Dr. Evan Todd Yeager

Evan "Doctor Of Bassology" Yeager -- Electric Bass

The early years

My father served the First Methodist Church as minister in Laverne, Oklahoma when I was born on April 15th, 1960 in Shattuck, Oklahoma the only town with a hospital for many miles.  As is typical of the Methodist Church at that time, my family was moved to a new church and a new Northeast Texas town about every 2 to 3 years.  My childhood was spent moving from small town Methodist Church to small town Methodist Church.

Motorcycles

I have always liked anything with wheels and an engine.  I was attending Cook County College when I purchased my first motorcycle, a new 1981 Yamaha 650 Maxim, by trading in my 1979 Toyota pickup.  Needless to say, my parents were less impressed with my purchasing and negotiating skills than I.  Over the years, family and graduate school sidelined motorcycle riding and other hobby vehicles such my Triumph TR6.  Gas pricing in 2005 and after over 20 years of made owning a motorcycle practical once more and I purchased a Kawasaki Ninja 250 for commuting.  I soon rediscovered the joy of traveling on two wheels and become a a big fan of little motorcycles (Why I Ride What I Ride).

Music

My musical training began at age 11 when I took a few weeks of piano.  True to the form of a prepubescent male, I baled on piano lessons rather quickly.  My parents should have pounded me like a drum for that indiscretion.  Not sticking with piano lessons when I was young has been one of the few regrets I have collected over the years.  My family moved to Saint Jo , Texas in my junior year of high school so my father could take the Saint Jo/Forestburg Methodist Church parish.  I was given a choice of taking a physical education (PE) class or band.  As a scrawny kid whose high school PE class memories were primarily consisted of being the brunt of various bullying episodes I opted for band.  I was hooked on music thanks to a dedicated band director.

Also during my junior year in high school, I purchased, most fortunately, a then unknown first generation Leo Fender Music Man Stingray electric bass, and began taking lessons from Dr. Harold Kafer, the Music department chair at Cook County College in Gainesville, Texas.  I attended this college on a jazz performance scholarship to begin to my college career.  I have been blessed with many opportunities to play electric bass for churches and community events.

I studied bass formally under Dr. Kafer (he never did fully break me of playing with only three fingers on my left hand) and after leaving Cooke County College to finish my bachelor's degree, I picked up tips and techniques mostly via self-study using books from publishers such as Mel Bay and Hal Leonard. My musical tastes are very eclectic and range from rock to classical.  The groups and artists that have had the biggest impact stylistically during my most formative years include: 

There are some influential bassists who are identified primarily with a band such as Geddy Lee of Rush and Joco Pastorius of Weather Report; therefore they are not noted specifically.  I have never set out to consciously copy someone's style or a particular bass part (unless the band I was in was playing it and we had the charts) and have adopted the habit of improvising most of my bass parts on the fly.  These artists did not influence me because I spent late hours with raw fingertips trying to master a particular riff, however, over the years I did buy a lot of albums and hum a lot of tunes composed or recorded by the above artists and associated groups.

Music Groups and Bands

The Lord has provided a number of opportunities in which to exercise and use the gift of music He has given me. Dr. Harold Kafer afforded me the opportunity to play in both the Stage Band and Jazz Band while attending Cook County College. I was also able to sit in with a number of area bands including the North Texas Jazz Orchestra and the Greenville Big Band during this time.

Most of my experience playing with other musicians has been as a member of church praise bands. A partial list includes Church on the Rock, Quitman, Texas; Azalea Gardens Church of God, Norfolk, Virginia; First Baptist Church, Commerce, Texas; and First Baptist Church, Trenton, Texas.

Playing music in venues outside church began with the Bois 'd Arc Dixieland Band during the early 2000s. In 2006 I was invited to play for Wing and a Prayer as part of the ministry the King's Kruizers Christian Motorcyclist Association Chapter and was afforded the opportunity to play in a variety of locations throughout Texas. Life changes and out-of-state moves for several key band members brought an end to Wing and a Prayer as a band in 2010.

Gear

I currently play:

For the love of God and Music

My foremost motivation and primary desire is to glorify God with the gift of music He has bestowed on me.

-- Dr. Evan Yeager --

The Yeager Group Website