He's been playing that shape forever, they used to be all Hamers. I guess he likes that shape because he's so tiny. Any larger bass would look like it has legs on him.
Or perhaps because a Republican invented it?
Lil' Jack is kinda vocal about his party leanings, but he never crosses the line to the inane unlike his former Damn Yankees buddy from Deeetroit.
I think Brad Gillis is an unsung American guitar hero. He's a funky shredder, if there is such a thing. Behind all the flash and dive bomb tremolo bar use, his solos are rhythmically ambitious.
Night Ranger are probably regarded by most people as the archetypical white boy Wonder Bread AOR band, but lest we forget: Jack Blades and Brad Gillis learned their chops with this Tower of Power'ish outfit here, which sprang from the debris of what was once Sly & The Family Stone:
And if you want to hear a skillfully Jazz Bass slappin' Jack, just go to 40:55 and 45:06. You also now know where he got his show band choreography dance moves from!
Now Night Ranger sure aren't the Red Hot Chili Peppers, but I still hear that funk influence in their music not only via Gillis' solos, but also in the way they use starts and stops. Something in Night Ranger's music always made me not just want to bang my head, but also move my butt. They are vastly underrated as a band. Yank musicianship at its finest - yes, you guys can be
that hellishly good.