Pink, Cher, Gwen Stefani
PLAYING FOR
THE STARS
Bass triple-threat Eva Gardner
unveils an album that reveals
the musical mind of someone
who’s anchored everyone from
Cher to the Mars Volta
By Jon D’Auria | Photograph by Bianca Buder
F
or two years straight, Eva Gardner
has been relentlessly traveling the
globe to deliver pop star Pink’s larg-
er-than-life acrobatic stage show
to the masses, in support of her 2017 re-
lease Beautiful Trauma. While television
appearances, sold-out arenas, jet-lagged
flights, and long bus commutes have been
the bulk of Eva’s life for the past 12 years
with Pink, today she has a rare day off at
home in Los Angeles where she met us at
her family’s pub and restaurant, The Cat &
Fiddle. Located just blocks from the Hol-
lywood Walk of Fame, the British pub
has a welcoming and nostalgic feel, which
has been preserved by Eva and her fami-
ly since the original, early '80s Laurel Can-
yon location. Right on time, Eva appears in
the doorway and happily greets us before
we post up at a table to talk shop. But her
downtime is short-lived, as she hops up to
jump behind the bar to pour a couple of
beers for some newly arrived patrons be-
fore jetting behind the line with her sister,Ashlee, to expedite a pair of tickets. Not
exactly the kind of behavior you’d expect
from a first-call bassist to the stars, but Eva
is the furthest thing from a diva.
We sit down and start chatting about
bass gear, her current tour, and her new
journey into self-recording before taking
off to check out her home studio and rare
gear collection. Stepping into the park-
ing lot, I scan the area trying to locate the
dazzling red or pink convertible sports car
that one would imagine a pop figure like
her to drive, but instead she walks us over
to her 1998 Volvo wagon, which appears
to have racked up mileage from multiple
treks around the globe. “I love this car,” she
smiles. “It’s just so damn reliable.”
A fitting synopsis — given that Eva’s
reliability has made her one of the most
in-demand players in music. As we weave
through the narrow roads of the Holly-
wood Hills, she tells stories from her child-
hood about growing up with a rock-bassist
father, Kim Gardner, who toured con-bassmagazine.com ; ISSUE 4 ; BASS MAGAZINE 37