Mark Dyer

Without wishing to hi-jack this thread, I'm having an issue where the blue back light is not coming on (can take up to 30 mins to eventually come on). Sometimes I get no sound as well, which I initially thought was a temperature problem but now not so sure. Anyone else experiencing this? As far as I can tell the tubes are working, there is certainly no drop in volume.

How many people here who complain about Smartphones at gigs have watched footage shot by people with smartphones at gigs on YouTube? ...thought so.

I think it all depends on the band you're going to see and where they are at in their musical career. I can remember seeing Living Colour play a festival gig and failing to project themselves to the crowd, I got the feeling they hadn't really thought about how they were going to play to a large audience. More recently I saw Coldplay make the transition from smaller venue to the MEN on the 'Rush of Blood…' tour, they seemed to grasp what they needed to do to reach to the back of the venue, it was a fascinating to see when you realised they were going to be huge, maybe they knew it too. Off to see George Porter tomorrow in Manc, I'll let you know how it went...

Mark at Bass Direct is in talks with Dingwall about a possible lefty 5-string, trying to gauge some interest. [url="https://www.facebook.com/BassdirectUK"]https://www.facebook.com/BassdirectUK[/url]

Arcane Roots.

[url="http://pedaltrain.com/products/power/powertrain_1250.php"]http://pedaltrain.com/products/power/powertrain_1250.php[/url]

[quote name='bubinga5' timestamp='1395536843' post='2403549'] am i the only one who doesn't like graphite necked basses. are Zons any different.? i had a Modulus Jazz, it was the best feeling bass i have ever played, but tone wise, it was not to my taste. no character in the tone at all. [/quote] Fascinating, there will always be a north/south divide on graphite vs traditional necks, but I have to disagree with you, my Status has loads of character in the tone it's called, the tonal characteristics of a Status with a graphite neck

Something from Levitation and Warriors… for sure, and maybe Choose Your Masks?

Nardis - Miles Davis

Nice one, thanks for that. £100 voucher here we come...

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1395326683' post='2401167'] There was a young man with a sticker put 99p on a Ritter So then a young lass Slapped him on the ass, saying "... ..." [/quote] "No sausage, but it will make you fitter" My sandwich of choice today is Pastrami with Dill Pickle, open face on Rye. Nice thread...

[media]http://youtu.be/j2GAW87Jmw0[/media] Been listening to these a lot lately, nice woody tone from the Warwick and loving the tight, clipped playing. Simple but effective. Great song too.

SOLD! Off to HMV to see if they have a copy. And he's a lefty.

The man is a legend. I think the School's In! has to be my fav album, "Speed Reading (It-si-bi-ya)" One day I will be able to play this good, one day...

About three years ago I took the plunge and ordered myself a Status, a headless S2, book matched wood, upgraded circuitry the lot, (no LED's before you ask). I didn't make the decision lightly, a couple of mates already owned various Status basses, I had played those and heard quite a few others. When it arrived I must admit to not knowing quite what to do with it, £2600 worth of shiny bass just sitting there, I was too scared to even use it on a gig for the first few months, but now it's defo my No 1 bass. I've grown so used to it now, the neck is so comfortable, I pick up the Jazz now and I can feel the difference straight away. It also made me realise that I much prefer the sound and quality of modern bass guitars, the Jazz is a lovely instrument but a waste if it doesn't get used. It'll be on sale here shortly if there's any Lefties interested. I don't think I would consider looking for anything under the £1000 mark these days, maybe I'll strike lucky like some of you people here. I was in Bass Direct just after Christmas, trying out a Sandberg Jazz amongst others, and it seemed obvious to me that the bass was worth every penny of it's £1400 price tag, the sounds, the build quality, the neck, couldn't fault it really.

An iPod full of tunes in case the venue has no decent sound system or music, we can then play stuff through the PA between sets. Occasionally I take along a laptop and DJ between sets if asked, beats sitting in the venue getting drunk.

The Answer, just come back from seeing them live at Academy 2, superb!

