“I’m not just a Bass Player, I’m a Sound System”

As bassist for the legendary rap label Sugarhill Records backing Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five to the pioneering Living Colour, Doug Wimbish has lent his innovative and creative bass grooves and sounds to a roster of world-renowned musicians. Considered a pioneer in Hip-Hop bass playing and in the use of bass effects, alternate tunings and extended hand techniques, Doug’s mastery of the bass is unparalleled. As one of the most versatile session and touring bassists in the industry, Doug moves readily from pop and mainstream rock to hip-hop, funk, metal, symphonic metal, reggae, R&B, electronic, world and experimental music.

Doug Wimbish is probably best known as the cutting edge lead bassist in the Grammy Award-winning hard rock band Living Colour, but looking beyond the obvious, one quickly sees that Doug's influence and impact on the world's musical culture is much more vast and significant than often written or realized. 

Grandmaster Flash and The Furious Five’s “The Message”, listed by Rollingstone.com as the #1 Greatest Hip Hop Song of all time, featured Doug’s bass lines as do many other Sugarhill Records classics including “Apache”, “8th Wonder” and “White Lines”. Wimbish wrote the bass line on The Sequence’s “Funk You Up”.

To get an idea of the respect Doug has earned within the music industry, consider that in one week in 1991, Doug received personal phone calls from Living Colour, Bruce Springsteen and Seal, all asking him to work with them. Doug made the decision to work with Living Colour and joined the band, becoming its permanent bassist. He actively records and tours today with his band mates Vernon Reid, Corey Glover and Will Calhoun. The group’s latest album, “Shade”, was released in September of 2017.

In addition to his work with Living Colour, Doug’s highly regarded career spanning all musical genres has also included recording, producing and touring with many world renowned artists including The Rolling Stones, Mick Jagger, Jeff Beck, Joe Satriani, Herb Albert, Annie Lennox, Madonna, Carly Simon, Seal, Al Green, Billy Idol, George Clinton, Depeche Mode, Talib Kweli, Kanye West, James Brown, Mos Def, Tarja Turunen, Ronnie Wood, Freddie Jackson, Michael Bolton, Schiller, Cheb Khaled, Hari Haran and Peter Wolf, to name a few.

From his early days as one of Hip-Hop’s earliest architects in the Original Sugarhill Records Rhythm Section, to his long-time membership in Living Colour, TackHead, Little Axe, Jungle Funk, HeadFake, and then on to more recent collaborations including DMD the Vibes with Daru Jones & Marcus Machado, Doug continues to prove himself as one of the world’s finest, versatile and most sought after bass guitarists.

The early years & All Platinum Records

As a young boy in the early 1960’s, Doug’s musical journey started when he found a mandolin, which he played, eventually breaking several strings - leaving him with a four-string instrument. Initially self taught on his mandolin and guitar, Doug began taking professional guitar lessons. After seeing an abundance of guitar players in his local area, combined with few bass players and little opportunity for bass instruction, Doug’s focus shifted to learning bass guitar. It was Connecticut bassist Gary Williams, who gave Doug, as a 7th grader, his first bass lesson. Doug quickly became skilled with the instrument and found his niche as a young bassist. Influenced by the music his older brother and sister enjoyed, Wimbish listened to the likes of Jimi Hendrix, Sly Stone and Led Zeppelin while growing up, marking the beginning of his life long journey exploring sounds and ambience.

In 1974, Doug met Ohio native and guitarist Skip McDonald at Jackie McLean’s Artist Collective in Hartford, CT. Together they established an unrivaled reputation for their studio accomplishments. The pair formed a group together with Harold Sargent, Barton Campbell, Hubert Powell, Otha Stokes and Randy Bost, known as Wood, Brass & Steel. The group recorded and released two albums with vocalist Craig Derry at Joe and Sylvia Robinson’s All Platinum Records: “Wood, Brass & Steel”, and later, “Hard & Heavy”. Now rare collectibles, the albums featured the classic “Funkanova” and “My Darling Baby”, which was written by Doug at the age of 18 and later sampled by Erykah Badu in her hit song, “20 Feet Tall”. As Wood Brass & Steel, the band backed up artists including Sylvia Robinson, Etta James, Solomon Burke, Jack McDuff, The Moments and Candi Staton. 

