hiram.k.hackenbacker

So if you had a hit after ripping off an AI created tune, would the internet have to sue you? 🤷‍♂️

We used to cover I’m Not In Love. That middle section got the better of us on a number of occasions.

I had a Voodoo Labs power supply which had been powering my board in various configurations over several years.

I removed one pedal from the board and put the MXR in it's place and it did not like it at all.

It kept going through its power up phase where the preset lights chase across the display and wouldn't do anything else.

I bought a Cioks DC7 as @Chadu25 and I've had no problems since.

23 minutes ago, AndyTravis said:

I have 3/4 things up for sale now and I’m just getting trade offers…

….and why is it always a trade for something you not only don’t want, but you would not look twice at 🤷‍♂️

25 minutes ago, neepheid said:

 

My bad, I thought you meant opinionated malcontents. My bad, as you were...

Now where would Basschat be without them?! 🤣

27 minutes ago, neepheid said:

Is it typical of me to pipe up and say "oh no, not this effing thread again"?

I meant the usual suspects in the 'flipping' business.

Interesting that none of the usual suspects have commented in this thread yet 😎

7 minutes ago, Rich said:

A few from my band's set:

 

I'm Running Right Through The World - The Toasters

007 - Desmond Dekker

Train To Skaville - Ethiopians (we do this as a mashup with 54-46)

People Do Rock Steady - Dandy Livingstone / Bodysnatchers

Too Much Pressure - The Selecter

Rat Race - Specials

Time Bomb - Rancid *

Is This Love? - Bob Marley *

Three Minute Hero - Selecter

You're Wondering Now - Specials

Special Brew - Bad Manners

 

* My two favourite songs in our set

I've listened to Time Bomb quite a few times since @Homatron suggested it. What a great little tune that is.

Some other nice suggestions there. Thank you.

20 minutes ago, Raslee said:

Marleys ‘Could you be loved’ always went down well. You may want to consider some modern ska reggae I.e. The Skints or Interrupters etc, perhaps a bit of Shaggy for a laugh..oh my old band used to do Israelites by Desmond Decker…folks used to sing along to that, 007 is also a good number. Always enjoyed playing UB40’s Rat in mi Kitchen. Enjoy! 

Israelites is a great tune. It prompted me to remember Liquidator which I love as well. Thank you.

2 hours ago, ezbass said:

A few things from my band's set lists:

 

Police & Thieves - Junior Murvin

Heatwave - The Who or Martha Reeves

Move On Up - Curtis Mayfield 

Itchycoo Park - Small Faces

Substitute - The Who

David Watts - The Kinks/The Jam

Black is Black - Los Bravos

Keep on Running - Spencer Davis

Midnight Hour - Wilson Pickett

Knock on Wood - Eddie Floyd

Do I Love You - Frank Wilson

Out On The Floor - Dobie Gray

Kingston Town - UB40

Again, a couple there I should have picked up on, especially Move On Up which I played last night with another band 🙄.

Some others I’m not familiar with, so I’ll have a listen. Thanks 👍

3 hours ago, Lozz196 said:

Can’t Explain - The Who

I don’t know why I didn’t think of that one myself 🙄.

Good shout.

3 hours ago, Reggaebass said:

Sounds great hiram, a few off the top of my head without getting too into the heavier reggae stuff ,

theres many Marley songs maybe pick your favourites ,

Buffalo soldier, Jamming, three little birds etc

Sweat - inner circle 

Jimmy Cliff - You Can Get It If You Really Want

The Melodians – Sweet Sensation, one of my faves 

 Baby I Love Your Way - big mountain 

 

I see you already do good thing going by Aswad , that’s a great song, Shine is another one 

more will come to me soon 😁

 

Ooh, I do like that Inner Circle tune 👍

Baby I Love Your Way would be perfect too. Thanks.

My rock covers band have been offered a regular gig slot.

We get one gig per month throughout 2026, but we’ve been asked to vary the set on a three month rotation.

So, January will be mod/ska/reggae, Feb will be pop and March will be rock and so on.

We’ve got the pop and rock think covered as we have 80+ songs in the bag anyway, a few of which also fall into mod/ska/reggae.

I’ve knocked up a playlist for January comprising songs we already do along with a selection that some of the band have played before along with a few new ones.

