bnt

I actually like the sound I get when my nails are too long, but it's inconsistent, hard to control the effect, so I couldn't use it seriously.

I still think the Thumb shape is lovely, though I wouldn't get one myself: it looks better on someone like Jack Bruce, who is at least a foot shorter than me.

Here's one that raised my hackles: [url="http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/FENDER-62-FRETLESS-BASS-LIKE-JACO-BASS-NO-RESERVE-0-01_W0QQitemZ310011369196QQihZ021QQcategoryZ4713QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"]link[/url]. Note the item location, yet the listing says "will not post to Asia".

That was in 2003. I know that SWR's former vice-president Bryan Beller is using new SWR gear, including when he toured with Steve Vai this year, so I suppose that's a vote of confidence. The Wikipedia page on SWR is awful - biased, includes whole chunks of what Beller wrote for his own website, and makes some allegations about the former owner. I might have a go at rewriting it.

There's a Berklee-affiliated school in the Dublin area, the [url="http://www.newparkmusic.com/"]Newpark Music Centre[/url] in Blackrock. I haven't been there myself, but I thought I should mention it in case the Berklee connections are helpful - it's one of 15 [url="http://www.berklee.edu/international/berkleeintlnetwork.html"]Berklee International Network[/url] schools worldwide that uses their teaching materials.

Weird. That headstock points at Peavey, but I don't recognise that 60s-type body as one of theirs.

Could be worse: anyone for a 1956 Stratocaster? Just $150,000.... [url="http://cgi.ebay.com/1956-FENDER-STRATOCASTER-BLONDE-100-ORIGINAL-RARE_W0QQitemZ150196199331QQihZ005QQcategoryZ47069QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"]link[/url]. edit: it gets worse: someone wants $225,000 for a [url="http://cgi.ebay.com/1976-Gibson-LE-Explorer-Electric-Guitar_W0QQitemZ150196091322QQihZ005QQcategoryZ33040QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem"]1976 Gibson Explorer[/url]. Um, well, OK...

Nathan East on [i]Easy Lover[/i] (Phil Collins & Phillip Bailey). (Also a slightly-gullty pleasure, though it has been a while since I heard it.) Tony Butler on [i]Flame Of The West[/i] (Big Country) - this is where I noticed his Chris Squire influence, just a tad... Danny Thompson on [i]Happiness Is Easy[/i] (Talk Talk) - loved this long before I knew it was a double bass, or that he was switching between [i]pizzicato[/i] and [i]arco[/i]. Tony Levin on [i]Brother Of Mine[/i] (Anderson Bruford Wakeman Howe) - some of his best Stick work that suits the song perfectly.

Epiphone Ripper? They'll be bringing back the [url="http://www.gibsonbass.com/GibsonVictoryBass.php"]Victory[/url] bass next - if so, I might go for that one. I nearly bought an original Victory Artist in London (Andy's) last year, but came to my sense in time. (Good, but not worth what they wanted for it.)

Well, the usual advice in pub discussions is "no religion or politics", so I suppose we need to extend the definition of "religion" to include Jazz, and "politics" to include Jamiroquai... I have no idea which category ERBs fall in to. Except for the Jazz thread, where I thought I asked some reasonable on-topic questions, I usually can't do much more than try to inject a little levity. This has the unfortunate side-effect of making me look a little clueless and wishy-washy, but that's a risk I'm willing to take.

I wonder what proportion of their sales are in Europe, the UK in particular? The way the dollar exchange rate has collapsed, I suspect they figure they don't look so bad. Personally, they're too fashionable for me now.

I'm curious what people think of SWR in general, and their amps - any opinions?. I used to lust after the [url="http://www.bryanbeller.com/music/ampsandspeakercabs.html#1"]Mo'Bass[/url] head, the one that Bryan Beller pushed for while he worked there*. Now I'm wondering what effect the Fender takeover has had, whether the quality is the same? * Bryan tells the story on his website ([url="http://www.bryanbeller.com/literature/lifeofbryan/bryan44a.htm"]here[/url]) of how he ended up as vice-president of the company, managed the takeover by Fender, but kicked it in to go back to music full-time. I've been a fan of his work with [url="http://www.keneally.com/"]Mike Keneally[/url] for years, but this year he toured with Steve Vai.

