SteveK

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1494410565' post='3295686'] Mine are pretty good. What did all of you guys used to do before we had tuners? [/quote] I remember all too well the days before affordable tuners :/ If someone's tuning was adrift, then the show would be interrupted while tuning was [i]attempted[/i] - I say "attempted", after enduring the kind of volume that several 4x12s (de rigeur for bands of the time) could emit, ears were shot, and matters were often made worse! Many's a gig that's suffered as a result of poor tuning: Genesis at the Oval, early 70s, immediately springs to mind.

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1494257175' post='3294409'] [b]If you have to[/b] tune up between numbers there is something wrong with your bass. [/quote] "If you have to" because your bass is always out of tune. then I would agree! However, a lot of bass players and guitarists can be a bit OCD, or they do it as a result of nerves. IMV Whether you can hear a tuning discrepancy or not, checking tuning at regular intervals, when appropriate, is entirely acceptable and professional... providing it's discreet and doesn't interfere with the show. [quote name='TimR' timestamp='1494265309' post='3294526'] I tune when I can hear it's gone out of tune. [/quote] Unfortunately, ears can be rather unreliable!

Thought about sticking this in the Chris Squire thread, but as he isn't in the clip, felt it would have been a little disrespectful. Geddy Lee does a sterling job, as of course, do the rest of the band - Great stuff! Apologies if this has already been posted! [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t1-NsnlPc54[/media]

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1481389205' post='3192000'] One of the interesting things about Squire is that almost nothing he does is actually hard to play. [/quote] For some reason, I'm reminded of this quote by the legendary Vim Fuego: "I could play "Stairway To Heaven" when I was 12. Jimmy Page didn't actually write it until he was 22. I think that says quite a lot."

Without doubt, I would buy a fretless and have the lines added... by a professional! I did exactly that about 20 years ago! I had a Warwick Thumb unmarked fretless, and took it to Chandlers who lined it, and did an immaculate job. IMV unless you have the appropriate jigs, tools, knowledge and experience you won't get a professional result.

Always at the top of my ever changing top ten: [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkPy18xW1j8[/media] +1 In My Life - or any number of the Fabs tracks.

Expect some chump will be along shortly to mention Budgie's classic ballads: 'Nude Disintegrating Parachutist Woman', and 'Hot as a Docker's Armpit'

Surely, we [i]aspire to / do[/i] b. in order to do a.

Also played there in 1981, and even rehearsed there for 2 days.

[quote name='largo' timestamp='1487846944' post='3243441'] I do think it should be called the British "Pop" Music Industry awards. There's certainly a whole load more British Music that isn't represented at these things. [/quote] I was on the precursor to the Brits in 1981. You may be interested to know it was called "The British Rock & Pop Awards"

You're over-complicating and over-thinking this. Your mate says, "would you do it?" Assuming that you're interested, just tell him "yes" and tell him to get back to you when the band has made a decision. Potentially, the band are offering you the gig, it isn't your your problem how, why or when they sack this other guy.

[quote name='Crawford13' timestamp='1486162924' post='3229845'] Hmm is there any way to know the authenticity of this? Is this the actual album track. Listening closely the seems to be a lot of rushing the beat etc. [/quote] I would imagine that with a basic recording setup, if you run the isolated bass track with the finished track, after making minimal adjustments it would be easy to establish its authenticity.

Billy Sheehan explains his technique for maintaining and improving finger strength. It mostly applies to the fretting hand, but his philosophy can equally apply to your plucking hand. There are some things in this video that I disagree with Billy Sheehan about, but he's a jolly nice chap, it's fairly entertaining, and it may help you [media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oVxf5VETud8[/media]

I think bubinga5 is being a little unfair, as Star Trekkin' is a novelty record, and as such, is not meant to break any musical ground However, this record (as opposed to the song, which I don't have a problem with) with all its straight-faced melodrama qualifies it as the worst record of all time - bar none! [media]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sYFRFyvhGRY[/media] Hopefully the youtube link works - if not, count your blessings

It is very easy, when in a support slot, to blame poor sound on sabotage, whether by a "couldn't give a toss" FOH engineer, or reduced PA spec. But, generally speaking, "bad sound" is the result of inexperience from the support band. A good band will arrange a song for live: Cutting back instruments (eg. keys or guitars) to allow vocals to be heard, use of dynamics etc, and actually being able to play to a reasonable standard. I was going to write a much longer post, including my experience as "Guests" with Ritchie Blackmore's Rainbow on their German shows this year ... maybe later!

