tauzero

Bass God. A man can dream...

Playing with others, as has been said. And try to play with as wide a variety of bands as you can - I started playing with a ceilidh band a little while ago and it's actually taught me quite a bit. I've been playing for 35 years but still learning. Walking bass lines - there's rules for constructing them, eg. [url="http://www.ultimate-guitar.com/forum/archive/index.php?t-591737.html"]here[/url], which should help, but the key point is to listen to them.

[quote name='casapete' post='1062442' date='Dec 18 2010, 01:35 PM']Mmmm.. I thought 'D' too, but sounds (to me anyway) like the guitarist plays the solos as if it's in 'G'??? When we play it we always do a big rall and finish on the 'D' though![/quote] That means you're finishing the song with the wrong chord...

Currently not using effects with either covers band but do with the originals band (Korg AX3000B, mainly chorus and octave). I think I'll be using the Korg with one of the covers bands though.

Rule of thumb - the final chord of the song is the key that it's in. See "'i' after 'e' except after 'c'".

I hope that Ricky is going to get a nice psychedelic refin to go with the scratchplate.

[quote name='redstriper' post='1061202' date='Dec 17 2010, 12:41 AM']I used it at every gig for over a year and then went back to the old jazz for some reason. I still use the Ash sometimes, but I've become a bit paranoid about playing out of tune because the intonation is difficult on such a small scale. But it's got the tone for me and it's fun to play, ideally I'd like something between my great heavy jazz bass and the Ashbory.[/quote] What about that new solid Kala U-Bass? Pahoehoehoe strings (just right for Christmas) and (I assume) available fretted. Buggerall information available though.

[quote name='icastle' post='1058551' date='Dec 14 2010, 02:08 PM']Out of interest - do you find the demand for barndances is still pretty seasonal or is it pretty much spread over the year now?[/quote] Pretty much spread over the year. We've got one on the 23rd and another one next February (and one next October too), and there'll be our regular one in summer too. Of course, almost none are in barns (just the regular summer one). We're doing far fewer general admittance ones though, it's almost entirely birthdays or weddings.

[quote name='redstriper' post='1059007' date='Dec 14 2010, 09:16 PM']I'm still looking for the perfect lightweight bass with a heavy dub tone and still playing the old jazz bass until I find one.[/quote] You don't want to use your Ashbory?

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='1059453' date='Dec 15 2010, 12:28 PM']But I'm also listing it on Basschat for another £100 on top again.[/quote] Is that like 100% extra free?

Not getting many gigs at the moment (basically because both covers bands are in the process of taking off, and barn dance enquiries are at a trickle). I do enjoy the vast majority - with the old club band, there were some places where I really just wanted to finish and get the money, and others where I really got quite a buzz (even playing music I wasn't that keen on). Both covers bands now consist of enthusiastic members, which helps a lot.

Bass Collection - I sold mine precisely because it was so light, I'd got used to a Thumb and before that a Precision and I never felt comfortable with something so featherweight. Hohner Jack might also be worth a look - a bit heavier than a B2A but because it's got a proper body, the neck positioning is better.

[quote name='cheddatom' post='1043639' date='Dec 1 2010, 12:07 PM']IMO playing near the bridge doesn't give you more treble, it just cuts some bass to give you more of a mid-punch than a low-thump.[/quote] It shifts the balance between fundamental and harmonics towards the harmonics.

Dammit, I did mean to add some sort of constructive comment too. As someone who has every now and again had a half-hearted stab at learning standard notation but never managed it, it strikes me that the subject matter is obviously orientated towards notation as that's the way to explain how the chord tones fit together, but that pragmatism also says that tab would be of use. The biggest weakness of tab is the poor facility to express rhythmic content and a book on chord tones is presumably going to have little rhythmic content, the significant part is the structure of the chords.

[quote name='icastle' post='1057464' date='Dec 13 2010, 04:16 PM']That is [b]so[/b] mean. Right you b*ggers - who's been putting ants on Johnston's sheet music? [/quote] Isn't that how Stockhausen composed?

These are the songs that we do with Mrs Zero on lead vocals: Stuck in the middle Born to be wild Hoochie coochie man White room Wishing Well Jumping Jack Flash Dancing in the moonlight Sweet Home Alabama All right now The Hunter You really got me Hey Joe Can't get enough of your love The Seeker Black Magic Woman You shook me all night long It's a Long Way to the top if you wanna rock and roll Hard To Handle Mustang Sally Johnny B Goode Paranoid Badge She did inherit a male vocalist's set list a few weeks ago, but I don't think there's anything in the set that sounds any the worse for having a female lead vocal.

It might be worth looking at the DSO Nano - just google for it. They go on ebay (new) for around the £50 mark, and I've been quite tempted (but for the lack of a spare £50). I do have a couple of small bench scopes, but zero bench space...

Saturday night's gig with the rock/blues covers band was at the Black Horse, a pub in Birmingham with a mixed clientele of goths and bikers. It happened to be the Outlaws MC Christmas party too. Got there nice and early, set up, and part way through the soundcheck the mixer amp blew up. I suspect an iffy mains socket which had resulted in it going on and off several times in rapid succession, combined with it being a Behringer. Fortunately the gaffer intends to make the pub a general all-round music venue and consequently has a couple of powered mixers knocking around, so we were soon back underway. While it was our last gig with our powered mixer, it was our first gig with new vocalist Mrs Zero, and it was Mrs Zero's debut as a vocalist with a rock band. All went well - she acquitted herself very well and we're getting a few more bookings there, which is nice. And Mrs Zero was able to tick one last thing off her list of things to do before she was 50, as we finished playing about half an hour before her birthday. I took my #2 5-string Tsai out for a change - needs some sorting out on the fretting front (fret ends are a bit sticky-out and rough, and there's one or two slightly high frets) but it did the job. Oh yes, and I need a new power amp or powered mixer, anyone got anything cheap that'll do around 300-500W per side?

[quote name='icastle' post='1051645' date='Dec 8 2010, 01:38 PM']I remember one done back in the 80's that was a cut down version and far shorter than the original, but I think they were a 'one hit wonder' whose name escapes me.-[/quote] Far Corporation. An un-named bunch of Machiavellian chancers, they played their cover version down the phone to Robert Plant and asked him what he thought of the song and what they should call the band. They thought he replied "Far Corp". This may not be entirely historically accurate.

[quote name='chaypup' post='1053793' date='Dec 10 2010, 10:18 AM']I like this [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Westone-Quantum-bass-X850-black-/330506572418?pt=UK_Musical_Instruments_Guitars_CV&hash=item4cf3ba1282#ht_500wt_951"][b]Westone[/b][/url] - little too pricey for me, people seem to be asking a lot for westones recently. [/quote] I had one of those, bought and sold it for about £75. It was the one I took when I travelled to a party by motorcycle complete with bass, amp (GK 200MB), leads, effects, and sleeping bag. Not bad, not worth £250.

[quote name='Happy Jack' post='1052522' date='Dec 9 2010, 10:39 AM']Watch the weight on those Thor basses ...[/quote] At least they should take a bit of hammering...

[quote name='Bassassin' post='1050381' date='Dec 7 2010, 12:00 PM']He spelt "origional" wrong - sorry - rong.[/quote] And "Acceptional".