casapete

I’m never sure whether it’s a good thing to interfere with stuff retrospectively.

There are arguments for leaving stuff as they were - of the time / how the artist

wanted it / equipment it was mixed to be played back on etc etc, with the flip side

being altering things to try and offset the original recordings being badly recorded 

& mixed to make them more ‘correct’ and suitable for modern times.

Personally I believe unless the originals were really catastrophic then it’s best to 

let them remain as they were intended, warts and all. 

I haven’t used my 63 Precision regularly for a while, although it does get an airing every 

now and then on gigs where I know I won’t have to worry about it. When I was doing 

gigs in the theatre band, I was worried that once we’d soundchecked and then gone 

out for a couple of hours in search of food / drink, there was a window of opportunity 

for someone to steal it. This was further reinforced by our laptop getting nicked from

the mixing booth in one venue, and nobody saw anything! 

Ironically the bass I chose to use on those gigs has now become very special to me too-

it’s a P-Lyte and I use it for most of my electric gig / deps etc. I did around 800 gigs

with it in the previous band, so would be a tough one to lose. 

Just started a rock and roll gig in a local club so will be getting the old Precision out for

that I think. Big stage, nice audience and I’m around all the gig so happy days. 

Fortunately not me either. When I’ve bought basses or amps then Mrs CP knows I either

need them to earn a living or ( just occasionally…) because I just like ‘em!
Of course it helps that I don’t splurge dosh on daft cars / watches / cameras and all the

other stuff old geezers like me seem to love. In turn, she’s pretty good at not blowing our

hard earned on anything silly, with just the odd bit of vintage stuff for herself / the house or 

some green things from the local garden centre. Works for us.

47 minutes ago, bassoctopus said:

I think you’re right. I also think we’re at the mercy of fashion and how fickle bass players are. Mark Bass used to be the go to for cabs but now you can’t give them away. 

Very true. Although if it was a big old heavy thing ( Trace / Peavey etc ) then I could understand it more.

As a portable one cab solution I would have thought it was ideal for someone, but there you go.

Maybe my location doesn’t help either as well, although I’d be happy to meet up somewhere if

that helped my sale. 

10 minutes ago, bassoctopus said:

Really tough market out there at the moment. I’m selling the exact same cab and a 15 and had pretty much zero interest in two months. Not even silly offers. EBay and Facebook are no better. Hoping it picks up soon. Good luck with the sale - these cabs have to be worth more than £250 - they’re awesome bits of kit. 

Thanks. It’s mad isn’t it? I’m selling it for a friend’s widow along with some other stuff.

I’ve sold a few pedals from a large collection for her, all at knockdown prices compared

to their true worth. Got loads left, so not sure how to sell them without giving them away.

I guess with backline the effect of IEMs must be one reason the market is so static, along

with the holiday period and money worries for many folk. 

My take on the Rod Stewart set.

Agree lots of vocal stuff wasn’t in tune, and he’s certainly showing his age now. He’s been a bit

embarrassing in his performances for a few years, and I have no idea why ( with such a wide

back catalogue ) he decided to do stuff like ‘Love Train’. Re the girl singers doing a song mid-set,

that was probably to facilitate him changing and having a blast of oxygen or whatever he takes

to do a 90 min set! Also I certainly don’t agree with his recent political comments in the press,

or many of his other views TBH. Plus all the Celtic / Scottish stuff gets a bit tiresome from

someone born in London, albeit with a Scottish father. 

BUT! 
I’ve seen worse Glastonbury ‘Legend’ sets over the years by other artists who proved to be as

disappointing, including one or two who mimed / used backing tracks. Rod’s band were 

pretty good ( despite all the bass and guitar changes etc ), and more importantly were all

playing live. Too many girl singers maybe, to help cover his now limited range, but this is

how he works these days - if it seemed a bit Vegas it’s because that’s what he’s been doing recently.

Past years have seen others doing this - Dolly, Barry Gibb, Shania etc etc. It’s meant to be 

cheesy and nostalgic, a gentle piss take maybe but most of all FUN. On that basis, it was okay! 

4 minutes ago, MacDaddy said:

 

 

Whilst I take your point, if that's the criteria let's get The Bay City Rollers on!

Legends? Maybe in some people’s eyes….

2 minutes ago, Wombat said:

Haven’t ALL of them passed?

One of them still touring I think? 

15 minutes ago, Woodinblack said:

 

Ah, like a participation award. That's what the pyramid stage is used for now! The drummers dad is over 80, he likes getting up for a sing, he's not great but he has a go and people seem to enjoy it, maybe I can see if we can get him booked for Glastonbury next time

 

Whilst I take your point, has your drummer’s dad sold 120 million albums worldwide? 

Celeste - blimey, couldn’t carry a tune in a bucket. I’ve seen her perform a few times,

and her pitching ( or rather lack of it ) has always seemed to be an issue. She has an

’interesting’ voice but for me the random pitching thing is just too much for me to tolerate.

