Staggering on

First outing for our seven piece swing band Sunday afternoon.Most of the two swing sets were charts by the arranger and composer Dave Wolpe and I would recommend them-good arrangements and a good challenge with lots of key changes and interesting timings.All but two of us have music degrees and everyone reads well with me as the weakest link but I managed to get through with only a few minor problems.I was using my Yamaha SLB 200 EUB and went straight into our Bose PA along with the piano.I had a busy time as I am also the frontman and did the between song chatter. The third set was a Dixieland/Trad set and I switched to tenor banjo and one of the horn players switched to tuba. All in all a good afternoon with a sold out hall(OK,it was small but packed with close to 100 people)and we got a standing O at the end of the gig and are being booked back in June. Trying to keep live music alive here in Canada... Bob

Thomann also has the Stagg stand.

What kind of EUB do you have? I use a Stagg EUB stand for my Yamaha SLB 200.The stand came with a Stagg EUB that I had for a year or two and I kept the stand after I sold the bass.There are a lot of bits to adjust so you might be able to make it work for you,my Yamaha fits well on it and the stand is quite sturdy.

I agree, you're not going to drop from dehydration on stage(or anywhere else probably) and having a sip of water every few minutes is totally unnecessary for most of us but seems to be "the thing to do" these days.Most people use commercial bottles of water and I think marketing has more to do with it than necessity, the same as energy drinks.Even here in Canada where water is abundant and cheap I can't believe how many people buy cases of water for use at home as well as other places.Depending on what is on sale here water can be more expensive than gasoline(petrol) in some situations...crazy! I have a drink of water between sets sometimes but not on stage unless I really need it due to throat problems,I do a few vocals and backups.

I think any upright bass is welcome according to other posts in this thread,also anyone interested in uprights from what I can see.I won't be bringing a bass but I want to see and hear what other people have. Bob in Canada,but I'll be at the bash in April...

Double bass bash April 14 near Bicester.I will be bassless but I'll be there.Too far to bring my EUB since I'll be coming from Canada. Check the Events forum for info about this and other bass bashes.

So if you hadn't heard of them they didn't exist?Pretty sketchy argument. I think I'm finished with this thread,Dad was right about the blinkers.

Not to be rude, but I assume you have heard of Carol Kay and James Jamerson.

Breaking news!We have booked our flight to Heathrow and will arrive April 12 and head to Bicester by bus. We have booked a room at the Travelodge in Bicester and will use it to recover from jet lag so I will be in reasonable shape for the Double Bass Bash on the 14th.We won't have a car so I'm not sure how I will get to the venue,I guess a cab is possible unless anyone has other suggestions.I won't have an instrument, the EUB will be at home in Canada so there will just be one old guy to transport.Getting pretty pumped about this! Bob

Is it just me or is there something odd here?I always like a bargain but it seems that at least half of the people who order these tuners have had some sort of problem with delivery or performance or both.What do you expect for the price?I can't imagine having instruments worth thousands, not to mention other gear, and using such "iffy" tuners. Isn't being in tune important? I have a Korg Pitchblack Advance and several D'Addario tiny unobtrusive clip on tuners and as long as the batteries are OK they are great, never had a problem and I use them on my EUB,BG,acoustic guitar, banjo and mandolin.They weren't cheap but they always work well and are reliable, I don't want to have problems tuning at gigs or at home,I have enough issues just trying to play the right notes!I also like the fact that I don't have some big piece of plastic clamped onto the headstock of my instruments but maybe that's just me. Sorry if this seems like a rant but I've been following the topic from the first post and can't stop wondering why anyone buys these things when there are so many bad experiences with them.

I heard an interview with the guitar builder on CBC(the Canadian version of BBC) a couple of weeks ago and he sounded sincere about this project but as I listened to him I couldn't help but feel a little creepy about the idea and was wondering who will buy these things.The Hendrix family situation never occurred to me,I was trying to picture what the guitar would look like.We in Canada have also seen guitars made from many bits of hockey sticks that were used by famous players so I guess we have a bit of a history of this sort of thing and it seems pretty weird to me but I imagine things like this are going on all over.Could cricket bats be turned into fine guitars?Hmmmmm....how about oars from the Oxford crew...

