bassbiscuits

Getting smacked in the teeth with my own mic when someone accidentally bumps into the stand. Happens too bloody often but no one would understand me singing with my gum shield in.

Thanks all for your views - much appreciated as ever! Yeah taking it on the chin seemed the right option on the night, and realistically still is. Just a stand after all, and could have been worse etc. I guess the attitude of the person responsible is what annoyed me most - at least if she'd seemed apologetic it would have been my turn to say "don't worry it's ok" which is probably what I'd have done anyway. We've got public liability as part of my instrument insurance, so were covered for such shenaigans. Live and learn etc.

I'd like your opinion on something.... I did a gig this weekend - a birthday party function event - which went pretty well. Apart from the drunk woman who staggered backwards into one of our speaker stands, knocking the stand, the PA speaker and our desk over as she slid to the floor, amazingly missing the piano player sitting right behind it. We had to stop the gig to put things right. The stand was broken. But rather than apologising or even acknowledging it, she stood straight back up and went back to her table. Now - what is the correct way to handle that situation? I said nothing to her about it, mainly because I didn't want to risk spoiling the rest of the audience's night by having an argument with this drunken guest. There was nothing she could do to put it right anyway. It got me thinking about what the best way is to handle that kind of thing? Any thoughts?

I used to sing as a kid in schools etc but only really discovered my adult singing voice after i gave up smoking about 10 years ago. Saying that, it still took a fair bit of practice and experience of singing live etc for me to form it into something better than just shouty backing vocals. Like some of the other people here, my voice isn't particularly what I'd have chosen to sound like - strangely it's not like Bon Scott or Steven Tyler (what a bummer...) - but it's loud and has a good high range without needing falsetto, which works well alongside the other singer in my band whose voice is much lower. Over this summer i had laryngitis which dragged on for ages, and i sort of learned a different way of singing without using my throat so much - hey presto its unlocked a whole extra dimension of my vocal range and my breathing. Its occurred to me that I'm only now finally probably singing in the correct way. I guess the point I'm making is not to be disheartened if its not easy at first, or doesn't sound like you'd expect. It takes practice and experience like any other instrument, and giving your voice a bit of TLC doesn't go amiss either. I few lessons to point you in the right direction would probably help. There are singers fronting successful bands with voices ranging from the bloody awful to simply unspectacular, so don't be too down if you're not Don Henley straight away.

[quote name='ezbass' timestamp='1446418826' post='2899314'] I've owned two in the past (a McCarty and a Swamp Ash Special) and the build quality is peerless. The best sounding guitar I've ever played is a PRS McCarty Soapbar; simply stunning tone and playability. [/quote] Wow I bet! I used to have an SG with P90s which sounded lovely, tho I didn't get on that well with the rest of the guitar design. But I imagine that sound applied to the feel and build quality of a PRS must be divine.

I've picked up one of the Bernie Marsden PRS SE models after gassing after one for ages. And yes it is a cool guitar. Not a day has gone by when I haven't played it walking round the house, on the sofa etc. It's great. In terms of what I'm gassing for now, it has made me sit up and take notice of real USA PRS guitars ( after a lifetime of Fender dedication ) and I've realised they're absolutely awesome, tho well beyond my price range. But keeping an eye peeled for an American PRS singlecut. Mmm.

[quote name='madshadows' timestamp='1446319285' post='2898595'] Lovely guitar, congrats John [/quote] Cheers John, Yeah it's definitely one of those I seem to leave permanently lying round the house to pick up and noodle on as much as poss! In case you're wondering from the pics too I couldn't resist putting an old spare Les Paul p/up selector ring on it just for added LP vibe!

Bit of a belated NGD but I've only had limited time to write anything on this since purchasing it a few weeks back. I've been lusting after a PRS SE for some time, mainly to replace the neck humbucker sound I was missing by just having a strat. I narrowed it down to a SE Custom 24 and this Bernie Marsden signature, which I chose because it was just bigger and meatier sounding than the 24. I'd heard all sorts of things about the Bernie Marsden which turned me off - that they were really heavy, with a massive thick neck etc. Certainly mine has neither of those - it's the same weight as my USA strat (3.5kg ish) and while the neck is full and fat, it's not ungainly or a baseball bat like a 1951 CS Nocaster for example. The fretboard does feel noticeably wider than a strat for example, and is flatter radius, but its not too alien and adjusting to it doesn't take long. The bird markers seem really well fitted and neat, as is the binding and fretwork. It's loud and resonant when unplugged, which translates into a very usable set of humbucking sounds when plugged in. I played it for two songs at a recent gig and it sounded great - cutting nicely thru and not murky. The neck pickup particularly is really creamy and responsive and the bridge pickup nice and bright, without either being too high gain. It's lighter sounding than a full on Les Paul, but fuller than an SG, with none of the latter's neck dive either! I've always liked LP Juniors so am very happy with the wrapover tailpiece, though it does seem to take a bit longer for new strings to stretch in, maybe because of the greater angle that the strings have to wrap round. At the end of the day it's a £600 Korean made PRS, rather than a £2k+ USA version. But it's well made and very playable, light and comfortable, and exactly what I need as a companion to my main USA strat. All in all tho, a very likeable and cool looking guitar so far. Just need to get a few more gigs under its belt to see how it performs long term - I can't wait...!

Neil Diamond - The Jazz Singer. One of the first albums i heard as a kid and I still love it. V V Brown - debut album. I think I'm also the only person who bought this a few years back, and i think its mostly great.

Artful Salad Dodger Feast 17 Black Rebel Mobility Scooter Club Mixed Grill.i.am

Jason Doner Van

Cholesterol Manoeuvres in the Dark

The Mooby Blues