I’ve tried to avoid anything with large brass arrangements/sounds as although we have a sax/EWI for these gigs, we don’t have trumpet/trombone.

The rest of the set up is one guitar/vox, one keys, drums and me.

Question: What absolute bangers have I missed that are doable in this band format?

Thank you in advance.

Here’s my list: (* are already in our repertoire)

[I’m sure there will be a few from this list that won’t make the cut for various reasons, so would be good to have some other ideas]

Three Little Birds - Bob Marley *

All or Nothing - Small Faces *

That’s Entertainment - The Jam *

Geno - Dexy’s *

Night Boat to Cairo - Madness *

My Girl - Madness *

Mirror in the Bathroom - The Beat *

Food for Thought - UB40 *

On My Radio - The Selector

Special Brew - Bad Manners

Baggy Trousers - Madness

A Message to You Rudy - The Specials

Monkey Man - The Specials

Nite Klub - The Specials

The Prince - Madness

Sally Brown - Bad Manners

Tom Hark - The Piranhas

Town Called Malice - The Jam

The Eton Rifles - The Jam

Be Young Be Foolish - Madassa Soul Band

Gangsters - The Specials

Good Thing Going - Aswad

Guns of Navarone - The Specials

It Must Be Love - Madness

Lip Up Fatty - Bad Manners

One Step Beyond - Madness

You’re Wondering Now - The Specials

The Tears of a Clown - The Beat

Too Much Too Young - The Specials *

Wolly Bully - Bad Manners

54-46 Was My Number - Toots and The Maytals

10/10 - Paulo Nutini

Poison Ivy - The Lambrettas

Time For Action - Secret Affair

4 hours ago, LawrenceH said:

What band are you in that you get to play D-Train?! I want to come and watch

i should add that Whole Lotta Love is the Goldbug version 😎

Feedback from the sound engineer from last nights gig:

“A pleasure - enjoyed myself. My vote for best numbers goes to the Floyd one, and Sledgehammer. That octaver effect on Warren's bass was spectacular! 🙂
Mike”

I’m using it again tonight in a different band on red preset 2 for You’re The One For Me by D-Train. Absolutely spot on for it.

EDIT: Green preset 3 for D-Train 🙄

1 minute ago, PaulWarning said:

maybe I'm being thick here but the buyer doesn't pay anything in my experience, do you mean selling fees?

What you list it for, say £40, will not be what potential buyers see. They see it as £40 + a few quid.

Zappa has for years been on my blind buy list. Whatever gets released I pick it.

Call me a completist, fan-boy, idiot, all of the above I don't care, I just enjoy having them.

Tape, then vinyl, CD's, re-releases and now expanded anniversary editions. I've bought them all.

This upcoming release (ships 24/10) however, may be the straw that breaks the back of it for me.

So it's a 5CD set this time, packaged as per the previous three Halloween releases, which I do have.

It only seems to be available directly from Zappa.com this time and its priced at an eye watering $179.98.

That does not include getting it here, so probably add another $50 to that.

The packaging includes gimmicky crap (plastic mask/pitchfork) and a photo book.

No idea how substantial the book is as yet. Might be 10 pages with as many photos for all I know.

I'm sure the other sets were at least $100 less than this one.

I'm blaming Ahmet.

N.B. I know I'll be able to stream it for free.

Great sets from two gigs though....

Disc 1: Live at The Palladium, NYC / 10-31-78
1. 10-31-78 Show Start
2. Ancient Armaments
3. “Happy Halloween Everybody!”
4. Dancin’ Fool
5. Easy Meat
6. Honey, Don’t You Want A Man Like Me?
7. Keep It Greasy
8. The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing
9. City Of Tiny Lites
10. Pound For A Brown
11. Thirteen
12. The Story Of Ms. X
13. Nancy

Disc 2: Live at The Palladium, NYC / 10-31-78 cont’d
1. Dinah-Moe Humm
2. Go Cry On Somebody Else’s Shoulder
3. Little Rubber Girl
4. The Idiot Bastard Son
5. Bobby Brown Goes Down
6. Conehead
7. Suicide Chump
8. Little House I Used To Live In
9. Watermelon In Easter Hay
10. Stink-Foot

