George Price is a professional bassist, Chapman Stick player and session musician based in London. He is the bassist in country-rock band Backwoods Creek. He has taken his career across the U.K and Europe, in the festival, concert and gigging scene. George has relied on the comfort and durability of Neotech Straps for over 12 years. We had the fortune of interviewing George to discover more about his journey as a musician so far.
Thank you so much for meeting with us today. We’re thrilled to bring you on as an ambassador with us!
Thank you for asking me! Everyone needs to know about Neotech Straps. Your social media game has gone through the roof recently, and it’s noticeable.
You live in London, but you’re not originally from there. What brought you to the London scene?
I was born in Preston, Lancashire, but I currently live in Putney, in southwest London.
I first came to London to do my Bachelors degree in Bass Guitar Performance at BIMM Institute London. I’ve been here since then! There’s 0 music scene in Preston compared to London. They always say it’s always better to go away from home for uni! I’ve not stopped studying music since college. I got a lot of opportunities through BIMM. Because there was such a small intake of bass players, I always had the opportunity to play in a few college bands. BIMM brought me in to do some session work recently, over the 2020 lockdown, which is great because I get to work with new people every day. I’ve done gigs all over London, but I just feel like there’s an invisible safety bubble around Putney. It feels like I can say ‘I’m in Putney, everything’s all good.’
When did you start playing the bass?
I started on guitar when I was 12, and then my Dad suggested I started playing bass. There was a local cover band looking for a bassist when I was 14, and I ended up going through high school with it. I was doing quite well, and getting paid gigs. We played all over Lancashire, Preston, Crawley… We even went to Crewe, which is pretty far away from home for a 14 year old in a cover band!
That is pretty far! What have been some highlights of your music career since then?
I played for OPM at The Adelphi, toured across the U.K. with Greta Van Fleet and toured with The Struts. I’ve performed at Gorilla in Manchester, KOKO and Spice of Life in Soho, The Troubadour in London, The Cavern Club in Liverpool… I’ve done a lot of festivals, including Fete de La Musique and Montreux Jazz Festival in Switzerland, and Gibraltar Calling Music Festival. It was interesting to perform at Montreux Jazz Festival, because our band was so heavy on pop. I’ve played some big gigs in Switzerland. The Mega Strap made all of these shows so much nicer to play – it has traveled all over the place at a lot of gigs. I’ve done a lot of recording for albums and singles. When I’m not gigging, I go busking.
Your Mega Strap sounds well travelled! How long have you used Neotech Straps?
I got my Neotech Mega Strap™️ for my headless bass 12 years ago, and it’s lasted that long. The longevity of Neotech Straps blows my mind! The one time I needed to replace it, only recently, I emailed you guys to see if there was anything you could do, and you sent me a strap out for free!
The Mega Strap™️ is one of my favourite products. It’s super comfortable and just makes playing bass all the more fun. I’m also a big fan of Neotech’s Stomp Stoppers™️ I didn’t know I needed something so bad, but, since I got them, they’ve changed my gig life. I can’t fault Neotech Straps. The way they’re made is perfect.
I see that you have a lot of guitars on your wall behind you. You’re quite the collector! How many are there?
*counting *
There’s 15 I can count. I have a double bass, a tiny Bass Ukulele, a ten stringed Stick, that Tony Levin also plays. An NS stick, Alembic 5, Alembic 4, 8 string John Entwistle, Warwick fretless, three more olympics, and then a Chapman Stick. The Chapman Stick goes everywhere. There’s a lot to choose from, and they all serve their own purpose!
I bought the bass ukulele because, if you’re going to acoustic sessions, BBQ’s, campfires, I’d feel a little bit daft when I’d bring out a regular bass guitar that makes very little noise. The bass ukulele is loud enough that people can hear what I’m doing. Also, I can take it on holiday and not put it in the hold of an airplane – which terrifies me!
How did the lockdown go for you?
I became pretty motivated. Because everyone was at home, everyone was literally practising and uploading all the time. It helps you step up your game. My social media game had to go up because there was an unreal amount of content being put out. That was a big motivation, and also gave me a lot to do! My band Backwoods Creek got a series going. When I was able to, I’d go out in public and play music for people, and they liked it. They loved hearing people playing music that wasn’t on a computer screen. It felt like an act of service. I can’t explain how important the support of my girlfriend, family and friends was throughout the lockdown.
What are your biggest goals?
There’s two sides to this: one is to make it big, and play everywhere. That’s the dream. The other side would be to be a successful, well-known session player. I want my sound to be recognised. So either: world-famous, gigging all over the world, or a famous session player.
Or both!
Or both!
Check out George’s work here:
OP/TECH USA and Neotech Straps 
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