risingson

[quote name='flyfisher' post='1188404' date='Apr 4 2011, 09:58 PM']@ risingson . . . Yes, that's pretty much the scenario I was envisaging. But my current frustration is not that I'm personally bored playing the same old songs. My own feeling is that we should play them more often because I don't feel we're performing to our full ability, but clearly some of the other band members are happy with our current level. I appreciate such issues probably arise in all bands (and I also accept that I might also get bored with repetition after a certain point), but I was just curious how professional touring musicians deal with the same issue - especially as I can't envisage myself ever having first-hand experience in a touring band![/quote] Do you take any sort of leadership role in the band, i.e. do you call practices, get the gigs etc.? Because if you do then maybe it's worth galvanising your band by organising more rehearsals, if that's what you feel like you're lacking. Bands are made at gigs though, their ability to be as tight as possible comes from being in at the deep end too, so maybe it's worth filling your gig calendar up a little more.

No, but I'd really like to see him, the guy is amazing! Can't help feeling Pino Palladino had that Sei 8-String made for him after seeing what Charlie Hunter could do with his whilst working with John Mayer.

[quote name='BigRedX' post='1188351' date='Apr 4 2011, 09:20 PM']I don't know what your creative input has been in these songs, but in all my previous bands where the majority of the music had been written my me I could quite easily have the enthusiasm to play all the songs in the set at least once a day if not more often.[/quote] Say I wrote 'Yesterday', and 80-90% of the people that came to see me live were waiting to hear this every night on an 8-9 month tour. I prefer 'Maxwell's Silver Hammer', another tune I wrote, but only 5-10% of the audience that have come to see me want to hear that. Hypothetical, but still I can fully understand the monotony of repetition in this context. There are a lot of considerable writers that became very tired of playing the same stuff over and over.

It depends what you mean by pro musicians. The term often lends itself to someone thinking about session players, but in reality it probably covers a multitude of different kinds of players including players in well known bands etc. Everyone's interest levels wane over time. What makes you a good player aside from the theoretical and/or technical skills you might have is being able to create energy out of nothing. If you're appearing in front of a new audience that have never seen you or heard you before, you want to be able to leave the venue that night with everyone talking about you, and creating that energy from nothing to something has got to be one of the hardest things to do as a player, especially when you have played the same set night in and night out for a long time.

Thankfully I've only ever had successful dealings with sellers on this site, in fact just yesterday I bought a lovely DJ Lakland for dirt cheap from a really nice guy on here! However, as a seller myself, I've experienced some people that seem to be lacking in some serious common sense, and also some big time wasters. I'm usually a fairly good judge of character and I would much, much prefer to talk on the phone with someone directly instead of toing and froing with someone via PM, but as a seller, you'll usually have to deal with a few people that think that they can take the piss. I can only imagine what a frustrating experience it must have been for you. As a buyer I would of course want to try a bass out before I bought it but I definitely wouldn't bring my GF (she'd be bored to death anyway) and I certainly would give you an answer straight away instead of wasting your time. I must say though, almost overwhelmingly everyone I've traded with on this site have been absolutely brilliant guys, friendly, informed and enthusiastic. I will continue to happily buy and sell using the forum, no problems. I think you've just got to have thicker skin about it all and take a lot of stuff on the chin.

No, there are some players that use a similar technique but it's probably worth looking into why you're doing this as most of these players are able to play both ways and it's not a particularly normal way of playing.

[quote name='Spike Vincent' post='1185443' date='Apr 2 2011, 12:05 AM']Agreed,and I don't,but if the tune requires 360 BPM E string then that's what I play.It has it's appeal..[/quote] 360BPM?? What kind of music are we talking here??

No, not at all. It came as a surprise to me that so many people avoid using open strings, and equally it surprises me that some choose to abstain from ever playing your G. I'm a positions player, so that I can allow for everything to fall under my fingers anywhere on the neck. I can understand if the music you play dictates that you should take on role that comprises of you playing in a lower register, but the 4 strings on my bass all get equal use and as someone said a little further up in the post, it's a great thing to be able to be unhindered by the full fret board of both guitar and bass.

[quote name='steve-soar' post='1185297' date='Apr 1 2011, 09:37 PM']Excellent post, Pete.[/quote] I thank you [s]Pete[/s] Steve [quote]But often it's the opposite, very formal: we play the tune, everyone takes a turn at playing a solo, then we play the tune again. And it's that context that you're likely the find the least inspiring solos - bass or otherwise.[/quote] The formalities of Jazz certainly exist, but I would be very turned off by listening to a group of musicians that worked in the way you describe. It's not a prerequisite for [u]everyone[/u] to solo, and I know many, many good players who are good at knowing when to hold back and say as little as possible and get across what they mean without having to take a solo. It's about good musicianship, and not about just rolling out on the formalities of going round the stage and making each player take a solo.

