SteveK

I know nothing of Tim Lefebvre other than this clip - his playing technique looks like someone who's been playing for about 2 weeks: Gripping the neck like a cricket bat, thumb over the top... but hey, he's playing with Donald Fagen, and I'm not... he must be doing something right Y'know, I love Donald Fagen and Steely Dan, even with songs that I may not like as much as others, there is always something in them to admire and appreciate... for one thing, they invariably groove!

[quote name='dave_bass5' timestamp='1359113218' post='1950011'] Must admit that got me thinking as well. Funny thing is i always used to say to my guitarist "is the chord played right?". 10 years on, i still say it, and not just for that song lol. [/quote] The opening chord of A Hard days Night will never sound right with one guitar. I'm sure a link was posted on BC several months ago explaining how the chord was in fact a 12 string, a 6 string, bass guitar and piano all at once. IIRC: George's 12 string: Fadd9/G John's 6 string: Dsus4 Paul's bass: D George Martin's Piano: ???

[quote name='Evil Undead' timestamp='1359023585' post='1948511'] I'm not one of those people. I carry my gear down two flights of stairs from my flat, and back up again at the end. I load it in to the car (except the cab, because the guitarist would rather he do that). And I help carry his gear in to the venue. Definitely don't "sit with my feet up"! I always offer a cut of my gig takings, and I always offer to pay for his share of rehearsal, and I offer fuel money, and he always declines. I buy him a drink each time because that's all he'll accept. He's a great guy. Oh, and I buy him a Christmas present to say thanks at the end of the year [/quote]My post was mostly tongue-in-cheek... Although, I often wonder how the drummer in my band, who's played with the likes of Jeff Beck, Go West, Tears for Fears, Pretenders, Paul Rodgers, Paul Jackson, Magnum amongst others, got by without ever driving... guess he must be quite good

[quote name='Evil Undead' timestamp='1359015996' post='1948408'] I'm on the other end. I can't currently afford to run a car, so my guitarist picks me and my gear up for practice and gigs. I always buy him a Red Bull (his favourite) as he won't accept petrol money. I'm extremely grateful to him, as I wouldn't be able to be in a band if it weren't for him. [b]Always two sides to every story [/b] [/quote] You're absolutely correct: On one side, you have someone that saves a fortune on the cost of buying a car, the cost of running it, can sit sit with his feet up 'till his chauffeur arrives, always has another pair of hands available, can relax in the car until he arrives at his destination. On the other side, you have someone that spends a fortune on buying a car, running it, always has to leave home earlier to allow for his detour, will invariably load and unload the gear for fear of damage to his motor. I know a few musicians that have been in the business for many years that don't drive. One, being a drummer who lives in the west country, has played with many of the biggest names and is currently working in Abbey Road studios. I can't imagine the hassle that he, and others, must have had getting himself and his kit around.

[quote name='Marvin' timestamp='1358957169' post='1947623'] Due to various things going on I haven't touched my basses in about 2 months. Plugged one in today...and I can't play. Not a thing. No rhythm, no nothing. And what's more, I don't want to play. I've no interest in bass or bands. It's all completely gone. [/quote]There's no law that says because you have a bass and related gear that you have to play it till your dying day. Maybe playing bass is not for you. I'd give it another couple of months - if no change - flog your stuff, and look at something else to fill your spare time.

[quote name='Dingus' timestamp='1358945580' post='1947393'] Most importantly , what does the T shirt mean ? Song Of Norway ? This man is deep! [/quote] In its original form the song had different lyrics. Mr Bowie thought it would be a bit of a wheeze to enter it, under an alias, for Norway's Eurovision. He got his people in Norway onto it. Unfortunately it fell at the first hurdle. Apparently, those that rejected it were quite scathing about the song, along the lines of [i]Norway has high standards when it comes to Eurovision, and this offering falls woefully short[/i]. Think the T-shirt is a kind of 'thumbing of the nose' to those in Norway that rejected it.

