wombatboter

[quote name='iamapirate' post='691762' date='Dec 22 2009, 08:56 PM']Master blaster and sir duke just come naturally to me [/quote]

Not really stupidly easy tunes to me.... or maybe I'm missing the irony ?

[quote name='Sean' post='701862' date='Jan 5 2010, 05:53 PM']Here's another live version of Suspicious Minds - this is the one that's on "Elvis Live". I love how high the bass is in the mix and how The Scheff goes from laying back a bit to just ripping away and then back again and then...

[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrRgZ6ReiWk"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xrRgZ6ReiWk[/url]

The way it sort of changes gear at 2:40 gives me goose bumps. The high register phrases at 3.15 - 3.45 are just glorious [/quote]

I listened to it yesterday evening and really liked it...again it's clear that when you have a singer who really is in control and is able to lead a band a lot is possible. Even when it gets "sloppy" the right person (like Elvis) can lead it back into intensity and create something special on the spot.
Jerry Scheff told me that when they played with Elvis, they rarely rehearsed and that anything was possible, everyone was going wild and Elvis loved that. He stopped playing with Elvis for a while and then came back to do some shows in Vegas. Scheff came on stage, picked up his bass and started to play like he used too but was instantly summoned by Elvis to "calm down". In a short period something seemed to have changed and they had to change their way of playing.

Never noticed it but you've got a point :-)

Like a lot of people before, I complemented Jerry Scheff on his "best work ever" on "Burning love"...but he didn't sound irritated when he told me it was another bassplayer who played that one. I quickly raved on about his sound on "Way Down" and he found his pride back and said "thàt's me, allright !".
I met James Burton and Ronnie Tutt on the same night (they were all there with their women who seemed very eager to spend the earned money in the fashion shops in Paris..)
I remember Scheff talking to me about James Jamerson. Scheff told me that he was quite familiar with the scene at that time where Jamerson came out off and he said that Jamerson was not really remarkable at that time, he said that in different clubs you could find bass-players who had the same qualities as Jamerson but that he was the one they picked up. Apparantly there was a lot of bass talent at that time.

Me and Jerry in France :

Beautiful instrument ! Hard to resist but I'm feeling strong..

I had the pleasure to meet Jerry Scheff in France and I enjoyed his company while we went for something to eat in a restaurant.
Nice person, still an amazing bassplayer (he also played on "Riders on the storm") and he told me that he listens to a lot of Radiohead these days..
He does need hearing-aids (in both ears) nowadays..
He also plays on the Roy Orbison-dvd (black and white-night) together with Ronnie Tutt (also the Elvis-veteran), highly recommended.

I bought it too a while ago.. I love "Cousin Dupree" (and the dvd is a great one to try out the possibilities of the sound of homecinema :-))

A drummer I play with a lot around here in Belgium had the pleasure to play with Chaka during one concert and she brought Gouch along. He was floored by this bass player and he said that it's amazing how a bass-player could be so busy on his instrument and yet hold a tight groove.

Not sure which sort of wood this is...it's not mentionned on the inside.
Bought it from Duncan (based around New York) and apparantly this bass seems to have a connection with Howard Jones ?
Sounds great though it has only one pick-up and the output is amazing (more than some active basses)

Wow...this is really special ! (just when you think you've seen it all :-))

If there's one thing which is clear to me is that you love instruments and take your job very seriously...I have faith in your skills and I think you are an honest person who tries to make musicians happy and get the best out of their instruments. The fact that you get so emotional about this just is more proof that you seem to be the right man for this job.
Nice to know that there are still people like you around...

And if you consider that Tony Levin played that fantastic fretless bass on "The weakness in me"...

I love his playing... one of the most tasteful players of the last years.

I also noticed that Mark's voice sounds great since he never has been a really great singer. It is a catchy tune and the bass sounds really nice. I loved the track. Thanks for posting !

I went to see the McCartney show last week in Holland....He played for two hours and three quarters. His voice was excellent and he didn't make it easy on himself (Helter Skelter, Got to get you into my life, etc...).
The man is 67 years old and he was full of energy and the crowd went mad. I have seen him perform live five times and never am I disappointed cause the level of performance is that high.
His voice has changed but what do you expect when you're getting old ? A miracle ? He never sings out of tune and still makes people happy (last week : 29.000 people)
To me he has still more than enough reasons to be on a stage and more than anyone in the world.
Funny that someone from Belgium has to say something about a person you in the UK should be extremely proud of..

Thanks, Oliver (have a great Xmas too).
I think this one will be hard to sell since it's only a small (and expensive) niche.
Luckily there's no hurry and perhaps it means that it's bound to stay where it is :-)

Bump...

I recently bought a mocha Fender Jazz here on bass-chat and it's an excellent bass. This Precision looks stunning too.
You deserve it after all you and your loved ones have been through...I wish you the very best.
Take care !

@Daveski : thanks for the information ! I have also been playing it non-stop since I bought it (it wasn't that cheap).
The longer scale doesn't bother me too much (I'm a pretty tall person with rather long arms and big hands) and it is one of the best basses I've ever had (more than a 100 the last twenty years). It really brings out good things in me and the bass is absolutely superb. I even pick it up more than my beloved Wal. I'm really glad you sold it :-)

A couple of years ago I went to see a British singer in a local pub here in Belgium with Pino on bass, Ian Thomas on drums and Neil Hubbard on guitar. Amazing stuff and I bought the cd (Tony O'Malley-Naked flame).
Later on Tony moved to Belgium and he asked me to come and play in his band so I had to step into Pino's shoes, an impossible task.
The first gig I brought a fretless musicman with me and while I was going through the repertoire I didn't copy Pino's licks but tried something of my own.
At one particular moment in a song ("For the children") I remembered this perfect fill Pino played on the album and I had to make a choice : reproduce it or play my own fill. The moment approached and I chose the Pino fill.
I was sure the singer didn't remember Pino's fill but when I had played it, he quickly showed me thumbs up. The only time during the whole performance...
A reminder that only the Pino-fill réally stood out and not my own attempts :-)

A couple of years ago I had two gigs on the same day...the timing was a bit tight and the two locations weren't close to each other but normally I would be able to play at both places.
I arrived on the first gig which was in open air. Someone from the organisation came around while we were loading out our gear and he gave us our fee already. He said "Good luck and one thing : as soon as it starts to rain, you have my permission to stop and you can go home". We started our first song (normally we were supposed to play an hour and a half) and then it started to rain.
We stopped playing and I had loads of time to make it to the next gig (which was 100 miles further).
There I arrived and the rain had soaked the festival. They told me that we wouldn't play because of electrocution, I got paid and I drove home.
Easy money but to be honest I would rather have played music instead of just driving around and getting paid.

I checked your pictures and it's the same bass...I recognize the carpet on the pictures I have been send.
It is an amazing Alembic (date refers to 2002), really one of the best basses I have ever owned. I've played other Alembics but this MK signature just is something special, superb looks and playability and the leds are a nice bonus (especially since they can not be seen by the audience).

Since this whole topic can't be taken serious : I don't take bassplayers who think McCartney isn' t an amazing bassplayer serious. I noticed that most of the bass-players around me who bash him, play lousy.
"Mrs Vanderbilt", "Something", "Silly Love Songs", "Old brown Shoe", etc...some of the best basslines on earth.

Thanks for the kind comments !

not the most obvious or cheapest instrument for sale so it seems this needs a bump...