SpondonBassed

Um... Has she put a ring on it yet? That sounds like the precursor to co-habitation. Just saying.

I did a year or so with a local choir when I first came to Spondon. I managed to do it long enough to perform in public a few times. I was one of about six regular male singers among thirty or so female singers. I tried to keep to practice and rehearsals but when my mum started to get into greater difficulty at home I could no longer guarantee that I would be able to attend despite putting my name down for forthcoming events. I stood down despite being urged to stay on because I felt it was unfair on the BL and the group in general. It's great experience. I have no regrets. In fact if I had not done it the opportunity to do so would've been lost as my care duties took over and made it difficult to guarantee my appearance at events towards the end. I am not in such a good position to join the choir again now that my duties have been discharged. What time I have is best spent on bass as that is where I really want to improve. Even a hobby bassist has to decide where best to spend time and effort to the sacrifice of other desirable but non-essential musical activities. I've learned that singing in a choir is not the same as singing solo with a lot of backing singers. It's important to deliver a vocal with as few frills as possible. Enunciation is crucial and relies on a good sense of timing for consonants, for example. I regarded it as a good foundation should I be called upon for BVs. Indeed, I sometimes think that I might have to become a singing bassist in order to have something to put before the punters at OMs. It's a start and if you have the time to commit I recommend it highly.

Not Les Hurdle then...?

Can I have a ninety nine please? Where does the ice cream come out?

This old debate again. We'll never know for sure and to be honest, I'd listen no matter which of the two accomplished players was responsible. Apologies to the OP but I am avoiding looking at that clip too. Nothing much to be gained from the analysis. Much more to be gained from playing the lines. Maybe this topic needs a subtle detour while BC elves delve into and compile earlier BC posts on the Jamerson/Kaye inquisition: Who played bass on the UK single release of Remember you're a Womble? Was it Tomsk Womble or Madame Cholet?

He's behind you Jeff! Yes. That made me smile when I learned about it.

Pa Clampett Because you can never Clampett enough.

Doesn't it all come down to how badly you need to sell your bass or indeed any object of desire? If you're desperate to pay the mortgage you might have the luxury of a month until the payment is due. If you are short on the household budget for the week you will want money a bit sooner than that and you would take a loss on the sale to make the deal. @TheGreek, I'd guess you aren't in either of those situations Mick. I won't suggest the pawn shop then.

Welcome Andy.

Dang! Thanks to @TheGreek's observation I now see a Victorian lady sat in her corset with a giant angry duck on her lap.

Welcome Malcolm. I am envious of your jamming band.

As we know from Andy's spaniel face top a couple of builds back, the hardware could render that a secret feature.

Yeah but 500 Miles at 150 bpm is not exactly marching pace... Heeheehee

I helped Jack do his first ukulele fretboard this way. His kit had been supplied with a ready slotted fretboard and a length of fret wire. I made up a press tool from a specialist pair of vice-grip pliers, suitably modified, and pressed the frets home. When done the fretboard was curved by the summed effect of all of the fret tangs trying to widen the slots that they occupy. The board was flexible enough to be clamped flat against the neck. We used Superglue after. A little drop at each end of the fret tangs wicks in and makes a swift bond. He bonded the fretboard to the neck with Titebond when the frets were set. Jack doesn't have the confidence for this sort of work so he bought a couple of ready made necks for his next few builds.

Welcome Drew. @ped's relentless pester power wore you down then. He's been a busy lad this weekend. Heeheehee. It shouldn't be a problem finding bass buddies in your area. The trick for me would be to find a couple of drummer buddies local enough for me to stop by for a good old rhythm section workout with no agenda any time it's needed.

No. For the avoidance of confusion; with no tension on the strings the neck should look straight. When the strings are at their correct pitch and therefore under tension they should bend the neck slightly so that there is the slightest bow under tension. This is known as neck relief. If it goes the other way reducing string height will cause the strings to touch down around the middle of the neck! '“Relief” refers to a very slight, intentional up-bow that lifts the strings a little higher than they’d be on a perfectly straight neck. Some players (like me) prefer a perfectly straight neck, but a dead-straight neck may not work for someone who really plays hard but still wants to have very low string action. For those players, a bit of relief is a good idea.' Stewmac's Guide (For experienced tweakists only)

Welcome Sandy.

Welcome Bean9seventy. Having had eight years of pestering hyperbole about Basschat from our (anonymous) promoter you risk being underwhelmed by the actual experience. Sorry about that.

I remember Charles Aznavour!

Welcome BassAddsLife. Does this mean we might see your build in the Build Diaries?

Welcome Dave.

The bridge cover is sometimes affectionately known as the ashtray.

Welcome Jeff. Have you tried to tune it yet? You might be lucky enough to have got it set up to some sort of standard already. With a new instrument it is not always obvious how to get the best from it. As a new player you have the added complication of not yet knowing how you will be most comfortable with it. Satisfy yourself that the neck is true. A new instrument should be supplied with the truss rod set correctly for standard gauge strings. Usually, a neck (with strings tuned) will be straight but for the slightest visible bow towards the strings. Generally, string height should give enough clearance above the frets to eliminate fret buzz wherever you fret the string along the entire length of the fretboard. Sometimes a little buzz is acceptable but that's an individual thing and often has to do with the style of music being played. The clearance should not be so great that you can't fret a string without fouling the adjacent string. If you need to drop the string height significantly it might become necessary to adjust your pickup height relative to the new string height too. Make one small adjustment at a time and note the difference(s) to the sound and feel of the instrument. It's easiest to do adjustments in quarter turns of the allen key. Count the turns and apply them evenly to both sides of the saddle if the saddle height screws are in pairs with the saddles level. Soon you will get a feel for what's going on. If you need to adjust the truss rod tension or set individual saddles to get good intonation on individual strings, get specific advice for your instrument.

Welcome Most. My knowledge of East Anglian bands is limited to the Kipper Family (Henry and Sid) of Trunch.

Welcome Armitage. I enjoyed your YT clips. Great hat too.