Fred "Big Daddy" Cockfield holds down the bottom end with the band Novabossa on
fretted and fretless four-, five-, six-, and seven-string basses. Instruments of choice include: Line 6 Variax 705, Conklin "Bill Dickens" 7-string, MV Pedulla Buzz 4, Mike Lull Modern Five, Fender Jazz, and Treker "Louis Johnson" fretted and fretless six-strings. You can also find him playing and singing most Sunday mornings with Dreaming Loud, the praise and worship team at Full Gospel Mission Church in Everett, WA.
Fred was also a significant player in the "Save our Seahawks" movement, the public outcry that kept the Seahawks in Seattle, and wrote and recorded the anthem, "Let’s Save the Seahawks."
Harry Frederick Cockfield was born in Lake City, South Carolina and graduated from Lake City High School. School activities included chorus and band, where he played first chair flute from age ten through his senior year. He attended Florence-Darlington Technical College in Florence, SC and received an Associate Degree in Electro-Mechanical Engineering. Fred also attended Lake Washington Technical College in Kirkland, Washington, graduating in the fall of 2005 with two AAS degrees in Multimedia Design & Production. While attending LWTC, he received many honors, making the President's List seven times and graduating with a 3.98 GPA.
Fred’s first band was The Epitome of Sound, where he was featured as vocalist and lead guitarist. He began playing bass, flute, and singing professionally in 1969, touring with many regional and national acts including The Drifters, Clifford Curry, Brian Hyland, Jerry Butler, Percy Sledge and Wayne Cochran.
His musical influences include Jaco Pastorius, James Jamerson, Noel Redding, Paul McCartney, Stanley Clarke, Ron Carter, Victor Wooten, Steve Bailey, Mark Egan, Dave Pomeroy, Glenn Worf, David Hungate and far too many others to mention here.
Fred founded the Academy Of Music in Bellevue, Washington in 1982 and soon became an adjunct faculty member at Seattle Pacific University. He is a former contributing writer for the Experience Hendrix magazine and was the Bass Guitar Forum Manager for The Microsoft Network (MSN).
In 1994, he authored his first bass instruction book---"Power Tools for 4,5 & 6 String Bass" which is distributed by the Hal Leonard Corporation. "Power Tools for 4,5 & 6 String Bass" is now included in the curriculum at Shoreline Community College in the North Seattle area. In 1997, Mel Bay Publications released Fred’s second book, "Power Tools for Guitar"---co-written with Queensryche guitarist, Michael Wilton.
New books available include "Power Tools for 5 String Bass" and "Power Tools for 4 String Bass."
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Power Tools for Guitar comes with CD ($17.95)
(co-written with Queensryche guitarist Michael Wilton)
Power Tools for Four-String Bass comes with CD ($19.95)
Power Tools for Five-String Bass comes with CD ($19.95)
Power Tools for 4, 5, & 6-String Bass ($12.95)
Ask for them at your favorite music retailer
Order Fred's New Latin Jazz Band's CD
