Happy Jack

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Vintage-Hofner-Bass-Guitar/154116635656?hash=item23e2113c08:g:2XoAAOSw0LlfeJOK In all fairness, he does correctly state that it's damaged. And yes, it used to be part of a Hofner. The six-string compensator tailpiece should have offered a clue that this was never a bass, mind.

Oh come on, 20 minutes in and nobody has mentioned Tales Of Topographic Oceans? Biggest fail in the history of prog, and that's a much coveted title.

The more I think about it, the harder it seems to me, too. To set up even a fake PayPal account, you have to link it to a genuine bank account and make (IIRC) a £0.01 payment from one to the other to establish the link, so it's actively tested. In the days before money laundering regulations and aggressive enforcement by the Yanks, there were workarounds. Those days are long gone. This can only work if, having tricked someone into buying a non-existent bass in the Canaries (or in the Shetlands in the good old days) the vendor goes on to 'have difficulties' with his PayPal account and tricks the buyer into paying by bank transfer. And that can only work if the buyer believes that he is paying money to a Spaniard in the Canaries when actually his money is going to Azerbaijan and the scammer's uncle owns the bank. This scam would probably work better if the scammer were to claim that he works for Nigerian Customs, who have seized a container full of vintage basses which is being held in Bond at Lagos, and he can only get them released to you if you give him your bank account details ...

Exactly this. What you need is a Westone 'The Rail'. Makes an 80s statement like no other bass. This one sold for £400, which is a bit on the low side, but a £500 budget should see you right. https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Westone-The-Rail-headless-bass-with-original-gig-bag/303669772967?hash=item46b42102a7:g:dusAAOSwcFhfS9VN

C'mon guys, you're better than this. 30 seconds with Google, and I found this:

Sweet Caroline Delilah Livin' On A Prayer

Not even close.

That's a bit like drummers and hair. How come old drummers retain a full head of hair (and it's not even white) while most bassists have their hair done by Mr. Sheen?

God! but it would be good if someone could actually come up with a genuinely effective treatment for tinnitus. @Silvia Bluejay tried to draw my attention to this article by calling downstairs to me about it ... and I couldn't understand what she was saying because my tinnitus is so bad today!

I've just sent him a FB message, pointing him at this topic.

So I'm guessing this isn't a Boss DS-1 ...

The thing that really struck me in those photos is how empty that cavity is. I'm used to seeing circuit boards and strange coloured cylindrical things and 9V batteries and stuff.

Just play faster ...

I have three (yes, three) pedal boards, all of which exist in a permanent state of flux. New pedals arrive, old pedals go or make surprise come-backs, the pack is shuffled again and again, and all with bewildering speed. Playing in multiple bands does, of course, have a lot to do with this, whilst woodland rehearsals miles from the nearest 13A socket had a lot more to do with it. Best bit? I very rarely use a pedal board at gigs.

There's a difference between playing ahead of the beat, and pushing the beat because you're speeding up. It can be a subtle difference, but the former will result in a particular feel to the music, while the latter will either end up with the band playing at ramming speed (Ben Hur reference) or a very ticked off drummer. If you're not used to playing live with a real drummer, then that implies (to me anyway) that you're used to playing along with your favourite music. Which, of course, is where we all started. Thing about that is the original recording never speeds up, so you can push the beat with impunity ... The Beatles or The Foo Fighters aren't listening to you so they're not affected. When you start playing live, you soon discover that pushing the beat can have all sorts of effects, few of them popular.

There's a whole movie about this. It's called Whiplash. Personally I thought it was over-rated, but NOBODY left the cinema not knowing whether they were ahead of or behind the beat.

For me, this is exactly like trying to think about what your feet are doing as you run downstairs ... guaranteed to end in a train wreck. I never, ever think about whether I am leading or following the drummer, and I suspect that I'd be very hard-pressed to tell you if I actually tried to work it out. I play "whatever feels right" to me at the time. Not suggesting that this is in any way clever or better, it's just what works for me.

I just bought one of these: https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/291784784897 Bizarrely, it gives the 'capacity' as being 40L - 60L. There can't be many liquids where 40L weighs less than 70/80lbs so I'm guessing that this will take the weight of a rack case ...

Now that is a very nice piece of lateral thinking.

I have one of these. Strong & versatile. https://www.thomann.de/intl/fun_generation_universal_stand.htm I also have one of these. Slightly tilted, 'tis true, but very practical. https://www.thomann.de/intl/millenium_mx1000_mixerstaender.htm

Can I just say that I believe in Yes today.

Nah. It was that solo on Tainted Love. Kinell mate, what was that all about?

Anyway, where's @MacDaddy?

But Shirley the singer could charge the original bassist a couple of hundred in storage charges? Her name is Shirley, right?

And as soon as there were "bass amps", guitarists started using them!