Leaderboard

So I've been with the current band for almost three years now. In that time our set has evolved but there's a distinctive style to how we play (all covers but rocked up versions of pop songs etc). Well, we have a gig that the lead guitarist can't make it to. So last night we rehearsed as a three piece to try and work out what from our existing bank of songs would be both appropriate and workable. And then it happened. We were throwing ideas around for songs we either haven't played in years, have never played together... Some I had never heard at all! We ended up busking through nine new songs, but because we've played together and learned lots of songs together some felt like finished products, some others just need a little tightening up. Overall it was just really fun to throw ideas out and then "have a go" but it turns out really well. Abba, Dancing Queen...? I've never even tried to play it, gave it a go, loved it, sounded great. We would never do that in the full band, ever. "I'd always wanted to do the Baywatch theme tune..." I thought out loud, expecting to be shot down. Guitarist "did it years ago in solo acoustic stuff..." We start to play it and it sounds and feels excellent. No lead guitar? No problem. Fretless bass and some more fills than usual and we are away. Had an absolute blast.

Well I am a Rick convert, I have two 4003s/5’s a 4003s in Walnut and a recently acquired 4003BT. Loving them!

I'm not really a 'seasoned player' but I love learning new songs and have been doing this pretty constantly since the end of the first lockdown. I am a covers band player and, as such, I don't need to play a particular bass line exactly as the original was played but what I play does have to fit, particularly with what the other musicians in my band are doing. I start out looking for a video with a bass tab or a chart of the guitar chords, which I follow when listening to the song. From either of these I will get a basic framework. Then, as @ahpook above does, I get out my notebook and listen to the song through several times, noting down the Intro, verse, chorus, bridge, outro etc in bar sections e.g. outro: -Dm|F|Dm|A|Dm|F|Dm|A|Dm|etc to fade. (The Man who sold the world, down tuned to suit our singer's vocal range) These are my own (written) notes so I don't need to go into too much detail. I'll work out the (music) notes from the arpeggios which fit when moving along the 4 bar sections, then play and repeat until I've memorised it. I then put the song into a playlist of our set on my iPad and play along. When I've nailed a song I play it once, then move on but If I haven't, I'll play it twice and sometimes stop and practise a certain section that I haven't mastered. Then when we meet at the rehearsal, we play through and sort out our ending (-fade, doesn't work live). This works for me. You will, no doubt, work out a system of your own in due course.

When I visited @dub_junkie to check out a Bogart that I ended up not having, I had a play on a Klos 4-string that he had. I was rather impressed by it, but I play 5s and Klos weren't doing a 5. However, the website did say that one was coming at some point, so I put my name down as interested and a couple of days ago they sent me an email saying that their first 5 string sample will be out soon, in about a month. Could be interesting (OTOH, could spell the end of my life if I try and buy another bass). Here's a link: https://klosguitars.com/products/apollo-pro-5-string-bass

Just arrived today, totally looking forward to using it and trying it with my Cranborne Camden EC1!

If I'm learning a song, out comes the A4 pad and a pencil. Firstly I'll identify all the sections (intro, verse, chorus, etc. - or whatever seem distinct sections) then five bar gate how many times they turn up, so I have a structure. I usually write that out a bit more neatly - which helps me learn the structure - and then I'll start learning the actual bassline, annotating the structure I've written down with technical names like 'Fiddly bit in C', 'Flamenco !!', 'Goth Reggae', etc. After all that's done it's practice time to get all the parts sounding right. I don't usually explicitly work out the musical 'meaning' of the song - chords, key, etc. but I will occasionally as an exercise. HTH

I needed a simple lightweight and compact tilt back stand for my 1 x 10" Combo so that I could hear myself better. After a bit of thought, I made the stand shown in the photos from a piece of scrap 10mm MDF. The "v" is offset to provide 2 different tilt back angles to suit the stage layout - which is usually very cramped in a 20 piece big band or the corner of the bar for a jazz gig so my amp is usually tucked quite close to my side. It fits easily into my cable bag when dismantled and is stable when in use. The finish is furniture wax applied with fine wire wool.

I’m slowly getting a Louis Johnson early 70s lookalike P-Bass together. It is a swamp ash body from Dave Dyke and I made the template from a P-Bass I already have from 6mm mdf. so far so good although there have be a couple of issues.

