sharkboy

Unfortunately both my main purchases this year have fallen short somewhat. First was a Squier Paranormal Jazz 54 in black with an anodised gold scratch plate. This is at least a fun bass to play - it definitely looks the part with its ‘54 P bass stylings and stacked pots - but it’s let down by some seriously underpowered pickups and noisy electronics, Second, and even more disappointing, has been my hunt for a smaller, lighter amp to replace my TC Electronic Blacksmith. Ideally, I’d been looking for a Bergantino Forte HP but they’ve proven to be hard to source and probably on the wrong side of my budget ceiling. So instead I went for a GR Bass 1400Duo. Out of the box it just looked and felt cheap and the quality of the build left something to be desired. Plugging it in, I spent about 5 hours fiddling with the controls trying to get some decent tones out of it, but to no avail. The built-in tuner left a lot to be desired too! It was winging its way back to Bass Direct the very next day. I’ll keep trying to find a cheap Forte HP, but in the meantime my ever-reliable Blacksmith just keeps on delivering gig after gig.

Last Saturday's gear - it felt like a D-Roc kinda night so the NG2 stayed at home.

They’ve a D-Roc custom 5 at BassDirect at the minute. I don’t think they’re doing D-Roc standard 5s yet

Drummers, eh? We had to break the news to one of ours. As a friend, he was one of the nicest, most generous people I’ve ever known. As a drummer, he was solid as a rock. As an alcoholic, he was just impossible to play with. Practices, he’d make numerous visits to the toilet, each time coming out slightly more inebriated. As the evening went on, it just became more and more difficult to get through a song without a screw-up on his part. The one gig we managed with him had to be cut short when he just couldnt physically finish a song - luckily it was a low-key gig which was more like a practice with a few mates round. After that, we had to have the conversation with him. He was very understanding, but we could tell it affected him deeply. Heartbreakingly, he never had the chance to recover - after the break he hit the bottle harder, and shortly after died at the age of 36. There’s not a day goes by that I don’t miss my pal, but as a drummer he’d become a liability

Any of Norman Watt-Roy's work with Ian Dury, any of Bruce Thomas' work with Elvis Costello,

First amp was a very old Selmer valve combo that had had some serious abuse by the time it got to me, and didn't fare much better afterwards. From there we went to Carlsboro, before I decided to take this seriously and invest in a Trace Elliot 1x15 combo. That would have been around 1986, and it was pretty much Trace Elliot for the next 15 years, until I took a sabbatical from playing for 5 years. When it came time to gear up again, I decided to forego the weightlifting that came with the Trace gear and got a Mark Bass rig, which lasted about 2 years. From there, it was a short trip to the current rig of Schroeder cabs and TC Electronic Blacksmith head, and I can honestly say I've never been happier with a rig. The only change I'm considering is to move to a one cab option with a Barefaced Big Twin or Super Twin. Having said that, the new Darkglass amp looks mighty interesting....

Yeah, the usual set wouldn't pose too many problems to play, but it's pretty much muscle memory (for want of a better term) - you know, when you kinda just go on autopilot. It would probably be a very different story if you asked me to write down the structures rather than play them, and when old songs that haven't been played for a while suddenly reappear on the set list then there can be a few squeaky bum moments when I run through them before the gig, but generally it all comes together.

Caveat emptor - the central tenet of contract law. Is it ethical? Absolutely not, Is it legal? Yep, If someone pays £886 for a £529 bass then, harsh as it sounds, it is their fault - at least under the law. It's all about consideration - the buyers consider the higher price to be an appropriate value. Put it this way (and this is in now way a criticism, more a genuine interest) - do you feel the same indignation when you hear of people buying items on eBay that were priced too low in error, or where the seller obviously did not realise their worth? If not, what's the difference?

Google Calendar and group texts. Each person is responsible for making sure the calendar up to date with their unavailability. When we get offered dates, whoever gets the message texts the rest to confirm availability. Once confirmed, it goes into the calendar and once it's in, it's sacrosanct.

35 years - Knock Methodist Youth Club fundraiser. The two guitarists were too nervous to tune their guitars so I had to do it for them, the drummer was puking outside before the gig. We were the tender age of 15, we played half a dozen covers and were going to set the world on fire. But not until after our O Levels were done.

Our keyboard player owns the PA, the singer owns the monitors and a smaller PA which is generally used for smaller gigs/practice. Anyone who sings provides their own mic/stand but cables are all pooled with the key's PA. For bigger gigs, we combine the speakers from both, but for almost every gig there are only vocals, keys and occasionally kick drum through the PA. While both these PAs have been in the ownership of the keys player and singer for some time, the cost of major repairs or replacements is generally met (in part at least) by the band.

[quote name='blisters on my fingers' timestamp='1473378608' post='3129726'] Just bought two should've got four....one for each string .....that is how it works innit? Thanks Pete [/quote] I did! 2 for me, and one each for the two guitarists in the band - not that I'm dropping hints about their tuning!