The disco era was in full effect in 1978 as Doug and Skip backed up the group Musique on the road, performing disco classics including “(Push Push) in the Bush”, listed in Billboard’s Hot 100.

The late 70’s to early 80’s - Sugar Hill, philadelphia international & Tommy Boy Records years

In 1979 as All Platinum Records folded and Joe and Sylvia Robinson launched Sugarhill Records, Doug entered the Sugarhill Records phase of his career as a writer, recording artist and producer for the record label. Doug and Skip (and later, drummer Keith LeBlanc) became known as the house band for Sugarhill Records, backing The Sugarhill Gang, Funky Four Plus One, Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five, The Sequence, Treacherous 3, West Street Mob, Jack McDuff, Crash Crew, Sylvia Robinson, Harry Ray, Candi Staton, Donnie Elbert and The Mean Machine. While at Sugarhill Records, Doug helped launch the career of the legendary mix engineer, Chris Lord-Alge, the pair developing a life long friendship, continuing to work together on projects to this day.

It was during an October 1979 Sugarhill Gang performance in Columbia, SC, that Sylvia Robinson excitedly called upon Doug to come and listen to the trio of Angie B, Cheryl The Pearl and Blondie, singing “Funk You Up” while standing outside the arena. Wimbish, on the spot in that parking lot, instantly wrote the bass line to that infamous song, “Funk You Up”, since sampled by the likes of Dr. Dre, Erykah Badu, Ice Cube, Beastie Boys, En Vogue and more. It was per Doug’s recommendation to Sylvia Robinson that the trio, known as “The Sequence”, was signed to the Sugarhill label.

Towards the end of the Sugarhill Records era, Universal Records asked the Sugarhill label to participate in the “Miami Vice” album, for the popular “Miami Vice” TV series and movie. As the deadline to submit a song approached, the Robinson’s called upon Doug and rapper Melle Mel, from Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five, to submit a song. Doug and Mel agreed, and immediately went in the studio to work on the project. On that one evening, Doug and Melle wrote and recorded the song “Vice”, with Wimbish also producing and playing all instruments (bass, guitar, drum machine) on “Vice”. The song was submitted by the label and used on the 1985 Miami Vice Soundtrack album produced by Michael Mann.

Controversy shrouded the Sugarhill label as many songwriters and publishers did not receive proper credits for the songs they wrote and produced while at the label, often due to the methods the label used. Wimbish was responsible for writing, producing and recording many songs while at the Sugarhill label from 1979 thru 1984, songs which laid the groundwork for the birth of hip-hop. To this day, Wimbish has not received proper credits due.

As the Sugarhill Records empire began to fold and Doug Wimbish started making his exodus in 1984 from The Sugar Hill Records label as bassist for the label’s house band, he went on to work in Philadelphia, where between 1983 to 1985, Doug recorded and wrote under the Philly International Record Label, founded by Kenneth Gamble and Leon Huff, showcasing the Philly soul scene. It was at PIR where Doug recorded with the O’Jays, Harold Melvin and the Blue Notes, Bunny Sigler, McFadden and Whitehead and Philippe Wynne.

Doug then moved back to NYC, where he worked under Tommy Boy Records, producing, writing & recording with the Force MD’s (“Love Letter”). While at Tommy Boy, Doug co-wrote “Unity” with Afrika Bambaataa and James Brown, recorded at Unique Studios in NYC. Doug also wrote, produced and recorded “Some of My Best Jokes are Friends” with George Clinton and Thomas Dolby under Capitol Records, released in 1985.

The Mid 80’s: The London era, Tack>>Head, Sun CITY, Mick Jagger, Jeff BEck and more

Doug entered the ‘London era’ of his career in 1984 after meeting producer Adrian Sherwood. It was at Tom Silverman’s first New Music Seminar, held in New York, NY in 1984, where Doug, along with guitarist Skip McDonald and drummer Keith LeBlanc, were introduced to Adrian Sherwood by Tommy Boy Entertainment’s Founder Tom Silverman.

