skej21

Rocking my Overwater Cont. J 5 with The Mitch Laddie Trio in Essex... Kindly allowed to use the house bassist's Markbass rig (who told me he was a fellow basschatter but he couldn't remember his member name!) If it was you, a big thanks once again

[quote name='Jag_Bassist' timestamp='1327015201' post='1505407'] Hi guys im looking to mic up my bass amp for home studio use as i heard it sounds better for distorted tones compared to a D.I. [/quote] In my opinion, you should never rely on one source for your sound. Ideally, you should record a signal from a microphone AND a D.I. and then mix the two together. This will also give you more options in terms of processing after you've recorded. You'll also find that if you use a dynamic mic to record your cab sound (like an AKG D112) you will lose some definition because of the lack of sensitivity in dynamic mic diaphragms, so having the option to mix in a more defined signal (the D.I. signal) then you have more flexibility. The sound you want has to be good quality at the input stage. As the saying goes; 'you can't polish a turd'

Thought the track was quality mate... REALLY good infact. However, you've asked for all comments and feedback and I'm not going to repeat the good bits again, despite agreeing with them fully. I would say however, your singer totally spoils it for me. Not the singing, but the unprofessional attitude she appears to have. Using her phone (even if it is for lyrics) makes it look like she's not interested (and she should know the lyrics, you guys all know the music!) and then during the guitar solo, she's stood with her hands in her pockets looking bored out of her mind. There's probably a story that fully justifies this but it doesnt come across in the video. Whilst the music is great, seeing that (as a potential client) would put me RIGHT off booking your band for a wedding. If she can be that uninterested and ill-prepared when making a video in the studio with her band, she isnt going to give a sh!t about making the client's day special.

[quote name='JakeBrownBass' timestamp='1326627556' post='1499597'] I've got another 2 videos to put up but they're not quite in the same vain as this one. More for getting bookings at weddings. [/quote] Thought the track was quality mate, but your singer totally spoils it for me. Not the singing, but the unprofessional attitude she appears to have. Using her phone (even if it is for lyrics) makes it look like she's not interested (and she should know the lyrics, you guys all know the music!) and then during the guitar solo, she's stood with her hands in her pockets looking bored out of her mind. There's probably a story that fully justifies this, but all I'm gonna say is that whilst the music is great, seeing that (as a potential client) would put me RIGHT off booking your band for a wedding. If she can be that uninterested and ill-prepared when making a video in the studio with her band, she isnt going to give a sh!t about making the client's day special.

[quote name='crez5150' timestamp='1326100161' post='1492122'] Love the bass sound..... pretty spot on.... My only criticism is the timing is a bit all over the place.... other than that great stuff [/quote] A couple of dropped notes too, but all in all, pretty decent. Play to a click, it'll help you all with your timing.

The piece Wooten is playing in the video in the OP is a snippet from a live version of this - [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ve37F3Ee9Ow[/media] You might not change your opinion of whether you like it or not, but it's only fair that you see it in a decent quality. The video you posted initially is bloody awful and would make any bassist sound sh!t IMO. Level playing field for basing your opinion

[quote name='bubinga5' timestamp='1325816460' post='1488356'] this is lurvly.. anyone know the price point on these? [/quote] Roughly £1899 RRP

[quote name='Musicman20' timestamp='1325799565' post='1488108'] +1, its a recession, they will make a sale if they cut the price a little bit. Better than nothing! [/quote] Unless it's a Fender. The cost price of Fender products is insanely high. A mate bought a Fender Mustang I amp at cost from his work for £76... the shop were selling it for £89! To compare, he was telling me that his shop were selling a Gibson SG for £999 and the cost price for him was £550!

[quote name='lowdown' timestamp='1322936104' post='1457545'] I would not say i know him - although i did meet him a few times. I used to spend a lot of time [quite a while back] up in Newcastle. Used to stay with a Guitarist called Paul Carr. So had many drink ups with a lot of the guys that were at Newcastle collage at the time - usually in 'Rockshots' and the 'Broken Doll' Garry [/quote] Yeah, he was a good laugh was Ken. Had many a funny story to tell, so I imagine your pub trips were 'interesting'

[quote name='lowdown' timestamp='1322935483' post='1457539'] Hey Matt - any relation to Ken Potter ? Garry [/quote] None at all, but I was lucky enough to have lessons with him whilst at college. In fact, he was my first bass tutor How do you know him?