Knowing a couple of the guys from The Bankrobbers, I'd suggest that although they may be from Belfast, they would associate much closer with the parameters of "Irish" that the OP set out! Something Happens were a great wee band. Other favourite tracks from that time that I listened to- An Emotional Fish (nice bass intro to Celebrate!- https://youtu.be/-f8JI9R5Suo ) Thee Amazing Collossal Men: Superloveexperience (https://youtu.be/5BsqszSYvxI) The Frames - probably better known now for singer Glen Hansard's movie career in Once (and his Oscar-winning song from the movie, Falling Slowly: https://youtu.be/FkFB8f8bzbY), they were a great indie pop band in their own right. Hansard's latest incarnation, The Swell Season, is also worth a listen. (The movie was directed by the band's old bassist John Carney, and if you want a real feel-good treat with great tunes, check out his latest movie, Sing Street!) The Golden Horde - Friends In Time Sultans of Ping FC - has to be the immense Where's Me Jumper, doesn't it? https://youtu.be/C-dl9KTYAVk The Frank & Walters - Fashion Crisis Hits New York (https://youtu.be/Ex5H5YgV7LU) A House - Endless Art (https://youtu.be/cDo6Lgylsjg)

Indeed it is Paul, and when it comes to my gear I'm very risk averse as I couldn't afford to replace my 2 main gigging basses or backline from my own pocket. So I'm happy for Allianz to take the cost of less than a pint a week to give me that peace of mind. With regard to the issue of gear stolen from cars, if just pays to ask your insurer. My cover requires the equipment to be in a locked vehicle and out of sight to be covered for theft. The vehicle doesn't have to be a saloon-type car (let's face it, how practical a requirement is that for a bassist?), it doesn't even have to be attended to be covered for theft.

Thus topic has come up a number of times of late; once, about 13 months ago, raised by me after out guitarist's PRS custom came off second best to gravity. My research revealed a number of horror stories of people that had relied on home contents insurance to cover damage at a gig or in transit only to be rejected on the grounds that their gear was not covered as it was used to generate income and therefore professional equipment that doesn't fit on a domestic policy. The research sent me straight to Allianz's specialist music equipment insurance. £13 a month for £10k worth of peace of mind is a bit of a no-brainer as far as I'm concerned. Insurance is only a waste of money until you need it. If your gear isn't that expensive to replace then, sure, you might want to forego premiums and just pay out from your own pocket to replace/repair damaged or lost items. If, however, you might be glad that someone else will give you the couple of grand to get a new custom bass to replace the one that was stolen, then I'd suggest that specialist insurance is the way forward.

[quote name='GarethFlatlands' timestamp='1468523381' post='3091584'] There's been a few of these threads so I'll just pick one from my usual list and say John Curley from the Afghan Whigs. Greg Dulli's rhythm guitar playing was hugely basic most of the time and Rick McCollum (an under-rated guitar player if we ever do a list of those) was usually off doing his own thing but Curley managed to wring a lot of melodic lines that sat nicely between the 2 and kept the beat while not being overtly flashy. The 3 players often seem to be doing completely different things but everything really melded together. Underrated band generally imo. [/quote] Definite +1 from a fellow Whigs fan! I'd also add Derek Forbes from Simple Minds - just check out the playing on New Gold Dream, especially the title track!He's highly respected among bassists and musos, but rarely gets a mention in lists such as this.EDIT - except he just has, about 3 posts above mine!

If they've gone to the expense of power amps and FOH speakers, why haven't they just added a desk and monitors? Sounds like a half-assed attempt to set up a PA if you ask me, and I would have no issue bringing my own back line if they can't guarantee that I'd be properly monitored on the night. End of the day, your contract is with the bride and groom to provide live entertainment at their reception. They should be made aware of the restrictions and also any concerns you might have.

[quote name='Bassman Sam' timestamp='1467918916' post='3087356'] I read on the t'interweb that Brian Johnson may be able to gig again due to new developments in in-ear monitors. I wonder if he will be welcomed back to AC/DC or if Arsehole Rose will get the gig full time. If it's Rose then I can see why Cliff wants out. [/quote] I'd heard from a pretty sound source that Brian's departure was as much about money/gig receipt arguments with Angus as it was about his hearing loss. Cliff's decision makes me think that Brian's return to the fold is probably pretty unlikely.

Angus is the only one left from the 1970s line-ups now. Chris Slade, who replaced Phil Rudd on skins following his, ahem, legal issues, was with them for a few years in the late 80s/early 90s. Stevie Young, who replaced his Uncle Malcolm, had stood in for him in 1988 as well. At 60 years old, he's just a year younger than his Uncle Angus!

[quote name='zbd1960' timestamp='1467757134' post='3086054'] It helps to learn to understand intervals and what they sound like. Start with the basics - octave, fifth and fourth (ascending and descending). [/quote] One of the best music lessons I had at school all those years ago was on intervals and how to recognise them by remembering which songs use them at the start (eg minor 2nd=Jaws theme, major 6th=My Bonnie Lies Over The Ocean - amazing what you remember after 35 years!) There's a good site here with more examples: http://www.madelinesalocks.com/MusicalIntervalsTutor/listenpg.html

We used to play one venue that had a dB cut-off that was, to say the least, on a hair trigger. It was supposed to be set to 90dB, but it would be triggered just testing the mics! We got round it by playing the bar owner (a renowned cheapskate who'd bought the cheapest system possible) at his own game - the keyboard player basically said to him "what I've got onstage is essentially a couple of computers worth of electronics that don't take well to losing power. If your uncalibrated and untested system causes me to lose data or wrecks my equipment I'll hold you liable for the cost to repair, recover or replace them". That seemed to do the trick in the shorter term, then the next time we played we found out that another band had gaffa taped a wad of thick foam over the sensor - problem solved!

AC/DC's normally a guaranteed floor-filler for us, especially Thunderstruck and Highway To Hell, along with our Zeppelin medley and Fat Bottomed Girls. The usual cliches usually do the job too - Sweet Child o Mine, Dakota, All These Things I've Done, Sweet Home Alabama and Don't Stop Believing. Yes, we can be that cringeworthy at times...