It's not 'sacrilege' to dislike a bass solo, I'm sure there's just as strong a contingency of people on this site that would agree with you. But jazz is about freeform and expression, and there have been some serious theoretical and technical jumps from people like Paul Chambers, Ron Carter and Charles Mingus who have been able to push the envelope with their formidable soloing skills. It's up to you what you like hearing from music though, what you're stating is purely your opinion, some might agree, and I'm sure some others won't.

I love the particular sound you're talking about, particularly the likes of Carol Kaye who was just such a great player. The production values of the time as well were really incredible. British bass players have never really done the same thing for me, apart from MacCartney's bass playing, who, together with George Martin, actually put a lot of thought into his bass parts and how he would be received by audiences listening for his bass parts. John Entwhistle had his place, I think he was a great player but really the polar opposite for what I look for when I listen to records, his playing could be way too brash for me. This isn't knocking the guy, it's just the way he liked to play, but it's not my thing.

They should find where Expert Village is and blow it the hell up. They are completely useless and best and at worst actually damaging for those trying to learn stuff from them.

Aren't these bassplayer.tv vids?

I use open strings as stepping stones to get to places and as passing notes, for example if I'm in F major I've got my major 3rd on the A, my major 6th and my 9th on the G, the major 6th and 9th in particular work well as stepping stones to get to other notes or the next chord, it's a classic James Jamerson trick. If I'm in C then I've got my 2nd on the D, a low major 3rd on the E below and my 5 on the G above etc. If the notes don't function in the key I'm playing in then you're only ever one note away from something that does and therefore you can just use them as chromatic passing notes if you want to.

GAK have been awful in the past with claiming to have things in stock when in fact they don't and will then delay posting an item to you whilst they order it in. I don't know the ins and outs of it but it must be in breach of advertising standards.

[quote name='ThomBassmonkey' post='1177395' date='Mar 26 2011, 04:37 PM']What is it about the really early P or J basses that makes them so desirable? I've never understood it personally, craftsmanship and quality has improved a lot since then, what makes them so special to play? I can appreciate the age of them, but I don't see that it specifically makes them a better instrument.[/quote] I love vintage Fenders for the looks and sounds, I've played a lot of Jazz's and P's but I've honestly always found that the older basses sound quite a lot better... maybe it's a bit of a psychological thing as well, but if I could own any bass and have to play it for the rest of my life it would be an early 70's Jazz.

#1 Sandberg California JJ/JM-4's and 5's - I've played a few of these now, I initially put off trying them out as I thought they wouldn't be my thing. As it turned out they're up there with the best basses I've ever played, and sound wise they outperformed every Sadowsky I've ever tried (and I've now tried a lot of them). Absolutely brilliant construction, electronics, looks and build quality. Brilliant basses! #2 late 80's/early 90's Musicman Stingrays - Probably the best kind of Stingrays I've come across, the simplicity of the 2-Band EQ and the ease of dialing in a very usable tone very quickly. Love the necks on Stingrays as well, they fit the hand so nicely. Not perfect for every situation but close enough that I'd happily use one. #3 F-Bass BN5 - I walked all over Stockholm one day trying to find this music store that claimed they had one in, only to get there and find out it was actually the Copenhagen store that had it! Grrrr... so when I finally did get to play one in NYC, it was a massive treat. Great bass, comprehensive EQ, extremely well built with the quirkiness of a boutique build and the traditional capabilities and playability of a 70's Ash bodied Fender Jazz on steroids. I tried an MTD 535 right after it and it totally paled in comparison, despite it being quite a bit more expensive. #4 Early 50's Fender P-Bass (Single coil) - I'll always be a Fender man at heart, and getting to play one of these really early P-Basses was like a dream come true, the sound that came out of this bass was just incredible; fundamental, warm and so fat. Like the Mecca of bass guitar. #5 1972 Fender Jazz Bass (Rosewood/Blocks, Sunburst and Tortoiseshell) - Belongs to a friend of mine, it was his Dad's and when he was given it it still had the original flatwounds on it that came with the bass, unfortunately he'd taken them off by the time I got to try it out for a gig but it still remains an era of the Fender Jazz bass that I would recommend people tried.

[url="http://www.synergydistribution.co.uk"]http://www.synergydistribution.co.uk[/url] Email Peter Brown, I've dealt with him due to endorsement offers and found him to be incredibly helpful, he'll be able to forward you the pricelist for custom order Sandbergs. EDIT - these guys are the UK distributors.