gjones

Not bad tempered discussion just intense. Usually the band is raring to get on stage as we are packing up but there was no sign of any bands after we finished. It was only as I was leaving that I saw all the gear, and what I assume was the Hendrix Band, in a band huddle. They were probably wondering if they should accept the 'half a set' deal, or just take the cash and go home. Sounds like everything got resolved in a cool and reasonable manner and everybody went home happy.

Ahhh.....so you were one of the double booked bands after us. Glad you got paid your full fee. See my post above.

I played at a local music bar in Edinburgh. There was a Spanish guy, I'd never met before, on the desk and he got a great sound onstage (I had to ask him to turn the bass down through my monitor - yes THAT good). Sound on stage was great, hope it was great out front too. As I was leaving I saw what I thought was a huge band bringing all their gear in - there must have been ten of them - and they were in a heated discussion. What I only learned later, was that they were two bands not one, as there had been a double booking for the slot after us. The bands were not happy and after some discussion they got to play half a set each, which must have been a real pain in the butt. The moral of this story is, if you're playing at a venue, check the Facebook site on the day of the gig so that you don't get a nasty surprise when you turn up.

I went to see The Waterboys, at Barrowlands Glasgow, in October last year. Mike Scott and Steve Wickham, the only surviving members of the original band, aren't exactly coffin dodgers (at 63 and 62) but they looked like they'd come to the end of the road, they'd had enough and wanted to go home. After that tour Steve Wickham actually did leave The Waterboys, he definitely was giving out the signals the enthusiasm wasn't there any more and neither of them had the energy.

One day I'll challenge myself to play everything in my covers band set on one string. I'm sure I could do it 😂

I've always been a Fender man, who has occasionally dabbled with the odd Stingray. But a few years ago I bought a G&L L2500 tribute and was amazed at how ridiculously versatile it was. It can do the P bass, Jazz bass and Stingray thing, without any drama. If I had to get rid of my basses and could only keep one, then the G&L would be the 'no brainer' choice.

I'm a fan of Will Lee. He used to be a member of the Letterman Show band. I remember seeing The Hothouse Flowers on the show. Their bass player wasn't available on the night so Will Lee stood in for him and he made the song his own by playing slap (which shouldn't really have worked) and adding some tasty fills. I'll think of another 4 session guys in a little while......meanwhile here's the performance.

I bought a secondhand 2014 Stingray from Guitar Guitar, in 2018, for £1200. At the time I bought it, they were going for about £900 on Basschat but were thin on the ground, and my impatience got the better of me. So when I saw one on the wall at GG I bought it. I have no idea what they're going for in GG nowdays. The Stingray Specials are now £3,000 new, which is far more than I would ever spend on a bass.

I had the same thing. I now tape the finger up at night to stop me curling my hand into a fist. It seems to have done the trick and I now have no more trigger finger. Hope yours has not got any worse.

I'm shocked! The Basschat world has been turned upside down!

I used to own a black MIJ P bass with a maple neck and it was lovely. You do have to change the pickguard to black as well though, to get the full effect. So on the basis of looks, I'd go for the maple neck.

Is it just to be used as an onstage monitor? The Fender Rumble 100 V3 is a great little amp. It's small, very light but loud enough to be used on it's own, with quiet drummers. I bought mine used for £165. I use it for small gigs,where it would be overkill to bring my big rig and as an onstage monitor for louder shows, where I'm going through the FOH PA.

They look real purty.

This is the title track from Justin Currie's first solo album. He described it as a diary of doom, full of songs he wrote which were too miserable for Del Amitri. He also said it got 5 stars with all the reviewers but sold eff all. Despite that it is a fantastic album and definitely has no filler.

I have a friend who used to play his original 70s Fender Jazz with his Americana style band, which had a very traditional bass sound. He then discovered, while in a guitar shop, an Ibanez fretless. He liked it so much that he bought it and now plays it exclusively in his band. He plays it in the same way he played his Jazz Bass and you can't tell, by listening, that he's playing a fretless. My point is that, if you can play your fretless like a fretted bass, then there's no reason for a band to not hire you because you play a fretless, as long you can be versatile and change the sound of your bass to suit the song. If you want to play with only one sound - the fretless sound in your clip - you'll only appeal to bands that want that fretless sound.

My opinion is there's nothing worse than grown men getting up on stage, in front of an audience, and sounding like a school band. I'm constantly bamboozled by some of my musician friends willingness to get up on stage and make a complete derrière of themselves, because they haven't been prepared to put some work in rehearsing and learning the songs to a decent level. I have great admiration in your loyalty to your friends. The singer definitely sounds delusional. I would definitely have bailed by now.

I bought a couple of basses from BD. The only personal interaction I had with Mark was when I'd missed the courier and he called me to give me their address so I could pick up my bass. He seemed fine over the phone. His specialised shop is a great facility for bass players and, however grumpy he may seem at times, we'll miss it when it's gone.

I though they were updating their website? It looks just the same to me.

My Experience of the Markbass CMD 121 P, is that it will do the lot. It can keep up with a loud drummer and can be used as an onstage monitor when going through the PA.

It's traditional for bass players to stand rooted to the spot looking like they don't give a f*ck.

My first gig with my old band for 2 1/2 years, as the singer had serious health issues over the lockdown. Luckily she has made a full recovery. It went really well, I had a great time and we've got plenty more booked in the diary.

When I bought a G&L 2500 I was amazed at the sounds I could get out of it. It has two humbuckers which can be put in parallel, or series mode. You can have any sound from a fat Precision on neck pickup, Jazz bass on series mode (good Jaco sound on back pickup), or Stingray on parallel mode through the rear pickup. It's also active and has a bass and treble boost. When people talk about the 2500, the first word that comes to mind is versatile.

The days of playing toilets are far behind me. Not that I play super, well paying, gigs all the time. I just play venues where we don't have to drive for miles, the audiences are enthusiastic and the sound engineers know what they're doing.

I know the feeling. I bought a Fender Elite PJ that cost just shy of two grand. I'd seen so many great reviews of the Elites and it was supposed to be 'The One' but although it is a very well put together bass and is very versatile for a P bass, I just haven't bonded with it. On the other hand, I had some parts hanging around.....a Squier VM jazz bass maple body, the maple neck from my ever first P bass(which I'd played a thousand gigs on over the years) and a set of USA 70s vintage pickups. When I put them all together everything felt 'right' and I fell in love with that bass immediately. I say go for the Tokai if you feel the same about it.