😎

Let’s get a few I’m still in love with you boy and no no no riddims , I like the Sean Paul version , had to put black Uhuru on the end, feel free to add, . . .

😎

Know your patterns. Most songs follow one pattern or another; 12 bars, 16 bars, Pachelbel, middle 8's often go to the 4, sequences of 1, 4, 5 and 2,5,1 and circles of 4ths are very common. Recognise which pattern the song is using and you can anticipate where it is going.

Most of the time I'll work out the bass line from repeated listens to the version we are working from (often a different tuning for the singer). I'll aim to get the basics right so that I can play through the song quite quickly but without trying to add the fiddly bits. I'll learn the song properly with repeated play-alongs, and this is where I'll start developing the fills and working out the key bass parts (the hooks and riff that have to be played) .The Hulla band has a habit of changing arrangements so initially I'll stick with the 'no frills' version for rehearsals, bringing in the hooks and fills as I nail them and as the arrangement requires. It takes me a while to learn a part so early on I'm using notes and charts as necessary but as the rehearsals go on these become smaller and smaller pieces of paper. For example, during the month of so of rehearsals leading up to our gig on Saturday I've had to learn 6 new songs, four songs re-arranged to include a choir and to familiarise myself with the rest of the set. My notes went from 3 sides of A4 down to the current 3/4 of a side as I picked up the parts and arrangements. Now I have what is effectively a setlist with keys, prompts for starts, tuning down/up, and the odd middle 8. There are two songs with key changes that always throw me, so they are in. Where I'm singing, I'll also have prompts for the first word/phrase of the line if necessary.

After work I took a few bits off to have a poke around. The fretboard looked a little dry so a light rub with some lemon oil was in order. The electrics are not of the highest quality but do work well are are not simply "on/off" switches. The cavity was unshielded (unsurprisingly) and a bit dusty as others have noticed, but again easily sorted. It is also wide enough to comfortably take a 9v battery... The strings felt a little dead but I'm leaving them on until after band practice next week. The bass plays really nicely out of the box and has clearly had a very good set up by R&T. The roasted neck is amazing and so nice to move around on with the lovely satin finish. A great bass, certainly excellent VFM and as good as many Fenders. Can't wait to try it with the band. A couple more pics for you.

One more QC here 😆 It’s been fun with this setup. I connected the QC and H9 with a MIDI cable. Now I can change presets on the H9 with the QC.

Gotta be a delay with tap tempo?

I’m always learning different stuff. First I roughly write down the form … intro , A part , B part , chorus , bridge , outro etc. and then work out the various bits , and write them out. After I’ve got the form and the parts down it’s straightforward . If there are variations in the parts I write them out , and note that in the form. Some notes can be brief , others can get complicated. Then it’s simple repetition until it’s committed to memory. I prefer to memorize then be staring at my charts and notes. Sometimes I will need the notes.

I saw an interview with Lee Sklar and he just plays the songs until he remembers them, which is basically what I do. If I haven't time I just chart out the songs and play them from that.

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I don’t really analyse. I play it over and over until it is stuck in my head forever. I start with whatever is available. By ear, tab or traditional dots. Then I stop looking at the paper a bit at a time until I don’t need it anymore. Even for a reading gig I will learn it by heart and just have the paper there for last minute changes.

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Forgot about the mighty diamonds

I've lost count of the amount of times I've listed stuff on gumtree, Facebook, forums, etc that hasn't gone anywhere only for it to sell almost instantly the second I list it on ebay - and usually at a higher price too. I've also encountered far more chancers and nutters via Facebook and Gumtree, if I'm being honest. Ebay isnt perfect but I still think it's the best way to actually shift stuff.

This is why a big collection with multiple different styles is a necessity. Whatever whim/taste/vibe you want will be catered for 😎

I usually learn by listening and playing along. Good headphones and a mixer with separate tone controls for each channel are very helpful. When I really got stuck, slowing down, using Audacity, comes to the rescue.

