EssentialTension

[quote name='Panamonte' timestamp='1471422644' post='3112896'] ... he stuck a Tele p/up on his P bass ... [/quote] Presumably one of these ...

[quote name='xroads' timestamp='1471436437' post='3113026'] ... I have removed the preceived stiffness of strings a few times by just adjusting the truss rod.... [/quote] Another way to remove or reduce perceived stiffness, or lack of compliance, is to pluck nearer to the 12th fret. While the tension on a string is the same all along its length, the apparent compliance on a string is greatest near its centre (i.e. 12th fret) and lesser near the bridge and so, unlike tension, varies along the length of the string.

You can't tell tension from gauge alone or flat/round alone. It's mass per unit length of string that matters (plus scale length plus pitch). Hence the internal construction of the string makes a difference because it makes a difference to the mass per unit length. The same internal construction with a larger gauge will mean higher tension (at same scale length and pitch) but if the internal construction changes then there is no straightforward telling of the effect on tension from a different gauge. This is complicated by the fact that tension ought not to be confused with compliance or elasticity which is not the tension of the string at pitch but its feel (or perception) under the fingers. Like tension, compliance is affected by internal string construction - e.g. hexcore/roundcore - but possibly by other factors that have no effect on tension such as break angle at the nut. [url="http://www.liutaiomottola.com/myth/perception.htm"]http://www.liutaiomottola.com/myth/perception.htm[/url]

http://youtu.be/GIAtE6ywgwA

http://youtu.be/XBw25CrUS-o

If it's your body chemistry, have you tried gloves?

[quote name='RhysP' timestamp='1471358036' post='3112453'] Not by me it wouldn't be. Never heard of it. [/quote] I've no familiarity with about half the things being mentioned.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1471342098' post='3112238'] I don't have, and have never had a party piece. If people really want to know what I can do I'd far rather put on a couple of tracks from what ever I've most recently recorded. ... [/quote] Good thinking. I'd opt for saying 'here, listen to our CD'.

But frankly I wouldn't play anything. It would be like meeting Ken Dodd and saying 'go on, tell a joke, make me laugh'. And anyway Ken Dodd is much funnier than my bass playing.

How much are they paying for this party piece?

[quote name='stingrayPete1977' timestamp='1471012799' post='3110002'] I'm not gay but my boyfriend is. [/quote] He's professional but you're only a hobbyist?

Expensive ... but I have gigged an amplified Takamine B10 in an five piece acoustic guitars/ukulele/tenor guitar + piano + bass + drums with never any feedback. I don't see why some other cheaper acoustic bass could not work; especially with careful handling and some appropriate eq. And it looks the part ...

[quote name='skankdelvar' timestamp='1470932304' post='3109459'] It is strange that so much narrow-minded belligerence is directed at Blue simply because he has a more selective date range of influences and dares to admit as much. For his behaviour is unexceptional and in line with most normal peoples' experiences. Research conclusively demonstrates that in Western society one's personal tastes begin to solidify in one's teens, accrete through one's 20's (as do the layers around a pearl) and tend to be firmly set by the age of about 35. Thereafter there is no innate, physiological, psychological or legal requirement that one continue to evolve one's palate beyond this point. It is simply a matter of choice or availability. ([i]Note to self: Whatever happened to Spangles?[/i]) Some (like Blue, me and many, [i]many[/i] others) are happy to continue to engage with that which we already know. A minority may follow the path of eclecticism; I would heartily encourage them in their search, particularly if it is a means of coping with old age and imminent mortality. It would however be nice if the 'adventurous' few could extend their broad-mindedness to incorporate the more commonly-held acceptance that other peoples views, tastes and choices may differ from one's own yet be in no way inferior. [color=honeydew].[/color] [/quote] In my view, Blue's problem is not his limited range of influences but his expectation that anyone of his age will have a similar limited range of influences. However, he's unavoidably at liberty to hold his view, as are you or indeed is anyone, but the price of expressing said position is that others may disagree or disapprove. Shocking maybe, but that's life. Please feel free to disagree or disapprove if you feel that my view is in any way inferior.

