Paul S

I'd have a look at a 60s EB-0 or EB-3 shorty. I've never had one of those powerful old sidewinder mudbuckers but think I'd like it.

Indeed. Get yourselves over to the southeast, Gary!

Was that a multi-band thing or your own gig?

So how did that happen? You can't just ring up Chinnerys at the last minute and get a gig? Curious - I'd love to get my lot a gig there.

Increasing decrepitude has forced me to shed my 34" scales and I now have a rack full of lovely 30" (+/-0.5") basses, save for one 32". I love them and, although I've always dabbled with shorties, wish I'd made the complete change over permanently years ago. I mean, I can fit 2 basses in their gig bags (Thomann E-Guitar Deluxe fits all my shorties) width ways across the inside of my boot and shut it! What more do we need?

Personally, I feel it would be massively messy and confusing. It only takes a split second to scroll past the ones I am not interested in, something I don't find intrudes into my day too much. And what of the basses that have Fender type pickups but aren't Fender shaped? Leave as is, I reckon.

If you have a passing interest in architecture then soak up as much Gaudi as you can - his stuff isn't to be found in many other places. The Sagrada Familia is off the scale.

I had a '54 slab P with a single coil. It arrived with a Roswell pickup, which I considered to be quite nice in a low key, vintage kind of way. I wanted more bite, a bit more oomph, and swapped it for the Retrovibe 9.2K Route '51 and it was the exact sound I wanted. With the tone fully open it was dark and angry but easily tamed. They aren't megabucks, either, at £35.

My best two gigs for 2024 are both Sunday daytime. Timing, playing to our target audience and both good payers! Perfect! Balances out the others...

Kiss of death, right there. When you decide to move it on, let me know

Loft?! Somebody got one of these into a loft?!

Sold a bridge to Steve in the simplest of transactions. Great comms, nice guy to deal with

Amen to this. I have tried but simply don't have the correct temperament to deal with the people who take bookings for pub gigs. One example - some years and many bands ago now, I phoned in between xmas and new year and was told they don't start doing the diary until after the new year. I phoned again on 2nd and was told they were fully booked. Telling them that they were a lying jobsworth wasn't necessarily the best way forward but made me feel better

Sounds totally fab! Do you play closer to home - I still visit my friends in Cottingham occasionally but I think Scarborough would be a bit far to drag them. That said, they are probably going to move to Spital soon, which is defo too far from Scarborough!

I love the sound of these gigs, Pete! From a punter's perspective, do your regulars ask for the same songs each time? And how many requests would each get?

Tease

Don't worry Stubs, it is just as appalling when viewed on a pc.

1. Why you don't have any gigs? I'd say for us it is 'many' rather than 'any' because we have some. We don't have loads because of what we play. My lot are a blues rock trio, with a leaning to the rockier side of blues - lots and lots of guitar solos, so not everyone's cup of tea! In the vast majority of 'general' pubs we go down like a lead balloon because we don't play what the punters want to hear. We have a fairly regular 'residency' in one music pub in one town, which has given us 9 gigs for 2024 - without those we'd be struggling to flesh out the diary. We usually pick up a festival or two and also a support slot or two. We have a gig at a labour club in the summer, no idea how that will pan out. The two best gigs are one at a dedicated blues club, where we have previously gone down a storm, and also a Harley Davidson party and bbq - these last two are good payers and balance out the not-so-good ones. 2.Do you rely on an agent ? No but it increasingly seems like a good idea. 3.Who finds coordinates and confirms gigs? Bandleader - guitarist/singer. 4. Are you or any band members in this for the money? Not really. Two of us are retired so the money is useful. 5.How much do you want to gig? If it balanced out at a couple a month that would be ideal.

My hair has always been quite wavy, not that there's much left these days. One time I decided to grow it out, thinking I would look cool like Carlos Santana or similar. But I ended up looking like my mum.

Yup. Having fitted them to a bass and being blown away, Toneriders would always be my first choice now. Certainly the P, not tried the J.

Played a 'blues and brews' night at the John Peel Centre in Stowmarket. Lovely venue - we've played there before - easy load in/out, big stage, lights, great sound system with a team of sound guys. 3 bands, we were on last or 'headlining' as like to call it, a selection of local beers on offer. I wasn't confident anyone would turn on a chilly thursday in February up but apparently 60 souls made it - far more than I imagined. Bands were Red Sky High, Jamie Williams and the Roots Collective - who were especially good, great set of originals delivered in some style. Their bass player had a bitsa short scale Bronco/Mustang/Jazz hybrid that sounded awesome. Good player, too. Having been nicely warmed up and lubricated the crowd appreciated us and we went down very well, despite some left of field errors on a few songs we have played faultlessly for months (why does that happen?). We played a longer set, just over an hour, and it was all round a damned fine evening. No traffic there or back, in bed by 1am. My gear was my SG > new Trace Elliot Transit B pedal > desk which sounded pretty fab from where I was standing. Guitarist Alan's pic, taken from the mezzanine 'green room' where the performers hang out - Jamie Williams et al on their last song.

I don't know, Chris - he would probably add them to his portfolio of conspiracies if you asked nicely. Or maybe he didn't have room to include everything. I mean, man, he left out chemtrails!

Black. Black pickguard, too.

A blues rock trio on the rockier side, fits in nicely.

I don't have any, sadly. I'll try to remember to record somethiing at some point.