Franticsmurf

Chris Squire - generally from the first Yes album I owned, Yesshows, and specifically this bass solo from Ritual. At the time (way before the Internet) I only had the audio recording and I was convinced this was a guitar solo because in my limited experience, no bassist played like this. I don't think I've come close in terms of technique and I don't own a 4001 but I do tend to play at the dusty end of the neck, often play with a pick and I like that gritty sound (where appropriate).

EHX Bass Clone is my chorus of choice.

Hi Joseph, welcome back.

Oh, the irony. 😃 I had the phone call at 11.30 this morning and I said yes, mainly because the singer is a mate and they needed a bass player at short notice. I decided to do the gig and see how things worked out before deciding whether to make it a long term commitment. I'm just back from their rehearsal. It was better than I expected. The old singer is taking a much less prominent role and the two guitarists and the keys player are very good (I've worked with the keys player before). They are also putting a lot of effort into it and it shows, with great vocal harmonies and nice arrangements. It's still very much a 'music of the Eagles' act rather than the full blown tribute.

Stop it! 😃 If this carries on, I'll have a rainbow catalogue of pick guards. 'Monday, it must be Infra Red checker pattern pickguard day'. I have a tort PG on order, and a paisley one too, both from Amazon. Now I have to order a black one. 🙄

I have a MS60b which sits on the board to provide me with the odd spot effect (currently delay, flange and a couple of specific EQ settings). In the event of a problem with one or more of the other pedals, or a lack of space (it has happened) it would give me all I needed to complete the gig. Be warned that the batteries (2xAA) don't - I had a low battery warning from a fresh set after about 60 minutes of intermittent use. The unit prefers a high current (500ma) power source. Solid as a rock and great sounds. I also use a B1Four - mainly for home/headphone practice with a set of sounds that loosely mirror my main board. For a big and/or remote gig, I'd take it as a back-up. Feels a bit more flimsy but I've had no problems. The editing software for both (Zoom Guitar Lib or ToneLib) is a must.

"Finally found the Dog and Duck. Any chance you can help me in with the kit? Most of it is in the first van..."😃

Someone who doesn't perpetuate the common drummer jokes. Someone who can catch a flying drumstick and return it in one smooth movement. Someone to have a pie and a pint with during the second movement of the inevitable long guitar solo.

Welcome AmericanSwede.

Not a failing, just different. I couldn't have played in the Eagles tribute band without having another band to allow me to play the range of styles I like.

And me. Thank goodness! 🤣

As I said we were using the residency angle as a promotion of the band ('we're good enough to get a regular booking') so we would invite potential bookers to see us. If we knew there was a function gig on offer, our set would contain some function standards. Like you, nothing wildly different, but varied enough to showcase what we could do. As I recall (and it was a while ago) we got 4 or 5 wedding gigs, several birthday parties and quite a few pub bookings as a result. And one Christening! (The father saw us at the pub and asked us to play the post Christening party, everyone else on the guest list was blissfully unaware of what he'd booked until we kicked off with the pub set he'd specifically requested. He was not popular afterwards, apparently).

For us it was as we were able to use the gigs as a showcase for what the band could do, and also over the residency period it meant we didn't get stale playing the same stuff all the time. (It happened later when the set list stagnated and was one reason I left the band. Comically, I depped for them several times over the following years and didn't have to learn any new songs. 🤣) But on the other hand, if the venue has booked you it's probably because they like what you do and so why do anything different? It might be worth chatting with the venue to see what they want. And, of course, judging what the punters want.

Me too. Could be out instrument of choice - often the bass isn't the most distinctive of sounds in a mix. Also, having been working through some old rock 'n' roll recently, the recordings aren't the best because of the tech available at the time, and in a few recordings, the bass is all over the place (in a bad way). What @Linus27 said. Also, just experimenting with your set list in the comfort and privacy of your own home. Try runs to link the simple bass lines. If it works, practice it. If it doesn't, try something else. Try playing thirds or fifths instead of the root notes so you're harmonising with the bass notes of the chord. If your walking lines ascend, make them descend instead (and vice versa). And remember that sometimes the simple bassline is the best bassline for the song. 😃

The dream. 😃 I would expect a drummer to be able to play competently to the level of the band they are seeking to join, and by that I mean have a sense of timing and ability to play appropriately to the song. I would also expect decent kit and the means to get it reliably to the venue. Edit: Those are givens. The attributes I would look for once the above has been established is the same as I would look for in any musician and which I try to show myself. In no particular order: 1. The ability to get on with the rest of the band. This includes being able to take and give constructive criticism and willingness to try things that they wouldn't necessarily play have done. 2. Self awareness - for example holding their hands up to a mistake without trying to shift the blame. Everyone makes mistakes and I wouldn't expect a perfect performance every time. The measure is not if you make a mistake, but what you do to minimise the chance of it happening again. Also realising without being told that their superb fill is not appropriate. 3. Commitment.