TheRev, Thanks for the Talk Talk link - I do actually have the Spirit of Eden album. I was a bit of a fan... until this album. Loved the previous two. Guess this would now be known as Pre-Post-Rock

Right! Have acquired a pair of earphones for my laptop, and from the suggestions posted, had a good listen to some of this 'ere 'Post-Rock'. I enjoyed some of it, particularly Sigur Ros. It did occur to me that I have been listening to [i]very[/i] similar stuff to Post-Rock for many years. Some of it is not too dissimilar to a few tracks from Peter Gabriel's OVO album, particularly [url="http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=the+tower+that+ate+people&view=detail&mid=95114154B414E204812295114154B414E2048122&first=0"]The Tower that Ate People, [/url] and maybe [url="http://www.bing.com/videos/search?q=peter+gabriel+low+light&view=detail&mid=E21C46A41BCA50D80D90E21C46A41BCA50D80D90&first=0"]Low Light[/url] A lot of his Passion album would also (IMO) fit the bill. From what I've heard of Post-Rock so far, there's a certain movie soundtrack quality to much of it. Thanks for the heads up. [quote name='toneknob' timestamp='1358842790' post='1945784'] Sounds like Red-era King Crimson [/quote]Y'know, early Crimson was my first thought.

Thanks for the names and links - I'm on my laptop at the moment, with its crappy speakers - I'll check out these 'post rockers' when I get to my desktop. Cheers.

Ok, I've got to ask... what is 'Post Rock'? [i]'Slow melodic themes', 'Seemingly ambiguous chords'[/i], you've got me interested. I'm an old geezer who doesn't get out much - humour me... any youtube links?

[quote name='KevB' timestamp='1358780641' post='1944838'] I've been listening to Yes 'Time & A Word' album in the car. That's a bass cutting through the mix that is... [/quote]Absolutely! Those early Yes albums were a masterclass in arrangement and production.

It's not really possible to give a definitive answer without hearing those that have the problem actually in their working environment, ie. on stage. Traditionally the bass is not meant to 'cut through the mix', at least, not in the way that I understand 'cutting through' to mean. I think many bass players forget what the role of the bass actually is. I can't imagine anything worse than the bass 'cutting through' for an entire gig. If however, there are [i]sections[/i] of a song, or maybe the [i]occasional whole[/i] song where bass needs to take a more up front role, then backing off the low end and bringing up the higher frequencies a tad would probably help. But, more importantly, the bass should be considered when arranging this type of the song. It's not going to work if the drummer is playing hell for leather, the guitarist is blasting his power chords and keys player has got some symphonic string sounds happening... in that scenario the bass player stands no chance of 'cutting through'. [b]It's all in the arranging![/b] Things may need to be backed off, instruments may need to drop out entirely, parts may need to be changed. Basically, everyone in the band needs to understand what is trying be achieved for each part of the song, and [i]knowing[/i] how to achieve this will differ from song to song. Some get it right, and unfortunately, some get it totally wrong.

[quote name='hamfist' timestamp='1358689077' post='1943340'] But the thrill is soooooo good. It's definitely a buzz that I'm slightly addicted to. [/quote] So, my suggestion: [i]'Why not spend the money that you [i]would[/i] spend on gear on decent lessons. You may find that the problem isn't your gear afterall.'[/i] wasn't really what you wanted to hear. Okay, so you're more interested in spending money than furthering yourself as a bass player. I must admit that there is something in your posts that doesn't sit very well with me.

Don't try to pull the wool over our eyes. What you fail to mention is, to get 'your sound' you must have bought (and sold?) 15 different rigs, at least 20 basses, and tried every fx combination possible. Please don't tell me that you actually practised, or (heaven forbid)...had lessons!

[quote name='hamfist' timestamp='1358673374' post='1942963'] I seem to go through a constant cycle of[b] feeling[/b] that something isn't quite right with my rig or gear... [/quote] So, you have gear suitable for your needs, but have the 'feeling that something isn't quite right'. My advice? don't change anything until you are [b]certain[/b] what's wrong... unless the thrill of the purchase is all that counts. Why not spend the money that you [i]would[/i] spend on gear on decent lessons. You may find that the problem isn't your gear afterall.

Up to the 70s, If your band had a Hammond organ, then that is what you tuned to - The Hammond had no tuning facility... and depending on the power supply, they could run sharper or flatter. And, as has been said, tracks were often sped up, to tighten the sound and give them a bit more 'zing'.

