Happy Jack

All sorts of stuff going on there! +1 to getting at the very least an introductory lesson from a pro, learn how to stand, how to position yourself, etc. Learn to pluck before you think about learning to slap; these are two very different techniques and you'll confuse the hell out of yourself if you try both at the same time. Re-think every bass line. DB is NOT like a big electro-acoustic bass, it's a totally different animal. Play only in the first five positions to start, use lots of open strings, play half as many notes. In haste ...

Personally I go solely with the year of manufacture approach - the date on which I bought a particular bass is of very little interest to anybody, even me. Even that is of course a minefield. Most manufacturers have parts bins filled with (no stinky poo, Sherlock) parts and the set of parts that goes into any given finished bass is highly unlikely to all match. There'll be a body and neck from 2011 with pickups coded for 2012 and the tuners have been knocking about since 2009. And don't get me started on serial numbers ...

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MAYA-PASSIVE-PRECISION-ELECTRIC-BASS-GUITAR-1974-MADE-IN-JAPAN-MIJ/264436324171?hash=item3d91a2174b:g:q~0AAOSwxq5dSdm5 In my experience, these are very well-made instruments let down by poor electronics - stick a decent pickup in it, replace the speed knobs (and maybe the pots), maybe even fit a 4-saddle BBOT, and you've got a very nice Precision. All of which said, I don't recognise the fitted pickup at all ... is it original? @Bassassin

For the pub-rock covers band, never. It would just look really sad. But for the rockabilly outfit, very niche and brings a dress code automatically, oh yes. We all wear band t-shirts for the load-in and set-up, helps to whip up some apathy in the venue, then change into our 'official' stage wear for the actual gig. The band logo also features on both the bass drum head and the pop-up banner at the back of the stage ... we're not shy about telling people who we are.

By the time you've done that to it, whatever 5-string you started with will be plenty cheap ...

You're hardly the only Old Duffer, Michael. Most of the bands I play with are comprised of nothing else ... and without exception they're astonished that (i) Silvia and I want to play music before/between sets, and (ii) that we actually have the capability to do this, and do it well.

You've landed on your feet, by the sound of it. Nice work mate.

I bought a Zeller from Clarky (well, who else?) many years ago. It's one of the nicest-sounding DBs I've ever played, sufficiently so that I always try other Zellers when I get the opportunity, see if mine is somehow 'special'. Every Zeller strung with Silver Slaps (or similar) that I've tried sounds just as good as mine. Well, to my ears, anyway. I have no idea about current pricing, but I suspect that these DBs cost around £2k new. Mine was pristine when I bought it, now not so much. In the ridiculous event that I were to sell it (not going to happen, people) I couldn't ask for more than a grand. For context, I've used my Zeller with originals & indie, blues and jazz, rock and rockabilly. I never use a bow.

As ever, all good stuff here and nothing at all that I'd disagree with. One strong recommendation, though, would be that you try out as many DBs as you can before making a decision and a purchase. Use this forum to find DB players near you who would be willing to offer you an hour playing their DB (and a cup of tea, and maybe a digestive biscuit). Different basses obviously feel and sound different, just like electric basses, but the differences can be magnified with DB simply because they are so physical. You will usually find also that string choice is even more significant than on electric bass, so a bass that you try and fall in love with may be because it's strung with Silver Slaps (my personal favourite - blame Clarky) whereas the others you played were strung with steels.

@Silvia Bluejay and I just love Trader Joe's in Pasadena. So does Lee Sklar. Guess it's a bassist thing.

Do indoor plants count?

Can Jerri not supply the percussion? A pair of claves, or woodblocks, or one of those strange ribbed things you 'stroke' with a striker (never can remember what they're called or how to pronounce them), or maybe one of those strange round things with chains around them which you twist and shake (never can remember what they're called or how to pronounce them either) ... any of those would add enough to allow you to play bass.

It ain't necessarily so ...

Forget the bass ... I want that wallpaper.

This guitar is a bit unusual in having a longer fretboard that extends over the body so you get higher notes if you like.

Cramp can have many causes, and if you don't know what's causing yours then you could be in for a struggle. I've been a lifelong sufferer from cramp caused by postural issues, caused in turn by being born with flat feet. I've also been a lifelong sufferer from well-intentioned people suggesting that I drink more water, take more salt in my diet, buy expensive magnesium tablets, and eat bananas. All of those things are good for curing different types of cramp, so I guess that if you do all of them it might help you. The best start point is, as Dood suggests, that you do a simple warm-up of your fingers and hands before each gig. Try this:

£1.80? What a rip-off!

https://rochdaleherald.co.uk/2019/07/19/shake-vac-composer-have-ashes-scattered-on-carpet-and-hoovered-up-by-jenny-logan/?fbclid=IwAR3I5lZWTFu4yjEniRExdEssoEo3qXOpkwlRhK2W4IXw8DbqXEFf8z-FfGI

Why, thank'ee kindly young masters, thank'ee fer yer kind words. I grew up in Guernsey so I spent a truly ridiculous amount of time on boats. That one was a 48' Rampart motor cruiser, lovely old thing from the 50s, fitted with twin Perkins diesels, teak everywhere. I was a sideburns addict, constantly changing their shape and re-growing them. I suspect this was a reaction to my appalling moustache, a weak and scrubby thing in a sad shade of ginger. At a time when all my friends were growing porn-star taches I had to keep my upper lip clean-shaven. Ah, the trials and tribulations of youth. That long wavy hair was an absolute bastard to keep groomed, too.

I had to look that one up. What Is Solfege? Solfege is a method of naming pitches. It works by assigning a syllable to each note of the musical scale. So rather than, say, naming a C major scale as C-D-E-F-G-A-B-C, you can name it as do-re-mi-fa-so-la-ti-do.

Yup, this ^. It was pretty much the only distinguishing feature between loons and flared jeans (at their most extreme). Obviously they were made of plain cotton rather than denim, too. We were all wearing platforms, and your trouser-bottoms had to hide just how much extra height you'd purchased. I routinely wore boots with side zips, 1" platform and 2" heel. That was pretty conservative in 1975. These were all 'fashion' shoes, made of wafer-thin leather over what amounted to reinforced cardboard. The built-up soles were a honeycomb of cheap plastic. You might get a summer out of a pair, if you were lucky.