lonestar

[quote name='stuckinthepod' timestamp='1422973110' post='2679004'] I heard this in a dodgy Mr Miyagi Chinese accent in my head. Zen and the Art of Bass Lines! [/quote] ...and if one cocks up the bass part in a forest does it make a sound ? yes but you feel less of a prat because no one else can it and there's no where to plug in an amp Grasshopper.

[quote name='Bassjon' timestamp='1422895783' post='2678022'] I play in a band where Ihad to learn over 20 Motown Jamerson lines in under 3 weeks. That was stressful because I wanted them to sound 'right' which meant becoming Jamerson pretty much over night. I simplified a few little bits but now I realise the greatness of a beautiful bassline and always try and transcribe it close as i can then put my own spin on it. I wouldn't dare stick to root notes on that kind of stuff because all the character of the song is in the bassline. [/quote] This. In bucket loads.

[quote name='SpaceChick' timestamp='1422427352' post='2672425'] Oi, stop pinching my set People only notice the bass when something goes wrong or it stops. FACT! [/quote] My analogy is bass player is like the fourth table leg. No one notices unless it's not there or if a bit wobbly. I always try and nail the bass parts on most things we do note for note: a. because on songs I really like I don't think that I'm good enough to improve on the original so best try and get it right. If it's too hard (rarely happens) drop the song. We would if the singer couldn't sing it ? b. If it's a song that someone in the audience knows loves, and connects with it may be , even subliminally, the bass part that dusts their broom. c. and they may be a bass player and even one of m'learned colleagues on here d.i just find it more satisfying, especially on the tricky ones or where the bass part is a "classic bass line."

Some Brylcreemed, blazer clad old geezer, with a regimental badge and military bearing, at a rugby club do I was depping at a few years ago f[u]ought his way through a packed dance floor[/u] to tell me mid-song that nobody would dance to any of this modern stuff, ( standard function band fodder) and that we should play some Beatles songs or something. I pointed him to my drummer friend Bob who was manning the mixer out front and told him to discuss the shortcomings of the setlist with our "manager".

[quote name='toneknob' timestamp='1422958146' post='2678734'] next time tell him to ask "Does the 14-year old want them back?" [/quote] ..."because you're getting them all wrinkly".

[quote name='Horizontalste' timestamp='1422831309' post='2677417'] Recently Ive been having another bout of Carpal Tunnel symptoms, most annoyingly the numbness at night keeping me awake. It got me wondering how others manage with it & how do folk treat the numbness? I can't be the only one here who suffers. Cheers Steve [/quote] One other thing that I found may help with the night time pins and needles short term is to dangle the offending arm down over the side of the bed fingers downwards. Still see a doctor and get it sorted properly though as stressed in the other posts above.

[quote name='xilddx' timestamp='1422949491' post='2678631'] It may not require an op. [/quote] This was my experience a quick, albeit bloody painful, injection. Couple of days in a sling and sorted.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1422919158' post='2678510'] You're right, of course. So in the interests of fairness and parity, I list the following songs: If your band covers them, it's minus ten points; if you WANT to cover them, it's minus twenty points; and if you do five of them (or more) in your set, it's PLUS a million points... Free Bird More Than A Feeling Daddy Cool Sweet Child 'O Mine Start Me Up Down Down Money For Nothing Summer Of '69 We Will Rock You Radar Love... and... Mustang Sally. [/quote] Oh the humanity. Enough already

I had it about ten years ago on my pick hand when I strayed into the dark side as a guitard. My GP gave a hydrocortisone injection near the base of my thumb which hurt like crazy and necessitated a sling for a couple of days. I then wore a wrist support while using a mouse and working for a week or so. It's been fine ever since. iItry and takewithof my right hand technique and so far so good touchwood.

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1422827119' post='2677318'] Because our audience are old dads? . [/quote] I'm an old Dad and I don't wan't to hear it.

Ive heard somewhere on here that welding nozzle files are guaged and can work for thi and are pretty cheap

[quote name='NoRhino' timestamp='1422796671' post='2676805'] If you're in a band and people are there to see you you should play it as close to the Andy Fraser lines as possible and keep your personal hatred hidden. I played with a drummer who turned from a good fluent drummer into a tippy tappy couldn't care merchant during a song he didn't like and the audience and booker noticed. We weren't asked back. He's no longer my drummer. [/quote] Quite,if you've agreed as a band to dio it or as a dep its on the setlist then play eveything as well as you can and in good spirit, even, if it's a song you'd rather eat a worm sandwich than play againl. It's the professional approach. I try honest !

Id like to be able to do nuts but the files are a bit prcicey

[quote name='BILL POSTERS' timestamp='1422736658' post='2676357'] I realised years ago that sad as it may be, you need to play them, just to show you can, and then still refuse to do it. [/quote] And even more sadly I've had to revise them in recent times for a couple of dep gigs

[quote name='Monckyman' timestamp='1422739616' post='2676404'] Update, if i HAD to play it, I would be texting Seashell during the verse. [/quote] If only I had her number. It'd be pistols at dawn sir.

