris Sherman – better known to groove audiences around the globe as Freekbass – often follows the beat of another time and place. Infatuated with the aural warmth that comes from the analog-recorded vinyl records he grew up with, Sherman decided to have things both way on his newest album.

Designed as a vinyl release, Sherman split the recording sessions in two. Half of the project was cut at the Denver, Colo., studios of his current label Color Red. With label chief Eddie Roberts (who doubles as guitarist for the fusion band The New Mastersounds) as producer, the sessions tilt backward into percolating, organic grooves seasoned with hints of James Brown soul and ‘70s-era Parliament-Funkadelic grooves.

The other sessions utilized Itaal Shur, a longtime Freekbass pal and songwriter whose massive credits include the multiGrammy winning Santana single “Smooth.” Those recordings, cut in New York and Freekbass’ longtime homebase of Cincinnati, sported a more progressive and orchestrated funk sound.

Two sides of a vinyl album cut in different cities with different producers. No wonder the resulting title for the work became “All the Way This, All the Way That.”

“The whole idea comes back to the warmth aspect,” said Sherman, who brings Freekbass back to Lexington on June 5. “When I listen to vinyl, especially to the music I was influenced by – Sly and the Family Stone, Stevie Wonder, all that great stuff – I get that sound, that warm analog sound. It was always a dream of mine to do something on vinyl.

“In the bass guitar world, you can have what’s called active electronics or passive electronics. Active electronics is a more modern and digital sound on your bass. Passive, or analog, is more like the way Larry Graham (of Sly and the Family Stone and Graham Central Station) played. That’s kind of how I look at the vinyl and the tape aspect of it. With analog, you get a more aggressive warmth to everything.”

For Sherman, “All the Way This, All the Way That” represents the latest chapter of an escalating career as well as a fortification of the soul and funk sounds that have emanated from the Cincinnati area for decades. Listen to the finger popping bass at the heart of any Freekbass record and you sense the horn-driven syncopation James Brown unleashed for the Cincy-based King Records during the early ‘60s, the ensemble grooves generated by bands like Zapp and the Ohio Players during the ‘70s and ‘80s and especially the precise, profound musicianship of Sherman’s bass guitar mentor, Parliament-Funkadelic co-pilot Bootsy Collins.

“The thing about funk I find so fascinating is that it is so geographic. New Orleans, obviously, comes to mind. The Meters and Dr. John have a very distinct Creole sound. In Minneapolis, you have the sound of Prince and The Time. Go to San Francisco, and it’s more about Sly and the Family Stone while in L.A. you have the Red Hot Chili Peppers doing more of a modern thing. In Ohio, because we’re not West Coast and we’re not East Coast. We’re almost like the kid in the back of the class that has to yell a little bit louder to get attention. I think that kind of shines through in the music.

“Listen to ‘More Bounce to the Ounce’ by Zapp, for example. That song is just as hard as the heaviest hip-hop track you have today. That’s a big part of the Ohio sound. With me growing up, I remember hearing ‘More Bounce to the Ounce’ when I started fooling around on the bass as a kid. I heard it for the first time when someone was walking down the street with it playing on a boom box. I thought, ‘Man, that’s the kind of bass I want to play.’ ”

A couple of high profile pals are helping Freekbass launch “All the Way This, All the Way That.” Turkuaz singer Sammi Garett, who contributes vocal and co-writing work on the new album, will similarly help out on initial summer performances, including this week’s show at Cosmic Charlie’s. Similarly, Collins was scheduled to assist on a May 31 Facebook Live celebration where he will listen to and comment on “All the Way This, All the Way That” as it is being debuted in its entirety online.

“Bootsy has been such a huge part of my career,” Sherman said. “When no one knew who the heck I was when I started to make a little bit of noise in Cincinnati as a bass player, he listened. He’s the one who even gave me the name Freekbass. I remember when I first started, sitting in the studio with him and getting ideas about the music business, the up and downs. Now here we are and I get to show him what I’ve done with all that knowledge.”

If you go: Freekbass featuring Sammi Garett

When: 9 p.m. June 5

Where: Cosmic Charlie’s, 105 W. Loudon Ave.

Admission: $15

Call: 859-475-6096

Online: cosmic-charlies.com, freekbass.com

This story was originally published May 31, 2019 at 8:13 AM.