Maude

"Has no bum notes"? Hand it over pal, I'll find 'em.

🎵His name was Rudi, he was a skanker. With polished loafer shoes, and "Ska'd for life" tattoos. He wore sharp mohair suits, and claimed he played with Toots, but we all know he's mates with Ricky and a real fruit loop. At the Copa, blah blah blah! 🎵

That was you, just now! 😆

The Mod covers band I'm in also have an albums worth of original music, we usually throw in a handful at each gig and they go down well. If we're supporting a name band then it'll be all originals with maybe a cover thrown in. The best of both worlds. I'm happy to play the simple ones if they go down well. Can't Explain by The Who is painfully simple but always goes down well, I don't mind playing ones like that because then I get to have fun with stuff like The Real Me, Substitute, Nite Club, Tin Soldier, There's a Ghost in my House, etc. As long as everyone's having fun I'm happy.

Same with the band diary. We just use Google calendars and you book out any unavailable days. If we get offered a gig and the diary's free then it's booked. No cancelling unless it's something drastic.

Ham fingered ducks? Is that something Iceland are selling for Christmas?

I know I'm upping the price a bit here, but in a world of expensive basses the Yamaha Bex4 punches well above it's price tag. You should be able to pick one up around the £300 mark. I'll admit it was vanity that made me want one to start with, the tobacco burst is one of the nicest looking basses made IMO. I'd always got on well with Yamaha basses so bought one without having ever played one and wasn't disappointed, they sound better than they look, and they look amazing. In the same way a Precision does, it's just 'there' in every mix, the P placed soapbar gives it masses of P mid punch and the bridge piezo gives a bit of acoustic air if needed, along with a very good three band EQ the Bex4 is a very capable bass. Fit and finish is up there with, and beyond some, four figure basses. Something very, very drastic will have to happen in my life to make me sell mine.

I saw this the other day and it's crazy. The expression at three minutes in says it all.

Another cheap option if you want to try flats.

It's not just 'what sounds great' but what sort of tension you like. Some flats are very stiff, others aren't.

And yet people here still claim they can't play a Precision because they've got small hands

Here's another couple of great simple lines.

I've just made a great little mash up without really realising what's going on, good old insomnia. If you start the Savages one and then bang on four seconds start The Screaming Blues Messiahs one, the first minute is great.

We had a great gig last night. We hadn't gigged for 6 weeks and the end of this band may be looming due to a few factors, so I had been thinking maybe life without this band wouldn't be so bad. Wrong! We had a brilliant night, great atmosphere, everyone up dancing and a good showing from a couple of the local scooter clubs. I was buzzing but my knees aren't thanking me today from all the dancing. Another thing that made it great was the new PA speakers we tried. We pay our own soundman who provides all the PA, we normally use subs, with tops and four floor monitors, all powered. Our soundman is getting on and has expressed his need to pack it all in soon, he has given us a deadline next year, one of the reasons the band may end. The subs are just too heavy. He bought some powered Yamaha speakers, I don't know which ones, and we tried them last night. He gets panicky about new stuff so I said I'd bring my amp in case they didn't put out enough bottom end and he ended up bringing the subs and it was all wired up just in case, and it put him at ease. He's a brilliant bloke, just gets a bit on edge sometimes. Well they were fantastic, incredible bottom end and clear mids and treble, so we now know we can gig with just a pair of tops with everything, including bass and drums, through them easily, obviously we'll still need floor monitors, but this has hopefully got him reconsidering jacking it in, as he's as much as part of the band as the rest. Someone in the crowd who was in another band came up to him to complement him on the sound and said it was the best sound from a band he'd heard in a long time. When our soundman told him my bass amp and and the subs weren't even on the chap had to come over and see as he couldn't believe it. To our soundman that's like someone coming up to me and complimenting me on my playing so hopefully he's back in the game. Our drummer who has arthritis issues in his shoulders said he may call it a day when John (soundman) quits as it hurts him to play now even didn't mention the arthritis last night and was quite positive about the future. So from trudging to a gig convincing myself the end was near and I'd be OK with it, to finishing the encores with everyone buzzing and looking to the future of the band in the space of three hours. Gigging is definitely a lifeblood and I need it 👍

I've always had great service from them and although I really, really don't want to get into 'that' debate, I do hope they're still going to be a viable option in the near future.

I have noticed that, even blatantly described as 'Ric style bass', which should've caught the attention of the Schutzstaffel.

Absolute sh!ts. I'll keep my eyes and ears open down here 👍

I think we all know the selling of Rics (real or fake) isn't what this site has issues with, it's the threats from RIC that result from the selling of Rics that are the issue. Maybe if Fender (or any other manufacturer) made similar threats then Fender sales might be banned It's not a moral problem, it's a big fat John Hall shaped problem.

I'm guessing that's aimed @Bassassin more than me as mine is just a rectangle ordered cut to the correct size. I just filed out the 'pinky recess' and the rounded the edges, corners and recess with sandpaper. Whenever I have cut any acrylic I've used a pneumatic reciprocating saw with a standard hacksaw blade, albeit cut down to about a third of its length. I turn the speed down and use a fairly course blade (14tpi) to combat melting and clogging, if the acrylic is thin then I'll lower the angle I cut at so I'm cutting through more material to prevent cracking, obviously a curved cut will need the blade to be more upright. It only needs to be close to the desired shape as acrylic sands to shape so easily with sandpaper and a block.

Yes, we're all individuals.

Who makes them? Hmmmm baby! A very sexy lady friend of mine, Foxy Fye-ona, contacted me yesterday with regards to building her a bass guitar. She said she needed an instrument that she could feel throbbing , deep inside her. Well, I gladly obliged. After having been at it solidly for a couple of days I pulled it out and she let out a little squeal of delight. She declared that I had completely satisfied her urge, but she'd still quite like to try it standing up with a strap on. You know, the bass guitar like. AYE! I'll tell you what, she didn't half squirm around when I plucked her G string. 😉

I'm so glad you posted that picture. I've had this pickup knocking about at home and now I can see it's a Delano musicman style. 😉

I don't understand why any manufacturer would take a beautiful, prestine instrument straight off the manufacture line and paint it bright red, but I suppose some folks like it. 😉

She scares the sh!t outta me!

This YouTube vid always puts a smile on my face. Devon Bradshaw giving some tips but the real treat is his drummer, lovely laid back feel and some killer fills. On the subject of the Hofner, my Club with LaBella flats is superb for reggae, well trad ska in my house but it's close enough. 😉