Meetings held at the seminar went well between the rhythm section trio and Sherwood. About a week later, Keith traveled to London, followed soon after by Doug and Skip, the trio beginning work on a new project with Sherwood, which they entitled “Fats Comet”. Originally conceived to be a studio project, Fats Comet released several singles including “Bop Bop”, “Doug Wimbish (feat. Fats Comet) Don’t Forget That Beat”, “Stormy Weather” and “Rockchester”. Wimbish also wrote and recorded under Adrian’s On-U-Sound Record Label, working with artists such as Lee Scratch Perry, Ghetto Priest, Bim Sherman and Dub Syndicate. 

The mid-eighties saw Fats Comet shifting their musical direction towards a more non-commercial, underground venture, signaling the birth of the cutting edge, industrial funk, rock fusion ensemble “TackHead” with Doug, Skip Mc Donald, Adrian Sherwood and Keith LeBlanc. Initially an instrumental band, Tackhead’s second studio album, “Friendly As A Hand Grenade”, marked the introduction of Rolling Stones vocalist Bernard Fowler as a group member. The group achieved success in the  London underground and dance hall scene, releasing the albums “Friendly as a Hand Grenade” (1989) and “Strange Things” (1990). Tackhead is also known as Mark Stewart’s “Maffia” and Gary Clail’s “Tackhead Sound System”.

Wimbish, also working with producer Arthur Baker at the time, was enlisted by Baker to join and record on the Artists Against Apartheid project. Wimbish was the principle bassist for the 1985 Artists Against Apartheid “Sun City” album. The album, produced by Arthur Baker and Steven Van Zandt (Bruce Springsteen), saw Doug working with artists including Miles Davis, Bono, Jimmy Cliff, Peter Gabriel, Herbie Hancock, Run DMC, George Clinton, Bobby Womack, Nona Hendryx, Clarence Clemons, Pete Townshend, Joey Ramone, Grandmaster Melle Mel and Bob Dylan.

It was Arthur Baker who introduced Doug to Mick Jagger and Jeff Beck. Wimbish recorded on Beck’s “Flash” album (1985) and Jagger’s solo album, “Primitive Cool”, released in 1987. While working with Baker, Doug expanded his studio work, also recording with Will Downing, Al Green, Carly Simon, Little Steven, Clarence Clemons and Nona Hendryx. After being introduced by Keith Diamond to Michael Bolton, Doug went to Unique Studios in NYC with Bolton to record on his album “The Hunger”. Wimbish’s bass playing can also be heard on 80’s releases by artists including Melba Moore, Peter Wolf, Sheena Easton, Brenda K Starr, Duke Bootee, Chops and Freddie Jackson.

Doug joined Jeff Beck along with drummer Simon Philips, keyboardist Jan Hammer and Jimmy Hall on Jeff Beck’s 1986 Summer Tour in Japan, including the infamous Suntory Beer Sound Market ‘86 Open Air in Karuizawa, Nagano, Japan.

In 1988, Wimbish joined Mick Jagger’s solo “Deep Down Under Australian Tour” of Australia and New Zealand, and Jagger’s “Suntory Dry Beer Live” tour of Japan and Indonesia. The band included Mick Jagger, along with Doug Wimbish on bass, Joe Satriani and Jimmy Ripp on guitars, Simon Philips on drums, Phil Ashley and Susie Davis on keyboards and vocalists Bernard Fowler, Carol Kenyon, Jenny Douglas and Valerie Scott.

The mid to late eighties also saw Wimbish continuing to record and tour with Tack>>Head, Mark Stewart & The Maffia, Gary Clail and Adrian Sherwood’s On-U Sound label.

The Early 90’s - Living Colour, Seal, Madonna, Annie LEnnox, Mick JAgger, Joe Satriani & More

During the early nineties, Wimbish recorded on Seal’s 1991 debut album “Seal”, Madonna’s “Erotica” album (later certified double-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America), Annie Lennox’s “Diva” album (nominated for the 1993 Grammy Award Album of the Year and RIAA certified double platinum), and James Brown’s “Star Time” album (ranked number 79 in 2003 on Rolling Stone magazine's list of the 500 greatest albums of all time. It was the second-highest ranking box set on the list.) 

Working with the English electronic music group, Bomb the Bass, Doug co-produced, wrote and played on the group’s “Unknown Territory” album. Wimbish later co-produced the band’s third studio album, “Clear” (released 1995).

