John Heintz

Where to start with John, his talents as a bass player, producer, jam session organizer? Or simply a music entrepreneur, the best kind of entrepreneur there is, bringing rhythm and joy to others. John Heintz created the Big Ol’ Nasty Getdown, for which he is the live bassist, following his philosophy and instinct summed up in this quote: “I thought if unscripted jamming could sound so good and natural on stage, then bringing that energy and camaraderie to the studio could produce some incredible music”.

The project, captured on 2012’s Volume 1 and 2018’s Volume 2, has seen members of legendary funk bands such as The Meters, Earth, Wind and Fire and Parliament-Funkadelic exploring funk, rock, R&B and soul with their musical apprentices, including Fishbone, Mudvayne, Arrested Development, The Lee Boys and Living Colour. Both albums were recorded by gathering dozens of musicians for weeklong retreats that were part-jam session, part-writing session and part funky house party.

The last project to have come out is The Big Ol’ Nasty Getdown “Mellow/Dream” EP/Collectors set, a celebration of visual and sonic art joining forces for a full experience for your senses. It features the stunning vocals of grammy winning singer Kendra Foster of Parliament Funkadelic/D’Angelo’s Vanguard fame.  Kendra, alongside members of Sly and the Family Stone, Mudvayne, and GFE take us on a jazzy trip that touches several genres along the way. It’s believed that Mellow was the very last track that Cynthia Robinson of Sly and the Family Stone recorded before her death in 2015. This track remains close to the project’s heart.

You can acquire all this exceptional music on The Big Ol’ Nasty Getdown store, as well as get “BONG” updates for future melodic adventures to come… very soon. The two next ones that we know of are an EP from The Big Ol’ Nasty Getdown featuring Izzy Savides and a 2 single release from The Big Ol’ Nasty Getdown featuring Remco Hendriks… Can’t miss these, so stay “click alert” on the BONG Store…

Why does John now own 2 Cortex Napoleon Deluxe 6 String Fretless Basses will you ask me? Well first of all because we like to believe that John is a man of good taste and good instincts when it comes to bass collecting. It is more simply because I had the privilege of meeting him at NAMM 2022, thanks to Remco Hendriks, and again at Mannheim last September. He flashed on Cortex basses, I flashed on BONG productions, the rest is history…