Jonesy

I caught them about a week before Glasto at the Royal Festival Hall on the South Bank and they were excellent then too. Cass sounded huge and he seemed like a really nice bloke. Half way through the second song, Mark somehow broke the skin of his bass drum. Fair play to him, he didn't drop a beat though and just signaled to their tech, who rushed on and took the drum away to replace the skin. He carried on using his floor toms for the boomier bits and the band jammed until the drum was back in place and good to go. I think that's the only time I've ever seen a drummer break a bass drum skin (unless you're including Keith Moon playing with explosives!). I was a bit skeptical about seeing them at a seated venue, but as soon as they came on stage everyone stood up. At the end Skin remarked that they were nervous about the venue too, but they were happy that no one knew how to use seats 😂

Yeah, I guess these ones are up there with the MIA in price. They are the equivalent of Vinteras though, so higher spec and vintage features compared to standard MIJ models. Last year, just after Christmas, they put a load of basses on eBay in an auction rather than BiN and they went for more reasonable prices, so it might be worth hanging on if you get the cash around the back end of the year. If you're around North London then Richard at Electrohill (in the same building), is worth a look if you're looking for anyone to do setups etc too.

Ah, Fender Fever aren't too far away from me, I bought my current MIJ P from them (in an auction on eBay). They're a good shop and have a nice collection of MIJ basses too. As for the price, MIJ basses (along with everything else!) seem to be creeping up recently and shops like FF or Bass Bros seem to have them at around the £1k-£1.2k mark for the non export or rarer models. Personally I'd keep an eye out for a second hand private sale and would look at spending £600-£800ish depending on model and condition.

No worries! This site is pretty handy for looking at the different models, though I'm not sure on how up to date it is with newer models etc https://japanfender.wordpress.com/ The easiest way to tell (stock) import vs non export is the machine heads. Export will generally have a smaller base: And non export will be bigger Some non export models will have spiral spring saddles in the bridge too.

I haven't tried a MIJ 51 or 55, but I've owned a MIJ 70s and have a Hama Okamoto sig (which is essentially a 60s P body with a J neck) and can't rate the MIJ stuff highly enough. Build quality, fit and finish etc has been excellent and on par with any MIA basses I've tried (which, admittedly, isn't loads!!). I've read that some people find the stock pups/guts to be the weak point, but the models I've owned have been the non export models that come with US hardware/electrics and I've been more than happy with them. I think the 51 comes with the SD Bassline SCPB-1? Or at least a version of it did at some point.

Most shops I've been into are great. I used to spend hours in my local shop (Harrow Music) when I was a teen chatting to the staff and they were all really sound. The worst service I've seen was down on Denmark St. About 10 years ago a guy asked to play a Gibson LP and the guy behind the counter said he could play an Epiphone instead to see if he likes the feel of that and make his decision to buy based on how the Epi felt. Maybe they're sick of people coming in just to noodle on nice guitars, but that was terrible. I really want to like Andertons, I love their YT channel and content, their site is easy to navigate, range is ace and prices are decent too.......but every time I've gone there or talked to them on the phone it feels like they're too busy to care or just aren't that knowledgeable. I get that they're busy, but I'm not a fan of their service level. PMT and GuitarGuitar on the other hand I think are great from a service point of view. I was with my mate the other day when he went to drop his strat into PMT for a setup. The tech looked at it when he handed it over and said he could see where it wasn't setup properly, tinkered with it for 10 minutes then handed it back for no charge.

I was in the exact place as you about 2 years ago. I went to Andertons and tried a Squier, Sire and G&L and ended up with the G&L. I really like the feel of the neck, the bridges are great and I preferred the sound. I did end up putting in a pair of the Fender 74 J pups in and a ki0gon loom. It sounded good before, but it sounds amazing now! The Sire sounded good too. The preamp in them is great and can give you a really wide range if tones, but the G&L just edged it for me.

I prefer the neck of a J, but the sound of a P. J's are a bit too thin sounding for me, but a series/parallel switch sorts that out.

I always used to think P's we're really boring. Everyone had one and they were just a bit big standard, so I generally stayed away from them. My first bass was a Squier affinity P bass, complete with machine heads that rattled, a crackly jack, scratchy pots and strap buttons that didn't like being attached to the body. So that was probably why I wasn't too keen on them. Then I picked up a really nice one (MIJ PB70US) and came to my senses. They just fit perfectly and there's a reason why they're a standard.

That's what works for me, so hopefully it does the trick for you too. If it does and you're ever caught short then you can pick up solpadeine or boots own version of it over the counter too. Anything that is a mix of paracetamol and codeine will do the trick, I find the effervescent ones most effective as they act quicker. I was just scrolling through FB and found a for sale post where some bloke was selling a snakepick and said it's the only type of plectrum he can use since getting arthritis. I've never used one, but it might be worth a look if it works for him? And if you play with a pick?

100%, it comes with its own health warnings but, if you follow your doctor's advice when taking it then you should be fine

Ibuprofen is a non steroidal anti inflammatory drug, so is good for reducing swelling and pain relief. At least that's my understanding. I'm not a doctor, but have been using it to help with gout for nearly 20 years (along with a few other meds). Gout is a different type of arthritis, so I'm not sure how sage this advice is, but......diclofenac is the most effective nsaid for me and I find soluble pain killer like solpadeine is good for pain relief when it's bad. The boots own version is good too, essentially anything with codeine in it is what I look for. I've tried a few natural remedies like turmeric and cherry and they don't work for me, but I do know people who swear by them, so they could be worth a go for you. When I have a flare up I generally try to rest, elevate and ice the joint as much as possible.

Ah, didn't even know such a thing existed.......... probably better to get them rather than bodge some tape around a case 😂

I've got a couple over the summer. Skunk Anansie at the Southbank Centre. I've never seen a band there, so am pretty interested in what it'll be like Pearl Jam in Hyde Park, supported by The Pixies and a few others. I've had tix for about 2 and a half years and OJ are one of my favourite bands, so I'm very excited!!