My Hohner B2V with the EMG 35 P/Js, tuned High C. The Tune isn't as "sorted", at least not yet - can't quite get the action the way I like it (low).

My favourite Manring piece is [i]The Enormous Room[/i]: here's a video of Michael playing it in some guy's living room, just a few weeks ago. Lucky people..!

I just did a YouTube search for "bass sweep picking"... first time I've seen any, but yeah, it's being done. Fingerstyle too.

There is a band called [url="http://www.fourplayjazz.com/"]Fourplay[/url], of course - a jazz supergroup, featuring Nathan East, Bob James and Larry Carlton.

[quote name='cris the man' post='105724' date='Dec 18 2007, 08:20 AM']then theres the issue of being a fussy bass player , not wanting to use a pic , is it possible to sweep pick using a relative fingering technique?[/quote] Don't see why not - if I understand the technique correctly, the key is the other (fretting) hand, the muting and unmuting of the right strings at the right time. If you get good enough at it, you might be able to produce notes so short, you can't tell what note it is.

Today I found out about a guitar called the [url="http://www.carverdoug.com/wang.html"]Wangcaster[/url] (NSFW = guess why!). The luthier, Doug Rowell, specialises in elaborate hand carving of bodies, and also made a few weird basses, such as the Yellow Submarine bass: [url="http://www.carverdoug.com/sub.html"][/url]

Heavy, and I imagine it's a pain to restring. Chris Squire has a [url="http://www.trevorandthea.eclipse.co.uk/specs3.html"]triple-neck bass[/url], a copy of a Wal original that now lives in Hard Rock Cafes.

I'm watching a Pink Floyd documentary on BBC1 at the moment: they all look in fine fettle, but they did get an early lesson, from Syd, on how [i]not[/i] to look after yourself...

I have a special place for [b]Wagner[/b] in my musical quotes file: I like Wagner's music better than anybody's. It is so loud that one can talk the whole time. -- Oscar Wilde Even the bad things are better than they used to be. Bad music, for instance, has gotten much briefer. Wagner's [i]Ring Cycle[/i] takes four days to perform while [i]Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm[/i] by the Crash Test Dummies lasts little more than three minutes. -- P.J O'Rourke (All the Trouble in the World) One cannot judge [i]Lohengrin[/i] from a first hearing, and I certainly do not intend to hear it a second time. ... Mr. Wagner has beautiful moments but bad quarters of an hour. -- Gioacchino Rossini (1792-1868) Too many pieces of music finish too long after the end. -- Igor Stravinsky Learn to feel sorry for music because, although it is the international language, it has no swearwords. (If you don't count Wagner, which in my opinion is one long one and should be avoided at all costs.) -- Billy Connolly Richard Wagner was a musician who wrote music which is better than it sounds. -- Mark Twain

[quote name='Buzz' post='97889' date='Dec 3 2007, 01:46 AM']So chaps, if you want ampeg gear, best scrimp your pennies together and buy now while you're guarenteed a USA made one.[/quote] I imagine that horse has already bolted: the end of the second quarter of 2007 was the final date, and that was 5 months ago.

If the question is whether Ampegs are Made In China, well, Ampeg's parent company ([url="http://www.loudtechinc.com/"]LOUD Technologies[/url]) has the following statement in their [url="http://www.loudtechinc.com/invest/invest_sf.html"]Annual Report[/url] for 2006: [quote]In 2006, we began the process of transferring our remaining domestic manufacturing overseas. All of our domestic manufacturing plants will be closing before the end of the second quarter of 2007 as our overseas contract manufacturers ramp up to full production of our products. Our overseas manufacturers are supported by a team of our employees, located in China. These employees are responsible to audit quality procedures, manage and facilitate the transition of products from design to manufacturing and to ensure timely delivery of purchased product.[/quote] LOUD is the "corporate face" of Mackie, and is also the parent company of Crate, Martin Audio, and others. They have job openings in Shenzen if you fancy a new challenge.