While in London’s Olympic Studios with the Rolling Stones and Bernard Fowler in October 1991, Wimbish received a phone call from Living Colour’s Will Calhoun, stating that the band was making a change in bassists, would he be interested in auditioning? Doug said yes, subsequently flying to New York on Halloween 1991 and auditioned by playing “Time’s Up” to the amazement of the band, as no other auditioning bassist had opted for that song given the speed, tempo changes and character. Wimbish was asked to play with Living Colour at the band’s January 1992 Hollywood Rock Festival shows in Rio de Janeiro and São Paulo. It was at those shows that Wimbish was asked to join Living Colour, replacing Muzz Skillings as permanent bassist for the band.

Doug continued session work in 1992, including recording on Mick Jagger’s “Sweet Thing” from his “Wandering Spirit” (1993) album with producer Rick Rubin. 

Living Colour began recording at Bearsville Studios in New York with producer Ron St. Germain, releasing their 3rd album, “Stain”, in 1993, marking the recording debut of Wimbish with the band. In 1994, Living Colour received a Grammy Nomination for Best Hard Rock Performance for "Leave It Alone” a song co-written by Wimbish.

Living Colour embarked on a 1993-1994 worldwide tour in support of “Stain”, with Wimbish also finding time to record and tour with Skip McDonald’s Little Axe. 

Doug recorded on Joe Satriani’s 5th studio album, “Time Machine”, released in 1993 and certified Gold in October 1994. Wimbish also recorded on Billy Idol’s “Cyberpunk” (1993) and with Ronnie Wood, Barrington Levy and Naomi Campbell.

Wimbish played on Carly Simon’s 1994 album "Letters Never Sent" and performed with Simon on the accompanying tour, including the 1995 surprise Carly Simon tour promotion concert  “Live at Grand Central Station”.

MID to late 90’s - Rolling Stones, Depeche Mode, Herb Albert, PAula Cole, HeadFAke, Jungle Funk & Doug’s first solo Album

Following the “Stain” tour, SONY artist Living Colour returned briefly to the studio in 1995 before disbanding, recording for what was to be a forthcoming album. The recordings were instead released on a compilation album, “Pride” (1995).

Following the break up, while Vernon Reid and Corey Glover remained signed to the label, the rhythm section of Will Calhoun and Doug Wimbish were released from the label. Subsequently, Calhoun traveled through the Australian Aboriginal Outback, participating in drum clinics and collecting inspiration for a solo record. Meanwhile, Wimbish returned to the UK, producing, writing, recording and performing with Skip McDonald, Adrian Sherwood and On-U Sound recording artists. When Doug and Will eventually returned to the US, they each brought with them a collection of songs that they contributed towards their explosive drum and bass collaboration, Head>>Fake, a live fusion between DJ and musician producing trance-induced rhythms. Wimbish and Calhoun toured extensively as HeadFake.

In 1996, Jungle Funk was formed, the merge of three iconic musicians each in their own right - Doug Wimbish, Will Calhoun and Vinx - combining the drum and bass, jazz and funk infused rhythms of Headfake with Vinx’s melodic, grooving and rhythmic vocals and percussion. The group is known for its use of sampling, electronic percussion and digital looping in a live setting creating live DJ inspired songs. Their sound has been described as "drum and bass infused poetic music." Jungle Funk performed over 200 shows and festivals internationally including The Montreux Jazz Festival and North Sea Jazz Festival. The self-titled album "Jungle Funk" received much critical acclaim, including mention for album of the year in Australia.

Doug also toured in 1996 with Bernard Fowler and Bad Dog as well as Skip McDonald’s Little Axe.

Wimbish recorded on Depeche Mode’s “Ultra” album, released in April 1997. The album debuted at number one on the UK Albums Chart. In 1997, Doug headed to Ocean Ways Studios in Los Angeles to record with the Rolling Stones on their “Bridges to Babylon” album, released in September, 1997.

Wimbish, together with Will Calhoun, wrote and recorded on Herb Albert’s “Colors”, released in 1999.

Doug released his debut solo album, "Trippy Notes for Bass" featuring Talvin Singh, Skip McDonald, Adrian Sherwood, Bernie Worrell, Keith LeBlanc, Will Calhoun, Alex Foster, Sussan Deyhim and Nigel Butler in 1999 on Adrian Sherwood’s On U Sound label. That same year, Doug traveled to Morocco where he performed at the Gnawa Festival in Marrakech and Essaouira with Hassan Hakmoun, Sussan Deyhim, Will Calhoun, Reggie Workman and world renowned Gnawan musicians. Wimbish had previously recorded on Deyhim’s “Majoun” album released in 1996.