[quote name='lowdown' timestamp='1322934276' post='1457529'] Not in Fame. West Side story - Maybe Garry [/quote] Is West Side Story not a musical these days?!

[quote name='nobody's prefect' timestamp='1322876882' post='1457023'] What are the most important lessons musical theatre can teach you that are hard to come by without doint it? [/quote] 1) That written bass lines are not easy to predict, because they've probably been written by someone who has no idea about bass. 2) Stupid time/key signatures WILL appear and you WILL sh!t yourself... expect it and when it happens, keep calm and carry on

[quote name='Kirky' timestamp='1322866923' post='1456955'] Thanks for your feedback everyone. I'll certainly check out the other versions of the song. I was trying to be faithful to the key signature, and also have as few accidentals as possible. The run E#, F(sharp), F double sharp, G (sharp) would only need 2 accidentals (the sharps in brackets covered by the key signature). Your suggestion of F natural, F sharp, G natural and G sharp would need 4 accidentals. I'm not sure putting the chord symbols/names helps, because the bass line is just a chromatic run under fairly simple chords in this case. Or am I missing something? [/quote] See Jake's comment below. Despite having more accidentals, it's a lot easier to read accidentals than double sharps/double flats. We see accidentals more commonly so get used to reading them, unlike double flats/sharps. As for putting the chord names above the bars, what harm it do? You'd simply be including more information that can help other players understand the music/part more. Leaving it out doesn't allow that.

[quote name='Hot Tub' timestamp='1322597857' post='1453399'] Greetings one and all! Haven't been around for a while, but still chatting with some folks from here on that Facebook. Anyhoo, I've recently noticed that I'm able to play quite a lot of covers, damn near note-perfect. In fact, if I was to play them all one after the other with no breaks (other than the breaks between tracks, obviously), it would be just over 12 hrs of music. So, I've been thinking, could I raise some dosh for a good cause by getting sponsorship to do something like this? A sponsored 12hr bass play-along. Venue isn't a problem, and publicity would be fairly easy..... [/quote] I think you could probably get quite a respectable amount of money in sponorsorship... Don't worry about the venue though. It's VERY unlikely that 12 hours of bass soloing would get a crowd lol.

[quote name='Kirky' timestamp='1322689646' post='1454659'] I'd rather have used a F double sharp than the G natural where it appears, but don't know how to do double sharps using Noteflight. [/quote] Any reason? The transcription looks alright but your use of accidentals doesn't make much theoretical/playing sense. For example, your use of an E# rather than an F (and your intended use of an F## rather than a G natural) seems to be overcomplicated for the sake of it. The only time a transcriber/composer should really use such accidentals is if they are trying to communicate a single, specific chord. For example, if you were using an E# in the bass line because the chord you were outlining was a Dmaj7#9, then you would be correct in it's use as the chord tells you to sharpen (#) a natural 9th (E), so you end up with a notated E#. However, if you were simply using an E# because it was part of a chromatic run, then the use of an enharmonic equivelent (i.e. F instead of F# and G instead of F##) is usually favoured (and more importantly, expected by the reader/player). Mainly because, F, F#, G is easier to read than E#, F, F##. The easiest way you could clear up this confusion is by placing chord symbols/names above the bars, so that when someone else reads it, they don't think "what's the point of putting in uncommon/more difficult accidentals like E# and F##, when F, F#, G would have been better?"... If they are appropriate and the chord symbol is there, then it will answer that question and make musical sense. If not, then you're just adding in more places for a reader to trip up/make mistakes, and that will mean they are unlikely to go searching for one of your transcriptions again.

[quote name='blackmn90' timestamp='1322691608' post='1454691'] edit: unless your technique is bad [/quote] In which case, you would HAVE to practice technical exercises in order to correct/improve your technique to prevent such problems. This would inevitably include SOME non-musical exercises. That's just a fact.

[quote name='fretmeister' timestamp='1322476932' post='1451136'] I've sent an email too, I'll try to buy something even if it is just to help out a bit. [/quote] My thoughts exactly. I've ordered some gear there in the past and always been impressed with the service and quality of the gear so really just want to push some cash their way as a 'thank you' really.

[quote name='pete.young' timestamp='1321029594' post='1434624'] I've been sent a copy, and it's a huge excel spreadsheet - not really suitable for posting in this thread. Why do people find it so difficult to follow a simple request and send Darren an email? [/quote] I sent Darren an email on the 10th of November and had no reply. Any chance a fellow basschatter could pass it on?