We had a similar arrangement with two pubs. One booked us every 6 weeks weeks for about 18 months, the other was roughly every two months for a couple of years. I liked the familiarity and the certainty. We had enough material to vary the set, keeping a core of favourites to which we added as required. It was a good chance to try out new material on a known audience. Beware of becoming too complacent - it would have been too easy to treat them as easy gigs. We tried to approach them with the same attitude as other gigs, i.e. play well and we'll get another booking. One benefit was getting additional special occasion bookings at the same venue - Halloween and New Year's Eve were regulars even after we finished the residency. Another was getting bookings for private parties and functions from the regulars who saw us often. It looked good on our publicity, too. One downside was that we had very negative responses when trying to get gigs at other venues in the local areas of both residencies (which were themselves in different towns) which extended beyond the residency period. In one this was due to a rivalry between the venues themselves, we later discovered. Overall, I found it a positive experience and we gained more from it that we lost. Good luck. 😃

Harley Benton Landrover. Cool. 😃

It's more that undefined 'something' about the way a long scale Landrover shapes the body of the towed guitar. And, of course, you can get more basses into a LWB, which means more distressed instruments on each outing, thus reducing the unit cost. 😃

I just googled 'TE elf cab cover' and there are several UK suppliers of after market covers. I have no experience of any of them, hence no links here. I think the Elf 1x10 combo has a TE cover available, which should fit the cab only, but the handle cut-out will be different.

I prefer the long scale Landrover tone personally. 😃

For a couple of years I was in an Eagles tribute band called 'The Long Road' as a result of our agent suggesting there was a market for that kind of thing. Do you have to be a fan of the original artist, or maybe you become one? I wasn't. Our regular band was playing a few of their songs on rotation and I could take or leave them. I found that making the effort to learn the proper arrangements made me appreciate the music and musicians more, but I never became a fan. How important is it to be visually/musically identical? How much latitude are you allowed? No amount of digital manipulation would have made us look like them, so we styled ourselves as an evening of 'music by the Eagles'. 😃 Do you ‘get into character’ or is it just a gig? Given the above, I think an attempt to get into character would have been a disaster. At the time, my main bass was a Steinberg Spirit headless, which I thought wasn't in keeping with the 'spirit' (sorry) of the Eagles, so I borrowed an Epiphone EB0 and ended up using a Cort Jazz bass copy. The rest of the band continued with what they had, (which wasn't too out of place) and we didn't really try to look or act like a Southern Rock band. Does it feel musically limiting, or is it fulfilling your needs? (Maybe you have a side band?) The Long Road was our side band. The regular band (The Insiderz - same line-up, different set list) continued in parallel. I personally found playing a set of Eagles songs limiting as it's not my cup of tea, and the bass lines weren't varying enough for me. I'm not the best singer, so backing vocals were a big challenge. The two bands together worked for me as each generated work for the other with re-bookings etc. Do you have any qualms about tributes ‘stifling original music’? No more than I have any covers band 'stifling' original music. We were playing agent-booked venues that wouldn't consider an original band, and no self respecting original music venue would have booked us. 😃 Have you ever met or been seen by a member of the ‘originals’? What did they say? No. Thank goodness. I'm sure they would have been appalled and given their roots I'm sure we would have been run out of town on the end of ropes tied to horses. 🤣 What is the overriding thing being in a tribute act has taught you? 1: It's a lot of work to do it properly (our singer didn't put as much effort in as was required and it didn't last long). 2: Personally, it's too restrictive as I like playing a variety of song styles in a set. 3: Whether or not I like the act being tributed, I have the utmost respect for those of do put the effort in and do it well. 4: Most of the venues we played (South Wales clubs booked by an agent) didn't really want a whole night of one band's songs and we were often asked to add a few 'extra curricula' songs in the second half. I'm not sure that at our level a full tribute act is realistic. Having done it once, would you do it again? If so, would the musical angle be very different? Good question. I guess I wouldn't count it out completely but it would depend on circumstances - mainly the people in the band with me. I think my preference would be to do a genre tribute rather than a band tribute, and only with band members who i know would commit to putting the effort in. I've just been told 'The Long Road' are gathering once again with the same singer and a bunch of new musicians. I was half expecting a phone call but it doesn't appeal to me and I'd say no.

Mine didn't.

Welcome to the site.

A new setlist with a new band - about 35 Blues and rock covers including Riders on the Storm, Mojo Working, Need Your Love So Bad and Nutbush City Limits. I love working on new stuff. And with the other outfit, as we're heading towards the Xmas season, we're about to ditch half the set in favour of festive classics. Oh Joy.😃 Maybe I can persuade them to do 'Christmas Wrapping' and 'Ring Out Solstice Bells'. 😃

Similarly I have one that has been with me for more than 10 years. In all that time, despite gigs, recording, rehearsals and practices that probably average out to around an hour a day, I have yet to wear away any finishes. It's picked up a few accidental dings along the way but nothing that would be noticeable from the front row. Maybe I don't sweat enough? I don't mind genuine wear and tear but I'm not interested in paying for it.