Def a Fender man there. Dave

The Chequered Flag, Wembley, circa summer 1985 😁 The Waggon & Horses, Addlestone, summer 2023 😁

As a teacher myself (and I say this with a huge respect to those I regard as my friends who do online lessons and courses only) I'd strongly suggest getting 1-2-1 lessons in the first instance with a really good, vibrant and well respected tutor ( if you can find one locally, that is!) Nothing beats being in front of an experienced teacher with proven knowledge, who loves what they do and is enthusiastic about making sure their students have the skills that they need and the bad habits they don't. And, that includes teaching a student skills in self-motivaton and how to learn learn for themselves. (I am sure I could have made more money if I left that out of my syllabus, but that's not who I am). I have had a student who came to me in the same position, wanting to get the solid foundations down with a view to moving to an online course later to suit their future budget and work hours. I have no issue with that and, it worked very well. He's pretty busy gigging these days!

YEEEEEEESSSSSSS!

My way of learning put it up on Youtube then try and play along. In general I also look for tabs/playalongs so that any runs or fiddly bits are there in front of me. From there I juts play along repeatedly over a period of days/weeks until I`ve got it. I find that especially when it`s a song that I`m not familiar with I have to do this as I`ve got to learn the song itself, not just how to play the bassline.

Normally, if I analyse the bass line (which I do not always do), I rely on external sources to learn the chords - unless they are absolutely obvious. Then just check what the bass line is doing in relation to chord tones. Among the benefits of doing that are the fact that it makes it much easier to remember songs, and that it makes it much easier to wing it if I forget some bits of the bass line. I had to learn Crossroads, Cream version, a few months ago. For me, it would have been a nightmare to learn. Almost impossible to learn note for note without reference to chords. I resolved to just do it the other way around and just follow the chords, incorporating Jack Bruce parts when feasible, and wing it to a very large extent. It would not work in a Cream tribute for sure, but I suppose it would be ok in a generic rock-blues context. After all, even Bruce did not always play the same lines note for note. A few months ago, as I was playing guitar quite a bit, I went through a couple of simple songs learning both rythmic guitar and bass line, looking at how the two instruments together outlined chords, instead of relying in external sources. If I had the time, energy and skills, I would learn every song that way because it is fascinating and I am sure would pay huge dividends over time. I suppose the guitar parts could be figured out on bass but I find it more difficult

Deep in the Woods - Birthday Party

This was more or less my experience. I decided I wanted to play bass, and spent a week plunking out simple pop punk basslines on my Dad's old EB-3. At the weekend my dad – who was in hindsight probably a little surprised that his morose teenage son had suddenly shown a burst of enthusiasm for something – went up to the guitar store and got some fresh strings. He gave the truss rod a tweak (it hadn't been played in about a decade), showed me how to restring and tune the bass, and then mostly left me to my own devices. I had access to tab and forums, but online video wasn't really a thing. I figured stuff out. Occasionally he'd check in to provide some tips, show how to play a particular line, or just listen to me rambling about what I was learning.

I’m with you on this. Before picking up bass I played keyboard and guitar (and failed). My dad said “you pick something you want to do and you pay for it” - so I did. Played for hours and hours every day to get it right, and since then he’s been a hugely supportive fan.

Join my 10 piece Band Thunderthumbs this Friday 21st June 8.30pm at The Hampton Hub playing tunes by The Brothers Johnson, George Benson, George Duke, Quincy Jones, Michael Jackson and many more. The set is full of songs that the great Louis Johnson played on. Tickets are available here; https://www.hamptonhubclub.com Come on down for a great night of Soul & Funk.

I just downloaded a few presets. It was great to find all the captures and presets I'd found while waiting for it to be delivered waiting for me. I've had an hour on it: I absolutely love their Hiwatt 103 bass amp model, it sounds excellent. The interface is super intuitive, haven't read the manual yet and haven't hit any issues. After a quick play with the drives, they seem pretty decent so far and even enjoy the DG drives. Cab simulations seem solid. Compressors seem passable, better than HX but not as good as GT1000 IMO. I'll be keeping the Cali76. Set up Cortex Control on my Mac. I managed to do a few captures of my Science Mother preamp pedal. It's so easy, and I'd say they're about 98% there but the real test will be how they handle being pushed. All in all, a pretty impressive amount was achieved within a short space of time! Excited to really get stuck in!

Selling the Small Bumble Bee, ‘cos I bought the lager one This it; Later

"unexpected stool content" ... Yes, I am a ten year old trapped in a middle aged body.