super al

My 1st gig as bassist with the Flotonics! I depped 4 times for the Flos last year and when they went through a personnel change at Christmas I was made 'full time'.

They're a soul band playing mostly Otis, James Brown, Al Green & Stevie so it takes me back to music I loved in my teens and early 20s. The personnel change involved sacking off the guitarist and drummer. The original bassist moved to guitar, the new drummer now keeps time and a 3 piece horn section was added 😍 (everything sounds so so much better with the horns).

Sorry, too much background, I'm waffling. The gig was at a working men's club in Durrington (for those unfamiliar with Wiltshire, it's a stone's throw from Stonehenge which I passed in the moonlight on my way there). We played the function room on a small stage, I was last to set up and was shown a tiny area between the desk and drummer "you're going there Al". Luckily my stack is like the Spinal Tap Stonehenge and I squeezed my two One10s and the TC electronic bh550 into that tiny space.

We had one rehearsal as a full 8 piece band so I was apprehensive but the band is a mixture of seasoned pro musicians and dedicated amateurs (I'm probably the 'weak link') so the whole gig went like a dream and with the horn section playing so well it was like being at a recording session at Muscle Shoals or at Motown.

Small but appreciative audience, a few dancing. The usual drunken requests "play some Robbie" came up too many times and some friendly hecklers too!

The new drummer was very complimentary about my playing "we were locked in", "you make my job easier" he said. He was an absolute pleasure to play with, some lovely fills and adlib playing, I'm loving this guy and this was only our 2nd time playing together!

A little coincidence to @FinnDave. I was playing an Ibby SR1205 last night. Ok, one string less but a lovely bass. Played it in passive mode, I think it sounded ok. Have to wait until our singer has sent round MP3s of last night.

Just need some gigs now! 

Always worth checking 'basses for sale'  on here. My budget for a 5ver was about £700, got an Ibanez SR1205 for £550 from another basschatter and fell in love with Ibbys.

I love a 2nd hand bass' lived in feel but you may be looking for something fresh out the box as a 50th b'day treat.

First time I had a proper big blank was forgetting the middle 8 on 'Californication', the song plods along and I suddenly thought "middle 8's coming up soon and I haven't got a scooby as to how it goes!". We must've played it at a dozen gigs before then without incident.

Same band did 'Reptilia' and when the song breaks down to just guitar the guitarist would mess it up without fail at gigs. It became a running theme, Tim's jazz solo!

Played in a trio and the guitarist was excellent,a great player but song structures were his Achilles heel. He wanted to play 'American Idiot' so we rehearsed it loads and it was ok but made me apprehensive. Started fine at the first gig but he soon lost the plot and we just ended up playing the riff in a never ending loop with no vocals! The drummer and I looking at each other and shrugging our shoulders a lot.

These all happened a long time ago thankfully but the memories are still quite vivid 😳

8 hours ago, fleabag said:

I'm big, and you can call me Al, if ya want

I used to be a Big Al but then got promoted 😎

I guess I'm not ready for this yet, there's no category for 'band members you haven't met yet'!

I depped for a 5 piece soul band last year, got the job permanently a month ago but have not rehearsed with them yet. Plus the band changed personnel so I've yet to meet the new drummer and the added horn section! 

8-1-2-0-4

No

I have enough trouble remembering my kids' names and I've only got two!

What chance would I have with half a dozen basses? Although I did buy a long black hard case for my EUB and called it Peter Crouch's coffin.

I'm a bit of a Roy Harper fan and they worked together on 'Jugula' with Jimmy Page.

Some of TF's gentler fretless work on RH's albums. 

Astonishing 80s hair, wonderful fretless playing and a love for perfectly ripe avocados!

I think there was a little dig at David Byrne by Tina during the Bootsy interview. 

Thank you! Just reminded me to set record BBC 4, 9pm tonight! "A joyride through the deepest register in music".

On drums was ace and discussed at jam night this week. Nobody could remember who's doing guitar next week though!

20 hours ago, rollie 55 said:

yes he did die in salisbury i play dancing in the moonlight as a trib to him 

I love that bassline, I never do it justice though. There's an acoustic version I have on a magazine cd (Q mag I think), can't for the life of me remember who did it but it's lovely.

I think he passed away around these 'ere parts (I live near Salisbury, famous for it's spire and oldest working clock!).

I'm sure "Whiskey in the jar" was one of the 1st tunes I tried to learn. 

I've always wanted to learn and play a level 42 tune so I started learning the sun goes down earlier this year but then had to learn 30 soul and Motown numbers for a depping gig (which I've done 4 times this year) and started another covers project which might not be suitable for a L42 tune. Off to the back burner with it.

So Christmas is here and I've got a little time on my hands... it's a lot harder than Mark King makes it look! I'm going to have to break it down and play it very slowly 😊. If I manage it Hot Water next.