Doug later joined 1998 Grammy Award Best New Artist winner, Paula Cole, for a series of tours in 1999 and 2000.

The early 2000’s - living colour reunites, Mos Def & Black Jack Johnson, Busta Rhymes

In 2000, Doug, together with Will Calhoun, Dr. Know [Bad Brains] & Bernie Worrell [Parliament Funkadelic], joined Hip-Hop, Hollywood movie and Broadway theater star, Mos Def, in the band known as Black Jack Johnson. The group debuted in April 2001 at the Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival in California and in July 2001, taped a club show at the Bowery Ballroom which aired in October 2001 on HBO's live music series “Reverb”.

Billed as a Headfake live performance with the promise of a “special guest” at New York City’s famed CBGB’s on December 21, 2000, fans packed the club to capacity. After several songs performed by Headfake, joined by singer Corey Glover, Glover called off stage to guitarist Vernon Reid. Reid joined his bandmates on stage in front of the enthusiastic crowd - marking a full-fledged Living Colour reunion and return; the dynamite show rekindling Doug, Vernon, Will and Corey's desire to play together. A small tour of the West coast drew huge and enthusiastic crowds, launching them off for a string of dates in Europe, including the Montreux Jazz Festival. The summer of 2001 saw the group finishing their U.S. tour on the East Coast, highlighted by a memorable show in Central Park.

Doug, as musical director for Busta Rhymes, toured with the rapper in July and August 2002 on Moby’s Area 2 tour, co-headlined by Moby and David Bowie, playing shows in the U.S. and Canada.

After touring the US in 2002 with Mos Def and recording with Mos Def on his album, “The New Danger” (2004), Doug came back to New York City to record the album "Collideøscope" with Living Colour. Doug also co-wrote with Kanye West and others as well as played bass on “Brown Sugar”, which was featured on the movie soundtrack for "Brown Sugar" starring Taye Diggs and Mos Def. The song reached Number 16 on the Billboard Top 200 chart and Number 4 on R&B/ Hip Hop chart. Wimbish also co-wrote a song called "The Jump Off" for “The Italian Job" movie soundtrack also co-starring Mos Def.

Doug and Will Calhoun toured as HeadFake in 2003. Living Colour released “Collideøscope" (October 2003), touring in support of the album through 2003-2004.

Doug had several television appearances in 2004: performing with Living Colour on “Last Call with Carson Daily”, “The Tonight Show with Jay Leno”, “Jimmy Kimmel Live!” and “Late Night with David Letterman” (with Emmy Award Nominee and rapper Mos Def). Doug teamed up with Joe Palombo and John McCarthy of Rock House Method to release an instructional DVD, "New Dimensions for Bass”. Doug then produced guitarist McCarthy's record "Drive" featuring Bernie Worrell, Will Calhoun and Leo Nocentelli.

The WimBash Music Festival Series, founded by Doug, initially started in 2004 as a welcome home/ birthday party held at Sully's Pub in Hartford, CT for his close friend, mentor and fellow Sugarhill Band mate Skip McDonald. Doug chose the small, hometown venue, owned by his friend, Darrell Sullivan, to recognize Darrell’s impassioned support of musicians within the community, in that Sully’s Pub was the only club in the area offering live music seven days a week. As the industrial hip-hop & funk band TackHead band members planned to join Doug in honoring Skip, the 2004 event quickly aligned itself into what would become a TackHead reunion, their first live performance in nearly 15 years. The group went on to play a string of dates in the U.S. and Europe. While the initial event in 2004 wasn’t actually termed a WimBash, the celebration was so successful that it served as the catalyst for the creation of what Doug, the following year, in 2005, would entitle “WimBash”.

The mid to late 2000’s - Tarja Turunen, Living Colour, Little Axe, Tackhead, Leo Nocentelli & Doug’s New Solo release - CinemaSonics

Doug continued touring and recording with Little Axe, Mark Stewart & the Maffia, Jungle Funk and Headfake in 2005, with HeadFake playing the main stage at the 2005 Montreux Jazz Festival. Wimbish joined The Meters Leo Nocentelli and Zigaboo Modeliste with Will Calhoun and Robert Walters for a performance at BB King Blues Club in NYC in May 2005. Doug also produced and recorded with Czech gypsy funk band Gulo Car and Brazilian singer Fernanda Porto.

