blue

[quote name='bazztard' timestamp='1506836155' post='3381361'] just played an outdoor music festival,my first gig since 1994. Played through a beat up GK400rb and MM 412 cab best tone I ever played with people said the rhythm section kicked butt, and you know what? they were right. Not one fluffed note,a first for me hehe [/quote] The GK400rb is a tried and true work horse. It's a fantastic amp. Wish I had a couple of them. Blue

[quote name='PawelG' timestamp='1506839738' post='3381372'] I'm 26, not a big Jaco fan but can listen to him/Weather Report for hours, days. Too many notes for my liking but interesting and inspiring nevertheless. [/quote] Now that you mention it, the only Jaco I'm somewhat familiar with is Weather Report"s "Heavy Weather". Blue

[quote name='Spoombung' timestamp='1506613153' post='3379960'] I don't get this band. His voice sounds like a strangled cat, they look like dorks, they write streams of hippy goblin nonsense land there's slathers of horrible, tuneless, metal guitar over everything. Mysteriously, all the commenters reckon they're musical geniuses. On the plus side they come across as nice fellas - but this rockumentary is dull as ditch water for all but die-hard fans. [/quote] They're pros that cane up with something different at the right time. They "made it", which only happens to a handful of bands. And this is coming from someone who knows next to nothing about Rush. Blue

[quote name='mrtcat' timestamp='1506806103' post='3381298'] This is a really interesting thread. I pretty much take full responsibility for setting up pa and lights. On most gigs I can load in early and take my time. I try to get there ahead of the band as they all just get in the way. I find it therapeutic and if it goes well I really enjoy the whole night and relax into my playing. If we can't load in early and it becomes a rush then I can get pretty stressed and find that it totally buggers me up for the show and both my playing and enjoyment suffer. I'd love to have a method for calming myself quickly after a stressful setup. [/quote] We show up 1.5 hours before we start our first set. That usually is plenty of time to set up. We scale lights an pa to the size of the bar/club. Blue

[quote name='FinnDave' timestamp='1506783796' post='3381112'] I just find I'm 'there' as soon as the first note rings out, my preparation is mainly practical stuff like making sure I have the right gear with me and know how to get to the venue. I think the setting up on stage focuses my mind on the gig as well, once the set up's complete, I can't wait to get started. [/quote] Agreed, Prep for every gig, arriving early enough to set up your own gear neat and clean. Making sure everything is in working order. After your gear is set, help others lug their gear, be a part of the team. Blue

[quote name='cheddatom' timestamp='1506767416' post='3380959'] Last night I got to the gig and I was really in the mood to play, and I played much better than I usually do, and really enjoyed it. Often I'll not play so well and try to figure out why - maybe I didn't have enough sleep, or too much, or not enough to eat, or too much to drink... whatever. It seems to me that no matter what "state" I'm in, if I'm in the mood for the gig I play well, but if I feel like I've just turned up to do a job, I play badly I'm hoping others are like this and have developed a technique for getting into the mood to play? [/quote] Interesting, because I do look at gigging as my job I'm always in the right mood and a good mood. When you do this for a living there's no room to show up at a gig with a sour attitude about anything. As a matter of fact I not only show up at all gigs with a great attitude I make it a point to help make sure all the band members are having a good time. There's a misconception about looking at gigging as a job. It's not a bad thing, for me it's a good thing. It's a job. IMO the most fun job a guy could have. Blue

[quote name='bazztard' timestamp='1506741980' post='3380810'] there are not many venues in my city that even have bands, let alone original ones to ever gig 4 times a week, even if we were a cover band [/quote] I think that's an issue for a lot of bands. Blue

[quote name='Bilbo' timestamp='1506797252' post='3381233'] I think there are a range of considerations here. I play about 3-4 gigs a month. I have had periods when it was nearer 10-12 but I didn't like the music and made a conscious decision to filter out the non-Jazz gigs with a few exceptions and it plummeted to really low levels before slowly building up again. If I wanted to go pro, I would have to fill up with gigs I wouldn't like to get anywhere near a living wage. I am not one of those guys that will play anything and only play music I like. Some guys can do anything and enjoy it. Good for them but it isn't something I can do. [/quote] Yeah, I'm not in this for what I like. If I was I would have no gigs at all. As long as the musicians are good people honest, trustworthy and approach gigging with a professional attitude I'll play any genre. Blue

For those who love to gig and gig a lot, there's not a lot of options at the local bar band level. Blue

I have a lot of cool basses, about 8, all 4 strings. My favs are probably my early 2000 MIJ Fender P 1950s reissues. Of course being a baby boomer I love my Gibson 1991 Thunderbird as well as my Gibson ES-335, and Gold Top Les Paul basses. Love my custom German made Hofner Club Bass with Cavern Club PU spacing. This weekend I'll gig my G&L 1991 ASAT bass ( Tele body style, active pre-amp ) I don't collect, I gig all of them. Blue

