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Panic Shack at Band on the Wall in Manchester last night - really good performance by a fun, loud band in a great venue. What's not to like?

I had a '74 Precision back in the day (stupidly sold it before getting married or something) and although I've been playing again for the last 20 years I've never had anything 'decent' so treated myself to a Mim Player. Loved the neck, (set it very nearly flat), weight and everything but hated the farty pickups despite moving them up and down so after reading a load of reviews I put in a set of Custom Shop '62s. There she is, the best ever near as dammit to a USA you'll ever get. Dare I say although it reminds me of the '74 I think it's actually better. Can't put it down.

Another bucket list transcription - this is the complete John Patitucci bass part for the opening 'Prologue' on Dave Grusin's 'West Side Story' album. Highly, highly recommended. I hope to get the whole album down if I can and the recordings allow - I have loved this album since I first heard it in the 1990s. https://bilbosbassbites.co.uk/prologue-to-west-side-story-dave-grusin/

Tango - Yes

Tubeampology, I believe. The design of which was later stolen by Rickenbacker who now sell their own inferior version. The funny thing is, RIC always defended their traditionally wonky pickups by claiming they were covered so aren't supposed to be seen, then they go ahead and sell an item designed to replace the cover.

Are you going to shave the horns down? 😁

That's a beautifully weird looking thing. I love how it looks so completely of-its-time with that big engraved panel, like a Winchester repeater or a florid advert for some dubious patent medicine.

Dance Dance - Fallout Boy

Shipping to the US can get stressful. The value of the shipment also seems to matter. At least that's what I was told when I shipped my Timmy C to the US back in 2023. I posted this back then (Oct 2023) in another thread: I recently (June) sold a Stingray Timmy C to a buyer in the US. Well, the local depot here in the UK wanted to know if I had a CITES license. I could convince them that there was no need for one. I also had to send them the commercial invoices again as they somehow had managed to lose them. I only found out about the "missing" commercial invoices after checking the tracking info online where it said that they were waiting for the forms and that they had contacted the seller (i.e., me). Well, they obviously did not contact me and I had to chase them up. Then the US counterparts asked me to fill in a toxic substance control act declaration (TSCA, I guess because of the fretboard glue!), a manufacturer's affidavit (actually this should have been filled in by EBMM but I put in the info myself and I also attached the original invoice from EBMM. Interestingly, after some googling I found out that a manufacturers affidavit is normally used for shipments over $10,000.00. Well, the Timmy C is a great bass but not not THAT expensive ; -), and a foreign shipper declaration. The buyer was also asked to fill in an import declaration and a TSCA form (importer single entry). Looks like these checks came into place as the bass returned to the US where is was made and because the value was above $2500. All in all a lot of hassle, costing me time and energy. So, in short, my advice to you - if someone from the US wants to buy one of your basses that was made in the US and that is worth more than $2500, then kindly decline it (unless you don't mind filling in several forms and spending lots of time emailing custom officials and people working in depots ; -).

Just saw this in Colchester cash converters... Surely must have been someone's from here! Not cheap for a super niche instrument, but might be of interest to someone.

Yeah! I remember the Wilkes basses from the early days, where a lot of their basses had percussive plates on the last few frets to help with the slap technique.

@Beedster I’m with you there. My previous experience with UPS meant I went elsewhere with my latest USA shipping query. Despite DHL’s web site stating they ship The Rolling Stones’ gear all over the world and Joan Jett endorsing them, it seems when you actually speak to them in person, they can’t get their heads around the import code thing and the ramifications of getting that wrong even if it does make it across the pond. Luckily both @Beedster and I were dealing with original manufacturers that you can have a dialogue with (Alembic and Status) otherwise both of the basses in question would probably still be in a customs warehouse.

Nice! I can hear Dune Tune already.

Many, maybe, but most? I've never seen one on a real Rick in the wild. There's a guy in the US who has been selling the Treble bezel since 2008-ish, which fits into the original bridge pickup surround. I had an early smooth one in black, but later designs also came in chrome and optionally with an integrated thumbrest (with choice of a scoop to anchor your thumb into, or a ridge on top).

Down Down - Quo

I read an interview with Bryan Ferry where he was talking about the succession of bass players Roxy had during their classic era. He singled out John Wetton as being an extraordinary player, as well as Alan Spenner, who he said would still be in Roxy had he not died. He also really liked John Gustafson. Bryan also made a point of mentioning that Alan Spenner was a big fan of Marcus Miller's bass playing, and was pleased when Bryan hired him for Live Aid ect. I seem to remember there was a track on Bryan Ferry's solo album Olympia that had three bass players on. I think it was Flea, Mani and Marcus Miller. No skimping in the bass department for our Bryan !

I defretted my Warwick Rockbass Alien electro-acoustic a while ago and its revolutionised that particular bass. Here’s my thread on my method. Might be a few useful nuggets in here, but as @paul_5 says, patience is key.