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Franticsmurf

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  1. I used to think I hated Mustang Sally, mainly through endlessly playing it in bands/duos and the inevitable 'mom dancing' (is that a thing?) that would accompany it. We ended up vetoing it in the band. Then after about 5 years of not playing it. It was requested at a function and we had to do it. And I enjoyed playing it! What I actually hated was the baggage surrounding it. I feel the same dislike of Wonderwall and I haven't played that one for a few years either. It's not one I would ever suggest but I am open to that possibility that coming back to it with fresh fingers might change that opinion. So I guess my answer to the OP is no, nothing I hate with a passion.
  2. And the other 43.2% are based on inaccurate or false data. 😃 I have a 5 string Sterling. I keep thinking I should sell as I rarely play it - and then a song comes up that 'needs' it. That said, it's currently resting, as are my small (for a 5 string bassist) hands. 😃
  3. I've been using a cheap picnic table from Go Outdoors for the last year or so. I like having the speakers raised and for gigs where I use backline, the picnic table raises them about 18"/50cm of the ground. It folds up flat and if necessary I can drape a black cloth over it to make it more inconspicuous.
  4. Yes, definitely. When I'm learning a new song I start by getting the basic structure right so that I can play through the song at a rehearsal, and then go back to pick up the fills and twiddles. More often than not I will make up my own fills that suit my ability and style and the arrangement we settle on. I'm not a purist and I'm more interested in adding something different than slavishly following the original. But it's quite educational to go back to a song that I know and have played for years to find out what was originally being played and I've learnt some new techniques by doing that. Every day is, indeed, a school day. 😃 I recently had an offer of an audition and one of the pieces they asked me to learn was 'Fool For Your Lovin'. I'd played that many times so no problem, but the band asked me to learn it note for note as this was the way they did all their covers. I decided (for the reasons above) that the band wasn't for me and they appreciated that. But as an exercise I decided to learn the original bass part myself. What a revelation! The song I thought I knew had far more happening on bass that I had ever realised.
  5. I rehearse with the Hulla band most Sundays. For most of them, it's the only time they play and the night is as much a social gathering as a practice. Beer flows (they're all within walking distance of the hall we use) and for me and the drummer (30 minutes drive away) there's tea! If a birthday has been celebrated that week, there's always cake and we've had 'Pie 'n' Mash' nights, wine tasting etc as well. Last night was a regular rehearsal (our next gig is at the end of April so we're working on new stuff rather than working up a set) but for some reason it clicked and it was one of the best sessions playing as a band I've had with them. The sound was good (it usually is but last night was better), the song mix was all up tempo and mostly the rockier stuff we do and we sailed through the new songs with little or no pauses for clarification. Edit: We played Whole of the Moon and Come Up and See Me as a little tribute to Karl Wallinger and Steve Harley. Both songs are regulars in the set anyway but it seemed a nice thing to do. I used my Sire Marcus Miller V5, which has been resting for a few months, through the Zoom B6 directly into the desk with a mix out to my in-ears. I tend to use two main patches on the B6 at the moment, both tweaked to my liking. One is based on a clean SVT4 andf I have the option to bring in chorus, flange and overdrive. The other is based on a clean Trace Elliot and that has the option to add chorus, flange and echo. Last night I tried out a fretless patch (nice but didn't add to the song) and an untouched patch ('Progressive') which gave me a nice clanky Ricky sound that will be staying on the board.
  6. So it was quite quiet and poorly attended but the bass solo was great? 😂
  7. I think, from my experience and from comments made on this site, that the standard UK bar/pub gig is moving towards 2hrs+. When I started playing live, we were using an agent and the contracts were mostly on the working men's club circuit. Usually there were two acts (most of the time I played it was a band and a solo singer) and they'd share the bill with the bingo. Each act would have 2x45 minutes and often it would be Act 1, Act 2, break, Act 1, Act 2. The mid set break was to allow several games of bingo to be played. I don't know what the equivalent venue in the US would be, but in South Wales these places were clubs for the coal miners and other industrial workers set up as mini theatres. A village might have grown up around a mine and the only entertainment to be had would be in the club. As a result, some of these places were really well equipped with a proper stage, decent dressing rooms and subsidised bars. In the early 90s when I started, there were even rules that banned women from the bar (!) and that no one could dance during the first half of the act.
