Dad3353

Many sessions were recorded several times in different studios (East Coast/West Coast...) by the 'house' bass players, and which 'cut' from which studio was used on which pressing is almost impossible, now, to catalogue. There are many tracks recorded by all of these artists; they are all 'right' in claiming they recorded them. Which one was released..? They don't know, either.

I think that, for the very great majority, there's a choice to be made: either famous or a musician. Some very rare (in population terms...) exceptions, naturally, but wanting to become a musician need not (and, in my view, should not...) imply wanting to become famous. The two sit rarely comfortably together.

I've a couple of Verithin sixers, and other Hofners, and would agree that they sound just fine in the right context. Light weight, too; what's not to like..?

I don't use an amp if I want to work something out, or even just jam away. Just behind my head, on its wall-hook, I have this ...

The over-night (dusk till dawn...) double bill of The Doors/Jefferson Airplane was one of the high spots in my concert-going daze. The Roundhouse, Chalk Farm was the venue; I spent most of the night cross-legged in the middle of the throng with an unknown-to-me French girl on my lap. So absorbed by the music, I totally forgot even to ask her name, and never saw her again. I walked home to Bedfont from there in the early morning light, and didn't notice how far it was. Happy daze..!

There is sometimes an element of 'over-thinking' creeping in, too. If the end result of the recordings are for one's own pleasure, or sharing with band mates, 'good enough' is 'good enough'. If, however, they're destined to end up in a final mix for public (paying...) consumption, it would be much easier to get a better result by using your local recording studio. Home studio recording can be very, very good, if enough time, effort, expertise and finance is thrown at it, but 'good enough' is usually very good indeed, for most usage. It's very much a case of diminishing returns, trying to get 'pro' performance. Just sayin'.

I can recognise this as a 'thing'; I can't listen to (read : hear...) thumping Disco beats for more than a few seconds. It seems to be a form of nervous exhaustion; I've been taken to hospital on a couple of occasions in the past, and have learned to avoid any 'thump thump thump' stuff. Yes, bass frequencies can trigger headaches and/or migraines, and the only effective solution I can think of is to refrain from emitting such sounds. Headphones are the only practical solution, as taming bass frequencies in any domestic situation is a lost cause, really, unless extremely fortunate in one's architecture, and extremely fortuned for budget. It's not even certain that headphones worn by your better half would solve the issue, as it's as much a bodily sensation than acoustic. Practise using an acoustic bass, or unplugged..? That works well for any exercises or songs, but the tone is not the same, of course..! It's good for one's precision, though..! Playing bass and recording with a headset (or, at best, a tiny amp...) is the only way to go, though, in my experience. Good luck with it all; it's not an easy thing to live with, so you have my commiserations. Just my tuppence-worth; hope it helps.

Our Youngest (the bassist in our group...) uses our 'live' rig often enough ... ... but also a DAW and headphones at times, too. I'm a drummer, so we have no issues with noise abatement, having chosen to live away from such occurrences. Our 'practise' gear is permanently set up for playing, practising or recording whenever...

... which is why I only go to 'em.

The last (as in 'most recent'...) gig I attended was to see (feel..?) Magma, in Rennes. Everyone had comfortable seats and a fine view, and no question of 'pints', as far as I could tell. No issues; everyone enjoyed the event.

S'been a very long time indeed since I used WMP; I've forgotten what it 'sounds' like. I use 'Foobar2000', which is free, and 'GOM Player', which has a free version with ads (which I ignore...) and a 'GOM+' version, which cost... I don't know, as I've never even considered spending anything. Both of these play back my tracks, whether in WAV, MP3, OGG or any other format exactly as my DAW (Reaper...) rendered them. GOM has the advantage of being a very flexible video player, too, allowing subtitles, which I like. Just my tuppence-worth.

We are so, so close to perfection here. I wonder if anyone has ever even tried to sell Vander 'splash' cymbals..? The tangible pressure emanating from them when seen (felt..?) 'live' is impressive, and exhilarating. Not to be missed if passing your way; there won't be that many more opportunities, now.

Chelsea Morning; a Joni Mitchell song I first heard as performed by Fairport Convention (... and a very good job they did of it, too...).

Practice..? What is this 'Practice' of which you speak..? ...

Good evening, Scott, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share.

Good morning, K, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share.

Walk On The Wild Side - Lou Reed

Good evening, CB, and ... Plenty to read and amuse you here, and lots to learn and share.

The simple answer is ... I cheat. I pop the pic into Photoshop, and extend the 'canvas' upwards by about a third. This comes out as ... ... and that's what I load up into Soundcloud.

Play it at half speed. Repeat until it's perfect. Then increase a little, rinse and repeat. Soon you'll be playing it at slightly faster than the original; you can then play it perfectly at the normal speed. It can't fail.

Some breaks/fills from the Master ...

I think it's a cycle that is still turning. How many pubs (remember them..?) have a 'joanna' for an 'everyone in the bar' singalong..? T'was all the rage, not so long ago. Is there going to be a resurgence of skiffle..? One or two local hot-spots, but I doubt it becoming, once again, the focus. Disco dancing..? It was massive for a decade, but is now just a side-line. I'd say it's the same for rock groups. In the Twenties, it was roller skating. Roller rinks (sometimes several...) in every town. They were converted to cinemas when the fashion changed. Then cinemas, in their turn, became bingo halls, which evolved into furniture stores, and are now mostly empty, I think. It's a wheel, still turning; it seldom turns backwards. Nostalgia is all that's left, for each generation. The present and future generations will be exactly the same, looking in their rear-view mirror. It's normal; nothing to see here.

Those are very 'broad brush' figures, and are doubtless true (or even understated...) for some products or markets (a Picasso sketch, anyone..?), but the spread is far wider, I'd suggest. I ran a retail TV sales/repair shop for a few years, and margins were much tighter there than those quoted above; despite this, the big stores were undercutting to almost my wholesale price, so their margins were lower than mine, despite their higher overheads. I was involved in the manufacture of pool tables; there, too, margins were tight and competition fierce. I spent some years in a music shop; not much gold being dug there, either, and 10% off was a serious cut in profit, not easily given away. It's true that there are some commerces that have artificially high RRP so as to offer stupid 50% cuts, but they're specific, and not a generality, I'd say. Just sayin'.