Our search For the big beat led us to John Lee Hooker's house in Redwood City, California. At 72, Mr. Hooker can proudly look back on a career that began in Clarksdale, Mississippi, during the 1930s.

Everybody loves bass, right? Low frequencies don't just move a substantial mass of air, they're also crucial when it comes to music moving you both emotionally and even physically. Nothing makes you ...

Four mighty strings, 55 mighty players. Common wisdom holds that the bass player is the “quiet one” in a band, playing essential parts of a song that you don’t necessarily notice.