StickyDBRmf

Hey I got an orphan Ibanez acoustic/electric bass and I'm wondering why not D'Addario nickel round wound, like I have on every other bass, guitar, and Chapman Stick (the string supplier) that I own? What's with the bronze strings? It's not like I'm gonna go to an open mike and play in front of an OPEN MIKE. Anyone give me a reason to put bronze strings on, as opposed to what I'm used to? Am I missing something?

In 1972 I was not into this type of music, and then I heard it EVERYWHERE, but yeah, I hafta admit this tune is deep. Don Mclean, frikkin' poet...

You're answers are the reason most of us don't have jobs

In the early days of my playing I tried different brands, and compositions, for strings, and then I settled into a gauge set by D'Addario and have used them ever since. Funny, I have a DanElectro Longhorn bass, short scale, and when I went to change the strings couldn't find D'Addario so I got GHS Boomers. I couldn't stand them! I think thy are wound in the opposite direction of D'Addario. I found a short set VERY quickly and the Boomers are still in the gig bag. And then, when I got my Chapman Stick, found out Emmett uses D'Addario. They are specially wound for the lower tension. they're nickel also. And my guitars are strung with them. After the initial brightness wears off (all new strings sound like a grand piano) they settle in with a consistency that lasts and lasts...

I've found Tide removes even the toughest stains and leaves my basses smelling fresh. And no need to iron!

All my selections are stuff I adore. I have to add one other album & cut. My second Frank Zappa album (when I was 11) was Weasles Ripped My Flesh. (first was Chungas Revenge) Both bought because of the titles. I liked W.R.M.F. alot better. The Eric Dolphy Memorial Barbeque turned me on to E.D. (my favourite horn player). I figured if he deserved a BBQ he must be IMPORTANT. And the title cut, man I wanted to be in a band that had the balls to end a show like that...

Funny. Some thoughts...When I first heard Chariots of Fire by The Bad Plus I was driving in my car and I had to pull over. I never heard a song so eloquently disassembled before (and what bass!). When I had dance parties at The Animal House I could clear the floor with The Mothers "Billy The Mountain". The Art Bears clears rooms faster than Lysol. This Heat. My mother called Steve Hillage "Rainbow Dome Music" "torture music". Music for 18 Musicians can either be life-changing for people, or make them scream. I practice with headphones as to not offend my roomies. I swear I never know what my girlfriend will like or dislike. She seems to enjoy anything I play on thought. And she really likes bass players

Not logged on for a week, and there's NINE PAGES OF SLAP. Haha. And I had to read it all so my opinion would be INFORMED. Notice how I CAPITALIZE to EMPHASIZE. And being a chef (bass playing didn't pay the bills) I appreciate scalpy & the vinegar analogy and R.Jinman "watching popcorn in a microwave". But, THAT'S IT! It's the FIRST kernel that POPS and the waiting the 3 seconds for the LAST kernel to POP that gets me going. My culinary analogy is it's like black pepper. A little wakes it up, too early in the recipe (and too much) and it's acrid. I learned it (70's) I used it, I don't any more (more of a refined tapping/pinging of the strings when harmonic or percussive emphasis is desired)...but I play the Stick more often. So when I pick up a bass, weird techniques pop out. And when I DO a pop. Or a slap. Everyone smiles. I don't know it's like balloon animals

My first bass was a '73 Jazz, off the rack, sunburst (not painted under the pickgard, like Jaco's) maple neck w/ the big black markers. CBS. I sold it after I started playing a P bass frettless. I HAVE NEVER PLAYED ANOTHER BASS THAT PLAYED LIKE THAT ONE but I didn't realize it at the time how precious that m.f. was. That one just fell off the production line into a vat of fairy juice.

Rick Beato is great. His "What makes this song Great?" is great. Jaco was "other-worldly". He didn't take a "bass" solo. Some of his lines were stuff a sax player would be hard-pressed to pull off. At his best no one is better. At his worst - showboat.

I bought a Roland HandSonic for the specific purpose of having tabla (and other exotic percussion) at my fingertips. I too am hypnotized by their sound. I live in Central New Jersey where a sizable Indian population thrives and went into a store in Edison where they imported them. (a couple of miles from Sam Ash) You can get a beautiful pair for $175 US. I was intrigued, tried them (haha) but didn't buy. But the store owner was curious with this pony-tailed white boy checking them out and GAVE ME a cd of tabla playing/tutorial! I think I piqued his interest because I learned how to count odd meters in high school with Don Ellis's book (don't remember the name). D.E. was a big band leader/ trumpeter and inventor of the 4-valve quarter-tone trumpet and know for playing complex meters and utilizing the Indian counting system. And I was discussing this w/ him & I was even invited to his temple for a celebration, one of "gods" (that's what they call them) was visiting from India that week! ( had to take my shoes off, we were separated from the wimmen, and me & my two friends were the only white people there) but BOY what a welcoming group! FYI still can't play HandSonic Tabla worth a sh*t...

