Jonesthebass

Sorry guys.... I'm gonna offer the following.....if you've got a month. Sack this guy off and beg borrow or steal a guy you know can do it. Even if you have to pay him to save face. I gig every week playing in covers bands made up regularly of different players. We all know each other and trust each other. We know that if it goes slightly sideways during a song there's usually a cheeky smile and carry on. Have just spent the last 3 years in an originals band where the singer wrote the lyrics to my music. In the few gigs we did he needed a lyric sheet (after3years in the practise room) and still f***ed up his entries. He wanted to do some covers work to pay bills but after getting a gig I had to grab a few mates to cover it co she hadn't learnt the material. I wasn't gonna lose face with the agent, venue or anyone who knew me. I won't get on stage with this guy again. There are loads of guys out there that are bedroom players that think they have the stones to get on stage but in reality they will never be more than a bedroom player. Cut your loses. You'll either explode when it all gets too much or you'll stop caring and slip down to his level of workmanship. You don't need either.

[quote name='SpaceChick' timestamp='1428841529' post='2745048'] I fainted at a gig once! I had a kidney infection and felt terrible and I was midway through a complex oboe passage and just keeled over! [/quote] Space chick.... You play the oboe ?!?!? I play oboe and bass! I find it really allows you to play pretty much all types of music. To stay in thread, have gigged an entire Xmas period thinking I was just wimping out to man flu only to find out it was a serious bout of sinusitis. Sweating, grumping around everyone and doublling lemsip maxs with red bulls. Trying to play when you have the trots is a bit Russian roulette. Needless to say I didn't stand directly in front of the amp that night. First gig back after dislocating my left collar bone 3 weeks previous. Probably the hardest gig. Had the bass side saddle on the right shoulder towards the end.

I'm a music teacher who travels around schools teaching all ages. At the age of six. Show her how to play along with you and have fun. Don't worry about notation. All the studies show that the cognative development of kids means what will take her 18mths to learn at 6 she'll fly through in months at 8. I see it all the time. I do a lot of whole class ukulele sessions and I colour code the chords with dots, prob in the same way your sons violin teacher did at the start. Colour code her the 3 chord trick and get her to play along with you. Proper lessons can wait. It's all about the fun of music right now.

Venues expecting each band to fill their venue is shortsighted on their part. If I have a following with my band and I bring them to your venue great but next week that following goes with me to a different venue. The onus is on the venue to create a fan base for the venue based on trust that they will put quality acts in to entertain. Sure we all do a gig now and again where we try to drag mates along buying wouldn't see my fav band every week playing roughly the same set why would I track round and watch my mates play every week. You would need a massive mate pool to rotate.

I'm always very gracious to anyone that takes the time to tell me that they enjoyed my playing or the band but I always hold on to one venue during my formative playing years where after a storming gig with a band that I knew were good (loads of technical playing mixed with comedy and showmanship). A punter staggers over and with wide eyes and told me that we were the best band they had ever seen in the venue. Awesome!! Weeks later I depped with a mates band. They weren't a patch on us and quite ropey......same venue...... Same punter....... Lo and behold staggers over and tells me that we are the best band they'd ever had....... Compliments are nice but I don't validate my ability by opinions of the local rummy.

Bare in mind as you look that the double bass is strung the same as your bass. The cello is strung differently so there are potential brain freeze moments. I teach woodwind thru the day as a job and occasionally fall victim to the brain fart when you forget which instrument you are on. The sax is prob the most accessible to learn and you can pick up a decent second hand for about £200. Clarinet is not too hard but has different fingerings in the different octaves. Flute is nice once you've sorted the embouchure(mouth shape) and can make a consistent sound. I'd get a feel get a feel for a real instrument before trying to deal with a leccy wind instrument. Just so you know what you should be doing. Have fun. It opens up a whole world. I really enjoy jumping between. In fact tonight starts with an orchestra play the oboe and finishes in a dog and duck type pub gig on bass. Aside from turning up to a pub gig in tails its fine!

For left hand look at your set up, how high the strings are sitting, also consider how hard you are fretting. You'd be amazed how little pressure you need with a properly set up bass. For right hand...... Turn up your amp. You like the thwack of a hard pluck cos you can't hear yourself. Try turning up the amp and playing lighter. We've all been there walking off stage and inserting fingers into a pint of iced water! Light touch allows you to play more nimbly too. Good luck with sorting this out.

We all use iPads and onsong app. It allows us to change key, highlight chords, scroll the screen.... It's quite useful. You can send entire set lists to each other on PDF opened into onsong. Only prob is that all songs have been put on from the community and just like guitar tab sites chords are often wrong but its pretty easy to edit and upload your own ideas.

Hope for the best plan for the worst. I've travelled with basses on planes regularly and always put them in the bomb proof flight case. No matter what they say about you being able to take it into the cabin, if you arrive with a soft case for cabin storage and the check in desk forces you to stow it in the hold its game over! Never worth the risk.

Know your parts going in. Use a click track. It makes editing so much easier. Play with the same passion as a live show. If your meek and reserved it will show in the recording sounding flat. Solos need to be thought out. Inspiration and improv has no place in the studio when time is premium. Save the beers for sun nite after its all over. Alcohol affects your ears and your perception of frequencies. Be realistic on what you can achieve with 3 tracks in a weekend. I could spend multiple weekends on one track.... Look after the engineer/producer they can make the session successful or a ball ache. Have fun!

Hearing aid loops are run off a hearing aid loop amplifier........ In my experience of fitting them in churches might I suggest you simply flick the power switch on the front to off. No need to unplug stuff out of the desk. Just remember to switch it back on once finished over wise we get a call out the week later because the loop amp has stopped working!

The drawers for rack box tend to 2u ,are made of steel and weigh a ton! Adds a rediculous amount of weight to what already sounds like a heavy box.

Jamesbass.... Cruise ship work get your reading skills as good as you can. Show band gets loads of charts at short notice. Jazz wise get your chops up. Work on your aural skills too. If you get used to hearing intervals and chord changes it helps massively when you're put on the spot. Pretty soon you start to notice lots if songs with the same chord progressions.....ie the old 3 chord trick. And ubit .... Yeah I know its a huge amount of songs and yes I have had to learn them and yes every now and again someone calls a song I haven't played for years but if you know roughly how it goes you can put a basic bass line into it.

Cheers Raymondo. Like he said....... The OP asked for common generic songs that most bands do. Do I like half of those songs I listed.....no! If I never have to play smoke on the water ever again I won't be upset but from 15yrs on the s,Wales circuit those are the tracks that pop up time and again with the diff bands. I'd love to have a crack at bird land , one band used to do maniac by micheal sembelo and loads of micheal macdonald stuff with full harmonies. Is it worth learning?!? Only if you really like those tracks cos I've never been asked for them whilst depping. Seems there's some angry people on here this morn. Jeez I know its Monday but come on guys. I even said I'll start the list from my experience..... Any one else is free to add to the list. I thought this was a co operative place to help each other. Leave the ego at the door or go and play guitar!

Yeah I offered up a grandad rock s,Wales valley set from my formative years...... This was stuff that as I bounced and depped with various bands these were standard. Ok soul band..... Mustang Midnight hour Soul man Take me to the river Grapevine Hold on Signed sealed delivered Sex bomb Not unusual. ......... As I said..... Same Stuff that pops up in all bands. Did a promo vid for an agent recently and put songs in that I've never seen other bands do..... Few elton John, hall n oats and some 90's rnb. Word back from venues was can you do seet home Alabama and brown eyed girl (face palm) ..... Oh yeah learn brown eyed girl.....