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That's an odd one Daryl, over here that would've been very well attended like all HD events even in the sun and heat of the afternoon. The only downside is that most people would be more interested in looking at the bikes than the band. Normally when we have HD events at dealerships its supported by the local HD Chapter so their members always turn up and make it busy. Would love to have been at that. Warm sunny day, Harley Davidsons and a great band. What's not to like about that. That's an ideal day for me. Dave

As a bystander, with no agenda. My band had similar situation with our singer, a large robust man. He said, the equivalent of "..I’ve got a lot going on and I’m not in a good place." I was shocked, this was unexpected, however I knew not to press the matter, rather I stood back, so to give him "space". I stayed in the background. I see this as a stress reaction: "I’m off on holiday tomorrow... because this isn’t going to hang over my holiday" - ya need a holiday dood! 🤗 A part of that process is forcing the brain to switch off regarding domestic matters. It's not easy if the brain has been overworked for a long time. *holiday mission statement* I must ignore events at home... pass the sun cream, this sun is hot..😎 I'd like an ice cream.🍦 And this is a pressure relief valve, when the stress gets too much, or a person has lost interest in the band, will issue this stock reply: "..several dates and times, but the singer couldn’t make any of them." Stress is a monster. I think the singer needs time and no pressure. Maybe just a "we're here" type of message. Keep the door open. Prepare for the fall out, if the singer has to leave or perhaps they just need a few months off. Venting frustration with sharp actions tends to be counter productive. As mentioned, turn the phone off and tune into... BTW: I like "Hanlon's razor" not heard that before.

Running everything through a single socket means you have a single earth for all your gear, which might help. Unless you are using incandescent lights you won’t overload a 13A socket. As has been said in other recent threads use a plug in mains tester to check the socket first. I used to check every time but now only check if there is a problem. If the socket is faulty you shouldn’t use it and you need to report it to the venue. You should be able to isolate the channel or channels which are causing the problem. Mute them all and open one at a time. It might be just one bit of gear that is picking up the hum or even just one of your cables that has a fault, Hum can’t be transmitted at wireless frequencies from a noisy, poorly screened nearby appliance. If so you could just move the amp or whatever away from the source. If one piece of your kit is causing the problem at several venues then get a tech to look at it. A lot of vintage amps can be poorly screened and single coil pickups are great radio receivers

All done!

Tough one. Using the rule , ‘if you can’t say anything nice don’t say anything at all’, I’d probably keep out of it. However, if asked outright I’d probably start with, ‘I think you could do better’, and see where the conversation goes. He might possibly agree given the opportunity to be frank. Although, if he/they don’t realise things are amiss from the audience reaction, well, they might be beyond help! Good luck.

Just sold Dunc a Barefaced One10 I traded from him earlier this year. As ever, the transaction was a delight from start to finish. Dunc’s a great BCer, a credit to the forum.

Holidays in the Sun - Sex Pistols

The Kinky

Been there, seen that. If you are an authority to them, you could steer them to the right direction: what's good, where they need support. If they already know you well, the project may be hopeless. I have seen a few bands that have made a very good progress in short time with few supporting lines and suggestions: 1) Simple: Pink Floyd is a fine band, but Dark side on a wedding gig? 2) Slightly complicated: What's the meaning of the singer if the g-word (among others!) doesn't support the story etc. 3) Complex: Can you play hard, but not loud? If you think they could and can do better, take your time with them. Most likely no one will remember or thank you in any way, but their playing may become better. If they want to. By the way, I have never tried to play anything to those that I have given comments to. They have to find the idea by themselves.

School's Out - Alice Cooper

I watched a music video of theres and was immediately looking at the G&L website - I’m not even a guitarist but if you’re not getting your I stuments out there with current players what are you doing?

St. Alphonso’s Pancake Breakfast - Frank Zappa

The gig itself was a bit shit - private event in a posh garden, lovely surroundings but it was cold and rainy so we played most of it to an empty garden occasionally punctuated by their kids doing cartwheels However I did get to use my newly contoured and painted custom bass which felt much nicer

Have you thought about emigrating?

Move to a different part of the country

I went to see my friend's band last night in a pub. He would tell me how great his lead guitarist is, how almost famous the drummer was.. etc. He's not a bad singer himself and a really nice guy. So I was interested, in a nut shell, even after the first song... terrible 😝 They are all experienced players but.. awful, obviously people were leaving, I could feel those who remained of the audience were gently mocking them. A band that can empty a pub. 🙄 Asked what do I think... erm.. what can I say? I tried to find good points but there weren't any. What can I say to the guy?? 😳 I really don't want to upset him. My view was: 1.this "great lead guitarist" was just another standard noisy power chord+fast meandering solo type, usual standard for a pub band. 2.drummer's kit sounded floppy, snare was saggy and his playing average at best 3.singer (my friend) - vocals mostly not good, some was truly horrible, thing is I know he can sing really well. 4.bassman was average, just plodding away with no real expression, as in, every note was a full length 8th, his sound was ok. 5.the song set was an odd mixture of pop and rock covers, I know some bands do their versions and usually "murder" a song I was thinking of doing guest appearances in their band but having heard them, I wouldn't want to ruin my reputation 😄 - I could do the "musical director" role but again that would appear out of place. I think they are too stuck in their way to want change. One suggestion was just to form a new band with my friend the singer, I could then steer the ship without offending anyone. I'm sure many of you have seen similar situations, any suggestions on how to approach this sensitive issue? The easy one is just to stay away, keep out of it.

I will do my utmost to make it. Shifts can be difficult sometimes.

Guitars sound different, that’s true. Vintage basses often have lower output pickups (mine do, at least). To some extent I do believe it’s a placebo. Particularly when the amp, effects or studio can be used to alter and augment the sound. One of the most famous, Guy Pratt, had the vintage electronics in his vintage Fender swapped for EMGs didn’t he? I’d had a glass of wine yesterday, but what I wouldn’t want is someone to spend £18k on a bass thinking it was imbued with some magic. (Or assuming it’s so rare and they’d be able to easily sell it for £18.5k in the future - because that’s really not going to happen.)

I'm saying this to hopefully be helpful and constructive, but I think this is an overreaction. You're asking the question, so I imagine you might think so too. It sounds like your singer reached out to say that he's in a seriously bad place, and it seems that your initial response to him is framed around how this might inconvenience your holiday. There are likely a number of reasons why he's struggled to communicate or find a prompt time to talk, but he's probably not trying to mess with your time off. We often assume bad intention towards us that just isn't there. Hanlon's Razor helps me out a lot. If you want to resolve the band situation, don't take it personally (because it almost certainly isn't), give him space and help him to feel that he isn't being a burden. Being frustrated with him and leaving the chat is only going to push him away.