When and why did you take up the bass?
I bought my first bass guitar from another schoolboy in 1981. It was just a cheap bass but I landed lucky and it was a nice instrument. I suppose the “obvious” instrument to learn would have been the guitar, but I went for the bass after noticing that what really makes some songs good is the way the various instruments move against each other.

Did you have lessons?
No, I'm entirely self-taught. After six months of rooting around the bottom four frets learning little, I discovered the music of Rush and started trying to play Geddy Lee's bass lines. This was time-consuming, but thinking carefully about the best fingering and positions was unquestionably the one thing which transformed me from a beginner into a decent bass player.

Which famous bass players do you admire?
Geddy Lee of course, but perhaps my favourite player is one who few fellow bassists seem to have heard of - Colin Hodgkinson. Many years ago I saw a tv screening of a concert given by just him and guitarist Alexis Korner. The music was largely Blues, which isn't really my cup of tea, but the playing was phenomenal. See if you can get hold of Hodgkinson's recent album “The Bottom Line”. (I got mine from The Bass Centre in Manchester.)
Jean-Jacques Burnel from The Stranglers is another player who really makes his bass stand out. Listen to the instrumental counterpoint on their album “The Raven”. Stanley Clarke is an awesome player whose early albums are fine works in all respects. I didn't start listening to the mighty Jaco Pastorius until hearing a tribute to him after his death in 1987.
The best bass players I've ever actually seen perform are Jeff Berlin (breathtaking), and Dave Ball who played in Barbara Thompson's Paraphernalia.

How did you get into playing Bach?
In one of his books, the bass player Joe Hubbard mentions being inspired by Bach's music. Around the same time I heard Jaco's “Chromatic Fantasy”, so it was natural to investigate these things. Bach is tremendous fun to play and is wonderful for the fingers. I can now play two entire cello suites and have started on a third.

Are you in a band?
Yes, I play in a Rock covers band. Ideally though I would like to set up a tribute band dedicated to the music of either Elvis Costello & the Attractions or Steely Dan. I know, two somewhat dissimilar bands! The problem is always finding a good enough keyboard player ...