Old Man Riva

Yes, he did the farewell tour... then of course the following tour after the farewell tour that they did. He was a good fit - and in true UFO fashion (and as a homage to Pete!) used a Thunderbird (non reverse), rather than the Rickenbacker he used with Eddie & the Hot Rods, and the Damned...

Apparently there exists somewhere a studio session that Pete Way did with Paul Weller in the very early 80s. Both Way and Weller (along with Phil Mogg) were big fans of Steve Marriott so I assume it was of that ilk... UFO appeared to be one of those older rock bands that some of the punk/new wave musicians liked/hung around with. When Way left UFO Pete Farndon of the Pretenders was considered as a replacement. Pete Way also did some recordings with Topper Headon. And of course Paul Gray from the Danmed was Pete’s eventual replacement in 1983 (after Billy Sheehan stepped in to help out on a European tour).

There’s not a lot of live footage from the ‘78 tour but I found this on YouTube which, whilst the quality isn’t great, gives a flavour of how exciting they were as a live band during this period. It was on this leg of the US tour that SITN was recorded... https://youtu.be/RuOnBwAZbIU

Saw UFO for the first time in 1978 at Birmingham Town Hall as a 15 yr old. It was such an exciting experience, and a benchmark for live gig experiences for years to come. It was the ‘classic’ line up and they were a band right on top of their game. That they should have achieved more commercial success - and the reasons they didn’t - have been well documented over the years, but them and AC/DC (Bon era) were the only rock bands I knew that my punk mates also loved at the time. I think a lot of rock fans at the time were somehow suspicious of them - a bit “flash”, a bit “London”, not quite as down and heavy as, say, Sabbath or Purple. But that was part of the attraction for me. They were the first band I saw in the flesh that really looked like rock stars, in a way that Bowie, or the Stones or the Faces did on TV. And then there was the bass player...

What a fabulous bass - enjoy! I really like the synthy-ness of the ‘fuzz’ setting, if that makes sense..?

John Taylor’s let himself go... (There should be more of this type of thing these days!)

Kate Bush, with Youth on bass... loved this when it first came out - still do...

For some bizarre reason, in terms of playing/trying vintage basses, the 1966 dot and bound Fenders are the ones I think I’ve played the most of. Any one I’ve ever played/tried has been a fabulous instrument - really consistent in their build and overall quality. I also love the look of the dot and bound necks and lollipop tuners. So odd that they were only produced for such a short period of time - only serving to add to the Fender myth and legend!!

Ahh, brass nuts; another 1970s bass improvement favourite!

That’s great! I’ve been fortunate to meet some really nice people in life, especially in music. In the early days there were a few people who really took a chance on me and gave me an opportunity. In the first band I was in I was really out of my depth. They were fabulous musicians and I was a bit younger and nowhere near as good, really struggling to keep up. The easy thing would have been to have gotten someone better (locally they were a decent draw and could have had their pick of players) but they gave me a go, taking me under their wing and mentoring me. Sometimes all you need is someone to believe in you, isn’t it. The guy who sold me the bass was a fabulous player - he’d played in a semi-professional capacity, backing all kinds of acts from Frank Carson to Englebert Humperdink on the cabaret circuit! - and was really encouraging. Never turn down a gig, he’d say, and of course he was right! He could see I was really keen on music/bass (to say the least) and just decided to help me along the way. The bass is special to me, and I’ve an agreement with my wife that (in the hopefully significantly distant future!) when I shuffle off, as long as she doesn’t need the money, the bass should be sold and the money donated to a charity for mentoring underprivileged kids who want to play music but may need a bit of a leg up... As I say, hopefully that’s a long way off yet!!!

Thank you! Yes, it’s a fine instrument, and sounds and plays wonderfully. I think you’re right. As far as I understand it the A-width neck on a Precision was something that was a special order - in ‘71 the standard Precision neck was a B-width. I’m not sure whether they fetch more, in terms of monetary value, but I think they’re harder to come by.

