Rick McLaughlin’s work has been heard all over the world. A freelance bassist and member of the Grammy-nominated jazz group Either/Orchestra, he has performed on stages and in recording studios in places ranging from greater Boston, MA to Los Angeles, CA; from Barcelona, Spain to Rome, Italy; and from Phuket, Thailand to Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Dozens of CDs feature Rick McLaughlin, and his own debut as a leader, Study of Light, garnered critical acclaim. He has been heralded by MacArthur Fellow George Russell as “one of my favorite bassists.” Paul Olson, of Allaboutjazz.com, says that McLaughlin is “the most valuable player” on a recent CD release. “Electric and exciting,” wrote Michael Nastos of Cadence Magazine of McLaughlin, a bassist who delivers “firm yet discursive support” according to Bob Blumenthal of the Boston Globe.

Although primarily known as a bassist, McLaughlin has spent much of the past decade teaching aspiring musicians, notably as Associate Professor at Berklee College of Music and, previously for 12 years, as Assistant Chair of the Jazz Department at the New England Conservatory of Music. These positions capitalize on the work McLaughlin has done beyond his bass playing, as an educator, published author, composer, and arranger. His publications have been featured throughout the DrumPro series of magazines, and his paper, Which Way Do the Trade Winds Blow? Two Case Studies Examining the Voyage of Jazz to Africa was published in May 2017 by Berklee College of Music’s online journal, FUSION. Compositions of McLaughlin’s can be heard on Study of Light, as well as on Either/Orchestra’s Mood Music for Time Travelers.

McLaughlin has shared the stage with a wide range of musicians, from jazz luminaries such as Don Byron, Steve Lacy, John Medeski, Danilo Perez, and John Zorn, to rock musicians Willie “Loco” Alexander, Morphine and Peter Wolf, and country music star Roger Miller. A frequent collaborator with musicians from all over the globe, McLaughlin has also performed with Ethiopia’s great singers Mahmoud Ahmed and Alemayhu Eshete, as well as the innovator behind Ethio-Jazz, Mulatu Astatke. 

Venues in which McLaughlin has performed include Regattabar (Cambridge, MA); Jordan Hall (Boston, MA); CBGB’s (New York, NY); Bitter End (New York, NY); Knitting Factory (New York, NY); Tonic (New York, NY); Green Mill (Chicago, IL); Jazz Bakery (Los Angeles, CA); Teatro Manzoni (Milano, Italy); New Mississippi Jazz Club (Roma, Italy); Jazztone (Lorrach, Germany); Wasserwerk Bern (Bern, Switzerland). He also performed at festivals in England, France, Portugal, Russia, and Uganda, among others.

McLaughlin graduated from the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston, MA with both B.M. and M.M. degrees, the latter he received with Academic Honors and Distinction in Performance. He has been an endorser of AlterEGO instruments, Gallien-Krueger amplifiers, and Hohner melodicas.