I think your last sentence is a great summary and can be used when others claim that reading music destroys their creativity.I have a friend who is a fine guitar player but uses that excuse constantly and I don't want to argue the point with him too much and perhaps harm our friendship.Ironically, the other half of the folk duo he is in(his wife) is a good musician who can read well and could teach him if he wanted to learn.I guess whatever works for you and this is not intended as a put down for those who can't read music,I can't read TAB.

I am so lucky!I live out in the boonies in northern Ontario and my nearest neighbour is over 1/4 mile away and it is dense forest between us.I can play anything at any volume at any time and not bother anyone.So whether I'm listening to something loud or playing I can do what I want.Paradise...real estate information on request...Canada will welcome you!

Assuming my travel plans work out I will be there to add an international presence to the affair.Looking forward to a good time and I am already looking to book accommodation in Bicester or vicinity, currently looking at B and B's in the area.Any suggestions?If things go as planned I will arrive in England on 12 April and head to Bicester area(train) and stay until the 15th...and even though I am just one of those rough Canadian colonials I know that it is not "BYSESTER",but I had to look it up to be sure. Looking forward to lovely spring and a good time at the bash. Bob

Vibraphone-definitely bad vibes for me, very cold sounding.I can appreciate the skills of the players but the sound is, for lack of a better word, bland, and does nothing for me.

Well done Brother Malvis!Sounds like a good time. Bob

Getting closer to booking a flight and checking out places to stay.At this point I'm OK for the 14th,can we all assume that will be the day?I am flexible now but once the flight is booked it will be harder to change things.Really hoping to make it to this event and enjoy the spring in England but my SLB200 will be home in Canada so I will be bassless in Bicester. Bob

I'd go with EUB to start with for all the reasons in your post.In addition I would add that they are easier to haul around and less fragile in terms of temperature and humidity which can be problems with a DB.I would love a DB but with the climate we have in Canada I will stick with my EUB for convenience and portability.I started with a Stagg and moved on to a Yamaha SLB200 that I love.I use it on all my gigs and although it isn't a DB it sounds great in my jazz quartet and septet and I have learned to ignore the few bass snobs who tut-tut about it not being a "real bass" and like to hear the good comments and questions about the EUB.I rarely use my amp at gigs,I just go straight into the PA.As said above the EUB is great for small stages. Whether you go for the DB or EUB you will have a lot of fun and will find it a new challenge and a whole new world of bass playing.Go for it!

Happy New Year from across the pond! It's been a c-c-c-cold holiday season here in Northern Ontario-at 6:00AM today it was -32C and the high is forecast to be around -19C so I might not get out skiing today.It will be a bit warmer by mid week but this is unusually cold for this time of the year. I guess I'll just have to stay inside and work on some tricky bass lines that need some attention.

Nice bass work, the EUB will be great for this.Welcome to the world of upright.

Lots of info on this topic on the Stagg mega thread on TalkBass.When I had a Stagg I used a piece of soft foam but others have tried everything from small stuffed toys(really!) to bits of cloth to various sponges.It does make a difference when you get the right material in the right location.My Yamaha SLB 200 came with a foam mute(from Yamaha) but I replaced it with a sturdier piece of foam with cuts in it to hold it on the strings.The depth of the cuts make a difference and it's easy and cheap to adjust. Good luck.

Same thing in my jazz quartet(close to 180 songs) and septet(60+ songs).

Season's Greetings to all from Canada!Winter has truly arrived here in northern Ontario with the daily high temperatures in the -20C range and nights to -30C for the next week or so...brrrrr....lots of snow so winter sports are well underway. I'm starting to plan the trip to England in April and looking at dates to book flights and accommodation and I'm wondering if the double bass bash dates and location have been finalized as I hope to make it part of my itinerary.Any news?14th?15th?Other? Thanks Bob

I would go for it,I knew nothing about EUB's when I got started. It looks like a version of the Stagg and the Stagg was a great introduction to upright bass playing for me.It will be a great learning experience and playing upright is just plain fun and you will feel like a "real" bass player once you get the feel of it and start to move with it.I gigged with my Stagg for a few months until a super deal on a Yamaha SLB200 came up so I sold the Stagg on.It won't sound like a DB but you will have fun once you get the very long fretless neck figured out.There are lots of online lessons and resources for DB that will be really useful to get started or maybe find a teacher to get you playing correctly. What type of music do you plan to play on it?There are EUB demos and reviews that show them being used for everything from classical to jazz,latin genres and rock.I play in a couple of jazz bands and use the EUB almost all the time with only occasional blues tunes on EB when I need that punch. Do it!