stefBclef

It's even harder to replace a singer if it is their band and they've written all the songs etc...then you really can't go anywhere!

[quote name='geoffbassist' timestamp='1338219781' post='1671002'] I always carry a small towel. About half the size of a tea towel to wipe my hands and clean the strings. I feed it through the handle on the side of the cab & tie it round the bass neck. Works great, very secure & no need to carry a stand. [/quote] Ok I decided to try this the other night. Night before gig I am packing my bag (had to get up for work in a few hours, you know the situation!) and in my sleepy slumber I searched around for an appropriate tying device and I stumbled across a wide strip of elastic (those that you use in physio). For some reason I thought this would work a treat. It did not. Elastic + bass = rubbish at holding it upright! I really should have guessed that.

[quote name='Twigman' timestamp='1343417113' post='1750537'] Do I ALWAYS change with the drummer? No - we have separate dressing rooms. [/quote] Ok, I did say at the start that the jokes should be good ones....and now I will create a new ruke: NO REPEAT JOKES!!! (see Bottom E's joke opener earlier). Well maybe there is just the one joke available anyway so i'll let you off!

[quote name='flyfisher' timestamp='1343415911' post='1750507'] Agreed. Do whatever you like - if you like the results then it's good. Just don't expect everyone else in the world to like it. [/quote] Yep, I expected these kind of answers. And I will certainly keep on jamming. I know there is no magic answer and every rule can be broken and all that, but it's good to know methods/rules previous people have used to construct "good" music. I will go have a jam then! Thanks for all your responses....

Happy Friday everybody! Ok, feel free to make jokes about the title, but only if they're good ones! So, musically speaking, do you always change when the drummer changes (and vice-versa)? Scenario is: You are creating / jamming an original song (i.e. there's no original to copy) in a band setting and the dynamics and structure are still to be settled on. So at some points you are pondering things like: "Do I play softly here? Do I use a reggae line here? Do I slap here? The drummer and guitarist have gone back to reggae style, should I neccesarily change too?" I know there are gonna be exceptions (this is the arts we're talking about!), but do you [i]generally [/i]find: [b]Things always sound better when me and the drummer change with each other...if the drummer changes style / pattern I am gonna change too. [/b] [b]OR[/b] [b]I find that sometimes, even though the drummer has changed his/her pattern things can sound better if I stay on the same groove.[/b] Any advice you have on creating dynamics in a new song, I would love to hear. I'm not even sure if 'dynamics' is the word I should be using, but im talking about when you take a song with a basic structure that you have written and then start to play around with various factors (volume / style of play etc) to turn it from a boring train ride of a song into a full blown rollercoaster from start to finish! I hope that has made it clearer...although i'm fully aware that it might not have! Cheers dudes and dudettes Stef

I like that rat though.

I think he's made that sound a lot worse than it actually is...and then mispelled Squier and put a really high price on it! No chance...

[quote name='Roland Rock' timestamp='1343164739' post='1746557'] Great stuff, good luck with the gig [/quote] Cheers...Police and Thieves cover went down ok, but the gig was generally a bit poor due to sound issues....I will take my grumblings over to the playing live forum!

[quote name='Mike Ed' timestamp='1339526868' post='1689997'] How about Junior Murvin's [i]Police and Thieves?[/i] I've always though it would suit female vocals. Mike [/quote] Well we went with this one and we're playing it for the first time tomorrow night! I'll let you know how is goes down... Cheers for the inspiration!

[quote name='Commando Jack' timestamp='1342648864' post='1738871'] You want [url="http://bestpractice.sourceforge.net/"]BestPractice[/url]. Open source and does slow down and pitch shifting (independently of course) as well as looping. [/quote] This is awesome. Exactly what I was after. Cheers!

Evening all I have some songs I need to transcribe and I was wondering if anyone knows of a free piece of software that I can use to loop the same section of a track over and over. I found one a while back, but then after a few days it said I need to pay to carry on using it. I'm not one for torrents and hacks etc but if there is an open source program out there intended to be free I would love to hear about it. After spending an hour downloading useless programs I thought it would be best to get a personal recommendation! Or, if anyone thinks this is cheating and wants to give me some tips for transcription I am all ears! I find myself listening to the same passage over and over anyway it just means I have to stop playing bass and start clicking mouse to get it back to the point I want it! Cheeeers Stef

Thanks all, i'll have a listen to some of those artists. I remember hearing an Erykah Badu album once and loving it so i look forward to checking her stuff out. [quote name='Bassman Steve' timestamp='1342622620' post='1738047'] If that's your era then more or less anything from the period. The band playing behind these artists was almost exclusively the same bunch of musicians. More from a historic perspective there's a great DVD called Standing In The Shadow Of Motown which features the surviving musicians and is an excellent watch and an object lesson in groove. Also, go with flats, as suggested. As soon as you get the right groove the whole thing comes together. [/quote] I didn't realise there was a DVD of that. I bought the book version although I have to admit I haven't dedicated much time to it at all so I guess now is my chance! Yes I already have flats on my P and I play reggae so finding the right tone shouldn't be too much of a problem. Right, time for some transcribing!

[quote name='Bassman Steve' timestamp='1342621270' post='1738023'] Listen to Motown - James Jamerson and Bob Babbit - and Stax - Duck Dunn. Tend to favour the Motown guys myself. Less is very much more but it's also critical just how you play that 'less'. [/quote] Thanks. I was introduced to Jamerson's playing through Marvin Gaye's "What's Going On"....absolutely stunning playing from start to finish. But I haven't really listened to any other Motown artists - who would you recommend?

Hello amigos I have recently agreed to play bass in a soul / rnb style project. Now this is not my type of music at all but I am trying to take this "musician" thing to the next level, and make a bit of money out of it...hired gun stylee. So, can anyone give me any advice about playing soul bass? Here is an e.g. of the type of music I am on about. [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6HXk8PdrAU"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S6HXk8PdrAU[/url] From listening it seems like: 1. Less is more 2. Less is more 3. A five stringer or hipshot may be useful. Can anyone recommend some soul music that I should listen to to get my groove juices flowing? Famous players etc? Any info appreciated. Thanks Stef

I'd say if you are happy playing bass then carry on playing bass. Find a new guitarist and keep the band going...these things take time, and you gotta keep at them. Having said that, if you are considering jacking the whole project in, maybe you are having doubts yourself? But even if that's the case, it would still be worthwhile trying some new guitarists as they will add their own flavour and that may spark the whole project back into life... Good luck with it dude.

Bought a nice strap from Nick and the transaction was as smooth as could be. Lovely stuff. Cheers Stef

I just bought some more strings off Alec! Posted very very quickly and item nicely packaged...perfectomundo.

[quote name='flyfisher' timestamp='1338469541' post='1675049'] ...a squirt or two of contact cleaner would definitely be the first thing to try. This is the stuff I keep on the shelf: [url="http://www.maplin.co.uk/contact-cleaner-4153"]http://www.maplin.co...ct-cleaner-4153[/url] [/quote] Ok, I had a go at fixing this, and I am a very happy man! Turns out all it needed was some cleaning with the contact cleaner and the pots are now working perfectly. Also the input that wasn't working has also come to life after jamming a jack in and out and blowing it. Great advice BCers! Thanks a bunch. Stef

I bought a lovely Squier Jazz from Rob - very smooth transaction from start to finish and he answered all my questions and kept me updated. Great stuff!