A couple from the 70s... The Jazz is from ‘73. I bought it in the early 80s from the original owner. I was a factory apprentice and worked with the guy (he’d just bought himself a Music Man). I’d played the Jazz a few times and loved it but couldn’t afford it. The guy just said take it and give me what you can afford each Thursday (pay day). A wonderful gesture which took me years to pay off - he let me off with a fair bit of it in the end! And the first thing I did... took it to a local luthier and had EMGs fitted!! I’ve since sourced a set of ‘73 p/ups for the bass but I think the p/ups are Seymour Duncans in the pic. The bass has been everywhere with me, and will be the last to go... The Precision is from ‘71. Lovely sound, and sporting an A-width Jazz-width neck.

That’s really all that matters..!

My late 1962 Jazz (refin)... It’s the nicest bass I’ve ever had the good fortune to play. The plant is an essential accessory..!

Like Lozz says too many to mention, but these are some of my regular play-along tracks... Don’t Interrupt the Sorrow - Joni Mitchell Custard Pie - Led Zeppelin Moonage Daydream - Bowie

Some of the punk/new wave era songs were great inspiration for would-be bass players at that time. Bands like the Clash, Damned, Elvis Costello & the Attractions, XTC, Stranglers, Ian Dury & the Blockheads all featured memorable bass lines. Add to that Talking Heads, Magazine, Wire, Jonathan Richman, Television, Buzzcocks, Ruts, to name but a few, and there was plenty for the novice bassist to get their/our teeth into! New Boots & Panties was, and still is, a wonderful ‘bass’ album...

First thing I ever got taught/shown how to play was simple root eighth notes on a 12 bar boogie. It (genuinely) changed my life! The first song I was taught how to play/learned was Thin Lizzy’s Dancing in the Moonlight - it was the summer of 1977 and was on the radio a fair bit and the bass sounded brilliant (still does!). Took what felt like ages to learn it and for it to sound okay but that’s what I did - and having a brilliant teacher/mentor helped! After that, mainly after school, I’d get home and sit and listen to Radio1 for hours trying to play along to whatever was being played. Didn’t matter if I liked it or not, I’d give it a try - even if all I did was work out the key to the song and couldn’t play the parts correctly! When I got a bit better I went for years where I challenged myself to properly learn learn a new/different song every day - usually by taping radio programmes then listening back. I feel lucky to have been learning when I did as the music around at that time (77 onwards) was great for me - so much variety...

According to the Fender website, “also included are a deluxe vintage-style case with 60th anniversary embroidery and certificate of authenticity”. It’s not a Custom Shop or American Vintage so it looks as though they’ve dispensed with any case candy - strap etc...

Pino’s already done it...

Glad you liked it! Their debut album is one of my favourite albums, and it’s a real shame they didn’t get the recognition they deserved. Here’s a different side to them, guesting on an Ultramarine track from 1995...

“Welcome to the hotel A Coppolo...”

Excellent! I think they do quite a bit for him in there. There was a US Lakland Decade in the Gallery last year that used to belong to Pino - it was wonderful; beautifully set up and great to play - and I probably (genuinely) spent two hours discussing it with John! And no, I still couldn’t get it to sound like Mr P!! I purchased a CS Pino model off the site/here a couple of years back and it’s a fabulous bass - slightly chunkier neck but so great to play. Right, what time does the Gallery close?!

How did that come about - or is it rude to ask?! What did you think of it?

Some great choices/suggestions, quite a few I’d not heard of so plenty to check out! Here’s something that would definitely fall under the ‘overlooked and under the radar’ banner. Sadly they were only around for a short while in the early 90s, but I was fortunate to see them a number of times at the now defunct acoustic room in the Mean Fiddler in Harlesden. Never heard two voices sound so unique together. Wonderfully ‘odd’ vocal harmonies and both members were excellent acoustic players, along with some very strange tunings! Pooka and a track called Dream from their self-titled debut album.