[quote name='gjones' timestamp='1506712812' post='3380671'] It depends on the type of gigs. I like gigging and a 4 gig weekend would be fine for me but am not keen on playing dodgy pubs, with a dodgy clientele (The Artic Bar in Dundee anybody?). Decent audiences, in decent venues, for decent money will always keep my enthusiasm levels up. And you can keep them coming - the more the merrier. The drummer I play with is so popular, that 5 gig weekends are regular thing for him and he also has a full time job and is married (he took his wife on a 2 weeks jaunt to Las Vegas recently, with his gig money, to keep her sweet). [/quote] I like the more upscale gigs as much as anyone else, and we get our share of them in our busy festival and fair season in the summer. However at the end of the day I'm fine with as many $500.00 bar gigs we can get. Playing The Road House this Sunday. It's a 3:00-7:00 large biker bar gig in the rural heartland. We always do well there. Dave, I think you would like this gig. Blue

Dings and scratches bring in big money as relics. Blue

Seems like for those of you that love gigging do it by playing in multiple bands. Problem is if your in 2 bands and both gig a lot you will have schedule conflicts. Honesty gigging does not seem to be a priority for most band opportunities I see. As a matter of fact it's clear that many are presented as "for fun only" opportunities. Blue

[quote name='RockfordStone' timestamp='1506699417' post='3380537'] i've had that, it becomes a stage set up practice session then can be annoying if its 2 and a half hours drive away tho.... [/quote] It can happen over here on the bar band circuit. Play any bar gig and the actual bar is in a separate room from where your band is playing, your doomed to playing to an empty room. Blue

[quote name='TimR' timestamp='1506661736' post='3380197'] Blue, I'd say you're limiting your own options by refusing to play in a 'start up' band and looking for a band who fit your criteria. Time to start your own band with musicians who share your passion. Network with the bars and venues you already play at and get second gigs there with your new band. [/quote] Over here 99% of all start up bands fall apart before their first gig. I guess my band was a start up 12 years ago. One of the rare local success stories. Blue

[quote name='T-Bay' timestamp='1506665728' post='3380205'] Why play four gigs with one band? You could perhaps play four gigs with two or three different ones. I appreciate there are difficulties with booking clashes but it could be possible. [/quote] It definitely causes booking problems. I'm not saying playing in more than one band isn't a viable option. However if your not networked finding those opportunities would be a job in itself. As much as I gig and with as many people that see me you'd think I'd get calls or inquiries on my availability. Blue

Actually my thread title should have read "For Those Who Like To Gig A lot" I really think, based on BC data we're the minority. At the local bar band level in the States the most we can hope for are 4 gig weekends. Most bass player wanted ads on Milwaukee Rocks make it clear, that the opportunity is a once a month or once a week goal for gigs. It's a hobby for most, most have full time traditional jobs and families. Some are just indifferent to gigging. I don't think there's a thing guys like me can do unless you can go regional or national with Musicians that make their living from gigging. How do guys like me, I can't be the only one, deal with this overall lack of interest or compassion for the 4 gig a week lifestyle? Not happy. Blue

[quote name='bazztard' timestamp='1506488409' post='3379026'] so true Blue, I think bassplayers do more of the management roles and are always organised and help others because we feel insecure about our role in the band so we do all the extra things. [/quote] Interesting, now that I think about it, your probably right. Blue

Vintage basses, a lot of variables in how good they actually we're. However, I've never owned an amp as nice as the Ampeg SVT I purchased new in 1972, loud,clean, warm just an awesome amp. I'd like to go back to tubes someday.For my style of playing it will probably be an Orange guitar rig. You guys, should check out Tom Peterson's if Cheap Tricks rig run down on YouTube. It's fabulous. Blue

[quote name='PaulWarning' timestamp='1506554328' post='3379583'] I've often wondered what age people start happily giving their age as opposed to keeping it secret, must admit I thought it was older than 64, I certainly don't give my age away very easily [/quote] I'm 64, my first live performance on bass in front of an audience was in 1965. It was so cool to be a part of the excitement. The excitement we created for our class mates and just the time, being 11 years old standing up there with electric guitars, just like the guys on TV. I get the same feeling of excitement and fun at every gig today. Blue

[quote name='Maude' timestamp='1506496509' post='3379075'] Blue, if it really was generational, why would I 'get' and be inspired and influenced by players that came before him? I'm out every week playing music that was written before Jaco was on the scene. It's not generational, it's just some people don't like his style of music or playing, therefore don't listen to him or that genre. I honestly can't think of any music I listen to, and it's wide ranging, that sounds anything like Jaco. I'm not knocking him at all, just saying that I don't feel I have been influenced by him in the slightest, therefore can't agree when you say that everyone has been influenced by him. [/quote] That's fine, it's only my opinion. I'm not a Jaco fan, however at some concious or sub-consious level I'm influenced by him. Blue

I'm not a Rush fan, but I'll watch it. I love any good band documentary whether I'm a fan of the band or not. Loved Anvil, a must see for those over 50 years of age. Blue

[quote name='dmccombe7' timestamp='1506494254' post='3379054'] Yep but our generation still think we are 20-ish (mentally at least) [/quote] I think I'm 64. Blue

If your in a working band thats been together, gigging for several years and you understand each other's playing style can play off of each other on the fly and knock your material out of the park. They'll bee someone in the band that doesn't get how rare and hard that is to come by and will think nothing of throwing it all the way. Blue

[quote name='steantval' timestamp='1506467756' post='3379012'] Gee man, that second statement is strong. I'm married, but if I made the same statement, I would certainly be alone 😢😢😢 [/quote] I am pretty much alone. Retired, single & more than happy. Blue