Happy Jack

[quote name='Marvin' timestamp='1390863904' post='2350781'] Jack let slip how he regards music as an occupation as he has a 'grown up' job. Being a musician isn't a grown up proper job? [/quote] Sorry Marvin, but no, not for most people. The number of professional musicians is vanishingly small when set against the enormous number of amateur or semi-pro musicians who have day jobs. One reason for that is because very few people are capable of earning a living wage + supporting a family + providing for retirement on the pittance that can be earned by most full-time professional musicians. Even here on Basschat, a website very specific to musicians, the number of full-time pros is really very low. In economic terms, music is very close to being a Perfect Market. You have a large number of buyers and sellers who can easily find out about each other (the Internet), virtually no barriers to entry, and an infinite supply of product (music) with little or no extraction costs involved. In addition to which, as I hinted in an earlier post, music is seen as being cool, sexy and desirable by teenagers so there is an endless stream of new recruits prepared to do pretty much anything to get involved. And the Bank Of Mum & Dad will pick up the bills. That also disposes of the nonsense analogy with plumbers. Anyone who has done any economics will tell you that this situation can only really result in very low prices. On average, of course ... there's no accounting for One Direction. Look around you. Every summer sees another 10,000 music graduates dumped on the market. Maybe 500 of them are bassists, I don't know, that's just a guess. Every one of those bassists is technically competent on bass, piano, plus at least one other instrument. They all understand music theory and can sight-read written parts. They have stored on their phones the numbers of hundreds of other musicians who they were at college with, and they can form multiple scratch bands in any [i]genre [/i]with a couple of texts. Oh yes, and they're desperate for work and eager to do what it takes to get that work. So, no pressure then. This is NOT a great time to be a working professional musician with a family, and being a professional musician is NOT a grown-up job IMHO. I genuinely mean no offence to anyone on Basschat in saying this, and particularly not to any professional musicians. I'm not criticising, I'm actually sympathising.

[quote name='JTUK' timestamp='1390855492' post='2350556'] Nope.... I hate that idea. I think I'm worth it. The punters think we are worth it, I find it insulting that a promoter might think I work for free...but he wouldn't be able to ask the bar staff or the security or themselves to do the same. [/quote] Agreed. I'm worth it, and I greatly prefer to get paid. Not because I do it for the money (I have a grown-up job for paying the bills) but because that tells me I must be doing something right. BUT that really only applies in one of my four bands, a pub-rock covers band. The other three bands, I don't do it for the money cos there isn't any. Sometimes we get a tenner for the petrol, sometimes we get a few beers. Sure I could say: "[i]I ain't getting out of bed for less than £50 a man[/i]". And then I could stay in bed. Given a choice between playing for nothing and not playing at all, you know what? I'll play for nothing. If people like your music enough then they'll come to your gigs. Then you'll get paid. If you're playing to three members of your own family and a guy who was asleep at the bar when you arrived, then your audience is trying to tell you something. [size=1]Very quietly.[/size]

[quote name='Marvin' timestamp='1390851571' post='2350438'] There are many non-musicians who enjoy what they do that get paid. My brother, for instance, is a designer, he loves his job, has met some very interesting, fascinating and sometimes famous people doing it and has been to some jaw dropping places in the world to work. Should he do his job for free simply because he enjoys it and has had some great experiences doing so? The answer is no, hence to elephant int the room falls flat on its arse [/quote] [quote name='TimR' timestamp='1390851649' post='2350440'] Analogies never work. Both the plumber and the musician agree a rate. If the plumber does a bad job and the pipes leak you don't use him again, even if he was free. It doesn't matter how many free plumbers you use if your pipes still leak. Seems a strange thing to blame the poor plumber for leaky pipe work when you could employ a good plumber and get the job done properly. [/quote] Outstanding work gents. So nobody here plays music because they enjoy playing music? If you're not getting paid, it's no fun, right? Ah well, must just me be then. Again.

[quote name='ubassman' timestamp='1390847132' post='2350312'] [/quote] The man who invented Photoshop ...

[quote name='xilddx' timestamp='1390830930' post='2349960'] [color=#333333]Being a musician, particularly in London, is f***ing expensive. We work hard and pay a lot of money to rehearse to entertain people - to bastardise Andy's plumber analogy, you wouldn't expect to supply your plumber with champagne, but you also wouldn't expect her to do the job for free. [/color] [/quote] Nige, I ignored this bit first time around but now that it's been re-quoted (approvingly) I feel I have to point out the elephant in the room. The plumber isn't plumbing because he/she likes plumbing and because plumbing is fun and sexy and fulfilling and leads to a great social life and some really cool experiences. They do it for the money.

I do like a band where the bassist is up front and the guitarist stands in the shadows behind the PA pole ...

