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Just back from playing 50th wedding anniversary gig at a local social club. First gig in a little while with this band and we were all a bit knackered and out of practice despite rehearsing. But it went down well and sounded very decent. Excellent buffet too, which is a bit of a winner. I was trying out my bitsa P with its new Tonerider Classic P pickups which in dropped in last night. Sounded really nice and full, plenty of attack (the old pickups sounded like they were wrapped in a blanket). Rest of bass rig was the usual Markbass set up and my Bcb-60 full of goodies. Ready for a cuppa and bed now.

I don’t think vintage basses really have a much better sound. I love my vintage bass (less for the sound and more for what it means to me). I’m not a vintage bass hater. But I do think £18.5k for the 63 Jazz Bass is crazy. It’s not a Jaco-style 62’ slab board or a stack knob. It doesn’t even have the mutes. Stick it through an amp and it’ll sound the same. I speak from experience (they really do!) Or, to put it another way, if nobody ever knew you owned it or know how much it was worth, would this bass be worth £18.5k to the person? Vintage instruments at this level are speculative investments or status symbols. That’s all good.

I dont think you have over reacted. If it was that important he could have arranged a videocall. What is the worst case scenario, could he be replaced?

If that were possible surely someone else would have done? Alleva Copollo, Moolon, Olinto all try but miss the mark. we can discount the ‘aging process’ as being a reason for “the sound” because the jap lawsuit stuff doesn’t sound as good, neither do similar period Gibsons or rickenbackers. But are the same materials available? Where do the trees grow and the wood cut? Are they old stored timber or grown in the same climate as what Fender used at the time? Tree felling is more strictly regulated now than it was in the 60s and transportation across continents more expensive. What about the pickup copper or magnets? Can they be produced the same way now? I assume nobody will ever know?

I bought Pete’s 110 cab. Bought it Friday and it arrived safe and well on Saturday morning! How’s that for service! 😁 Great communication too. Faultless transaction. Thanks again Pete

Why would they? The vintage mania is what keeps Fender relevant and cool. Reality is a modern Fender is a better instrument for gigging than a vintage one. From a purely practical point of view.

You Got Good Taste - The Cramps

Have you tried looking for a drummer, and maybe a singer/guitarist, and starting your own band..?

Ok, here goes. Probably one of the worse gigs I've had in years. The Harley Motor, we left at 9:00 and it was already 80°. I had to drive because we used our heavy production gear ,so no room in the van for me. The Harley Motor is having a rough time of it so they tried something new. A full band at noon instead of our 3 piece acoustic set inside 5:00-8:30. The heat would not let up.90° and no shade. We basically played to nobody. Just a poorly planed idea that didn't work. I did get some bike pics for Dave. Daryl

The Sinks

I'm probably not the only one in this position but for the life of me I just cannot find a covers band in my area (Southend, Essex) that's looking for a bassist. I don't care what type of music as long as it's not funk or jazz and I'm not bothered if they are older than me (I'm 38) I just want to play with others I've tried Facebook groups, Craig's list, joinmyband, bandmix, posting to YouTube, Instagram, x, tiktok, hell I've posted physical adverts in music shop windows and the local papers and I've not even had a sniff. Is it really that hard to find fellow musicians?

Shame they haven’t though.

Prank Sinatra

I've owned two or three G&L instruments and they've always been decent quality but I do think the brand suffers a bit from being neither fish nor fowl. They lean on the Fender connection, but the guitars are too modern (e.g. pickups, styling, etc.) to really satisfy the vintage gear heads who might appreciate the Leo Fender thing, but at the same time the guitars are too "Fender with a tweak" to satisfy anyone who actually wants something modern.

It’s utterly preposterous for a mass produced, factory built item. Fender could build something the same (or better) using the same materials pretty much.

Taste It - INXS

Reverse threaded truss rods are the work of the Devil.

Is Gear4Music still in operation? I ask because I have tried to order a new bass from them - on-line - but cannot complete my order. I have bought stuff from them before but it was some time ago. When I opened up their web page it recognised me and had already filled in my email and password for me. I went ahead and put the bass in my cart and went to pay only to be asked to log in. I thought I already was logged in! So, I clicked the "Log In" button but was told I had used an incorrect password. Given that it was Gear4Music that had entered the password I was somewhat confused! Counting up the Asterix I worked out my password and submitted it only for it to not be recognised. I asked to reset my password and was told that an email had been sent to me to enable me to do that. After four attempts to get them to send an email I emailed them via a link on their web page. The email failed to deliver! I gave up and left it for a couple of days during which I received auto generated emails telling me I still had something in my cart that needed to be completed. I went through the whole procedure again but with no success. I've put the idea of buying a new bass on hold! Has anyone else had problems with the company?

Level 42 a week on Monday. They have been fantastic the last couple of times I've seen them, playing as well as ever and having a lot of fun

Only saying that because £18.5k is still a lot of money for a bass guitar!

Yes, Berlin is different, but he sure can play. And I like his style a lot. He is also brave enough to tell his opinions, although I may not always agree with everything he says. Someone said he plays like brass players do. (I agree that the fuzz wasn't necessary here.) Well done @Bilbo!