I wanted hair like that once. Definitely cool in 1970 I've never actually disliked the song ; just played it when I was 15 and Wishing Well, and have no desire to again. Watching that was good though thanks Paul. Took me right back to my school days. We all wanted big hair, big stacks and a Les Paul or a Ric 4001 in my case. We were Born to be mild. Reality was my first rawk gig was Green St Green village hall playing a kay p bass copy throgh a FAL PA amp and a orange reflex cab copy.. Never thought that I sounded as good or felt cooler since ! I probably do sound a lot better now but with less hair.

[quote name='paul h' timestamp='1422718644' post='2676010'] I now have a crush on Monckyman and Lonestar [/quote] :0

Plus there is a welth of information on here if advice is needed. I recommend the Haynes Bass Manual for anyone wanting to learn how to work on their own bass. If not you can find out how to fix most things on Youtube

Fixing stuff is great. Managed to replace the brushes on our washing machine last week ! Basses are much simpler and you dont get covered in carbon. Its very satisfying to fix ones own, especially electrics. However i managed to burn between my middle and ring finger by dripping hot gun glue on it last night night trying to mend the new Vox bass amp plug thingy i got for christmas,having carelessly snapped off the jack plug. Jeez never mind lit cigarette ends; use a hot glue gun on someone and they'll sing like a canary ! It hurt like hell and i today have two blisters so be careful out there. Intonation screw: the ones at the back of the bridge that move the saddles back and forward to fine tune string length and the intonation.

[quote name='Monckyman' timestamp='1422664889' post='2675529'] I won't play it,not because it's beneath me or any crap like that, but because I think it's a sh*t song. my band gets plenty of gigs so the alternatives we play must be as valid or, dare I say it, even better. Some were even written this century. Let me posit the argument that the younger audience aren't drinking in pubs so much because all they ever hear is alright now, mustang Sally and Johnny b good, getting thraped. Time to move on. ; ) [/quote] I agree.Having grown up ( theoretically) in the 70s with these cover band standards. I can't imagine ever wanting to spend an evening in the pub or throw shapes at a wedding to a bunch of middle aged blokes cranking out these songs again because "thats what people want". Why, because I play in bands, should I have any more of a discerning palate and aversion to hearing the same old stuff to the people at the bar/on the dancefloor. Surely quite a few of them are nuts about music too and that's why they're in a boozer with a live band. It strikes me as patronising and a bit arrogant to assume that people will be dissapointed if they go a whole evening without hearing Brown Eyed Girl or All Right Now. Oh and I can play both bass parts exactly as the original, but prefer not too. ��

[quote name='Happy Jack' timestamp='1422615082' post='2674581'] Genuinely astonished at the amount of negativity towards leccy drums. A good quality kit is indistinguishable (to the audience) from a live kit, and the pub rock scene continues to move steadily towards bands with a volume knob - especially for the drummer. Paul the Drums in the Junkyard Dogs was slow to warm to them but wouldn't now be without them for small venues. The drummers in two other bands I play with have also abandoned their opposition. Getting back on topic, glad you came through the audition process unscathed, and I hate pointy Ibanez guitars too. [/quote] I did a dep gig last year with a very good drummer with a fancy schmantsy Roland Kit and i must say it sounded great. He really knew how to programme it too which made all the difference. I've also played with another drummer who didn't and it was hard work. I had a wedge monitor specifically for the drums just behind me so got a good bass drum kick in the rear, just like an acoustic kit which helped. Run a mile from any band with a guitarist who has pointy Ibanez and satriani/malmsteen/ vai type aspirations though.

[quote name='UglyDog' timestamp='1422548809' post='2673986'] Depressing reading indeed. Especially this bit: Now correct me if I'm wrong, but I have the distinct feeling that that is the biggest load of complete w*** I have heard in a long time. 'Meaningful brand engagement'? Give me strength. Do these people really talk like that? And if so, how do they keep from being punched in the face at regular intervals? [/quote] Absolutely what a load of corporate boll***s. I'd be first in the face punching queue for these gits too.

i wish that I had some money. i'd be interested in the 5string aspiration elite. Anybody tried one ? Shame they're no longer being made

I've been in a similar audition situations to this thinking it's OK, sounds good but I'm not sure. Nice people but a few too many small things that would tick me off in the long run and politely declined the offer. I think that you handled this perfectly Interpol. All sounds very positive. Having tried out, usually succesfully, for a few dep/ permanent gigs I now quite like auditions. The anticipation, learning the material and a little bit of nerves if honest, playing with new people fuels my fantasy pro session bass player ego ! I always turn up well rehearsed, on time and try to not make too many cock-ups,confidant in knowing the songs, sometimes better than the band who have been playing them for ages but not listened to the originals for a while. That can be tricky to deal with. I die a little each time someone says " it's our version" when they're just playing a function band standard badly. Oh and I try and not make disparaging comments about the setlist until at least half a dozen rehearsals in and I'm becoming part of the furniture.