There seems to be a fair bit of love for Ibbies on this thread so to continue...my best and only purchase in 2018 was an ibanez sr1205 from these 'ere parts. 

Lovely nordstrand pups, great neck, lovely woods, etc. 

After 30 years of playing 4 stringers I found myself having to change basses and 'drop to d' during function gigs and I hate that. Now I just love a fiver!

2 hours ago, gpw5150 said:

Isn’t that called ‘imagination’?

You'd probably use your imagination during a great shag, probably need a good memory to relive it (the womble-bank).

D'oh! I just realised if you click on my name you'll see a pic of 4 accountants on holiday (I'm far right!)

7 minutes ago, uk_lefty said:

That's a pretty awesome band name.

I know.

We were a pretty awesome band with some awesome tunes but if you find our MySpace page (if that still exists?!) You'll see we all dressed like accountants on holiday, not a good look.

A lot of Southampton bands from 10 years ago had great names so you needed one to be on the 'scene'

Wouldn't it be great to have certain moments in your life and relive them again. Great gigs, festivals, great shags, etc. On tap.

In that case a time machine but I get to be me back then, with hair and worry line free!

12 hours ago, uk_lefty said:

I was about to audition for a band over ten years ago. I'd seen an ad on party sounds, I think. They talked a good game and said they'd done European tours, went on about welcoming people in and being open minded and accepting and so on... So I'm thinking that's great, they aren't expecting a session pro. So I look up the band name to try and find evidence of this European tour.... The only musically related online article I found was a blog by a musician. Long story short and unbeknownst to me, the band name was a coded way of asking a man you don't know if he is a homosexual. Being a younger and less open minded chap I politely declined the audition saying I don't think I'm the right fit for them. When they asked why I revealed I had just found out what the band name meant and I don't think I'd be comfortable being in that band and made some joke about being from a northern backwater town. I received back a lecture on my small mindedness and how places don't make people.... The whole thing was a very bizzare experience and left me feeling puzzled and slightly ashamed, though I was only ever polite to the person I interacted with.

During the mid 90s I lived with a girl who was a music student at Surrey Uni and MDing for a musical theatre company in her spare time. The term "friends of Dorothy" came up a lot among the cast and crew.

10 years on and I'm in a new band and we're all sitting around brainstorming ideas for the band name. The singer suggests we do something Wizard of Oz related, I said friends of D and everyone said great, that's it. I then explained the term, sudden drop off in interest in the room!

We went with Fly Monkeys, Fly! in the end and Friends of Dorothy became the name of one of our tunes. Sounds like the name was taken anyway 😁

One of my all time favourite albums is Short, Sharp, Shocked by Michelle Shocked. Some nice tasteful upright playing on it and tunes you can sing along to.

I'm sure the lyric sheet has the song keys too (got it on vinyl but play the MP3 so it's been a while!).

Back when I used to write tunes in a band we occasionally supported a Southampton band called Toupe. 

Grant Sharkey and another on basses (can't remember the other guy's name, Karl I think) + a drummer. A little bit like Primus, a little like Zappa and great fun to watch.

I can remember supporting them at the Joiners and a musician mate came to see us, he was amazed a band consisted entirely of rhythm section 😱.

You haven't got a 5 somewhere too have you?

Love the finish, I have the SR 1205 and it is great but would definitely relegate it if this was a 5 string.

Confession time - I actually like the 2 tunes I've heard from his new album, I wouldn't go and buy it but I don't hate it.

Do I have to cancel my Basschat membership now or will there be a period of 'cooling off'?

I must check out The The, I remember them from TOTP but never ventured into buying any of their stuff (I was young and unsophisticated!).

My "overlooked" album would be Jellyfish's debut Bellybutton. Among my diet of RHCP, Faith No More, PWEI and the WonderStuff this band crossed my path one night in a boozer in Andover (told you I was unsophisticated). Back in 1990 some pubs had video jukeboxes and 'the king is half undressed' came on, blew my tiny mind!

I bought the LP, taped it (I think PWEI's cure for sanity was on the other side of a C90) then played it endlessly in my rusty old mini van everywhere I went. I think my mates enjoyed it or they were just tolerating it until the Poppies came on 🙉

It's a great pop album that crossed over into my alternative universe, catchy songs by a band not taking themselves too seriously. A little bit XTC, a little bit of Wings, maybe 10cc. Still love it now.

2 minutes ago, Risk101 said:

Hans Peter Wilfer owner of Warwick always signs the rear of the limited edition basses 😀

Thank you @Risk101 that was bugging me.

Just curious @rmcki but whose signature is on the back of the headstock?

Am I being silly? There's no mention in the blurb about it!

That is a beautiful bass though, bit out of my league 😞