2006 kicked off with Will Calhoun and Doug joining Ms. Lauryn Hill onstage for a performance at a NYC corporate event. Doug joined Little Axe on an energetic tour across Europe and Canada, including a performance at the Real World Record anniversary party where Little Axe jammed with Robert Plant and Peter Gabriel. Living Colour toured Europe fronted by Dug Pinnick, singer of legendary band, King's X.

Doug met Finland's Rock Opera Diva and former Nightwish vocal sensation Tarja Turunen in 2007. After Tarja had inquired about the bassist on recordings she enjoyed - Seal’s “Crazy” and Annie Lennox’s “Diva” - her engineer, Doug Cook, contacted Doug’s accountant, Alan Friedman, who made the connection between Tarja and Doug. Wimbish subsequently recorded with Tarja on her second solo record "My Winter Storm”, which ended 2007 at 11th position on Billboard's Top 100 European albums. Doug toured with Tarja from 2007 to 2012, appearing on her DVD “Act 1”, filmed in March 2012 in Rosario, Argentina.

In 2007, Wimbish teamed back up with Skip McDonald and Keith LeBlanc, bringing European audiences Bernard Fowler's "Friends with Privileges” album and tour. Doug stepped out on his own for the “Doug Wimbish Sound System” solo tour across Europe, showcasing his astonishing showman qualities as a one-man act. Doug also recorded with and produced various artists while putting the final touches on his long awaited 2nd solo record “CinemaSonics”.

A frantically paced 2008 had Doug going back out on tour with a score of Little Axe, TackHead, Living Colour and Tarja Turunen dates happening all over the world. Leo Nocentelli’s Rare Funk Gathering at the 2008 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival featured the original Meters' guitarist and funk innovator with P-Funk’s Bernie Worrell, Will Calhoun & Doug Wimbish.

Wimbish re-issued "Trippy Notes for Bass & Mixes" and after decades collaborating with so many of the world's finest musicians, Doug made his most personal musical statement with the 2008 release of “CinemaSonics”, his second solo record. Set with all the instrumental virtuosity and hypnotic mood of his millennium-opening Trippy Notes for Bass, CinemaSonics takes one on an exciting journey of sound, from James Bond-style orchestrations, and comfortably numb interludes, to the most mysterious, unexplored musical frontiers. 

Prague’s Retro Music Hall hosted the release party for Doug's new solo record, “CinemaSonics”, during the time that Living Colour was in the city recording their 5th studio album. Living Colour surprised the audience by previewing a few new songs from their upcoming album, “Chair in the Doorway”.

After the 2009 WimBash NAMM event in January, Doug headed back to Prague with Living Colour to finish recording on their new album. Wimbish then continued touring throughout 2009 with Little Axe, Bernard Fowler and Tarja. Living Colour released “Chair in the Doorway” on September 15, 2009, followed by a world tour.

Early 2010’s - Living Colour, Ms. Lauryn Hill, Tackhead, TArja & More

In 2010, Doug, along with Bernard Fowler, Keith LeBlanc, Skip McDonald, and Adrian Sherwood headed back to the studio to work on a new TackHead album, “ShareHead”, released in December 2010. The album included a tune titled "Funky Obama", a TackHead interpretation of James Brown's "Funky President." 

Doug returned to Finland to record with Tarja on her “What Lies Beneath” (2010) album. Living Colour continued touring in support of “Chair In The Doorway”, including dates on the Experience Hendrix tour performing alongside artists such as Steve Vai, Kenny Wayne Shepherd, Robert Randolph, Susan Tedeschi & Ernie Isley. Doug collaborated on several projects including Against the Girl,  produced by Graham Marsh (Ceelo Green), and The Help with Alex Scholpp (Farmer Boys), Dacia Bridges (Dacia & the WMD) & Flo Dauner (Die Fantastischen Vier).

