Advanced apologies, this contains thoughts that sometimes drift into musings.
All wise words here, thanks. Being a gentleman of leisure I have simply set aside some of my vast acreage of leisure time to playing bass every day. I think most of my negativity was coming from potentially being band-less, which would have been a first since the early nineties. However, my partner in the ‘acoustic’ duo has requested that I send her files of new bass lines I’ve been working on so she can put guitar and vocals to them between the demands of very recent twins and the guitarist I’m looking to start a new noisy project with is keen and has also found a drummer. Given these prospects now in the offing I have to look at my gear and think ‘You lucky sod’. When you have actual music to be getting on with suddenly the equipment in the tool box (fnar) is looking mighty fine. I am getting the short scale Recurve set up and restrung next weekend, that bass is already becoming the workhorse, there’s something very plain and utilitarian about it that very much appeals to me, it’s robust and business-like, if I clumped it or put a ding in it I think I’d just shrug, it’s a tool, granted an art tool, but a tool nonetheless. The Harlot remains the most beautiful bass I’ve ever seen, I’m very lucky to own it. I have been playing it a lot over the last few days and it’s access to the higher strings is a real bonus as I do a lot of writing around the 12th fret, I also love the asymmetric neck, it’s just so comfortable. But the biggie with the Harlot is that early preamp, the tonal range is bonkers. I miss that in the more recent Recurve, which has a narrower (and frankly more user friendly, sensible) range but then I’m hardly an expert yet.
The Rob Allen Mouse is... well it’s just bliss with strings on.
I'm kind of working this stuff out as I write trying to see why I felt the way I did and why I feel how I feel now, all pointless tosh no doubt but nonetheless I think it’s time to stop looking at basses for sale and actually consider the ones I own. I am not buying any more basses for the foreseeable. Now that’s a bold statement but it’s one I have to make in order to get out of the ‘there’s a better bass just around the corner’ limbo that I wallow in for too long. @skelf builds beautiful, unique basses and I very luckily own two, I should get on and play the bloody things. I have to say there are two caveats to the ‘no more bass buying’ statement, a) I think @Jabba_the_gut is still working on a bass for me, there’s a space in the rack for that if it’s still incoming and b) I am beginning to cobble together a few ideas for an ACG built to my spec, if I ever settle on a design I’m 100% happy with I’ll commission it. In the meantime I should just get on and play these three superb basses sitting not two feet away from me rather than the thrill of search and acquisition.
No more bass buying.