Before I contribute to this topic can I first say what an excellent thread this has been to read, I've been dipping in and out of it all day, getting a fascinating insight into peoples musical backgrounds, well done bubinga5 for starting it. Can't help but feel that we're all of a similar age though? Someone mentioned earlier "I guess we all feel lucky about the music we grew up with" but I can honestly say I feel extremely fortunate that both my parents were serious music lovers. Both were teenagers during the 60's and I am still slightly jealous of the bands and the music scene they saw and grew up with. I swear to this day I was born to the soundtrack of Bob Dylan! As mentioned earlier, in the early 70's, TV was not the 24hr multi-channel marathon it is today and it may have had a bearing on the amount of music that was played in my parents house, but somehow I don't think my Mother & Father were that interested in TV. The huge volume of music that was played as I grew up is, looking back on it, simply breathtaking. I could come home from school one day and my Mum & Dad would be playing some serious classical work, the next day it could be C&W or Jeane Michelle Jarre, Pink Floyd, Celtic Folk music, Deep Purple, Blues from way back, Jazz (my Dad's jazz collection is something to behold), Beatles, Hendrix, World music, Gregorian Chants, in fact anything, of any genre that they considered good was purchased and played and as I grew older they continued to collect contemporary music and still do to this day. But they also displayed a remarkable understanding of what they listened to. My Mother for example could identify practically any classical work, composer etc, and my Father would sometimes even identify what recording it was, year, orchestra and country of origin, terrifying to a small child at the time. His knowledge of blues and especially jazz music was also scary and yet inspiring, he was very much part of the jazz scene in London in the early 60's and attended live performances regularly. Later on he started to see bands like Pink Floyd at the Roundhouse with Sid as well as the Stones, Cream, the list is almost endless, he never saw Hendrix though. They could see from an early age that I was into music and was encouraged to share it with them. Any pocket money I had and money from milk & paper rounds I saved and spent on records, for Birthdays and Christmas it was soon accepted that all I wanted were record tokens. But they never once said "you're not playing that in the house", it didn't matter if I brought home ZZ Top or Joy Division, Yes or The Damned, The Police or The Ramones it all got played. Some might see this as an absolute nightmare that their parents might be into the same music, but looking back it was just a household where music got played everyday, and I loved it. My Dad sadly passed away a few years ago but he never grew tired of listening, I can remember coming home one Christmas and he was in the living room, hi-fi whacked up, listening to a Chemical Brothers album and totally digging it, he was 68! It was just music to him, they were no barriers or rules. I often hear some new band, or a piece of music and think my Dad would've have loved that, which is a little sad but at the same time a good way to remember him. I still exchange music with Mother, if I hear something I think she will like I will post her the CD. She always had a piano in the house and still plays keyboards to this day. My Dad strangely enough, was hopeless at any instrument and was, I think, slightly jealous when I started to play bass and join bands. I am SO grateful of the musical background they gave me and there's no doubt it has influenced me in a massive way. Like my parents, I have a huge appreciation of practically any genre of music, although I can't confess to an understanding of classical or jazz they way they seemed to find easy. There's so much out there, and every year there just seems to be more and more great bands, and more great music to listen to, the GF thinks I'm mental.......... she watches TV a lot. Sorry, it looks like I've gushed out my life story here, apologies for waffling on but music is very important to me, a sentiment I'm sure everyone here agrees with.

[quote name='paulflan0151' timestamp='1395243951' post='2400139'] ....Santos Chupitos, the hidden bar next to Santos Chupito... [/quote] Is 'El Bandito' Camp and Furnace is well worth the short walk, food is always good, I'm there most Friday nights...

Glass Animals - Gooey

It's Dawsons or bugger all in Liverpool sadly, which considering the musical heritage of the city is damn shameful. I, on the other hand, can show you round some truly top-notch drinking establishments nearby which should take your mind off the dreadful five mins you will waste wandering around Dawsons. Apologies to any members of Dawsons Liverpool, who may be reading this, but it is a bit sh*te?

[quote name='seashell' timestamp='1395174240' post='2399511'] I recently saw a bassist (female incidentally) do this at a local gig. I was very impressed. I have had a little go at it, but really need to improve my finger strength and co-ordination. I reckon it would be more achievable than picking though. [/quote] It's a relatively simple technique but takes quite a bit of "lock yourself away for a few days in a darkened room" type of application until it becomes second nature. Basically you play a count of four with three fingers, starting with your 3rd finger, 1, 2, 3, 4, ending on your 3rd finger, then start the next count on your 2nd finger, 1, 2, 3. 4, ending on your 2nd, then start on your index finger, 1, 2, 3, 4, ending on your index finger. Repeat. Faster... It can be a little tricky at first, but when you can do it without thinking you can basically rev your three digits like an engine, it can be quite satisfying to do. I, of course, have only read about this somewhere and shun this type of playing on account of my devotion of traditional English folk music for the last 20 yrs...

[quote name='d_g' timestamp='1395154299' post='2399251'] ...I would say being a good teacher is actually more important that being a good player...to a degree... [/quote] Couldn't agree more, however, my bass tutor is also a busy working player. He tours and records regularly with a well known blues guitarist as well as gigging and recording with a wide variety of artists ranging from dance to prog. All of this real world experience is channelled into my lessons which you just don't get from online tutorials not matter how good they are. If you can find a good teacher that actually plays for a living, they are well worth the tuition fee.