Doddy

[quote name='MuckedUpFunkies' post='1171375' date='Mar 21 2011, 09:38 PM']More fool you for paying £40 for a ticket then =P[/quote] Luckily I didn't have to It's one of those situations where I'd heard a few tunes and quite liked them,so thought I'd give them a shot.

When I use a pick,I go for either Dunlop 1.14 or a little heavier(the purple ones),or I use the Ibanez Steve Vai model. I don't like using picks that flex,I find that I lose speed and control.

We all know my opinions on tab,so I won't go on about it. There is nothing wrong with having some charts written out for reference-not tab though. The more you play the songs the easier you will remember them,it's just a matter of repetition-some people learn faster than others. Also,this is where some basic theory knowledge will help,because rather than trying to remember every song and chord individually,you will learn to recognise and understand standard chord changes and intervals which(i find)will make it easier to remember more tunes.

[quote name='oldslapper' post='1171041' date='Mar 21 2011, 06:31 PM']Must admit Doddy you had me picturing you in an anorak there! [/quote] I'm still a bit of an anorak,to be honest.

[quote name='MuckedUpFunkies' post='1170957' date='Mar 21 2011, 05:33 PM']=O! Why?[/quote] Because I found it all very unexciting.

[quote name='Clarky' post='1170980' date='Mar 21 2011, 05:54 PM']Thanks Doddy. Blimey you know a lot about his gear![/quote] Not really....it took about three seconds to find his last cover story in Bass Player

I love Chris Wood's playing,he does some great stuff on both Upright and Electric. His bass is a 1920's Pfretzschner. In the studio he uses a vintage RCA 44-BX ribbon mic infront of the bridge and a DPA condenser mic clipped to the body. Live,he uses the DPA condenser and a Fishman Full Circle Pickup with the Wood Brothers,and the Full Circle and a Realist with MMW,usually through an Ampeg B-15

[quote name='burray' post='1170713' date='Mar 21 2011, 02:18 PM']As for whether or not you can hide poor technique with them – utter bollocks, surely? You can still hear whether someone's playing bum notes or playing lazy lines, regardless of how much fuzz (to a degree) is layered over.[/quote] If you are playing a fast run or whatever,if you are fuzzed out it can often hide a bum note compared to playing the same thing cleanly.

[quote name='MuckedUpFunkies' post='1170158' date='Mar 20 2011, 10:34 PM']I've seen muse twice and both times performances have been absolutely spotless. IMO one of the best live bands still gigging today =)[/quote] I saw them a few years ago,and enjoyed it for about 10 minutes,and then got really bored.

Can't you just use the E string as a thumb rest for the most part,and then kind of rest it against the body when you are playing on the E?

My favourite thing about them is that on some instruments it narrows the gap between the body and the strings slightly,which I find to be more comfortable when 'popping' the strings. If there is a massive gap ( like on the Lodestone basses) I find it uncomfortable.

What about going for lessons? It'll give you new material to work on (not learning songs-this should be done seperately)and can probably help to sort out your hand pain by working on your technique. Also,changing your listening habits might give you some inspiration to practice. I don't know what you normally listen to,but you say that you play classic rock. Listen to something totally different-jazz,country,pop,whatever.

[quote name='Johnston' post='1169672' date='Mar 20 2011, 04:38 PM']Actually the perfect intonation thing has been sorted (at least on guitars) and is a tad weird looking. [url="http://www.truetemperament.com/site/index.php?go=0&sgo=0"]http://www.truetemperament.com/site/index.php?go=0&sgo=0[/url] I can't see how the fanned fret gives perfect intonation across all strings at all frets. The notes aren't in exact enough place across all frets and all strings to do that and even if they did a change of string guage would bugger it all up again.. There still has to be a bit of give and take somewhere down the line. I would like to try a fanned fret though even if only for the ergonomic benefits .[/quote] That's what Vai's been using on his Ibanez. That's what I meant when I said about the wavey fret thing. Yamaha tried a similar thing,though less extreme,on the Frank Gambale model.

