Zooma
Encyclopedia
Zooma is the 1999 instrumental
debut solo-album by former Led Zeppelin
bassist and keyboardist John Paul Jones
.
It showcases his acoustic abilities along with his composing abilities. Several tracks contain orchestral arrangements, the most notable being "Snake Eyes."
This album illustrates Jones's unique composition style, in which he takes a theme or simple melody, and repeats it and builds on it, often with tension-inducing arrangements.
Zooma contains one organ solo by Jones (on "Snake Eyes"), which also contains orchestra arrangement. He uses his triple-necked guitar often, and also plays a wide assortment of instruments (as well as bass guitar
).
It is often debated whether this album sounds similar to the music of Led Zeppelin
. While it is generally agreed that "Nosumi Blues" sounds the most "Zeppelin-esque", when posed with the question of whether or not the album sounds Zeppelin-influenced, John Paul Jones replied "Well, wasn't Led Zeppelin John Paul Jones-influenced?"
Instrumental rock
Instrumental rock is a type of rock music which emphasizes musical instruments, and which features very little or no singing.Examples of instrumental rock can be found in practically every subgenre of rock, often from musicians who specialize in the style, most notably Joe Satriani, Steve Vai, Link...
debut solo-album by former Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
bassist and keyboardist John Paul Jones
John Paul Jones (musician)
John Paul Jones is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, composer, arranger and record producer. Best known as the bassist, mandolinist, and keyboardist for English rock band Led Zeppelin, Jones has since developed a solo career and has gained even more respect as both a musician and a...
.
It showcases his acoustic abilities along with his composing abilities. Several tracks contain orchestral arrangements, the most notable being "Snake Eyes."
This album illustrates Jones's unique composition style, in which he takes a theme or simple melody, and repeats it and builds on it, often with tension-inducing arrangements.
Zooma contains one organ solo by Jones (on "Snake Eyes"), which also contains orchestra arrangement. He uses his triple-necked guitar often, and also plays a wide assortment of instruments (as well as bass guitar
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
).
It is often debated whether this album sounds similar to the music of Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin
Led Zeppelin were an English rock band, active in the late 1960s and throughout the 1970s. Formed in 1968, they consisted of guitarist Jimmy Page, singer Robert Plant, bassist/keyboardist John Paul Jones, and drummer John Bonham...
. While it is generally agreed that "Nosumi Blues" sounds the most "Zeppelin-esque", when posed with the question of whether or not the album sounds Zeppelin-influenced, John Paul Jones replied "Well, wasn't Led Zeppelin John Paul Jones-influenced?"
Track listing
- "Zooma" – 5:52
- "Grind" – 5:20
- "The Smile of Your Shadow" – 5:50
- "Goose" – 4:58
- "Bass 'N' Drums" – 2:32
- "B. Fingers" – 5:26
- "Snake Eyes" – 7:32
- "Nosumi Blues" – 5:48
- "Tidal" – 4:20
- "Fanfare for the Millennium" – 1:02 (bonus track for Japanese releases)
Personnel
- John Paul JonesJohn Paul Jones (musician)John Paul Jones is an English multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, composer, arranger and record producer. Best known as the bassist, mandolinist, and keyboardist for English rock band Led Zeppelin, Jones has since developed a solo career and has gained even more respect as both a musician and a...
– bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
, double bassDouble bassThe double bass, also called the string bass, upright bass, standup bass or contrabass, is the largest and lowest-pitched bowed string instrument in the modern symphony orchestra, with strings usually tuned to E1, A1, D2 and G2...
, keyboardsKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments...
, guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
s, electric mandolaMandolaThe mandola or tenor mandola is a fretted, stringed musical instrument. It is to the mandolin what the viola is to the violin: the four double courses of strings tuned in fifths to the same pitches as the viola , a fifth lower than a mandolin...
, KymaKyma (sound design language)Kyma is a visual programming language for sound design used by musicians, researchers, and sound designers. In Kyma, a user programs a multiprocessor DSP by graphically connecting modules on the screen of a Macintosh or Windows computer.-Background:... - Pete ThomasPete ThomasPete Thomas is best known as the longtime drummer for Elvis Costello. Tom Waits has referred to him as "one of the best rock drummers alive".-Career:...
– drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
, percussionPercussion instrumentA percussion instrument is any object which produces a sound when hit with an implement or when it is shaken, rubbed, scraped, or otherwise acted upon in a way that sets the object into vibration... - Paul LearyPaul LearyPaul Leary is an American musician from Austin, TX, best known as the guitarist for American rock band Butthole Surfers. He is also the producer of a number of songs and albums by other bands, including U2, Sublime, the Meat Puppets, Daniel Johnston, The Reverend Horton Heat, Pepper, Maggie...
– lead guitarLead guitarLead guitar is a guitar part which plays melody lines, instrumental fill passages, guitar solos, and occasionally, some riffs within a song structure... - Trey GunnTrey GunnTrey Gunn is an American musician, known for his membership in progressive rock band King Crimson from 1994 to 2003, playing Warr Guitar and Chapman Stick.-Biography:...
– rhythm guitarRhythm guitarRhythm guitar is a technique and rôle that performs a combination of two functions: to provide all or part of the rhythmic pulse in conjunction with singers or other instruments; and to provide all or part of the harmony, ie. the chords, where a chord is a group of notes played together...
, Warr guitar - Denny Fongheiser – djembeDjembeA djembe also known as jembe, jenbe, djbobimbe, jymbe, yembe, or jimbay, or sanbanyi in Susu; is a skin-covered drum meant played with bare hands....
, drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person .... - Stuart Sullivan – Recording engineer
- Richard Evans – Recording engineer
- Brian Foraker – Recording engineer
- Geoff Foster – Recording engineer