I think this thread proves (if ever proof were needed) that todays popular music is bo**ox. 95% of the songs mentioned in this thread are 30 or more years old. Is nobody writing decent songs anymore? I mean, for chrisakes, I'm 56 years old, and some of you guys are still playing songs that I was playing in my teens. Please don't tell me some of you are still playing Hey Joe, Proud Mary or Sunshine of your Love

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1357818818' post='1928826'] [i]I don't think that the "quest for tone" is opposed to improving your technique at all.[/i] I like to practise acoustically at home, but when I play with a band, I use a lot of gear to get the sound I want. [/quote] From time to time on BC a thread comes along, along the lines of,[i] 'I've tried this amp, I've tried this bass, that amp and that bass, yet I still can't get the sound I'm after'.[/i] My suspicion is that almost every combination of bass and amp (assuming reasonable/appropriate quality) is capable of delivering the sound that the poster is after. There are 2 obvious things (to my mind) at play here... Either the poster is clueless on how to use the gear (EQ, gain, compressor etc), or his technique is letting him down. The answer is simple: If you've got appropriate gear and you still don't like your sound, before parting with even more of your cash, take a good hard look at your technique. BTW a couple of posts have mentioned FX boards and heavy processing. I assume that we all know that no matter how good your fingers, you're not going to be able to emulate the sound of a Big Muff, stereo chorus, octaver etc without some outboard jiggery-pokery. My feeling is that that's a whole different discussion to the one prompted by the OP.

I'm reminded of an interview of a renowned guitarist (whose name I can't remember), who after playing a few licks was told by the interviewer that [i]the guitar sounds great[/i], upon which the guitarist handed the guitar to the interviewer and said, "Let's hear how great it sounds now".

[quote name='Inti' timestamp='1357741295' post='1927570'] I'm not speaking about insecurity here. There's a big difference between what you play and how you sound. I could play the same line on a fender and on my yamaha and[b] it would sound different.[/b] Amazing how some people have such hard time accepting this fact. Fascinating. [/quote]But not as different as you might imagine. There has been various examples (I think, some even posted on here) where someone has played the same line on different basses and we have to guess which bass is which, results are quite surprising. Our hands and fingers tell us one thing, while our ears are more easily fooled. Amazing how some people have such hard time accepting this fact. Fascinating

[quote name='Inti' timestamp='1357734779' post='1927384'] It's not hard to prove you wrong, just play an open string on my yamaha and then on my fender. They sound different. [b]Gear is important. Really important. All pros know this[/b]. [/quote] It's 'important' because, by and large, we're a pretty insecure bunch. We have our preferred gear in a similar way as we have our preferred pair of slippers, they make us feel at home and comfortable. There are many occasions when a band (even hugely successful bands) have to rely on supplied equipment. The manager/agent at home will stipulate to the promoter what is to be supplied, only for the band to arrive at the venue and be told, "This is the best that's available". Of course the band, after many protestations, will go on and do the gig. And predictably, after the show, the guitarist will moan that he couldn't get the sustain he's used to, the drummer will say his snare sounded like a cardboard box, and so it goes on... but guess what(?) the band doesn't actually sound noticably different to how the band sounds on home turf... with their regular gear.

They didn't say [i]whose[/i] lifetime.

Just re-read your original post, and judging by your mention of pp and ff in your last, do I take it you do a lot of theatre work? Is it the kind of thing where the whole band needs to drop down to allow for dialogue? If so, then I can see why a volume pedal may be needed.

[quote name='silddx' timestamp='1357652774' post='1926014'] [b]I use one all the time. Great for celloing, soundscape-like swells,[/b] level control and on/off. It's become a solid part of my style now. To the OP, what is it you actually want to know? [/quote] Obviously, for those kind of effects a volume pedal is ideal. I think Phil was concerned more with general levels. [quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1357657778' post='1926123'] I have a Morley volume pedal I got years ago. Useful but I find it' s all in my hands. [/quote]Er, not sure what connection the second sentence has with the first

FWIW I've only ever used the volume on my bass as an on/off switch, ie. it's always full on, or full off. Going from a rocker to a ballad, I would control dynamics with the fingers - maybe moving nearer to the bridge or to the neck for extra control. Most instruments don't have a volume control, and in a rock context drummers and singers don't have a volume control, but they seem to get by... mostly There is a big difference in sound from actually playing lighter to turning the volume down. IME turning the volume control down will mean you just disappear from the mix. I know this doesn't help in the short term, and I certainly don't mean to be patronising (I've no idea how long you've been playing), but maybe controlling dynamics with your fingers is an area that you need to work on when practising.