Pat Metheny performing with Ron Carter For many bass fanatics, Detroit is synonymous with James Jamerson — but it’s safe to say that without Motor City jazz, there’d be no Motown. Like his fellow Funk Brothers, Jamerson was one of the city’s working jazz musicians, an illustrious group that includes Yusef Lateef, Joe Henderson, Alice Coltrane, Ron Carter, Paul Chambers, as well as brothers Elvin, Thad, and Hank Jones. “The history of jazz and the history of jazz from Detroit are indivisible,” says Mark Stryker in his 2019 book Jazz From Detroit. “You can’t tell one story without the other.” It’s no surprise, then, that the city’s annual Detroit Jazz Fest, held over Labor Day weekend, draws more than 300,000 music lovers to the city’s downtown. For its 40th birthday, in 2019, festival organizers chose Stanley Clarke to be the artist-in-residence — and invited Bass Magazine to join the party. Friday Night The Detroit Marriott at the Renaissance C