Strawbs664

I'll always listen to suggestions, even down to where to place my fingers, and have learnt a huge amount from doing so. (Never underestimate the experience of your bandmates)! I've also come into a practice with a well prepared original bass line to be told "No, we don't like that". In that case, I swallow my pride & go with the majority opinion, which more often than not is right for the song. It works both ways though - I've made suggestions for drum & guitar bits that have been worked into songs and there are other occasions where I've been given free reign to do whatever I want. Ultimately, if you're in a band, the song is the most important thing, and sometimes it takes another pair of ears to hear what's best.

I sat through it as Mrs Strawbs was watching it. I was gobsmacked by the lack of energy for a live performance!

I have a couple of their albums. Book of Bad Decisions is awesome. (They're on tour in the UK this winter too ).

People's priorities change over time. My old band reformed after a break of 25-30 years for a couple of charity gigs - great fun but it made me realise that I couldn't commit full time to a gigging band. When the guitarist asked me if I'd be interested in carrying on in a new group with him, I had to turn him down (no hard feelings - we're still very good mates). For me, at this point in my life, family time is more important than a band. Sounds to me as if you & you're guitarist have different expectations, so best to have a chat with him so at least you both know where the other stands. At least then you'll be in a position to plan for the future, even if he has to take a step back & you have to find a replacement. If you're only booking gigs for 2020, you have plenty of time to find a solution.

This is not quite in the same league as some of these stories, but it was my OMFG moment. At least 30 years ago, my band had a support slot at a decent sized club in Bournemouth. It was one of our first "big" gigs, proper PA, proper little stage and lights - the works, so we were all well up for it. The gig went OK & afterwards I was hanging about in the "backstage" area (i.e. the corridor on the way to the kitchens) when I noticed some guy I didn't know chatting to our singer. I wander over to see what's what & this guy compliments us on the gig and says he's a bass player too. I immediately think "Oh stinky poo! Here we go, this is going to get very dull very quickly" expecting a 3 hour conversation on strings, amps, action height and so on, when all I really wanted was a quick chat & a drink with someone that looked interesting. Anyway, I thank him & ask if he's in a band. He is - "What are they called?" I ask "Hawkwind" he says!

Bought an Ibanez ATK from Graham. Great communication all through the process which is exactly what you need when you're dealing with each other at opposite ends of the country. Plenty of photos of the packing process so I knew exactly what I'd be receiving. Would happily deal with him again.

Oooh! How about Martin Turner & Steve Upton?

Mark Evans, Phil Rudd & Malcolm Young on early AC/DC stuff always blow me away with how solid they are.

Jethro Tull cracked the States too, and you don't get many bands sounding more British than them!

According to Gene Simmons & one of his books - he loved Slade but they were never going to make it in the US as no one could understand their singer ……..

I've seen the West End show with my family and we loved it. I was disappointed with the film initially, but have come round to the cheesiness of it and will now quite happily sit through it & sing along. And I still love how they mashed up We Built This City & We're Not Gonna Take it! My daughter, who knows what she's talking about when it comes to films, summed it up as being terrible and brilliant at the same time which is why it works. Sounds about right! P.S. The ITV2 version had a quite a few cuts compared to the full version, and they jarred somewhat.

This ^^ Totally agree. The Who live are a beast but their studio albums seem a tad tame for me. Has anyone mentioned Kiss yet?

Phil Mogg is one of the best frontmen (as opposed to singers) I've ever seen, and UFO are the loudest band I've ever seen by quite some way. I've always thought it was the songwriting that lifted them above other 70s rock bands - so many fantastic, catchy tunes that should have been massive radio hits. No idea why they are so underated. P.S. Pete Way's biography is a cracking read (but I can't recall what it's called just now).

Another vote for Hypnotic straps. Loads of choice & reasonably priced.

May (?) 1988. Gosport Labour Club. We payed a two hour originals set and I was blown away that people actually applauded at the end of the first song!

Ta! I'll give that a go next time I'm near a PC.

Here's my much loved Stingray. It was white once - honest!

Thanks for all the welcomes. Still trying to figure out how to add my location to my profile, so for those interested, I'm from Romsey.

The usermane is solely fruit based I'm afraid. I have been tempted by the Strawbs in the past, mainly based on the Rick Wakeman involvement, but have never pulled the trigger, so to speak.

Hello from deepest Hampshire. Been lurking here for ages have finally decided to sign up. First picked up a bass in the mid 80s and went through a few bands before family & mortgages caught up with me & limited me to the occasional bedroom noodle. Had to dust stuff off again in the last couple of years as one of my old bands organised an annual charity reunion, and I couldn't let someone else play my basslines 😂 Gear wise, I've been using a my trusty stingray for the last 25+ years but picked up a cheap EB5 last year which has surprised me somewhat as I'd never rated Gibson basses before. Anyhoo, I'll keep lurking, and may pop in now & then to add my four pennorth 😊