Doug joined Tarja on her 2011 and 2012 “What Lies Beneath” tours of South America and Mexico. He toured Germany with The Help and appeared with Ms. Lauryn Hill on “Late Night with Jimmy Fallon” in May 2011, subsequently beginning a span of recording and world-wide touring with Ms. Hill through 2012. Wimbish performed with Ms. Hill at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame 16th Annual American Music Masters Series Tribute Concert to soul legend Aretha Franklin on November 5, 2011. 

Wimbish travelled to New Orleans where he performed with Henry Butler at the 2011 New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival. Doug continues to perform annually in New Orleans during the city’s infamous Jazz Fest celebration with his many musical friends including Big Sam, Khris Royal, Nigel Hall, Eric McFadden, Maurice Brown, Roosevelt Collier, Louis Cato, Alvin Ford, Terence Higgins, Terrence Houston, Jon Baptiste, Joey Peebles, Robert Walter, Ike Stubblefield, Steven Perkins, Mike Dillon, Norwood Fisher, Angelo Moore, DJ Logic, London Souls, Fred Wesley, Nate Worth, Sput Searight, Marco Benevento, Charlie Wooten, Shaun Martin, PJ Morton, Eric Krazno, Leo Nocentelli, Zigaboo Modeliste, Ivan Neville, Tony Hall, the North Mississippi All Stars, Stanton Moore and many more.

On March 6, 2012, at the “Robert Johnson at 100” musical celebration at NYC’s Apollo Theater, Living Colour received a standing ovation after it’s performance of “Preachin’ Blues” (Up Jumped the Devil). The performance would become the spark for the band’s 6th studio album theme - a reinterpretation of the blues. The group began recording soon after the Apollo Theater performance for their next album.

One week later, an impromptu meet between drummer Daru Jones and Doug for a video shoot at MONO HQ in San Francisco would become the foundation for Doug’s newest collaboration. Joined in 2015 by guitarist Marcus Machado, the trio would become DMD the Vibes aka Daru Jones x Marcus Machado x Doug Wimbish.

Doug recorded on Tarja’s “Colours in the Dark” album, released in 2013.

Living Colour continued to tour in 2013, celebrating the 25th Anniversary of the band’s debut album, “Vivid”. On April 7, 2013, Living Colour performed to a crowd of over 86,000 fans at Wrestlemania 29, playing “Cult of Personality” as wrestler CM Punk made his entrance to the ring. When not in the studio, working on their forthcoming project, “Shade”, Living Colour continued touring across the US, Europe, Japan and South America. In Summer 2015, the band opened for Aerosmith during their “Blue Army” tour. Living Colour had the distinct honor to perform at “Freedom Sounds: A Community Celebration”, celebrating the grand opening of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of African American History and Culture in Washington, DC on September 24, 2016, joining artists including Public Enemy, Meshell Ndegeocello and The Roots. The band performed at the NY Knicks halftime show at Madison Square Garden in February 2017.

2015 to present - schiller, Living Colour, KMFDM, DMD the Vibes, PAssing the torch to music’s next generation

Doug joined German electronic musician Schiller, who has sold over 7 million albums worldwide, on his “Licht and Klang Arena 2016 Tour” and appears on Schiller’s “Zeitreise Live” concert film and album, filmed at the Mercedes Benz Arena in Berlin. Wimbish recorded on German industrial band KMFDM’s album, “Hell Yeah”, released in August 2017 and also on Little Axe’s critically acclaimed album, “London Blues”, released in October 2017.

In 2016, Living Colour released the EP and video “Who Shot Ya”. The band, in reinventing Notorious B.I.G.’s “Who Shot Ya”, made a controversial musical and visual statement against gun violence. After years in the making, on September 8, 2017, Living Colour released its sixth studio album, “Shade”, and celebrated the release with a special TV performance of “Come On” and “Wall” on the September 11, 2017 episode of “Late Night with Seth Myers”. Living Colour toured across Europe, the US, South America and Australia in support of the release.

DMD the Vibes, Doug’s collaboration with Daru Jones and Marcus Machado, along with guest Amp Fiddler, participated in a Recording Masterclass with engineer Mark Hornsby in April 2018 at Sweetwater Sound Studios. The trio is set to release recordings from the session, “Pregame Vol. 1 Live @ Sweetwater” featuring Reggie B. and Bobby Sparks with a full album featuring Van Hunt, Reggie B. Jermaine Holmes, Amp Fiddler & Redd Middleton to follow. Later in 2018, Doug joined Native American guitarist Stevie Salas with Bernard Fowler and Brian Tichy on a tour with film screenings of Salas’s “Rumble: The Indians who Rocked the World”.

