Davo-London

Agree about drum solos. They only work, as do bass solos, if the rhythm section stays on stage and play together. I know - that's a duet but drums need bass and vice versa. Take one of those away and you've got bread and no jam. Or worse, jam and no bread (need to be politically correct). Love Joe Morrello BTW. I have never enjoyed Buddy Rich. Weird - so much skill but never quite managed to play the song. I'm also a drummer BTW. Davo

Why have an American artist in the Euros? I mean with all the European talent available, do we really need an American on the show at all? It sends all the wrong messages to the USA, ie they are best etc. They are not. Davo

Here's my plan for minimal embarrassment: Stop bankrolling the event We will have to qualify We will hardly ever qualify so no embarrassment in the final If we do qualify and all the voters who take this seriously might just vote for us because we have been through the qualifier and they have heard the song. Davo

No, but I had a truly dreadful Rosetti bass to start with - the string separation was about 10 mm and the action was nasty. However, as this was the 70's my next bass was a USA Precision. This had its' issues (bridge in the wrong place etc) but the sound was chalk and cheese when compared to the starter bass. I still have this bass! Davo

Argh, you ignored all my advice. How come you're so wise! 🙄

Three things to say: Buy used. Why? Because they are played in. When you try them - that's exactly how it's going to feel from now on. I have never ever in 40 years needed to play with the truss rod on any of my basses. Plus of course, they have a bit (or lot) of mojo and mystery. Plus you get better bang for buck. Photograph yourself as if you're holding a bass. Then superimpose basses on your body to see what takes your fancy. Spend some time trying a Precision and a Jazz to see which neck you prefer the feel of. This is the litmus test and should then help in reducing your list to a sensible number. Peace Davo

I did and good shout. Good point about DB, the hand position is different on DB but again it is important to start with good technique. I'm a drummer too and the hand technique is so important to get right to prevent all sorts of posture issues (back, shoulders, legs, ankles etc). Fortunately with drums, even with horrible drums as long as the skins are at a reasonable tension the bounce is all you need to get good technique. A double bass will always have high(ish) action and so that's part of playing the instrument. Interesting exposition ... Davo

Not sure I buy this. Firstly, if you have a guitar or bass with a high action it will not encourage you to play. Secondly, applying high pressure to the stings may lead to poor technique and wrist problems in the future. I do think a beater will help a learner appreciate a good bass in future. But if you pick well, a modern beater bass may feel good, with a nice low action. So I'm not sure of the value of the beater as suggested by the OP. interesting thought though, but I'm not buying. Peace Davo

I can't say I do this by choice. But after 40 years of playing, I'm bound to slip in some Jaco or Sting without realising. Anyway, as long as you're not overplaying it's all good. Peace Davo

How about sizing the basses based on numbers sold. So the Precision would take up most of the page and the Grabber, for example, would be tiny? : ) Davo

Steve Gadd - drums Alex Acuna - percussion Linley Marthe - bass Dave Gilmour - Guitar Paul Desmond - Sax I want to hear this band ... Davo

My wife says that Weather Report sounds like several musicians playing their own tune plus there's no melody. She can't understand why TBP would want to disguise the tune they're covering. I mean, where do you start ... Davo

Drums: Vinnie Colaiuta or Stewart Copeland Bass: me ... (obvs), if I'm unavailable, Pino Palladino or Chris Squire Vocals: Michael Buble Geetar: Jimi Hendrix Gonna sound terrible but what fun ...

Jaco Pastorius was the biggie for me, because a) he was a super-hero, b) the nature of his death and c) I didn't find out till months after his death. The other was Josef Zawinul. I had seen him the year before he died in concert and he/his band were awesome. Davo

Very cool McNach. I confess with all the Jazzes I've played, I find the Jazz neck PU sounds a bit disappointing and not very Precision-like. Curiously my neck Jazz PU (Nordstrand) on a custom Cliff Bordwell ball bass sounds better and more like a Precision bass than any Fender Jazz. I can't explain that as the ball bass is totally non-Fender in wood and design (walnut, neck-through, shape, 2-octave neck etc). I'm sure it's not the Norstrands as I've put them in a Fender Jaco Jazz bass (MIJ) and still don't like the neck-only PU sound. Totally flummoxed. Great to see your experimentation. Can you define the difference in sound between the two neck PU positions? Regards Davo

Something went wrong there - can the moderators delete the space?

Interesting. I love that Jaco-soloed-bridge Jazz tone. It is odd to think that this couldn't be done successfully with a PJ setup. However, ... I'd like a P-bass but with 2 jazz pickups and no Precision pickup. Why? Well, I have several Ps and love them. I want a 60/61 Jazz bass but these, for some reason, seem to be quite expensive. I have considered "adjusting" a cheap pre-CBS Precision - obviously, one that's been messed about - and slotting in a couple of bare-knuckle Jazz PUs along with 2 tone and 2 volume pots a la 1960/61 Jazzes. This then enables a full range of tones from a lightweight and compact "Jazz", ie a Precision! Then you choose between the P-bass or the J-ish-bass. Start the slaying ... Peace Davo

In 40 years of playing I have never ever broken a flatwound string. I have broken 2 maybe 3 roundwound strings. Flatwound players tend not to abuse their strings / basses whereas metal bass players will be using stainless steel rounds and giving them hell. These are the strings that you need to stock!! Hope this doesn't offend any metal players out there I am simply going from observation. Peace Davo

So what does everyone use? I can't find a band for toffees. Davo

Kraftwerk and Weather Report Davo

Try some stainless steel roundwound strings and report back. Davo

Wiki states that string players can get sub-harmonics (undertones) by applying a lot of pressure from the bow onto the string. How do we do that with our hands? Davo