Correct me if I'm wrong,but surely the fanned frets are a solution to string tension rather than tuning? It's not like the Buzz Feiten system or the Ibanez and Yamaha wavey fret thing. It's just a way of increasing the tension of the lower strings.

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' post='1169033' date='Mar 20 2011, 12:10 AM']Nah just fit a massive wooden hipshot detuner [/quote] Or a C extension 5 string uprights have been around for years.

[quote name='JTUK' post='1169239' date='Mar 20 2011, 10:03 AM']Are we more impressed with the 'name' than the player..??[/quote] Yep. There are alot of players out there that have had a very successful with their band and have been lauded as genius or whatever,but it's more to do with their band being popular than them being the greatest,or even adequate,musician. There would be many players who would have never had a career of they hadn't been very lucky,and many of them can and will play on their bands reputation for years.

It sounds like a technique issue to me. Do you put your thumb over the neck? Do you grip the neck tightly? Is your wrist at a sharp angle? All of these things will hinder your facility on the instrument. Try to find a reputable teacher who will be able to look at your technique and maybe even break it down and rebuild it if necessary. I've never found a neck profile to be a major hinderence-at least nothing that a couple of minutes playing couldn't sort out.

I've probably surprised a few people with the amount of effects I use,but for me it's all about having options. I've got a couple of distortions,octavers,flangers,envelope filters,compressors,EQs,phasers as well as chorus,delay,wah,and synth. I've also got a Pod and a V-Bass. I may use one or two on a gig(like tonight,when I only used the Synth pedal) or I may use a bunch of them,but I don't want to hear a certain sound in my head and not be able to achieve it. It's certainly not about covering up my technique,because quite frankly I've got a pretty good technique that I've spent a lot of time working on. Effects are all about creating sounds that are otherwise unavailable to me.

The whole 'pro' gear thing is bullshit for the most part. I've seen plenty if professional players using gear that doesn't cost thousands of pounds and they still sound great. The cost of the gear has nothing to do with anything. You could easily use a little 15 watt combo at Wembley if you wanted,if it has the sound you want-you'll be mic'ing it up anyway.

Seeing someone great has never made me want to give up. I usually get influenced to pick the bass up and practice. I do sometimes get slightly disheartened when I see players/bands that I consider to be seriously bad, being lauded as great though.

I think that most people,if they're honest,will admit to at least their early purchases being influenced by their favourite players. The reason I headed in the direction of a Fender Jazz was simple.....Jaco and Marcus used them. A few years ago,I bought my Marcus Miller signature model purely because of what it was-as it turned out I'm really happy with the bass. Lately,alot of players that I really dig are using singlecut basses,which made me want to try them out. When I eventually did get to try one,I loved the feel and balance and everything and got one pretty soon after. Although I'm at a stage where I know what I like,if I see or hear someone with something that I dig,it still influences me to want to try it out for myself.

I've just got the DVD of Tommy Igoe and the Birdland Big Band,Live, with Tom Kennedy doubling on electric and upright. He swings like crazy,and takes a couple of great solos too-my particular favourite being one on upright where he just tears it up in thumb position.

Keeping it to drummers..... Steve Gadd is still the man,and he's in his mid 60's.Players like Louis Bellson and the recently departed Joe Morello were still blowing people away in their 80's. Dave Weckl and Vinnie Colaiuta are in their 50's. Even someone like Jojo Mayer,who has been around for years but has only relatively recently become a massive name,is in his late 40's. As far as electric bass players,guys like Will Lee,Nathan East,Marcus,Stanley,Anthony Jackson and Pino are all in their 50's. Tony Levin is in his 60's. There are great young players,and there are great older players,it makes no difference.

[quote name='Faithless' post='1167544' date='Mar 18 2011, 07:23 PM']You mean NYC?[/quote] NYJO....National Youth Jazz Orchestra

[quote name='dannybuoy' post='1167363' date='Mar 18 2011, 04:28 PM']E7#9 (AKA [url="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hendrix_chord"]the 'Hendrix' chord[/url])[/quote] 'Hendrix chord?' Anyway....... C7/E