casapete

What about if the police are involved regarding the accident? They see your car is full of gear, stands to reason they will check to see if your insurance covers your use of the vehicle at the time. Would be the same for anyone using a vehicle in any line of business. ( Takeaway delivery drivers are always getting prosecuted for not having correct insurance for what may be only a part time job for example.) Add in the fact you may have been playing at a local hostelry and smell of booze then questions will no doubt get asked.

I agree with most of this, with the exception of the ‘not using comparison sites’ bit. I’ve had my occupation down as ‘professional musician’ for over 30 years (and semi pro for many before that) with motor insurers and for the last decade or so have used comparison sites with no problems. Always found the best deals via this, and often swapped around companies if offered better deals. Years ago I did use a specialist broker ( maybe the MU friendly one) and they were okay but couldn’t compete with some of the others. A lot of it does boil down to what category of the music industry you fall into - the bottom line though is that if the insurance company can wheedle their way out of paying out a claim then they will. I honestly don’t see the point of withholding or lying about your circumstances where any insurance is concerned, as the result could be catastrophic and even life changing.

They used to come with one plastic cap ( presumably on the + terminal?) but the last box I got had them with a snap on dual terminal cap thingy. I’ve just checked and actually paid £14.29 for them (incl delivery) from gogreenuk on eBay in June this year - apologies for the error. Still not bad value though compared to buying them singly.

I just change the battery in my active bass every time I change strings, every 2 or 3months. The cost is well worth it vs the embarrassment of battery failure, which I’ve only experienced once in my playing career. I get Duracell ProCell batteries off eBay for around £12.00 for a pack of 10, so hardly a major expense to keep them fresh. ( I keep the ones I remove as spares for guitarists who never seem to carry any!) I agree with the comment above about basses that can run passive as well as active - got to be the best arrangement for everyone,

I’ve reached the Age of Enlightenment where GAS isn’t really worrying me anymore. I’ve got to the point where I’ll probably be selling stuff rather than acquiring any more, and am covered for my current obligations - Theatre gig, acoustic duo and occasional Country band / deps. Having said all that, I am thinking of looking for a short scale electro-acoustic. My trusty Washburn AB20 long scale has been superseded by the much easier to handle Ibanez parlour sized bass, but I’m thinking somewhere in between the two may be just right - say a 30” scale job. Ibanez and Fender do them as well as Guild so may just be patient and wait for a nice s/h model to come along.

Probably ‘Born in the USA’ by Bruce Springsteen ( a 1984 release but big in 85 too), and also Whitney Houston’s amazing debut album.

Looks like a late 50’s Les Paul junior into an Orange set up - marvellous!

So they do eventually dull after plenty of use then. I assumed this might be the case as the metal will surely show signs of deterioration (like rounds do), but just not so soon.

Reading a few of the replies above, am I right in thinking that flats never ever need replacing? Don’t they lose tone / stretch / have intonation issues, even after a long time? I’ve rarely used them so just curious.

D’Addario EXL170-5 are the ones you’ll probably like - 45-130 long scale nickel wounds. I’ve used the 4 string sets for decades with no bother.

Always liked John’s playing, but later FM stuff didn’t interest me much, mainly due to not being able to get past the vocals of Stevie Nicks. One of my least favourite singers ever, just don’t understand why her voice is so well liked, and much preferred the FM stuff with lead vocals by other band members.

Doh, shouldn’t post when I’ve just woken up. Fixed. 😆

John Deacon. A great player with some tasty lines in much of his work with Queen, but never really got the band as a whole. I found some of the early stuff okay, but can’t be doing with the mid / later overblown material and have to turn it off when it (frequently) gets played on the radio.

Whatever deals I can get on D’Addario EXL strings, usually £20 to £25 a set. Used to get them for a lot less from the US but recent increases mean it’s barely worth it now. Get through about 4 or 5 sets a year on my main bass, and never had a duff string or one break either.

You’re dead right - early Rod stuff was fantastic. Jeff Beck era /Faces / Early solo career being the peak IMO. Didn’t mind the later stuff but I agree that the American Song Book and ‘soul’ albums are truly abysmal. At that time he wasn’t selling his pop stuff, and IIRC financed the American Songbook albums himself and made a fortune doing so - no accounting for taste etc. His dreadful appearance at the Buckingham Palace thing recently was pitiful, which he acknowledged too. However, I did see him live recently and his voice was actually pretty good, not the same standard as in the early 1970’s of course but then few singers can claim they are. I’ve always liked singers who are instantly recognisable, and his voice is just one of those, whether you like it or not.

Yeh, me too! Not a fan of his vocal style but I like the overall arrangement. I do the song in my country band ( the Canned Heat version ) and also do the Ferry one too, so it’s easy to get them mixed up!

I actually like both of these - although they are not exactly the same song. Wilbert Harrison wrote and sang the original in 1962 , as 'Let's stick together' (as per the Ferry version.) He later re-recorded a version as 'Let's work together' which was subsequently covered by Canned Heat in late 1969/1970. Despite the songs being very similar, the lyrics are quite different in places. The Canned Heat version was one of the first singles I bought, and still sounds great. It was one of the early songs I played along to in my bedroom, and introduced me to gritty 12 bar stuff. Bryan Ferry's take on it also sounds good to me, especially as it features one of my favourite guitar players Chris Spedding. ☺️

I’ve always liked the look of Reverend stuff, and how much love they get on here. Yours is a killer! Just wondered if you know how heavy yours is, and does it balance well on the strap whilst playing it standing up? Cheers.

We’ve done this song in our country band for over 10 years, always gets the punters up. Great tune, usually the last of the set.

Great story and pics Mick.

The ELO Experience. Been doing this venue annually for maybe 10 years now, with audiences gradually building up.

We played at Buxton Opera House last night. Sold out crowd of around 900 in this grand old venue, which dates back to 1903. Another of my favourite theatres that we visit, I’m realising I always prefer the older venues to the often bland newer ones. Had to have a beer and pizza at the wonderful Buxton Brewery Tap House before the gig, where they were promoting us! Last week the band played at Camper Calling Festival at Ragley Hall in Warwickshire. Due to a family thing I had to dip out, but my friend Doug did a great job depping for me - first time in over 11 years I’ve had to miss a gig and it was a belter too!

I don’t think that’s necessarily the case? I seem to remember my tech guy saying that for bass amp use that the smaller cable diameter you mention is adequate. I believe the bigger stuff is mainly for high power PA stuff. Happy for someone with more evidence / knowledge to prove me wrong though 😊

That was wonderful, best music I’ve seen on TV for ages. Great singers and brilliant band, with Steve Pearce owning all those brilliant bass parts.