Disc 3: Live at The Palladium, NYC / 10-31-78 cont’d
1. Take Your Clothes Off When You Dance
2. Peaches En Regalia
3. Strictly Genteel
4. Sofa #2
5. Packard Goose
6. Magic Fingers
7. Don’t Eat The Yellow Snow
8. Nanook Rubs It
9. St. Alfonzo’s Pancake Breakfast
10. Father O’Blivion
11. Rollo
12. Camarillo Brillo
13. Muffin Man
14. Black Napkins / The Deathless Horsie

Disc 4: Live at The Palladium, NYC / 10-27-78 - Show 1
1. 10-27-78 Show 1 Opening
2. Dancin’ Fool
3. Easy Meat
4. Honey, Don’t You Want A Man Like Me?
5. Keep It Greasy
6. The Meek Shall Inherit Nothing
7. City Of Tiny Lites
8. A Pound For A Brown
9. Bobby Brown Goes Down
10. Conehead
11. Dance Contest

Disc 5: Live at The Palladium, NYC / 10-27-78 - Show 1 cont’d
1. The Black Page #2
2. Dance Contest Aftermath
3. Little House I Used To Live In
4. Magic Fingers
5. Don’t Eat The Yellow Snow
6. Nanook Rubs It
7. St. Alfonzo’s Pancake Breakfast
8. Father O’Blivion
9. Rollo
10. “Let Me Explain This To You…”
11. Dinah-Moe Humm
12. Camarillo Brillo
13. Muffin Man
14. Peaches En Regalia

Mmm. Fender Bassman which I can’t move or a Barefaced which I already have 😎.

I’m happy you’re pleased with it Rob. Good luck with Mrs.Ossy.

On 12/10/2025 at 14:05, N64Lover said:

 

 

On 15/10/2025 at 17:33, N64Lover said:

That photo was taken at quite a weird angle. Here's another.

 

 

On 15/10/2025 at 17:49, N64Lover said:

The bass is gone now, this is the only other photo I have taken from his bench. The bridge doesn't have adjustable string spacing.

Here’s a thing that bothers me. The scratches near the bridge are not evident in the photos from the luthier, yet they are clearly visible in the photos from the OP.

Their location appear to suggest having been caused by either a restring or saddle adjustment, but two of them appear to go under the bridge, or at least right up to it, which would be difficult to achieve without the bridge being off. It could just be the photos of course, but I’m intrigued.

13 minutes ago, N64Lover said:

No, he's not in the UK.

Excellent. Not someone I’m likely to cross paths with then 👍

@N64Lover - can I ask, is this manufacturer in the UK?

It's quite a deceiving photo that one. Even the strings appear to be passing the pick-up's in the right place. 

I would love to see a photo at the same angle from the other side of the bass. Not so great from that side I bet. 

3 minutes ago, N64Lover said:

That photo was taken at quite a weird angle. Here's another.

 

 

Please don't take this the wrong way, I'm not trying to be that person, but to me, this photo is obviously taken at quite an angle, yet the E and G strings appear to be similar distance from the edge of the fretboard.

That can't be right. What would be great is a flat straight shot from bridge to headstock. I'm guessing it might have left you already tho?

Paint job aside, this image concerns me. Is he making a new neck or just ripping the frets out and replacing them? Hopefully flat 🤷‍♂️

It will have to be new binding anyway. It might be the angle the recent body photo has been taken, but I don't like the look of the string path in relation to either the neck or pick-up's.

4 hours ago, N64Lover said:

Calm down, man. I had already decided it was unacceptable, I was looking for help and solutions on what to do about it. 

I have sent the bass back and he is going to refinish it.

I'm perfectly calm. I'm not the one who is £2,300 out of pocket.

The problem with the sort of person you're dealing with is that if they sent that bass out thinking it was in any way acceptable, giving them a second chance at f*c*ing it up is the worst thing you can do.

You're probably not aware of the 'Letts' thread that has been referred to, but we've seen it before.

If it was just just the paint job, borderline, but it has more issues than that. 

Even if you get something back that you can live with, it will never be the custom bass experience you had in mind when you ordered it.

Tell them you've changed your mind and ask for a full refund. You can thank us later.