2 hours ago, Wombat said:

John Fogerty looks like my grandad! And I’m 60! 😂

Am I the only one who wondered what was going on with John Fogerty? It was like watching

someone with hearing difficulties / a severe speech impediment - & often out of tune especially

in the early part of his set. Really disappointing. His band were great though. 

2 minutes ago, leschirons said:

Still instantly recognisable even at nearly 80. Shambolic? Yes, the perfect description. He's come a long way on four chords and an unturned guitar but as you say, despite everything he does, there's something timeless about him ..........and long may he continue.

Watching NY, I am just so pleased that Spooner Oldham ( at 82)  is still alive and kicking on keyboards.

A wonderful musician / writer who’s been playing in Neil’s band on and off for decades.

Saw him at an intimate gig in Manchester in the late 90’s where he was performing with Dan Penn,

absolutely brilliant. 
 

2 hours ago, Steve Browning said:

That's a surprise. Their quote for me was 4 times the quote I accepted. 1200 quid instead of 300.

Yeh, me too.
Was last October though, so will see how they fare this year. 

1 hour ago, Bluewine said:

 

Thanks Pete,

 

You noticed the backlined Rumble 500. I've always been critical of Fender Bass amps. However, I was impressed with the Rumble 500. It had a very nice punch.

 

Daryl

Like you I’ve been a GK guy for years. However I love the newer Rumble stuff - have a 500 combo 

which is superb, and a 100 combo for small gigs which is nearly as good. Handy for us ‘older

gentlemen’ too….😁

3 hours ago, Bluewine said:

I found some video from last Saturday.  Not our best. I post the good and the bad.

 

Guitars seem out of tune, it was 100°, sound mix was not great and I played with a healing broken ankle. I'll stop because I can go on forever with making excuses. 

 

I can't hear any bass without earbuds. 

 

Daryl

 

 

Sounds fine Daryl - have you joined the Rumble club or was it just a hired in rig? 😆

4 hours ago, snorkie635 said:

And the not-so-great Music Ground. (Also no more).

Actually Music Ground was a pretty good shop back in the day when it first opened just outside

Doncaster in Stainforth. A old Co-Op shop, it was rammed with guitars and amps, new and s/h.
It then moved to Doncaster town centre, then some of the staff left to establish Electro Music which was 

IMO the best music shop in Yorkshire / The North. 

There’s a shop on Hallgate called ‘Fret - Don’t Fret’, Rockem music are in nearby Rotherham,

and there are quite a few in Sheffield including Rich Tone ( recommended ) and Wizard guitars.

Doncaster was where players  from my area used to go to for great shops, such as the great

Electro Music, sadly no more. 

This is a MarkBass Standard 102 Limited Edition 2017 cabinet.
It is in immaculate condition, and comes with a Roqsolid cover.

It has only had occasional use from new. 

The Markbass Standard 102 Limited at a glance:

2x10 loudspeaker box for bass amplifier

400 watt power handling, 8 ohms impedance

Two 10" Markbass speakers

A 1 inch voice coil tweeter with level control

Bass reflex system

Number of inputs: 2

Width (mm): 595

Height (mm): 475

Length (mm): 480

Weight (kg): 17.5

Cash or bank transfer please on collection from Beverley in East Yorkshire. NOW £250!

I’m listing this on behalf of a friend’s widow who is selling some of her late husband’s

equipment ( see also listing in ‘Effects for Sale’ ). 
Cheers, Pete. 

11 hours ago, SuperSeagull said:

I have the exact same bass also in Frost Red and had it converted to passive a few years ago when the pre amp failed. I much prefer it in a passive format, sounds more like a Fender. I went with vol per pickup and tone per pickup to use all 4 knobs. 

2 hours ago, Marc S said:

 

Thanks for that @SuperSeagull

Mine still has the same functions to the controls - but I think I'd prefer the arrangement you have, with 2x vol and 2x tone.

 

I definitely prefer a passive bass. Only once did a battery fail on me at a gig... but it's a lasting memory. It was quick enough to fix at the time (I usually carry a spare battery) but a pre-amp fail - ooh, that's a scary thought for a live gig, even though I'm sure it doesn't happen often.

When mine was converted to passive, I opted for a master volume / master tone / pickup pan. 
Did this because I needed to mute quickly at time, and having two volumes made it a bit harder.

2 hours ago, Marc S said:

 

I really should try to do this more @casapete - but I think the old punk bassist in me just likes digging in too much! Lol 😀 

It’s been a bit of a learning curve, but as I’ve got older it’s been beneficial to my hands. 😄

1 hour ago, Len_derby said:

This one makes me think of a micro pub near me that’s in an old workshop. The cobbles are so uneven that a regular who comes on his mobility scooter shouts his order from the doorway and they bring his ale out to him. 
It’s a pain when the buffet gets served during the set. No only do you lose people’s attention there’s a chance they’ll be no grub left. That’s apart from the drool running down on the bass. 

We normally try to strategically time our playing with food service so they don’t overlap, but sometimes

its just impossible, especially if there’s stroppy kitchen / venue staff involved! Weddings are the worst

for this, and it can often be best just to go with the flow. However, when our meter is running to finish

by the agreed time / cost then it can be annoying. Goes with the territory I’m afraid! 
 