Generally speaking, a good song of the 60s is still a good song today! Of course lyrics/subject matter can date a song. But, the biggest thing to date a record is production, and to some extent arrangement.

[quote name='PaulGibsonBass' timestamp='1477992346' post='3165716'] I ask because a friend of mine hates Japan (the band, not the country!) but listens to them a lot because he likes Mick Karn's bass playing. That doesn't really make sense to me. [/quote] Makes total sense to me! I have a fairly comprehensive CD/album collection, some of which are by artists that don't really do it for me, but analysis of the works of Charlie Parker, Mingus etc has been extremely enlightening and useful. [quote name='lojo' timestamp='1478015572' post='3166030'] There's no such thing as a great song without a great bassline Even if the bass does nothing , it's still has to be right for the song to do nothing , and therefore it's a great line [/quote]?? :/

Of course, it will put SOME musicians out of SOME work! People were asking the same question when mellotrons, string machines and samplers first came on the scene. They asked the same question when drum machines came along. As we hear on the radio day-in day-out, a "performance" from drummers, bassists, keyboard players, guitarists etc is not a requirement, a close aproximation is all that's needed from the majority of today's popular artists and producers. Hiring musicians can be an expensive business, and of course, we all know the "what's the difference between a drummer and a drum machine?" joke... many a true word spoken in jest

In 44 years of playing bass I've never had any use for a volume control, other than to turn the thing off. Come to think of it, I've never had much use for tone controls either.

[quote name='thebrig' timestamp='1474979411' post='3141987'] I'm quite happy with my playing, and I must be doing something right because I'm lucky enough to play with three very good musicians who make me feel great. [/quote]

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1474968243' post='3141830'] I probably shouldn't have chosen that clip. He's recovering from a stroke and can be seen to be struggling at times but his technique is good enough to have made him an elite and world class bass player for the last 50 + years. [/quote] Fair enough - didn't know that he'd had a stroke. Of course, as we get get older we can be afflicted with all sorts of things that require an adapting of technique. [quote name='thebrig' timestamp='1474972051' post='3141887'] Personally I think the clip is a great demonstration in showing that whilst there will always be the "correct technique", "the correct way", "you must do it this way", etc... we are in fact all different physically, despite what people say, Chuck Rainey is using a technique that is comfortable for him, and allows him to continue playing despite recovering from a stroke, and I have to say, I really enjoyed the video, and despite his so called poor technique, I thought his playing was great. For me, I have to use a very flat technique because I have virtually no control of my thumbs due to arthritis, and I had the trapezium removed in my right thumb which has resulted in not being able to touch my little finger with me thumb, and this is not a recent thing that has hampered my technique, I have always had very little flexibility it my thumbs, and no amount of stretching exercises seemed to help. So yes, if you are lucky enough to be born with the perfect anatomy, then you can adopt all the "correct" methods, but a lot of us have to adapt to methods that suit the way we were made, even if they are not technically correct. [/quote] I think it demonstrates that there are some musicians with poor technique that go on to greatness... because, they have that "something special". We shouldn't assume, though, that WE have that "something special".

[quote name='chris_b' timestamp='1474799520' post='3140545'] High arched fingers are important if you're playing a guitar and playing many strings at once. On a bass a low arch is the most you need. I'll use low arch and fingers resting on all strings. That's also good for LH damping. Here's a Chuck Rainey video. [url="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7TAFWwqeHko"]https://www.youtube....h?v=7TAFWwqeHko[/url] [/quote] That Chuck Rainey video demonstrates possibly the worst technique of any world class player that I've ever seen. I'd be interested to see how he would cope if called upon to play a reasonably fast 1/16 note phrase or fill.

Sublime!

If you have to pay anyway, why not rehearse without your guitarist? A lot can still be achieved with the absence of a group member.

As others have said, I don't think that there is any real snobbery. I occasionally see something on FB meant as jest. Anyone suggesting that pick players are somehow lesser players are quite obviously Trump adoring Brexit voters