[2] Friesen began playing bass while serving in the United States Army in Germany.
He played with John Handy and Marian McPartland and following this, with Joe Henderson; in 1975, he toured in Europe with Billy Harper.
[3] He has also played with Chick Corea, Michael Brecker, Stan Getz, Dexter Gordon, Kenny Garrett, and Dizzy Gillespie.
[4] He is the son of Ashkenazi Jewish mother Claire (née Portnoy) and Canadian Mennonite father Ben Friesen.
[1] With Ted Curson With Kenny Drew With Ricky Ford With Billy Harper With Duke Jordan With Uwe Kropinski With Mal Waldron