  8. Most of the gigs I play are booked as 2x45min but it's rare we play for less than 2hrs and I'm more than happy with that. With the Hulla band, the band leader is a Bruce Springsteen fan and when I first joined he had never considered a break (and the others in the band never challenged him) because 'The Man' plays long gigs. The first full gig I played with them was at the festival they organise every year. It's a multi act line up going on all day and we finish the event. I had an idea when I saw the set list of 35 songs it would be long, but with the some extended intros, chats with the audience, chorus repeats to let the crowd dance and sing along and a pause while the three memebers of the band who are RNLI volunteers had to ensure there was cover when the alarms went off (three RNLI volunteers in the audience were on call that night), it ended up just under 4 hrs. Last year's festival gig (my third with them) was 4.5hrs with a 15 minute break (one of the things I brought to the party). I remember flagging a bit during the 3rd hour before picking up again as the style of music changed to a more energetic style. I don't mind too much in that band as we have fun within the band (there are 13-14 on stage depending on the songs) but the reality is that having two acts to fill the same time would be better for the audience.
  9. I find the same with auditions (not that I've had many) and depping. If you approach with that attitude it can also help take some of the stress and pressure away from the experience.
  10. I did that for an audition a couple of years ago - I think I had five specific and the full setlist as an indicator of what the band did. Like you, I knew quite a few and I made sure I could busk through all of them (having nailed the specific 5 of course). Flew through the 5, then the second bassist due to audition didn't turn up and they had an hour left on the studio booking, so we played the rest of the set. I got the gig but even if I hadn't, being familiar with the other songs made it a fun evening rather than a quick in-and-out for all. Good luck with your audition.
  11. The exchange rate fluctuates wildly depending on how hungry you are. 😃 In this case it was additional to the agreed fee so it was hard to tell what financial market they based their figures on. 😃
  12. It's a lovely old building. Glad it was a good gig and gutted I couldn't make it. But... we got part payment for our gig in bacon. You can't beat that! 😃
  13. Just the one broken ankle, Dave? Hardly worth mentioning. When I were a lad, I gigged with two broken ankles, a dislocated knee, a finger gaffa taped on after losing it to a lift door blah blah... 😂
  14. It was a good night despite my last minute gear swapping. It was a well attended local version of the Caravan and Camper club, with about 50 people in a smallish rugby club lounge, which made the atmosphere good. We did a mix of oldies and rock n roll as the audience were largely of retirement age. I don't like playing to backing tracks but the ones we used last night were of good quality. The singer uses them for his solo act but I've only played to these once or twice, years ago so the endings were a bit hit or miss. But the atmosphere in the room was good and it didn't seem to spoil things. I had planned on using the Bass VI for some of the lively rock and roll but the backing tracks had a prominent bass to them so the VI sat largely unused. It did arouse the interest of one punter and we had a chat about it as he'd never heard of the model before. We did about a quarter of the set with just two guitars and no backing. I was pleased with my backing vocals - I could hear them through the PA without in-ears, which is a rarity, and I got complimented on them. I went with this pedal combo in the end which went into a BAM200 with the tone set as neutral as possible (thanks to info supplied from people of this parish). This drove my Basschat designed home made 12" cab. I took my Zoom B4 for the drum machine as an emergency back up (I've played with this singer when his laptop with all the backing tracks has just died) and we used it for one song. It was ok as a back up. By the end of the night we had picked up a garden party gig for the band, another duo gig for the Caravan club, a band gig for the Caravan club's Christmas bash and a booking (to be confirmed) at the rugby club. We were paid a little extra (which is always nice) and we had bacon! How many gigs pay in bacon? 😃 I tested it this morning:
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