Michael Hedges and Michael Manring: Musical pioneers years after the gold rush

Michael Hedges blazed new trails as a composer and an acoustic guitarist in the 1980s and 1990s. An examination of Hedges’ work, however, wouldn’t be complete without honoring Michael Manring, a virtuosic musician who added the incredible (and featured) sound of the fretless bass to many of Hedges’ haunting tracks.

Here’s a little look into how I stumbled upon Michael Hedges and Michael Manring, and why I hope you do too. Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

Years ago I spent way too much money on a fretless bass. To be fair, I worked at a music instrument shop that afforded me an incredible deal on instruments that we carried. And I had a little extra cash in my pocket. And I was young.

But the truth is, I purchased a fretless bass for a very specific reason. More accurately, I purchased a fretless bass because of the creative collaboration of two individuals: Michael Hedges and Michael Manning.

Who was Michael Hedges?

Michael Hedges was first and foremost, a composer. In the 1980s he rose to prominence as an acoustic guitar player who broke many previously-perceived boundaries of the guitar. He had a few techniques that stand out, even to the most casual of guitar listeners and viewers.

Firstly, his songs just sound different, and much of that was due to the individual alternate tunings he constructed for nearly every piece he wrote. Alternate tunings allow more of the strings to resonate the full length of the guitar, and can create bigger, fuller sounds than a guitar in standard tuning.

Secondly (and more visually obvious), Michael Hedges employed the percussive use of his right hand to not simply strum the strings, but to actually finger chords on the fretboard and beat upon the body and neck. Think of Van Halen, and how Eddie became known for “finger tapping.” Well, because of the alternate tunings, Hedges could tap full chords on the fretboard with his right hand – it’s fun to watch and unique to hear.

Finally, Hedges would bring other instruments into the mix, the most famous of which was the large, alien-looking harp guitar. His instrument of choice was made by the Dyer Company in the 1920s, and had 4 long bass strings (in addition to the guitar’s standard six) that Hedges would tune specifically for his (already complex) solo compositions.

Much more than unique technique

But while the unusual techniques are sure to catch the eye of (and influence) listeners and musicians alike, Michael Hedges stands out even more as a composer. His pieces were part classical, part jazz, part folk. Nearly all were performed on the acoustic guitar – an instrument that can range in tone from lilting and romantic to brash and violent, and Hedges found and employed more sounds from the acoustic guitar than most dreamed possible.

His songs had a rustic and earthy feel that gave them the semblance of walking in the woods, or driving home in a storm. Unsurprisingly, he was picked up by Windam Hill Records and placed in the “new age” category.

Still, his works defy what most would consider “new age” – they range from funky to sad to simply unexpected (his covers of Prince’s and Sheila E’s “Love Bizarre,” The Rolling Stones’ “Miss You,” and of the “Theme from HATARI!” all showcase his wide range of influences and passions).

Michael Manring and the sound of his fretless bass

But there was a separate sound that made many of Hedges’ compositions stand out even more – the sound brought by his fellow creative and musical genius: Michael Manring.

Michael Manring has done, for the fretless bass, what Michael Hedges did for the guitar. Manring uses unusual techniques, for sure (his creative use of alternate tunings, the ebow, harmonics, etc.) to expand the perceived limits of what these instruments could do. But again, Manring has real taste, and his use of those techniques are not for the glory of showing off, but rather to allow him to play the sounds and compositions he hears – compositions that stand apart in their beauty and poignancy.

And together, Hedges and Manring made some of the most amazing musical pieces I’ve ever heard.

If you haven’t heard an electric fretless bass, I’d steer you to “Two Days Old” – a track on Michael Hedges first album (Breakfast in the Field).

The electric fretless bass is (and especially when played by Michael Manring) such a unique sound – one part alien and one part human vocal. It grows and cries and moans in each vibrato in a way that is similar to a cello, but perhaps with even more dynamic (volume) change on each note – since it’s being plucked and not bowed.