The worth of any bass is in the way it plays to each person. Money is just the (variable) obstacle in the way of purchasing it once you've fallen in love.

[quote name='EdwardHimself' timestamp='1322233630' post='1448377'] I would say go for 22 dB. [/quote] +1... Why go for the quieter ones and risk hearing loss? You'll get used to the sound either way, so you might as well be better protected

[quote name='JakeBrownBass' timestamp='1322222304' post='1448109'] There's a time & a place for a bass solo, and most of the ones i've seen have just been in the wrong time or place of a set. [/quote] Totally agree. A couple of the bands I've been in have fallen into the trap of playing jazz/blues etc and the guitar and keys get a solo, so the try to make me do one so I don't feel left out. This seems to be more the case if they think you're a good enough musician to play a solo comfortably without fearing it. I always refuse in those situations though, because as you've said, people are sick of MOST solos (regardless of instrument) in that situation and want the 'head' or melody back by then, so adding in a bass solo is usually the best way to clear the room.

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1322220598' post='1448064'] ...but that inate extra something..??? you can't teach that. IMO. [/quote] Or define it, it would seem. Personally, I don't believe that "inate extra something" is anything more than further/wider development of musicianship as a result of the individual's learning style. Some people are very singular in their learning style, so need to practice harder to make up for their slower progression through physical (kinesthetic) OR auditory OR visual learning. Some individuals are good all-rounders and can learn new things through all of these styles at once, and in music that's a valuable asset. This is the most likely cause of that "inate extra something" you discussed. Whether this can be described as a 'talent' is a different matter

Just watched this on youtube and think Wooten has a really good point. HIs observations of how an audience interacts with the music/musicians is really good and I like that he considers not only the music that he is making with his fellow musicians, but also how the audience can feel involved, just through what he chooses to play. Do you agree with VW that 'a bass solo should be based on the groove' so that the audience stay interested? Do you think that as the musician, you should be able to take control musically and the audience should appreciate that without the need for you to consider how to keep them interested too? I'd like your thoughts, as musicians and punters please http://youtu.be/2U2cOVgaKBM

[quote name='blackmn90' timestamp='1322213499' post='1447910'] Your more likely to have a better understanding of complicated rhythms if you grew up in cuba compared to growing up in nottingham as thats how the traditional music is there compared to straight eighth stuff we seem to have far too much of here [/quote] Not completely true. I know some Indian Classical Musicians and a lot of their traditional music is written in 10/8 and other structures/time signatures that us western musicians would call 'uncommon' or 'odd'. They think that 4/4 is a really tricky time signature, because (musically) it is totally different to the rhythms they are used to. They would find "straight eighth stuff" anything but straight forward to play. Just shows that cultural understanding and the nurture of your musicianship can really affect how you comprehend musical ideas from other cultures.

[quote name='Pete Academy' timestamp='1322166367' post='1447552'] I recently posted a thread about talent...is it inherited? Earlier this evening I visited a couple (my ex-wife and her hubby) who are both talented musicians (sax and piano). Their 8-year-old daughter was eager to perform her skills for me on clarinet and piano. She played faultlessly. I asked her parents how long she had been playing. Apparently since September. I thought she might have put in around an hour a night to reach her standard of playing. No...5 to 10 mins a night. This has firmly convinced me that talent is definitely hereditary. Any similar stories? [/quote] [quote name='EssentialTension' timestamp='1322166515' post='1447555'] Why would that convince you that talent was hereditary? [/quote] + 1 EssentialTension... How does the OP come to the conclusion that the child must have been born with talent that was passed on from the parents. The only thing the OP's observations highlight is the theory that multiple pieces of research into children with musical ability have concluded... Nurture and a musical enviroment are the conditions needed in order for any individual to progress musically from an early age. Perfect pitch is probably the most obvious example. We are all born with the ability to train our ears to recognise frequencies as different pitches (in the same way we are all born to recognise different light frequencies as colours), but we need an environment in which it is developed (i.e. through the encouragement of musical parents who recognise the skill and can develop the ear through training) and consistent practice, otherwise we lose the skill as we grow older and use it less regularly. Those are just scientific truths... whether "talent" within any individual helps this process to happen at a higher speed with less need for practice is simply speculation really.