Anything you can play on the bass, you can play worse on the ukulele

Speaking of male/female musicians and "greatest" anything reminds me of this quote from "This Is Your Brain On Music" -Daniel J. Levitan (highly recommended, was a musician, engineer, and record producer before becoming a NUEROSCIENTIST) "If there are 12 named notes within an octave, why are there only 7 letters? After centuries of being forced to use the back entrance to the castle and eat with the servants, this may just be an invention by musicians to make nonmusicians feel inadequate."

Listening to Formula 3 right now was not familiar w/ them except in passing. Thanks. Those Italians do it different.

Interesting list. Glad to see Percy Jones & Mick Karn squeeze in. Alphonso Johnson SHOULD be on the 101 List these three cats may not have virtuoso chops but boy do they put down the lines...

Going in the way-back machine alot. (Fred Frith "Gravity") but I'm checking out Tal Wilkenfeld's new singer-songwriter stuff and it's GOOD. (except for the "official" video...WTF?) Check out the live shows her guitarist is tasty

I remember in the 80's I was in a house with no one else and there was an old drumkit so I set it up and bashed about it with great abandon and no one to critque or give me grief. I sounded like the Magicband but oh what fun and a good workout. (Beefheart told the drummer on "Icecream for Crow" , "I want it to sound like bb's in a piepan."

I just inherited a bass ukulele. It's an Ibanez AEB5E-BK 3U01. Hey, it's portable, I can play it at a party or the park (oops. not for awhile) without amplification, NOT like my Stick or electric bass, and...it has a U in it's name, so there. (and wimmen LOVE bass players)

I was gonna say this is getting too deep for me but then my arrogant nature took over. My general introduction to people goes like this: I went to school for music and i've been cooking ever since. When I left school I couldn't bear the thought of playing "Tie A Yellow Ribbon 'Round The Old Oak Tree" on a Saturday nite, and since the music I played had "No Commercial Potential", I wound up doing the OTHER thing I'm passionate about, cooking. They paid me well, when I was cooking other's recipes, and VERY well when I had my own restaurant. (and I had more GROUPIES than I ever had in any band...) But again, I wont do McDonald's. I'm happy playing my own music because it keeps me sane.

Two guitarists needed a bass player so I traded in my Fender Mustang (orange w/ red racing stripes) for a Fender Jazz sunburst torty pickgard maple neck w/ black block inlays. Mom & Dad bought me the Mustang fr Christmas & put the rest of the $ in for J.B. trade. We never did the songs but I just wanted to play the bass line from Inna Gadda Da Vidda for 17 mins. or the bass line from 3rd Stone from the Sun, or Sly & The Family Stone's "Sex Machine". Right from the beginning I just wanted to hold down the bottom and let all forms of Mayhem ensue. Actuall influences and who I studied and or emulated is another story.

There is such a fine line between in the groove and forced. Like the line from "Spinal Tap", "There is such a fine line between 'stupid' and 'clever'." And I swear to G** it can't be taught. So many people trying to participate n the music bizniz can't funk for their Mama's sake. And yet the Pocket People die by the wayside. Back to/ sidetrain of "Normal People" and BassChat(ers). The bass players that GET IT. AND GET PAID. and the rest should go home and make 1000 perfect omelets. (That's how I paid the rent)..

Are you guys aware of who Pete Cetera is? One of the coolest rock bands EVER with horns? He, along with the keyboard & guitarist shared singing duties and CUT IT UP in the 60's/70's (sorry Pete, I lost interest in the band after Terry died...it lost it's BALLS) Guys, listen to Chicago Transit Authority (esp. Pete, "I'm A Man") and the guitarist who when Jimi Hendrix met him, said, "I wish I could play like that".

He wasn't the lead singer but he sang all the high parts and played some pretty darn good bass...guy by the name of Chris Squire

I love the perfect pitch pun...My buddy's daughter wanted one last Christmas I took him to my fav (independant) music store & found a nice one she has moved on to keyboard (not many ukelale patches in THAT one) but really... I like the low end and there is no portable bass...the Stick is even a pain in the derrière... I have a battery Roland Cube, it's FIVE WATTS (but it has 4 speakers and The Roland Chorus). So I can go to a campfire or whatever but it's still not THAT PORTABLE... but...I can't...stand...the SOUND...of those things I won't even bother to check how it's spelled. SOMETHING LIKE THAT SHOULD BE EASIER TO SPELL. Like EUGHK. One more thing I don't like those little bass thingys they sound like smuush

I'm one of those "I've got to work with what I got" guys, you know, disabilty, retired from working in the cooking biz, no income coming in, soooo....I have a NORD LEAD ll that I try to get those PFunk Bernie Worrell sounds outa its what I got. But I have loved the Moog since the day it was born