molan

Steve Lawson is a regular solo gig man - check his site for more details, vids, MP3's etc: [url="http://www.stevelawson.net/wordpress/"]http://www.stevelawson.net/wordpress/[/url] Last time I saw him was with Michael Manring - top solo bass night

I was in a Blues Brothers outfit for a while and they insisted on playing almost every song from the first movie including Stand By Your Man. For some reason that I can't really remember I used to play it lying down on stage with the bass draped over me & pretending to be fast asleep - seemed funny at the time :blush: I also played Honky Tonk Women in one band which has that rather distinctive cow bell sound (gotta have more cow bell!) - The drummer couldn't play it at the same time as the rest of the kit so I played the bell because there's no bass in the initial verses. Rather than scrabble around putting the drum stick somewhere safe for the chorus then grabbing it again for the verse I simply played all the bass parts with a full length drum stick. Pre-dated Tony Levin's funk fingers as well I think These days I always wear some 'silly' shoes - band usually plays in all black so I have a selection of brightly coloured shoes. The obligatory electric blue suede brothel creepers, some green matt finish Doc Martins, a rather ornate set of cowboy boots etc. The blue suedies always go down well

[quote name='SJA' post='280224' date='Sep 9 2008, 11:24 AM']re. his chucking technique, he's seen using it on "dance dance dance" at the 1996 Budokan gig- [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvGU_iHlSrk"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PvGU_iHlSrk[/url][/quote] What a brilliant series of vids - I'm sitting at my desk downloading the entire set of 10 right now

There's a pretty extensive discography here: [url="http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&sql=11:a9frxqy5ldje~T4"]http://www.allmusic.com/cg/amg.dll?p=amg&a...a9frxqy5ldje~T4[/url] It runs for 3 pages but includes both his production credits and a lot of mentions of compilation albums that he featured on. Worth checking out though for some of the less well known stuff like Stacy Latislaw, Paul Simon, Bowie!, Joe Cocker, Jagger, Rod Stewart, Robert Palmer etc. PS - How great a rhythm guitarist is Nile Rodgers by the way? I can listen to him all day

[quote name='Dr.Dave' post='280153' date='Sep 9 2008, 09:20 AM']Regarding headless basses. As well as being more portable I do find I have more room when using them in small places. I've never done pit work but I have worked in tiny bars that are the pits!! Yes - there would have been room to play a headed bass but a headless gives you a little bit more room. When seated - why have the end of your instrument 5" away from someone elses music stand when it could be a foot away? Why would you do that?[/quote] Having once nearly removed my sax players right ear I swapped to a headless for the next gig and was amazed at how much more freedom I had to move around I've had a few negative comments about my Zon because it's so tiny and can't be a "real" bass, but I just ignore them Here's Michael Manring playing his VB

Where are you based Mr Fluto - I'm sure a few people here would let a 'proper working bassist' try out their equipment - probably a damn sight friendlier than your average bass shop

Have you considered headless basses? If space is tight then this would give you a surprising amount of additional room to move. I have a baby Zon that's really flexible and very comfortable to play sitting down, pretty rare in the UK though. Kubicki's are useful for quick sound changing as they have a six way switch that goes from 3 very usable passive sounds (vaguely like a P, a J & a mid cut) to active with a volume boost and also a very useful sixth position which is a mute. There's quite a volume jump from passive to active as well. Twin humbuckers and well shielded too

Just got home after trading cabs with Josh. Really nice guy and an amazing musician - made my jaw drop a few times watching him noodle around on his MTD Great comms throughout and he keeps his gear in very good condition. Happy to recommend him to anyone looking to buy/sell/trade any time

Brick by the Dazz Band - funky like a train CHeck it out : [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7KDTnjrF64"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=s7KDTnjrF64[/url]

[quote name='coasterbass' post='276724' date='Sep 4 2008, 09:16 AM']Well, there's a dilemma for you... you can either go and see Victor Bailey, or my band playing their only London gig of the year at Islington Academy. Choices, choices, choices. [/quote] Only 1.3 miles apart as well - if you're on first you could leave the roadies to pack up & hightail it over to see Victor B