Doug recorded and toured with the rock, metal & alternative band Glostik Willy in 2018, and continues to perform, record and stream with the group on selected dates. Wimbish co-wrote 3 songs with Garret Shider (Parliament Funkadelic) including the “I’m a Funkadelic” 2018 release. Fellow bassist Freekbass and Doug have enjoyed years of friendship and collaboration, with Doug also co-writing and producing several songs with Freekbass. Wimbish went into the studio with Berklee professor Tony Smith, producer Yaron Fuchs and engineer Neil Dorfman to record on Smith’s new project. Doug also collaborated with the English rapper and producer Roots Manuva on the acclaimed “Spit Bits” song (Pay It All Back Vol. 7), released on the On U Sound label in March 2019.

Living Colour continued to tour and perform at festivals domestically and internationally, including the 2019 Copenhell, Graspop Metal and BosPop Festivals. Doug recorded on Schiller’s 10th studio album, “Morgenstund” released in March 2019. In May of 2019, Doug joined Schiller on his 2019 “Neue Arena Tour” with bandmates drummer Gary Wallis (Pink Floyd), guitarist Scott McKeon, vocalists Tricia McTeague, Sophie Hiller & Schwarz and Iranian dotar player and vocalist Yaldi Abbasi. The last show of the tour, recorded and filmed at the Mercedes Benz Arena in Berlin, Germany, was featured on Schiller’s 2020 release of “Summer in Berlin”.

Doug once again joined Tarja, recording on her eighth solo studio album, “In The Raw”, released August 2019. Joining Tarja along with Alex Scholpp (guitar), Timm Schreiner (drums), Max Lilja (cello), Christian Kretschmar (keybaords), Doug toured with Tarja on her “In The Raw” Tour, until the tour was postponed due to Covid-19 in early March 2020.

In February 2020, Living Colour joined the ShipRocked Cruise to New Orleans, Key West & Cozumel and later that month set sail along with the Joe Bonamassa “Keeping the Blues Alive at Sea IV” cruise from Miami to Nassau, Bahamas, however all further tour plans for the year were postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic.

As a mentor, educator, producer and player, Doug, affectionately known as “Uncle Dougie”, has worked and played with the next generation of musicians including Broadway School of Rock stars, guitarist Brandon “TAZ” Niederauer & drummer Raghav Mehrotra, the teen metal rock band Unlocking the Truth, guitarists Reece Malone & Christone “Kingfish” Ingram as well as students from the DREAM Project’s Bachata Academy in the Dominican Republic.

After 17 years, Doug's personal venture, WimBash, continues to be both a vision and a mission. WimBash, as a community and family based, musical and educational festival has redefined how we look at pro-active involvement in making change. The event has established its name by leveraging the passion and talents of professional musicians by connecting them with groundbreaking programs in music, culture and quality education. WimBash features Doug playing with a number of world-class collaborators, as well as select local bands, providing the opportunity to see musicians, who more often play large venues around the world, in a much more intimate setting. WimBash is unique in that it brings together an eclectic group of music genres under one roof, utilizing the local talent alongside well-known artists while working together with a local foundation or organization in giving back directly to the community.

It is Doug’s strong personal belief to share the knowledge and gifts bestowed on him and other musicians, passing the passion, history, culture, integrity and soul of music on to future generations. Recognizing the power that music creates and instills for a child - strengthening self confidence, responsibility, listening skills, creativity, cognition, social development and personal growth - Doug has used his forty-five plus years experience in the music industry to connect musicians of all ages, skill levels and cultures together in a collective, interactive and fun environment. Through his WimBash Music series, Doug offers a platform for creativity, self expression and positive reinforcement, highlighting the achievements of young musicians, while promoting opportunity for all children, both nationally and internationally, to have access to quality music programs.

In the midst of Doug’s intensive recording, touring, producing and mentoring schedule, Doug continues to maintain a brilliant solo career, and in his Nova Sound Studio, is constantly composing and creating music and ambience that will surely inspire and excite generations to come.