[quote name='JPJ' timestamp='1390843226' post='2350217'] I'm with WoT - give me big iron every time [url="http://smg.photobucket.com/user/JPJ/media/IMG_0785_zps2d111b8e.jpg.html"][/url] [/quote] I love the way SWR finished it off with a ribbon ...

Oh, as to the list of 10 things to change, here's mine:[list=1] [*]Run the venue as a profitable business, not a labour of love or an ego trip. [*]As above [*]As above [*]As above [*]As above [*]You get the idea ... [/list]

[quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1390836586' post='2350074'] Were it not for such shortcomings, I would not - in 1978 - have found myself urinating next to Mr Wreckless Eric and our subsequent conversation about Eddie Waring (who coincidentally was in one of the traps) would never have taken place. [/quote] You do paint a picture, don't you?

I was in Philly last Easter and was lucky enough to get tickets for The Meter Men. George has still got it, oh yes.

[quote name='spacey' timestamp='1390772886' post='2349405'] If he attempts to protect his branding, will he get the same stick on here as others that do ? [/quote] Depends. If he threatens to sue Basschat for allowing individuals to sell (privately, to each other) old copies of Ritters which already existed before he asked for them to stop being made, then quite possibly. If he does that while also allowing others to carry on making them unchallenged because he's threatened them with legal action and they've ignored him, then quite probably. Why do you ask?

[quote name='Bill Fitzmaurice' timestamp='1390789004' post='2349587'] Class D is about the power amp, not the power supply. No one who owns one of these complains about lack of oomph. [url="https://www.djdeals.co.uk/prod-details.asp?AID=3067"]https://www.djdeals....ls.asp?AID=3067[/url] [/quote] I'm on my second Powersoft at the moment, Bill. The first was my main bass power amp but it was overkill in terms of output (2000W for pub gigs - I think not!) and it was utterly clean ... it just made everything louder. Bear with me. My current Powersoft is a 4x700W unit and it's my PA power amp. I keep one channel free so that, should my bass rig crash and burn, I can simply run my Sansamp through the spare channel and there you are - 700W of uber-clean power to my Barefaced cab. That's more than enough power, but it also just makes everything louder. So I lug around my Matamp 100W head. It makes everything [i][b]better[/b][/i].

Rider Type or Copy

How much cash you offerin' boy?

[quote name='Clarky' timestamp='1390735107' post='2348702'] Learned my lesson and this one is a keeper. [/quote] First in the queue, OK?

[quote name='Mickeyboro' timestamp='1390732551' post='2348638'] Can't see the link described on the page - help! M [/quote] http://www.statii.com/status_cats/reviews/12/index.html It's possible that you may need to be a Member to see this.

But can he do it on a wet Wednesday night in Scunthorpe?

In 2032, when all-original Thunder Jets have become iconic, sought-after vintage basses changing hands for £5000, there will be entire websites devoted to pointing out what you have done to your bass ...

[quote name='skychaserhigh' timestamp='1390650242' post='2347882'] The more bells and whistles means more stuff to go wrong. Any amp with a control called Kosmos and lights that you can change the colour of is not for me. [/quote] I am 100% with this. The whole attraction of my Orange Terror Bass is that it only has four knobs, and two of them don't do anything. In the world of "real amps" my Matamp also has four controls, three of which might as well be welded in place because I never touch them. Anything that allows you a hundred ways to improve your sound also offers you:[list] [*]a hundred ways to screw it up [*]a load of distractions when playing live [*]endless possibilities of annoying your bandmates [/list] Just because you [u][i][b]can [/b][/i][/u]doesn't mean you [u][i][b]should[/b][/i][/u].

I spent yesterday evening in bed, alone, coughing & sneezing. Be glad I wasn't there mate, be very glad!

Yes, but you try that sort of dancing down at your local and see where it gets you ...

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1390500068' post='2346125'] I think I must be a 'Greggatarian'. [/quote] Nope - you're just Greggarious.

[quote name='BurritoBass' timestamp='1390500253' post='2346128'] I play rock 'n' roll on mine - Eddie Cochran, Elvis etc and periodically in my Americana band. So I guess I fit the bill here. [/quote] [URL=http://s1128.photobucket.com/user/h4ppyjack/media/Just%20Stuff/Music%20and%20Musicians/tn6L7qS_zps2d5ddf7b.png.html][IMG]http://i1128.photobucket.com/albums/m496/h4ppyjack/Just%20Stuff/Music%20and%20Musicians/tn6L7qS_zps2d5ddf7b.png[/IMG][/URL]

But when say that you would "modify" your lines, be ready for some pretty radical modification. IME trying to play electric bass lines, even simplified ones, on a DB frequently just doesn't work.The physical demands of the DB and the very different tonal qualities mean that you often end up playing something really quite different.