Baxlin

Just sorted out my Cliff Bennett and RRs album 'Driving you wild' with Chas in the RRs lineup.  It's about time I gave it an airing......

Just read his Wikipedia entry, and also Dave Peacock's.  Interesting to see the latter was described as 'musician and bass guitarist'.......

Very sad to hear this.  Been a fan since seeing him in Cliff Bennett's band the Rebel Rousers way back in the 60s.  Bit of Trivia, the RRs' long time drummer, Mick Burt was for years the third member of Chas & Dave.

1 hour ago, Dom in Somerset said:

"I'm not Cobby"  - you had to be there.

Funny, that, I’m just off out to meet a mate whose name is Cobby.......

In the 60s, playing drums in the 'house band' at a big charity concert in Nottingham,  expanding our lineup to include brass section - lovely.  Rehearsed all day for the performance in the evening with the various vocal acts. Mostly it went well, including our usual lineup doing part of our normal set.

But one vocal group had us rehearsing their opening song in a couple of different keys.  They decided on which to play, then just before going on one of them tells us to change the key.  Then actually on stage their leader changes his mind, but this didn’t get through to the brass section.......

At 20 I had been in the RAF for a year, being posted to the Middle East within a couple of years, fortunately in peace time.  Enjoying single life, but never much of a drinker, I ran both motorbike and a car.

Now at 71, retired, and a grandfather of 6, I still don’t drink much, I lost my nerve on motorbikes many years ago, but replaced it with my Morganesque 3 wheeler, as well as my daily drive Volvo convertible.

And still playing, although it was behind the kit in my teens, very much a 4-stringer plucker now. 

Success!  Nice job, and no doubt gave a lot of satisfaction.

I made one for my long scale Vintage acoustic - huge beast, as all I could find to fit was the unpadded flimsy bag it came with.

I made it as a closed box, then cut the 'lid' off.  I used an old sepele door facing for top and bottom, and "bendy" MDF for the sides, which enabled me to get away from the straight sided coffin shape. 

For the padding, I made a bottom layer of expanding foam then VERY carefully wrapped the bass in cling film, and filled around the bass body with the foam.  For the lid padding, I just used a sheet of sponge/sawbo.  I included an accessory compartment, which also served as an extra neck support.

Mrs B then helped, covering the padding with velvety cloth (like a real case!), and she also made a leatherlook vinyl skin cover, proper double stitching at the joins, etc  which we stuck on. (she does a lot of sewing!).

Looked very professional, even if I say so myself, but unfortunately weighed a ton and was too large to go in the boot of my then car......

Wish I had pics, but I don’t, as I sold it some years ago.

Had a good time Friday evening, on our way on holiday, we stayed overnight with my cousin.  Nothing unusual, maybe, but I was in bands with him in the 60s and early 70s (the latter being our age now!).  Unfortunately we usually only meet nowadays at family funerals......

He still gigs occasionally, and has a collection of rather nice guitars, including a mint Gretsch White Falcon and various Taylors and Martins, and an acoustic bass guitar.

So while our wives were yapping away in one room, we were happily jamming through 50+ years of music memories.  Great stuff!

Anyone else done this?

Malcolm

Looks like the body's sunk just below the pickup, judging by the shadow cast by the string.  Apart from that, wouldn’t mind having a go, but that’s outside my skill limits.

4 hours ago, Les said:

That was good and gets the point over. Great band.

I play bass in a church band, and tbh, I felt a little guilty watching this video.  But having said that, it’s also very important to play to the song's words.  Our worship leader 'controls' this using a range of subtle hand signals.  (No wisecracks necessary, the hand signals are polite!🙂)

The current lead singer with the Fortunes is the bassist, playing a right hand bass left handed, with as far as I could see the bass strung right handed, and the strap on what was now the bottom horn.

Looked most awkward, but obviously worked for him.

And come to think of it, Rod Allen, the original lead singer, also played bass.

3 hours ago, Bluewine said:

Well I was loading my gear into someone's parents car. Parents would drop us off and pick us up.

Weren’t Dads wonderful.....

But I do remember taking as much of my drum kit as I could on the bus to rehearsals, while Dad ferried it to and from 'bookings' (they weren’t called gigs in those days!) many times.