And, when placed as the percussive or, even more beautifully, as the soloing instrument in a Michael Hedges piece, it creates one of the most mournful and gorgeous tones I’ve ever personally heard. I can listen to Manring’s solo in “Two Days Old” over and over again and learn something new each time.

Hedges’ death, and the beginning of my listening

The two musicians went on to collaborate for many years until Hedges’ death in a car accident in 1997. Oddly enough, it was Hedges’ death (and the news story that I saw on TV) that first truly sparked my interest in the music they made.

I was born in the early 80s, and my parents had a couple different Michael Hedges CDs (Breakfast in the Field and Live on Double Planet), from which I’d heard his music while growing up. But I’d never really listened closely or intentionally. And so, when the news story came on, the clip they used was of the piece for which Hedges is perhaps most well known, “Because It’s There,” in which he plays the Dyer Harp guitar.

It’s amazing to watch (you can see him on youtube here) – there’s seemingly too much going on with his hands to comprehend. And yet the piece is meditative and deceptively simple in composition and melody.

Of course it’s a famous piece for Hedges: the image of man, holding an odd looking harp guitar, making an unusual, beautiful piece of music is striking enough. But “Because It’s There” can only be performed by percussively shaping chords on the fretboard with both his left AND right hands, while simultaneously plucking the bass strings. And well, that is something that stands out.

But again, it’s not the technique that has stood the test of time. Rather, the haunting quality of Hedges’ music is timeless. The feelings that stirred while I viewed that news segment caused me to search for and (thankfully) find those albums that my parents owned. From there I dived in wholeheartedly, and Michael Hedges has become one of the most influential artists for my own creative education.

Michael Manring:  On working with Michael Hedges

There’s a great little interview given by Michael Manring recently in which he recounts what it was like to work with Michael Hedges. Manring’s words speak for themselves:

“[Michael Hedges] was an excellent academic musician – he knew a ton about music. He knew everything about music and studied a massive amount of music. But at the same time he had this very deep, visceral relationship with music. And anytime music was playing or he was playing music he just put all of himself into it. And so anything I would do, he would react to in some way. And he was one of those wonderful musicians – we just so appreciate these people – who make you sound better, because he had that magical ability to react to what you were doing and make it make sense.”

If you’ve found this article by searching for Michael Hedges, you probably know his stuff as well as I do. But if you haven’t heard of him, don’t despair – I don’t know many of my contemporaries who have heard of him either. When I’m talking to musicians, especially ones I respect, and I realize they haven’t heard of these two geniuses, my face lights up.

“Here he goes again,” is likely what they’re thinking, as I pull up videos of Hedges’ performances, in my hope to showcase the incredible range of his musicianship and light the same kind of fire in my friends’ minds (and now hopefully in your mind) that exists in mine. And while I won’t belabor the point any further, here’s a list (and links) to my favorites (not all include Michael Manring on bass, but many do).

New to Hedges? Start with these!

Two Days Old

Lenono

Theme from HATARI!

Rickover’s Dream

Spare Change

Dirge

I Carry Your Heart

Woman of the World

Ritual Dance

Baby Toes

All Along The Watchtower

After the Gold Rush

Menage a Trois

All of this to say, I still have that fretless bass. And while I haven’t used it nearly enough in the years I’ve owned it, it WILL make a few important appearances on my upcoming solo album. More importantly, however, I hope that this article inspires you to listen to some of the incredible works of Michael Hedges and Michael Manring.

If you have any Hedges or Manring favorite pieces, or memories, or simply thoughts about music, please comment below!

Cecil

ps – I’m supporting myself (and releasing one, studio quality song per month for, well, as far into the future as I can see), by generous listeners like you. Check out my Patreon page – a simple $5 pledge gets you free downloads of each monthly song, as well as exclusive content (song ideas I’m working on, updates on shows, news from traveling, and more). It allows me to take you along on this journey I’m on, as a full-time recording artist. Every little bit helps, so thank you in advance for your consideration!