Beneath It All

[quote name='Dr.Dave' post='147893' date='Feb 27 2008, 03:29 PM']Funnily enough , I've just been writing my memoirs - catchily entitled 'Famous rockstars I've shared a bag of onion bahjis with outside a pub in Wakefield' Chapter 1 is called 'Neal Schon out of Journey' Run out of relevant material for the rest of the book though![/quote] .......That must have been the time he did a 'clinic' at the[then] Poste Haste - I was booked as Bassist and was asked to fix a Drummer which I did; when we arrived, another band had arrived,supposedly booked by his management.....I was devastated not to be able to play in front of my locals' with a top player...The story had a good ending I suppose - we were paid as agreed and I got to chat with him. Rather a nice dude although he didn't buy me a Bhaji..

[quote name='tonybassplayer' post='132999' date='Feb 3 2008, 01:35 PM']I need to learn this song for Monday night rehearsal. Any idea what JPJ plays under the violin part ??[/quote] ................................what violin part?

[quote name='EdwardHimself' post='115744' date='Jan 7 2008, 08:28 PM']it's not you that's the numpty, as great as leo fender was, he wasn't really aware of a bassist's needs in the early days, the reason the first fender basses have 20 frets (which means you have just below a 4 octave range in standard tuning, pretty silly)[/quote] ******I guess that's why they're probably STILL the most sought after bass of all time..Oh by the way,My 20 fret Fenders have only a 3 Octave range!! [almost]

[quote name='Mottlefeeder' post='116145' date='Jan 8 2008, 12:30 PM']I'm not sure where to start on this, it could be a long post if I gave you all the back story... I have recorded myself improvising over a Band-in-a-box 1451 backing track with its bass muted, using that original bass line and variations as my building blocks. My timing and intonation are a bit shaky, but I am confident that they will improve with practice. Where I stumble, my analysis is that my mistakes tend to be on the 1 beat because I don't look far enough ahead. My plan is to work on that track, building up the speed as I get better, and then move on to other chord sequences, other keys, and other rhythms. I wondered if there are any specific exercises that anyone can recommend that have helped them plot a course through a chord sequence, or does it just come with practice?[/quote] Reading music is pretty much like reading the written page - If you analyze what's actually happening,you'll realise that to make a sentence flow, you need to read ahead[as any reasonable reader automatically does]...Great readers tend to read further ahead than average readers; I work with lots of players who read up to EIGHT bars in front[dependent on how tricky the chart is]...I can manage two bars ahead, which seems to be enough...For anyone learning to read music, I would highly recommend starting with a drummers guide to basic rhythms - once you've got the hang of that,reading the actual notes is much less daunting..Good Luck

[quote name='ednaplate' date='Dec 29 2007, 01:02 PM' post='110527'] I'm currently working on Jr Walker's Home Cookin' bassline and the majority of the tune is in regular 4/4 time. There is a passage before the 2nd verse that is in 6/4 time and my query is this; is one bar of 6/4 the same as one bar of 4/4 and one bar of 2/4? This may seem obvious but I just want to clarify it with you theory bods out there. ........I remember the tune well. It was in the Jamerson book that came with a CD and featured lotsa top bassists doin' the old hits...Home Cookin' was the only chart I struggled with - far too many slurs that I kept reading as ties! I eventually rewrote it minus the slurs..Awesome bass line played on the CD[if I remember correctly] by David Hungate ex Toto..From a counting point of view, 6/4 = 4/4+2/4 but they are NOT necessarily the same; 2/4+2/4 =4/4 but likewise, they're NOT necessarily the same in terms of strong/weak accents and/or rhythmic intent....Good luck with the reading. .

[quote name='bilbo230763' post='107048' date='Dec 20 2007, 01:09 PM']I have never played with anyone that plays better after having a drink or getting stoned. They usually play a lot worse but either don't know or don't care. Sometimes the deterioration is not enough to get arsy about but I will mention it. If you do it again on my watch, you're a dick and I am highly unlikely to book you again. Simple as. You'll lose work, even if you don't know it.[/quote] ..Guess you've not played with many people then.

[quote name='lowdown' date='Dec 18 2007, 12:53 PM' post='105879'] At There Best... [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCzUMjCykn8"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nCzUMjCykn8[/url] YUK!!

[quote name='metaltime' post='102982' date='Dec 11 2007, 10:58 PM']i WOULD SAY DOWN RIGHT OFFENSIVE[/quote]..........If people call us Brits 'cos we're from Britain,what should we call the Chinese people?...That withstanding, I DO apologise for any offence caused...

[quote name='OldGit' post='102887' date='Dec 11 2007, 08:44 PM']What's the problem with Chinese production? Just about every major coperation and some hifi boutique bass gear companies like PJB have plants there.[/quote]......Something called Quality Control I suspect...Dunno about you,but when I'M doing a show,I like my gear to stay working until the tabs go down.Met very few people who haven't had problems with chinese ashdown stuff......

Was told by someone at Ashdown that all their heads are now made in China??....Not very reassuring...Personally, I MUCH prefer the old Trace stuff.

[quote name='Mikey D' post='98563' date='Dec 4 2007, 01:08 AM']Just got back...WOW! I'm convinced that Allan is the greatest musician I have ever witnessed! Also, jimmy and chad were playing supposedly, unfortunately, I didn't have a chance to take my eyes and ears off what allan was doing.[/quote].........................................................That's a pity - if it was anything like the Leeds gig, JJ seemed to be the one who was trying to inject some life into the proceedings[I suspect it may have been a bit different had GH been on kit], although his sound wasn't the best and did appear to affect AH's sound..Always great to see them though........Unless you were fortunate enough to see Jaco live,I daresay your statement is 100% correct!

Thought by now that these two great quotes would have surfaced - " I 'aint just wigglin' my fingers"......"Stanley Clarke? he 'aint sh*t"........JACO [who else!]

[quote name='Gizmo' post='88653' date='Nov 14 2007, 09:09 PM']I was hopping to go see them at the robin in bilston on the 5th dec but i'll be in sharm el sheikh enjoying some winter sun at the time Ive seen Holdsworth & co before ronnies scotts in Bham became a lap dancing club... As i recall Skuli Sverrisson was holding down the low end at the time it was a stella gig But id love to see Jimmy as i think hes a top player[/quote] >>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>Skuli Sverrison - what a monster! Check out Holdsworths' Hard Hat Area. Seem to remember seeing him on the tube also........Hopefully I'll get chance to say hello to AH as he's in Leeds on Dec 1st.....For all you JJ fans,you might want to check out James Taylors' Pull Over concert on DVD

My EVO 2 300 has an almighty hum which more or less disappears ,but not entirely, when I plug in my bass;;The sub harmonic works not at all...Anyone else had similar problems? Anyone else still using Ashdown!!..Would also appreciate any thoughts on the Superfly head....Ta.