That's probably why he helped me buy my first car the moment I passed my test at 17!

(He used to joke that the next instrument I learnt to play was going to be a piccolo.  Wonder why...)

5 minutes ago, chris_b said:

One of the best and the most original cover I've heard was Joe Cocker's version of With A Little Help From My Friends.

See my post on Thursday.  Great minds think alike.......

1 hour ago, Delberthot said:

 

Not my kind of song but I think that the Stereophonics did a really good version of Handbags & Gladrags by Rod Stewart.

 

Rod Stewart may have recorded it (1969?), but IIRC it was written (or at least co-written) by Manfred Mann's Mike D'Abo, with Chris Farlowe in mind to record it, which he did in 66 or 67.

D'A was apparently the producer on both, and played piano on Stewart's offering, IMO the weakest version.

Seen MD'A perform it live a couple of times, he accompanied himself on keys, referring to it as 'the composer's version'!

So which are the covers, and which is the original?

Joe Cocker's version of "With a little Help from my Friends" is in my opinion the best cover ever, particularly when compared with the original 'singalongaMax' treatment Ringo Starr gave it.

We are an adaptable lot, we humans, normally able to cope with life’s difficulties, so well done to the OP re the gig.

I'm having to gradually adapt the way I play, as I have osteo-arthritis in my left hand, so far mainly in just the thumb and ring finger.

Still OK on the bass, but I find I can’t play more than a couple of chords on a guitar, and it’s no-go on my 12 string.

C'est la vie, as they say.....

2 hours ago, steve-bbb said:

oh i dont know... it almost kicked off on faceberg the other day because someone had the audacity to say 'guitar luthier'

What’s wrong with 'guitar luthier'?

A luthier someone who makes/repairs stringed instruments, which usually consist of a sound box and a neck.

Derived from the Latin (?) for Lute.

Seems logical to me then that a guitar luthier is one who makes/repairs guitars.

(Similarly 'driver' is generic, but 'bus driver' is specific)

Back on topic, isn’t "pick" yet another Americanism?  It’s a fairly recent change, it’s always been 'plectrum' for the 50+ years I’ve been playing guitars of one sort or another.

Was at a Barbara Dickson concert quite a few years ago when she recorded several tracks for a live album.

OK, we’re not gigging (yet, but two provisionally lined up), at 72, 72, 71, 65, and a mere youngster at 56, we don’t feel too old for rock and roll - or any music in our set.

We started from scratch earlier in the year, initially just for the fun of it, but as we’d all been in and out of bands over many years, things came together fairly quickly.

One of the best 'house bands' I’ve seen in a long time, The New Amen Corner, has a father and son in their lineup, so maybe there’s hope for the OP yet.

2 hours ago, three said:

. I’ve also played very many EB0s and EB3s – just a word of caution to try before you buy. The much discussed balance issues are very real. I play an Alembic Brown Bass too (an EB3 clone) and it’s almost impossible for me on a strap (though lovely if playing sat down)

I’ve moved the strap button on my EB3 from the body onto the base of the neck.  Only moved a few centimetres, but has made a noticeable difference.  I covered the original hole by putting a short screw in it and adding a black plastic screw cover.

+1 for Autosol.

Not for me, I’m afraid, far too dear for any Squier (certainly one with no provenance), and I treat my basses like I treat my cars - keep them pristine.

Mine was a white Hondo P-bass, soon straight swapping at a 'cash release' shop for a strat copy guitar.  This was after buying (for some reason I can’t recall!) a short scale Encore P (ish) bass.

Again short-lived, and soon replaced.......

As an aside, I bought the Encore secondhand, the reason for sale being that the parents of a teenage lad had bought it for him - he’d  wanted to learn to play guitar, they thought it would be easier for him to learn on as it only had 4 strings.

Wrong, and the lad never touched it......

My drum teacher took great pains to explain the difference between practicing and playing, and the importance of both.

I have flat wound on one of my basses, which 'seem' easy to clean, but even better, maybe, are the black tape wound on my EB3. Nowhere for grot to collect, so a regular wipe should suffice?

Discuss.....

off topic, but similar, I noticed my shower hose was getting a bit inflexible (and dull to look at).  So I gave it a liberal spraying with limescale remover, a good rub down (!), and it’s as good as new.