bassbiscuits

Suwalki Blues Festival in Poland this summer. Probably about 1,500 people packed into the area in front of our stage. Got some cool onstage shots!

I weighed all of mine the other day, as i've got a bit of a bad shoulder at the mo and figured the weight wasn't helping. I ended up selling on two of my MIA Fenders just cos they were really getting a bit too heavy for me (at 4.2kg and 4.3kg) Current crop is: Fender 1970 P bass - 3.8kg Mike Lull PJ4 - 3.5kg Epiphone Jack Casady - 3.6kg Hopefully that's my lot, as i'm skint now! The rest are six string guitars, which are all sub 3.6kg so no probs there.

I love the flats I've got - Labellas on my old precision, and TIs on my Jack Casady. What flats are we using for a Lull? I must say I generally prefer the feel of the Labellas, but both them and the TIs sound lovely, The Lull is more modern sounding than my Fender so maybe flats will take that sound back a bit. Hmm.

[quote name='ezbass' timestamp='1472982988' post='3125707'] I think it's meant to be ironic, at least I hope so. At least it's OK for singing and anything other than rock. [/quote] Ha ha yeah I hope so! Sadly no ban on bluegrass tho...

[quote name='steve-bbb' timestamp='1472981984' post='3125687'] a year or so ago we had a spate of this thing and this started appearing around town [/quote] No laughing? Wtf that's a bit repressive isn't it? Idiots.

Our gig last night at a city centre boozer was utterly ridiculous but somehow worked a beauty. We had no drummer, as none of the deps were available. So we went on as a trio, with piano, acoustic guitar/vocals, and me. I spent the night sitting on a Cajon, with a tambourine on my foot, playing bass, harmonica and vocals, and switching between the Cajon and the bass throughout it and trying our best to interpret most of our usual set. On paper it shouldn't have worked at all. But the place was rammed, helped by a large drunk hen party who kindly put a big blow up cock onstage in front of me while I was singing Respect by Erasure. Nice touch. At some point my neighbours and their whole extended family randomly came by, as did half of my other band who happened to be out in town on the lash. But somehow it all worked and the floor was packed all night. My hands are killing from flailing away on that Cajon all evening tho. Was wise enough to take my wedding ring off first. Amusing night.

Thanks for the kind words folks. Yes I reckon some flats might be just the thing - already got them on my other two remaining basses. Was due to gig the Lull last night but the gig turned into a strange quasi-acoustic hodge podge affair down the local boozer, so I ended up mashing away on my Jack Casady Epi instead, which fitted in better. Really looking forward to getting some miles on the clock with the Lull tho. It's still a bit new and stiff compared to basses which I've played week in week out for years. Only one way to get thru that...!

Here you go - as ever they seem to be at strange angles but hey, you get the idea. My missus said; "Ooh i love the colour" but to be honest i wasn't sure, tho its growing on me now. Its kind of bluey or greeny depending on the light, with the woodgrain visible beneath it. Sort of somewhere close to Fender 50s sea foam green colour, but a tad more bluish. Can't wait to get home and have another play of it!

I've been having a few shoulder problems since the start of the year, after exactly 30 years of playing bass, and realised i finally needed a lighter instrument. Bit sad to see my two great, but heavy (for me) Fenders go as part of the deal to get this, but i couldn't afford it otherwise. So having gone to Bass Direct for the afternoon and trying out more or less everything lightweight there, i came away with a Mike Lull PJ4, in baby blue semi transparent over a lightweight swamp ash body, rosewood board, Lindy Fralin P/J set etc. Wow what can i say? I'd done a bit of homework on these beforehand, and while my Fenders probably beat it in terms of sheer massive thud, the Lull is so articulate, well balanced and ergonomically fantastic, that it was hard to say no. The Fralins sound lovely too. I keep picking it up for a noodle and being surprised all over again by how light and just playable it is. Can't wait to gig it. I've still got my very old Fender and an Epi Jack Casady, which are both under 3.8kg, but this one weighs in at just 3.5kg. That's more or less the same weight as my Strat and lighter than my Bernie Marsden PRS. Insane. My phone has decided to pack up so i can't email any pics to attach, but here it is from the Bass Direct website. http://www.bassdirect.co.uk/bass_guitar_specialists/Mike_Lull_PJ4_Baby_Blue_Burst.html I do hope it turns out to be a keeper. I've only had it two days so not had a chance to gig yet, and my month old baby is keeping me from even cranking it up at the mo, but if it turns out to be as good as I hope then my shoulders will thank me for it, even if my wallet doesn't...

[quote name='Lenny B' timestamp='1472771808' post='3124223'] It's all about Live After Death - that was the first Maiden album I heard, never heard better than that [/quote] This ^^

Ah man Steve Harris is the dogs. I can't say I listen to Maiden a great deal now, but as a teenager I was mesmerised by them - can probably play the whole Live After Death album even now! Great bassist - some of it doesn't seem hard until you play it and realise how consistent and nonstop pummelling his basslines are. I met him once at the national music show in Birmingham in 1997 and was so star struck I couldn't say anything as he signed my Rotosound flyer. Ahh happy days...

Brilliant - looks great! I know a good luthier in Leicester but probably a bit out of your way.

Sorry you're right - I misread the original point. Yeah mine does have four patent numbers beneath the big black Fender headstock logo.

Flats are cool, but it took me a while to warm to them. Now they give me the best sound ever on a precision bass. I've always used stainless steel rounds but used some Rotosound flats a few years ago which were ok but a bit uninspiring. I swapped back to rounds and my bass came to life again! But lately I've been using a set of Labella Deep Talkin Bass flats I got secondhand on Basschat, and they're perfect for a fat precision bass sound. Not half as dead and thuddy as you might fear - just full and fat and smooth, but with good attack and bite with a pick, without sounding thin. Best strings Ive ever used.

My 1970 P bass doesn't have a serial number beneath the headstock logo - it's on the neck plate. But there are corresponding part numbers on the neck socket, pots, pickups. I think headstock serial numbers came in at about 1976 onwards. But yeah some pics would get us to the bottom of it!

looks like its gone mouldy

Aerosmith and AC/DC.