Tal Wilkenfeld
Tal Wilkenfeld (born 2 December 1986) is an Australian bassist, singer and songwriter. She has performed with artists including Chick Corea, Jeff Beck, Prince, Incubus, Eric Clapton, Herbie Hancock, and Mick Jagger. In 2008, Wilkenfeld was voted "The Year's Most Exciting New Player" in a Bass Player magazine readers' choice poll. In 2013, Wilkenfeld was awarded the Bass Player magazine's "Young Gun Award" by Don Was; she then performed "Chelsea Hotel" by Leonard Cohen.
Tal Wilkenfeld
2 December 1986
Bondi, New South Wales, Australia
Rock, blues rock, folk, indie rock, funk, jazz, jazz fusion, folk rock
Musician, songwriter, bandleader
Bass, vocals
2002–present
Wilkenfeld is a bandleader of her own bands in which she sings, plays bass, and plays guitar. In earlier work, she was backed by musicians such as Wayne Krantz and Vinnie Colaiuta. She opened for the Who on the North American part of The Who Hits 50! tour in 2016.[1] In 2016, she released a single entitled "Corner Painter" featuring Blake Mills and Benmont Tench.[2] Also in 2016, Rolling Stone said that Wilkenfeld was "working on new music that sees her evolving from an instrumental prodigy into a formidable singer-songwriter."[3] On 15 March 2019, Wilkenfeld released her vocal debut album Love Remains,[4] which reached No. 1 on the Billboard Heatseeker charts on the first week of its release.[5] Love Remains has been highly praised by the press and was featured in Rolling Stone, Relix, Paste, Billboard, and Forbes. Rolling Stone described her vocal debut as having "ten dense, riff-heavy tracks with brazen, introspective lyrics—prove her songwriting abilities."[6] Wilkenfeld has also been a guest on popular podcasts, including WTF with Marc Maron, and Bill Burr's Monday Morning Podcast.
Wilkenfeld has recorded on projects with Ringo Starr, Brian Wilson, Toto, Todd Rundgren, Macy Gray, Dr. John, Trevor Rabin, Jackson Browne, Joe Walsh, Rod Stewart, John Mayer, Sting, Ben Harper, David Gilmour, Pharrell, Buddy Guy, Billy Gibbons, Lee Ritenour, Hiram Bullock, Susan Tedeschi, and Hans Zimmer.
Early life[edit]
Born in Bondi, New South Wales,[7] Wilkenfeld began playing guitar in 2000 when she was 14 years old. Two years later, she dropped out of high school and emigrated to the United States,[8] where she studied electric guitar. Within a year, Wilkenfeld switched to electric bass.[9] In 2004, Wilkenfeld graduated from Los Angeles College of Music. She accepted an endorsement from Sadowsky Guitars, and devoted herself to forming a band and composing songs. At the age of 18, Wilkenfeld moved to New York City and began performing in New York's jazz clubs.[7]
Early career[edit]
While playing at a club in New York in 2006, Wilkenfeld met some members of the Allman Brothers Band. She credits Oteil Burbridge and Derek Trucks with encouraging her to join them at the Beacon Theatre,[10] her first time on a large stage. The jam was about 40 minutes long; Wilkenfeld sent a recording of the performance to Jeff Beck when she auditioned for his band.
In 2006, months after performing as a guest with the Allman Brothers Band, Wilkenfeld recorded her debut album, Transformation, in only two days. Wilkenfeld composed, produced, arranged and played bass on seven songs with Wayne Krantz, Geoffrey Keezer, saxophonist Seamus Blake and Keith Carlock.
Solo career[edit]
On 3 March 2016, Wilkenfeld released a single, "Corner Painter", which featured Blake Mills and Benmont Tench.[2] On 15 March 2017, Judd Apatow featured "Corner Painter" during a 12-episode season two of his Netflix series Love.[20] She opened for the Who on the North American part of The Who Hits 50! tour, starting in Detroit on 27 February 2016. On her own she headlined between the Who dates, beginning in Toronto on 29 February 2016.[1]
On 14 December 2018, Wilkenfeld released a song entitled "Under the Sun". In 2019, Billboard magazine premiered her new single "Killing Me". Wilkenfeld released her debut vocal album Love Remains on 15 March 2019. The album includes Mills on guitar, Tench on keyboard, and Jackson Browne as executive producer.[4] Love Remains reached No. 1 on the Billboard Heatseeker charts during the first week of its release.[5]
Personal life[edit]
Wilkenfeld practices meditation. "I'm very focused on my spiritual, emotional, and mental growth" she told Rolling Stone. "I meditate every day, and I just want to continue to evolve as a person, and I hope that my music will reflect that."[21] In a Popdust interview she added, "Meditating helps creativity flow. The more you meditate, the more you realize that everything is a meditation. The silence is important."[22] Bass Player magazine asked about what it was like to work with Herbie Hancock and Wayne Shorter. She said, "It's comforting to know that two of the greatest musicians alive are just as focused on their spiritual paths as their musical paths, and for them, they're one and the same. I remember standing at the side of the stage a few minutes before I was going to play with Wayne, and he came up to me and said, "Play eternity!" Leonard Cohen, who I was lucky enough to spend time with, was also deeply focused on his spiritual journey. Self-inquiry is a very important part of my life, and it's reassuring to meet other like-minded people."[23]
Wilkenfeld says that stand-up comedy is one of her favorite forms of entertainment.[24]
She has appeared on some comedians' podcasts: promoting her album Love Remains on Marc Maron, Bill Burr, and twice on Jeff Ross's podcast as well as once with Dave Attell. She co-wrote and produced a song for Maron called "New Boots" for a movie titled Sword of Trust.
Equipment[edit]
Wilkenfeld endorses Sadowsky electric basses and strings,[25] EBS Professional Bass Equipment amplifiers, as well as cabinets, and effect pedals.[26]
