BillyBass

I have one of the Gold line heads, like @fretmeister, though mine is a 500W version. Mine was a lockdown internet purchase as Andertons had the 500W version on a deal and I liked the look of the EQ points. if you are a P bass with flats guy, it could possibly be a great choice. I'm not, I don't like flats and my P bass tone control is always fully on. Playing my Marcus Miller (with the EQ flat) through a barefaced Super Compact doesn't give me the result I want, its too dull. It comes to life, however, with the GED 2112 pre amp before it, with the pre amp's 'bright' switch pressed. Horses for courses I suppose. I can get the sound I want from mine but only by the use of the EQ and/or pre amp bright switch. Perhaps I would have got on better with a Gallien-Krueger head or something with a bit more top end.

Even if the bands were crap, you could get into the Music Machine after your gig somewhere else because it stayed open til about 3:00 a.m. Luckily for me the N90 night bus outside would get me home! They used to hand out those little ticket/card things with money off coming gigs, which was sometimes handy. They also had the best dressed bouncers in London, tuxedos and bow ties! You would have been daft to mess with them though. Didn't take the blue pills, Tuinal was my preference. And I saw Classix Nouveaux loads of times! "Tokyo, Tokyo is so far away..."

I was there! Great gig! Summer 1980, the sun was shining and every band was worth seeing. We were spoilt for choice in London at that time. Wednesday evening Sounds and NME would come out and I would scour the gig pages to see what was on and would limit myself to just two or three gigs per week as that was all I could afford or didn't want to go to bed at 1:00 a.m. too often as I had a job. I remember wishing I had been born just a year or two earlier so I could have seen the Sex Pistols but thinking back, I was a teenager at just the right time in just the right place.

Bloody hell, that is a gig to show off about! I sometimes boast to younger people about seeing Joy Division but that doesn't come near Cream at the Marquee.

I've probably seen them play about 15 or 20 times, never a bad gig. The Electric ballroom gig stands out, as does another at the Greyhound on Fulham Palace Road, probably in 1980. They would always put on a show.

Best gig: The Damned at the Electric Ballroom, Camden Town, December 22nd 1979.. cracking gig, Lemmy came on to help out with 'Ballroom Blitz' towards the end Worst: Adam and the Antz at Cleopatras in Huddersfield on the 'Antz Invasion tour', would have been April 1980. Fights constantly breaking out throughout the gig, the local skinheads versus us.

When I was a teenager in the late 70s and early 80s going to punk gigs the fake encore was done by pretty much every headline band. The only time I can remember a band not doing one was Adam and the Antz, on two occasions. At one gig in Huddersfield there had been fights between the locals and us throughout the gig. The Huddersfield Town skinheads had just come for a fight. Adam walked off at the end of the set and didn't come back. It was a horrible gig. The second time was at another Adam and the Antz gig in London. They were sort of in the transition from being a punk band to being a silly teenybopper pop band. Instead of all shouting for "More" the audience all shouted "Andy Warren, Andy Warren" (he was the old bassist before the Antz went sh*t). Adam said "You don't deserve it" and walked off stage.

I was there in December and the room we had was spotless. I can't remember the room number but it was one of the larger ones, requested by a keyboard player we were auditioning as it had a keyboard that didn't face the wall.

Have you been there recently? They have had a makeover and its spotless. This is my regular rehearsal studio. Its true, there are SVTs and 810 fridges, and Marshall and Blackstar 412s for the guitarists, just what you need in a 4 metre by 4 metre room. It has parking and is right next to Holloway Rd tubes station, so very convenient.

So the bass is the perfect instrument for you. The drummer and I refer to ourselves as 'the 2 ugly blokes at the back' I'm like you, the least experienced but, as has been written above by several posters, I make sure I know the songs. Our guitarist is handsome, has over 20 years experience and has a Wikipedia page about him...but he relies on his experience and sometimes tries to wing it instead of putting the time in to learn songs before rehearsals. I've often taken days off work to make sure I have nailed songs before rehearsals (being self employed I am able to do that) I will admit this is partly due to awareness of my lack of experience.

Yes, fingers crossed. Your post seems upbeat so I assume you are happy with how its progressing; which is marvellous news.

Reading through this thread I have even more appreciation for our drummer. He makes the odd mistake in rehearsal when he hasn’t learnt the song well but apart from that he is great. He doesn’t use a metronome at rehearsals but I sometimes see him counting. For some songs with syncopated bass lines that I haven’t put into muscle memory I just keep an eye on his hands and feet.

You pull out the plastic battery cover and poke your finger in. There is a button to press, directly under where it should be had they included it as a button pin the top, next to the mute button. It's straightforward. Really, I've not heard of this. I got this about a month before Christmas as Bax Music were doing a deal on them. The deal seems to be over now, unfortunately. I find using this with the 'Tight'; button engaged really improves the sound through my MarkBass amp, which I'm realising is a bit too dark.

Thanks for this. I watched the first 4 episodes tonight after work and I'll continue after work tomorrow. My missus is a muslim, though she is quite anti-hijab.

Anyone got one of these?

As someone who owns the 500W version of the MarkBass amp you have, I'd be intrigued to read your thoughts on the three heads and a comparison. Thanks in advance!

That is something you don't normally see, three blokes and a bird, but the bird is on drums!

That would be one of the bands that @mcnach from this parish plays in.

Led Zeppelin: In My Time of Dying "my dying dying dying....cough Thats got to be the one hasn't it!" I think its Bonham that says 'Thats got to be the one hasn't it"

This takes me back. I followed Adam and the Antz around the country, when they were still playing stuff like 'Plastic Surgery' and 'Beat my Guest'. Andy Warren was a bit of a hero to us. I saw the Monochrome Set a couple of times too, quite good they were.

Coincidentally, I spent the first lockdown, in Barnet, going through the SBL diatonic harmony course, learning the modes etc. And I see you put your knowledge to good use in the YouTube clip. Very well done!

I stick to 105 for the E string because I believe it will handle being dropped to D better. Am I wrong?

Or how about: 'The Pit Fillers' Those old enough to have read 'Viz' might remember its meaning

I've been experimenting with different picks recently, I bought the 1.5 mm red stubbies and thought they were good but prefer the 2mm smaller stubby, which is in a mauve translucent colour. It has the same bit in the middle which really helps with the grip. I also bought a pack of three Dunlop Primetones, but the ones with the rounded ends. I also like these but so far the 2mm small stubby is the one I'm most comfortable with, they are about a fiver for 12 https://www.gak.co.uk/en/dunlop-big-stubby-guitar-picks-6-pack-2mm/25215