BASSIST
Douglas,
a seasoned professional from Los Altos, California, began
his distinguished career playing the Bay Area club scene from
San Francisco to Monterey, and was eventually tapped by an L.A. producer and relocated to Malibu, CA. where he spent an amazing four years performing and recording with singer/songwriter Wendy Whittaker.
Doug then went on to perform with a variety of bands on the Sunset Strip and surrounding areas until finally landing the gig with "UXB", with whom he played such L.A. circuit venues as The Starwood, The Roxy, The Troubadour
Band (Gary Mallaber), and Edgar Winter's White Trash (Chuck Ruff).
Doug also includes his brother Dean Mancini, one of Central Oregon's premier drummers, to this prestigious list. Doug has played in just about every musical genre during his career, but has always been driven by the "Blues". As a boy still in his pre-teens, while most of his friends were listening to whatever was popular on local AM radio, Doug got hooked on "British Blues", which included The Yardbirds, Peter Green's Fleetwood Mac, Rory Gallagher, Alexis Korner, John Mayall's Blues Breakers and of course the "jaw-dropping" bass playing of John Paul Jones, but it wasn't long before Doug wanted to know who THEIR influences were. He soon began listening to Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, Sonny Boy Wlliamson, Jimmy Reed, Elmore James, Willie Dixon, Lightnin' Hopkins and John Lee Hooker, the list goes on. Of course Motown, namely James Jamerson, was an enourmous influence on Doug. Today, some of Doug's bass heroes include; Willie Weeks, Pino Palladino, Leland Sklar, Darryl Jones and Fernando Saunders. "Those cats are the epitomy of groove and taste".
and Whiskey A-Go-Go. Some of Doug's former bands included members from The Allman Brothers (Jaimo), The Steve Miller
After playing ten years on the L.A.circuit, Doug returned to the Bay Area to
relocate in Berkeley, CA., where he performed and recorded with the Rock/World
Beat band Unsung Heroes. While in Berkeley, Doug also honed his recording expertise
at both Fantasy and Red Rooster studios. After the break-up of Unsung
Heroes, Doug decided to move to one of his all time favorite towns, Santa Cruz,
CA., where his most identifiable "locked-in-groove" bass can be heard
with "The Pearl Alley Band", "Blues
Cadillac" and "Oliver Harris' Summit" to mention a few.
Doug's reputation as a thoroughly prepared and versatile bassist, has kept him one
of the Central Coast's busier bassists. "Always expect the unexpected — be
on time, IN time". Doug is also one of Santa Cruz's most requested
bass instructors. He's very adamant, as any self-respecting bassist should
be, about "The Groove". Doug insists that all his students practice with a metronome. "Without
great meter, you might as well leave the bass in the case".
In April,
2003, Doug was recruited by James Armstrong for a two week stint through
five mid-western states, playing at top venues in 10 cities. The tour
received warm reviews from critics in Chicago, Milwaukee, Detroit,
and other cities. Two of those gigs were especially memorable for
Doug; "Buddy Guy's Legends", where "the man" himself joined the enthusiastic
audience for an evening of Blues, and The Marshall Civic Auditorium,
where the band played two sold-out shows. Doug is a superb bassist
with serious groove. That, along with his creative influences and
technique would be an essential fabric to any noteworthy band he chose
to be a part of.
In July, 2004, Doug visited Lee Barker at his factory in Oregon, and recorded some tracks on the Barker Vertical Bass. Read the story of this exciting recording session, and learn more about this amazing instrument. You can also go to Doug's "Talk Forum" on the Barker site.
Equipment:
'58 Fender Precision, '66 Fender Jazz, '76 Fender Precision, Fender Fretless Jazz, Barker 5 string Vertical Bass, Ampeg SVT- 4 Pro, Gallien-Krueger 800RB, Two Epifani T-112 (1X12) cabinets and an Ampeg SVT- 810 E (8X10) cabinet.
email: Douglas@mancinibass.com
Felton, CA. 95018
Ph. (831) 335-0223
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