jude_b

I like the words in BGM that you don't see (very often) in any other context, e.g. 'knurled' and 'chamfered'. I'm still not quite sure what any of it means, despite playing for over twenty years. I agree that there is rarely any real criticism in the reviews. Commercially, it must be difficult slating equipment - they're not going to get much advertising revenue from the manufacturer afterwards. The writing and the player interviews could be much much better. They're generally very banal. Bass Player certainly used to have much better writing and good transcriptions - I still go back to the transcriptions they had in a Jaco edition years ago.

I had a Roadie fretless for a number of years, but sold it because there wasn't much call for a fretless in anything I was involved with and the neck felt particularly thin and delicate for my taste (and I have generally had a jazz as my main bass). It was a really well made and reliable bass though. I would definitely try one before you buy to get a feel for how a Jaydee plays.

I like two kinds of music - Country [i]and[/i] Western. Sorry, Adam Clayton joke. I love lots of Country stuff - as someone (kind of) says above - it's difficult to be interested in 20th century American music and not have some leanings to Country. Lot of interesting links back to folk and interaction with the blues. It's often not the most entertaining thing to play on bass, but if you're backing someone who's doing something good, who cares?

Jam Guitars in Bristol have a new one going for £800 (they're just around the corner from me). Unfortunately they're closing the shop on 11 March - so you'll need to be quick. Link below: [url="http://www.jamguitars.co.uk/sandbergbass.htm"]http://www.jamguitars.co.uk/sandbergbass.htm[/url]

Without hesitation I would recommend getting Stuart Clayton's 'Ultimate Slap Bass'. I've been playing for over 20 years now having used a number of books over the years, but decided to work through this book whilst taking a break from bands during my daughter's first couple of years. This followed from a discussion of the book on this forum. I thought I was reasonably ok at slapping, but this book has really helped tighten my technique up and taught me some new tricks. It's very easy to follow, has a couple of good CD's and I wish it had been out when I first started playing. I personally find that playing slap bass is something I tend to do at home, and it very rarely gets used in anger - the odd RHCP cover or funk number having been the exceptions. Throwing in my full penny's worth, I also think that slap is a bit like doing ball juggling tricks in football - it may look quite impressive but it is much more important to be able to play sympathically with the 'rest of the team' so to speak.

I didn't think this was that bad as these things go - a reasonable mix between the vituoso and 'big band' bassists. Where's Kim Deal though? I only just noticed how good her lines and sound are after digging out a Pixies album today - and I'm not being sarcastic here!

I have had a couple of basses repaired and set up by Jon Kinkade in Kingsdown, Bristol (a google search should get you his details). He actually hand builds acoustic guitars, but did an excellent job. I don't know how much he'd charge for a set up because my costs included repair work, but they both played wonderfully afterwards. Hope this helps.

Thanks - there but for the grace of god etc.

Apologies if this has been posted before, but it made me laugh anyway. [url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzXgL9V8Qm0&feature=related"]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pzXgL9V8Qm0...feature=related[/url]

Thanks for posting these. I laughed at the first Mark King video more than the clip of Alistair Campbell winding up Adam Boulton recently.

[quote name='pete.young' post='821193' date='Apr 27 2010, 09:13 PM']This from the man who proposed Shakin' Stevens? Dunno if there's an award for the most pointless thread on Basschat ever, but for my money this is a clear winner.[/quote] Speaking only as an occasional contributor, I quite like reading threads like this - I've listened and got into lots of music on the back of seeing what other people like, whatever form the question is dressed up as. I even enjoy the occasional 'Adam Clayton is better than Jaco is better than Stanley Clarke whose tone is really rubbish' threads. I should therefore throw my tuppence in: Bass playing genius - Ray Brown, on the basis that, to my ear, his note selection, phasing and musicality is unreasonably perfect. Jolie Holland - for writing 'Mexican Blue' on her third album. George Clinton - for the whole thing about putting his sunglasses on in 'P-Funk'.

I tend to agree with those that have said that it's up to the seller. Whilst a clear and open ad will encourage buyers, I can understand why people may be reticent about giving out their location to all and sundry. One thing I really like about this forum is the openness and I consider that the people on it are generally 'good sorts' (being bass players), however I don't expect others to share these views. Whilst it is helpful to know if you will be able to easily undertake a collection, the PM system seems to me to be adequate for establishing where people are. My concern about a template, is that, being an overly reliant on the soundman/plug in and play type, I probably don't know enough about the technical aspects of basses to adequately complete one!

Thanks for the comments so far, which, as usual, are really helpful. To be completely honest, I personally wouldn't expect to need the additional range too often in a typical group situation - although I can see the possibilities the C string gives for melodic playing. In most circumstances my mindset is to accompany others and flights of fancy are usual left to home practice. I think the point about weight is important - I haven't got any back problems at the moment (touch wood) and I hadn't really considered this after having played relatively light basses in the past. My main thoughts about using a guitar-type tuning is simply down to laziness, based on the fact that I play acoustic guitar and could see how chord shapes/melody patterns on the top strings could easily translate over. I'm not averse to 'alternative' tunings as they can obviously be very handy in guitar playing. The point about slapping being more difficult is also a bit of a concern, although I'd hope playing the acoustic guitar should mean that I might be able to cope with the narrower string spacing. I also like the idea that, by having the extra strings give you more options for phrasing because you don't necessarily have to move your hand up the neck, say, to make wider intervals. The problem is, as another post recently pointed out, there aren't a lot of shops with a range of 6-string basses to try out - I guess I'll have to take the opportunity at different shops over the next few months. Thanks again.

Hello, I'm thinking about going for a 6-string bass some time later in the year. I was hoping that some of you who already play 6-string basses could give me the benefit of your experience: - Do you find that you use your 6-string as a working instrument, or does it tend to be a bit of an ornament? I realise 6-string playing is more associated with some types of music rather than others, and, of course, it depends on the player. However, I'm interested in the practical experience of others. - Does anyone use a guitar-type tuning with a low-B [i.e. B-E-A-D-F#-B] or even an E-A-D-G-B-E tuning with two 'high' strings? - Any key considerations about what to look out for when buying? I'm going to try to find somewhere that has a range of 6'ers before buying, but would be interested to see if there is any kind of consensus about the best string spacing, neck width etc etc. This likely to be a while off, however, any insights would be appreciated. Thanks.

Simple but effective: the bass solo on Lenny Kravitz's "It ain't over 'til it's over". Tacky eighties: there was a really really good bass solo on a 12" version of Freedom by Wham. A solo from a song I actually like: Flea's solo from Aeroplane on One Hot Minute.

[quote name='RhysP' post='708803' date='Jan 11 2010, 01:43 PM']I'm pretty sure it was a "real" bass sampled into Dolby's Fairlight & then sequenced. I'm a big fan of Thomas Dolby.[/quote] Phew. Thanks.