... and on another occasion: 'You're not really tall enough to play bass'. [I am 5' 10", if that even matters.]

[quote name='barneyg42' timestamp='1470917962' post='3109327'] ... the way he nods his head ... [/quote] An audience member once said to me: 'I like the way you nod your head. Have you considered joining a reggae band?'

[quote name='barneyg42' timestamp='1470733482' post='3107943'] Adam Clayton.........apparently talentless? [/quote] Not so talentless that he couldn't hold down the job for close on forty years. [quote name='barneyg42' timestamp='1470733482' post='3107943'] Mark King.......sounds like a bag of spanners? [/quote] Not my cup of tea but the idea that he is no more talented than a bag of spanners is ridiculous. [quote name='barneyg42' timestamp='1470733482' post='3107943'] Matt Bellamy......nods his head funny!! [/quote] Is that the highly talented guitarist etc from Muse?

[quote name='Big_Stu' timestamp='1470862253' post='3109080'] ... What tickles me is I know a handful of fully pro players and had extended conversations with a few others and I've never once heard anyone of any note say anything derogatory about a fellow pro. There must be some kind of glass ceiling that you get through where you just live and let live. [/quote] Old story about saxophonist Charlie Parker which i recall reading ... Apparently he took a bandmate out for a drink. They went to a bar where a band was playing; Parker saying to the other guy 'You gotta see this band, I've heard them a few times now'. In the bar, Parker's friend says 'Charlie, they are awful'. Parker says, 'Yes, but they've really improved, you should have seen them last week, they keep getting better'.

[quote name='blue' timestamp='1470771242' post='3108371'] No hate, however when your my age, these guys are not relevant to me. The guys I like and have influenced, me cone out of the 60s & 70s. Blue [/quote] It's got nothing to do with your age. If you want to say somethign about your own very narrow grasp of music and its history then that's fair enough. Own it for yourself. But I'm in the same age group as you (I'm 64) but have totally different attitudes to music. So don't blame your narrow mindedness on your age group.

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1470662001' post='3107420'] Go through the "goods to declare" channel and pay the VAT and duties if applicable. There's a good chance that you'll just get waved through anyway and told not to waste the customs time (although don'y count on it). Also remember that if you're buying in the US for export you shouldn't have to pay US sales tax on your purchase. [/quote] Good advice. If you do get asked to pay then expect it to be approx 22% of the declared value.

If you get caught attempting to evade payment of the tax and duty then, as well as having to pay the tax, HMRC can confiscate the goods.

[quote name='The-Ox' timestamp='1470356091' post='3105507'] Although the Doors had a string of session musicians on bass, they didn't have one for their debut album, i think [/quote] Larry Knechtel on some tracks but not credited on the LP cover. But keyboard bass throughout.

[quote name='ivansc' timestamp='1469651516' post='3100123'] ... There is no "has to pay" about it ... [/quote] Equally, there is no 'has to buy' about it.

[quote name='discreet' timestamp='1469629210' post='3099867'] I though long and hard about possible replies to this, but most are unsuitable... [/quote] Ah, discretion, very good.

[quote name='FinnDave' timestamp='1469627940' post='3099848'] We're The Wirebirds, there is a more recent live audio of it here: [url="https://www.lemonrock.com/thewirebirds?page=mp3s"]https://www.lemonroc...birds?page=mp3s[/url] but I'm not aware of any decent video. [/quote] That's good. Looking at the rest of your material there, no offence meant at all because it sounds good, but I'd be wanting to do more of the obscurer ones like [i]My Dog[/i] and fewer standards - most of the ones there I have played at one time or another.

What appears to the audience as being covered is often in their imagination, based of course on their own experiences. I was recently in a band that performed a version of Jambalaya - a song which I have always associated with Hank Williams who wrote and recorded it around 1952. But our singer and many audience members experienced it as a Carpenters' song. Our version was like neither Williams nor Carpenters. And so, The Carpenters, what an excellent covers band they were.