Happy Jack

I bought a Crazy 8 recently and I've been seriously impressed with it, so much so that I'm seriously considering selling my Barefaced OneTen to part-fund a Crazy 88 (the 2x8 version). My needs are well catered for in the big-rig department. I have three more Barefaced cabs (610, Compact, Midget) and oodles of power on tap, so any full-fat rock gig is dealt with. More and more these days, my focus is on the 'sensible volume in a small pub' gigs, plus the 'stage monitor for my DB on a festival stage' gigs, and my thinking is that having an '8' plus an '88' gives me three different options while retaining effectively the same sound. I'm talking to Tricky Audio at the moment and I was surprised to find that they have never yet been asked to build a Crazy 88. I get the impression that people wanting more than a Crazy 8 migrate to the fEARful 110 but that's not really where my head's at. What's the experience of the Basschat Collective? Anyone played through a Crazy 88? Anyone reading what I've just written find themselves shaking their heads and thinking "No, No, No"?

Give him time, mate, give him time ...

He's going to be SO chuffed with them ...

Yes, but the guitarist will be able to lay down better versions of your bass lines, no problem ...

In my experience, getting sacked is way more fun than quitting, and leads to better stories too.

So Nancy, what are we going to call you from now on? Although I suppose you could argue that Who Left Nancy Johnson still works.

Define "large". You could buy a new, modern, Chinese Hofner for as little as £230: https://www.gak.co.uk/en/hofner-ignition-violin-bass-sunburst/83408?gclid=CjwKCAiA6K_QBRA8EiwASvtjZd1QJw2SdiyxSi4kL9Hf-Tb7sC7MfShpL5yvcCfGfgkX9i-Pv2X9ahoCmasQAvD_BwE That would NOT give you the 5lb lightness or the quality under the hands of a genuine German jobbie - the "sustain block" down the middle adds at least a pound to the weight, the cheap finish is just that, cheap - but at least you're not spending much. Far better IMHO is to buy a genuine vintage one from the late 60s or early 70s. Spend enough time looking and you'll find one for less than a grand, and you won't be spending that money ... you'll be investing it. If you want to try a genuine, all-original 1964 (worth somewhere North of £2000 in today's market) you're very welcome to come round and have a bash at mine.

Anyone else - yup, these were very widely used in the 60s and through into the 70s, including artists as unlikely as Dennis Dunaway of Alice Cooper. Less robust? Far from it. The construction of a violin bass, just like any other classic-style instrument, makes a box girder which is actually phenomenally strong. In theory, I could stand on my 1964 violin bass without breaking it. I don't plan to test that theory, but feel free to try with your own instrument.

I guess he's keeping his options open ...

You can also go the whole hog and migrate to a Hofner Violin bass (model 500/1). They typically weigh not a lot over five pounds (approx. 1.738 hectares).

As with every other aspect of bass-playing - or musicianship generally - it all depends on context. Most of the time, I feel the beats and I have no need to count. Some of the time, I feel the song itself ... I've heard it so many times that I just know when to come back in or play that fill or whatever. And on some songs, I have no choice but to count and frequently to ensure that the drummer is counting. The perfect example is Substitute where we discovered early on that the only way to ensure that Paul and I came back in nice & tight after the stops was to count in unison, so we made that counting part of the song. "I look pretty old but I'm just back-dated yeah ..." TWO THREE FOUR ONE TWO THREE

This is for playing bass at home? Do you have a budget in mind? There's no shortage of 60s/70s valve kit out there. I'm particularly partial to WEM, especially the late model Dominator 25 with the 15" Celestion. Expect to pay £300 - £500 for one in decent nick, but do bear in mind that you'll get your money back when you sell it. If you do go vintage, include in your budget the cost of getting it checked out and serviced by a bona fide valve amp techy person, if only for peace of mind.

https://www.gumtree.com/p/other-musicians-wanted/bass-player-wanted-london/1275284784

Haven't reached the bloody shop yet ... gimme a break whydontcha?

Framus were contemporary with Hofner's great days in the early 60s. McCartney played a Hofner, Wyman played a Framus. In perfect nick, a vintage Star Bass might be worth a bit, perhaps even as much as a grand (that would be seriously toppy though). Yours is nowhere near perfect nick and you're probably looking at a few hundred. As with all these valuation questions, I'm happy to be proved wrong. Just don't order that swimming pool just yet.

Job done.

Brown paper bag, like last time?

In that case, you've now got 16.

Ta very muchly - how did you do that? I mean, you've already got 15 ...

I want to beef up my reputation. Can I buy more points?

Not really for me, but you're more likely to get replies if you give some idea of where in the UK you're based. Good luck.

It's complicated.

How does the band get gigs? They wait for me and Silvie to text them.

Surely we're all ready by now to move on to Straight Leads -v- Curly Leads? Then we can digress into Plain Black -v- Coloured -v- DayGlo ...