Acoustic duo gig yesterday evening at a local pub - birthday party for a friend’s wife.

We played in a room at the back of the pub which used to be a brewery, with a flagstone floor

but very uneven. We both spent all the gig balanced precariously on stools with one foot on the

ground, not ideal but no alternative. I had to put wedges under our PA speakers on one side

to prevent them from falling backwards!

We did our usual request format and had some good ones. Because there was no room for dancing

it meant we could play more slow tempo tunes, including ‘Sweet baby James’, ‘Rotterdam’ and 

‘Let’s stay together’. Bad planning meant the buffet was served during the start of our second set,

but we ploughed on regardless as we were due to finish by a certain time. Didn’t seem to matter,

and we went down well so all good. Load out in the rain but meant it was quick!

Got two more gigs this Tuesday and Wednesday, then a week off, phew. 

I’ve had 4 gigs this week so been quite busy…

Last Sunday afternoon I was playing with the blues band at a pub in N.Lincolnshire. It appeared that

very little had been done by them to publicise it so we played to a small audience ( and a dog! )

Finished bang on 7pm, and was back home by 7.30 - one of those rare times for me when I just

wanted to take the money and run.

Tuesday was a gig with the acoustic duo for a birthday party. Played in a nice garden, and managed

to set up in the shade thank goodness, it was a hot one. Took along my little Ibanez PNB14 very short

scale, and it suited the gig perfectly. The low tension strings were a welcome rest for my fingers,

and the gig went really well, with a couple of enquiries for similar events.

Wednesday was my weekly gig at the rock n roll club. Took along my large stage fan which helped

with the heat. A good crowd of dancers in as usual, and we did more slow stuff than usual as they

were getting a bit sweaty. Used my recently acquired Hartke head into the 4x10, am getting used

to this now.

Friday saw the blues band playing an early evening slot at Farmyard 2025, a large bikers festival

on a country estate in Helmsley , North Yorks. A very well attended and organised event, with

great staff and tech crew. Days before the gig I realised I no longer have a ‘big’ bass rig, and

so took my (nearly vintage!) Barefaced Compact cab to use along with my Rumble 500 combo.

Although the combo would have been sufficient, when the Compact was added it gave it massive

clout so I ended up using them both. 
We did an hour set, which went very quickly. Nice to play on a big stage again, and I really enjoyed

it. Also got to meet @peteb who was playing with his band  ‘The Gentlemen Rogues’ immediately after

our set ( see pics).

Was knackered yesterday, but just getting ready for another gig today with the duo - a party in a 

local village pub starting around 4pm. Definitely taking my fan for this one, so hot today.

2 hours ago, chris_b said:

 

As I said, get your gigs into the diary first. Problem solved!

 

Then it depends on the deps. Deps can be good or bad. If you've got a bad dep then it's your fault for not booking a good dep. Make the right choices and the deps can be better musicians than the guys they are replacing.

 

I guess it really boils down to how you view yourself - a band member or perhaps a musician who happens to 

play with whoever gives them work? 

I’ve played music for a living for over 30 years, and wouldn’t have been able to do so if I’d not been 

loyal to the bands I was in. It’s different in London I know ( and maybe other big cities ) where there are

plenty of great deps who allow lots of flexibility if the situation allows it. But commitment and reliability

count for something outside of that sphere, and in my world I couldn’t have constantly been depping

my gigs out whenever I’d had a previous / better offer. I’m not saying either option is wrong or right,

just not the same for everyone.

Similar problems can arise when band members have day jobs that define their availability - being in a

band ( earning big money) with 3 teachers in it got to be very annoying for me. 

(Best bit was when we got some deps in to enable the band to carry on working, and they were better

than the guys working in school!)

Naturally it all inevitably came to a messy end. 

From my experience, the bigger the band then the bigger the problems. If you’re in say a 6 piece

and everyone of them are in other bands, then the chances of everyone being able to make all your gigs

are significantly reduced - and then you end up with one of more deps which is hardly ideal.

With my recent situation with a touring theatre band it was made clear that depping gigs out was 

not going to happen, and I did every gig with them that they performed in 15 years. I was fine with

that to be honest. I had to turn gigs down with my duo as a result, but as my duo mate was a lot

busier than me it wasn’t an issue. Since leaving the band, I’m now in a position for the duo to

be my first call, and we’re getting plenty of gigs - we can book them further into the future with

confidence, knowing we’ll both be there! 
 

I’m reminded of that famous Duke Ellington quote - “ There is nothing to keeping a band together - 

you simply have to have a gimmick, and the gimmick I use is to pay them money! “ 😄

7 minutes ago, Paul S said:

 

Ballard!  Just looked him up.  Wow, he wrote some great tunes didn't he!  Couple of Ranbow's biggies!

Also let’s not forget one of his best - Hot Chocolate’s ‘So you win again’.

Russ still does some live dates - he played a music venue near me last year. I was working so

couldn’t go, but guess it would have been a great evening.