Not that I'm being pedantic but it's "Bolder" as opposed to Boulder : [url="http://www.myspace.com/trevorbolder"]http://www.myspace.com/trevorbolder[/url] Herbie Flowers played some neat stuff in earlier Bowie stuff as well and, of course, there's Gail Ann Dorsey as well [url="http://www.gailanndorsey.com/"]http://www.gailanndorsey.com/[/url]

[quote name='Jase' post='276632' date='Sep 4 2008, 12:07 AM']That's cheap! He's a great player, have you heard him improvise Giant Steps as an off the cuff thing shouted out by an audience member? It's on youtube....bloody great!!![/quote] [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zINVcDKfHk"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3zINVcDKfHk[/url]

Friday, October 10 at 8:00 PM Victor Bailey Group (New York) featuring Casey Benjamin (sax) / Peter Horvath (keys) / Poogie Bell (drums) at Charlie Wrights, 45 Pitfield Street London, N1 6DA VICTOR BAILEY GROUP New Release World Tour-Only UK dates-10th and 11th of October,2008 at Charlie Wrights International Victor has been hailed as one of the worlds greatest bass guitarists. He gained international recognition by being a member of the innovative jazz fusion super group "Weather Report" and has made three of the most highly acclaimed solo records ever by any bassist. As a studio musician he has played on over one thousand records.He has toured and recorded with artists as diverse as Joe Zawinul,Mary J. Blige and Madonna. The band will feature: Casey Benjamin on sax (Mos Def, Heavy, Stefon Harris, DJ Logic), Peter Horvath on keys (Joe Henderson, Lenny White), Poogie Bell on drums (Erykah Badu, Marcus Miller, Randy Crawford) www.victorbailey.com £12.50 I'm not sure he's exactly my cup of tea but I'm sure some of you must be interested [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrFKoo5-4Uk&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hrFKoo5-4Uk...feature=related[/url]

I have a pair of Lakland Skyline basses and would say that they compare very favourably with MIA Fenders. Personally I think they are generally of better quality and this is reflected in the used market (although rarity is having an effect here as well). A used JO or DJ Skyline is going to start around the £600 mark whilst MIA Fenders are trading in the mid 400's. I recently picked up an '08 MIA Fender Strat in a trade and I have to say it's really well put together and has a lovely neck. Way nicer, for a US Standard, than ones I've tried in the past. I think the thing with Fender is that you really need to have a very good look at each one, some are great and others are not as hot - just need to get out there & try a few

Whilst looking at the Erlewine books & DVD's I spotted this: and wondered if anyone had seen it and thought it was any good? Just interested as it appears to cover both set & repair stuff for guitars but also stuff on valve amps as well.

[quote name='MoonBassAlpha' post='273578' date='Aug 31 2008, 10:51 AM']Thanks! There's a lot of nice shiny stuff on their website: www.usmasters.com/ I must admit, I had never heard of them either. I went to a guys house to check out a Lightwave bass he was selling, wasn't too mad about that but saw this in his rack and was knocked out by it, made an offer and got it the next week. Got the blue one a few weeks later off the same bloke. These were the "low end" of his collection, including Pedullas, Zon, Skjolds etc![/quote] Some interesting looking stuff in their bass section - look at the control options on this one:

[quote name='chris_b' post='273270' date='Aug 30 2008, 06:22 PM']Maybe I'm just tight, but why waste money paying someone to do something that will happen for free over time!! In my opinion this is the ultimate con.[/quote] I know where you're coming from but for me to get a bass looking like it's over 40 years old would mean I'd have to buy a new one now and use it regularly until I'm 92 - I have a sneaking suspicion this is unlikely to happen

How about this baby - not a relic but wonderfully 'knackered' : [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&rd=1&item=120297693379&ssPageName=STRK:MEWA:IT&ih=002"]http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?Vie...A:IT&ih=002[/url]

I was trawling around some US bass sites & spotted quite a few Relic Series basses kicking around. Mostly Olympic White, some Sunburst & a few custom colours like this rather fetching Lake Placid Blue: Prices in the States are all over the place ranging from just under $3,000 to as high as nearly $6,000 for something like the LPB one above. The NOS models selling at about $500 less. So - I just wondered if anyone here had played one and wondered what they are like compared to a more regular US made Vintage Series model?